The Laughing Buddha is an Eastern Symbol of Prosperity

The Buddha most often referred to as “happy Buddha” or “laughing Buddha” is really a Chinese Zen monk who lived approximately 1000 years ago who has become a significant part of Buddhist lore. This celestial Buddha’s name was actually Hotei or Ho Tai.

He was known for his generosity and came to be seen as an incarnation of the bodhisattva, an enlightened being who has achieved Buddhahood. It’s believed he is a Maitreya or future Buddha who will someday return to Earth. His ample midsection and pleasant smile have given him the common name “laughing Buddha.”Laughing Buddha statuesare often seen in restaurants temples and businesses because he is the deity of contentment and prosperity.

You almost always see Ho Tai carrying a linen sack, always full with candy for children rice plants which symbolize wealth food or the suffering of the world. Much like Catholicism’s St. Nicholas, Ho Tai is the patron saint of children and the weak and the downtrodden.

happy buddha sculpture

Here are some of my favorite Buddha Sculptures around the world.

Some of the most amazing awe inspiring sculptures and carvings are out of the love and respect for the Buddha, the enlightened one.  Here are a few of my favorites.  Please add your own in the comments section or tell us about your travels to each of them.

The largest Buddha statue in the world is the Spring Temple Buddha in Lushan County, Henan, China. The statue stands 128 m (420 ft), high and comes with a 20 m (66 ft) lotus throne. If the 25 m (82 ft) pedestal/building is added, the height becomes 153 m (502 ft).

You can buy your own buddha sculptures from a small shop in Nepal… directly from your computer.  Contact Nabin with questions.

Construction

The statue was finished in 2002. The construction of the statue began after the Maitreya Project commenced. The initial cost was $55 million. The statue is comprised of 1,100 pieces of copper cast.

The weight is estimated to be 1,000 tons. Part of the reason the largest Buddha statue in the world was built was due to the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan.

Origin of the Name

The Spring Temple Buddha got its name from the Tianrui hot spring, where 60 C water is spewed out. The water is famous for its healing properties.

Other Giant Buddha Statues

The Great Buddha statue in Bodhgaya, Bihar is 25 m (82 ft) high and depicts the Buddha in a sitting position. It is one of the oldest and most renowned of the Buddha statues in India.

The Leshan Giant Buddha is the biggest carved stone Buddha on the planet. The Buddha is carved from the Lingyun Mountain. It is situated around the Dadu, Minjiang, and Qingyi rivers in Sichuan in China.

One of the largest Buddha statues in the world, it is 71 m (230 ft) high and 28 m (92 ft) wide between its shoulders. The head is 14.7 m (48 ft) high. A hundred people can sit at the Buddha’s head.

The Great Buddha in Thailand

This statue is 92 m (300 ft) high and 63 m (210 ft) wide. Construction began n 1990 and was completed in 2008. It is in Wat Muang, Aung Thong in Thailand.

The statue is made of concrete cement and is painted gold. Its official name is Mahaminh Sakayamunee Visejchaicharn. There is another Buddha statue in Phuket, Thailand. Called the Phra Puttamingmongkol Akenakkiri Buddha, it is 45 m (150 ft) high.

Buddha Statues in China and Japan

One of the largest Buddha statues in the world is the Lingshan Buddha in Jiangsu, China. The copper statue is 87 m (290 ft) high. The Great Buddha of Kamakura in Kamakura City, Japan is 11.5 m (38 ft) high and weighs 124 tons. The official name is Kondo-Amida-Nyorai-Zo.

The Great Buddha of Nara in Nara, Japan is 15 m (49 ft) high. It is made of copper. The official name is Rushanabutsu. The Yungang Buddha is in Shan-Xi, China. It stands 17 m (56 ft). The Longmen Buddha is also 17 m (56 ft) tall. It is found in Henan, China. It is made of stone.

The Tian Tan Buddha or Big Buddha, is a bronze statue. It is in Ngong Ping, Lantau Island, in Hong Kong. It stands 34 meters (110 ft) tall and weighs 250 metric tons. There are many others, but the Spring Temple remains the largest Buddha statue in the world today.

A Short History of Buddhism in Thailand:

The Thai form of Buddhism is sometimes called Lankavamsa (meaning Singhalese or Sri Lankan lineage) because it was introduced to the 13th century Sukhothai Kingdom by monks from Sri Lanka, at the time that Sukhothai was the capital of what was to become modern Thailand. This form of Buddhism grew as the Sukhothai Kingdom expanded over Northern and Central Thailand.

However, Ayuthaya in central Thailand grew into a powerful kingdom, and eventually annexed Sukhothai in 1376. The Thai Kings of Ayuthaya made conquests over areas of central Thailand formerly held by the Khmer empire, which had been practicing a blend of Buddhism and Hinduism much more akin to Mahayana Buddhism than to the Sri Lankan form. The Ayuthaya kings incorporated many of these beliefs into the Buddhism they had inherited from Sukhothai. This has had a lasting effect on Thai Buddhism to this day.

It is ironic to note that during Dutch persecution in Sri Lanka during the 18th century, the ordination lineage broke down. It was Thailand (then known as Siam) that restored the Sangha (brotherhood of monks) in Sri Lanka. Hence, the main sect of Buddhism in Sri Lanka is known as Siam Nikaya (meaning Siam Sect).

The Two Main Nikayas (or sects) of Buddhism in Thailand:

The Sangha in Thailand is broken down into two main Nikayas. The first is the Maha Nikai, and the second is the Thammayut Nikai. The later was formed by King Mongut (Rama IV, who most Westerners know from the historically inaccurate “The King and I”). This was patterned after an earlier Mon form of monastic discipline, which had been practised by King Mongut before he ascended the Thai throne.

In general, discipline is stronger for Thammayut Nikai monks, being allowed to eat only one meal a day and only that which is offered to them in their alms bowls. They are also expected to be proficient in both meditation and scripture study. The Thammayut Nikai makes up only about 3% of the total Buddhist Sangha in Thailand

A Buddha Statute or Buddha Statues and Buddhist are usually formed after a mudra, this sculptures are creative pieces of art work made from marble, jade, wood or masonry.

It is a way to express the faith in Buddhism via a piece of art. Buddha statues almost always come in a realistic depiction its rather seldom in a abstract form. If the Buddha is somehow rendered in a abstract for its almost always a painting. The material to create a beautiful Buddha statue is mainly marble, wood, brass and bronze, if enough money is available a jade Buddha statue could be done, jade Buddha this days are usually created from white and lavender jade, excellent green jade is only used with small statues. Using wood as a material for a Buddha statue is probably the preferred method if details should be show since it is hard to beat wood carvings for this. Reclining Buddha statues are often seen at pagodas and Buddhist monasteries.

A Buddha statue made from wood are also more prominent if a touch of a real detailed depicted art is the target. Various kinds of wood are used to make Buddha statues, there is cheap soft wood and more expensive hard wood such as teak.

Actually in Myanmar they often take teak wood and marble plus other materials such as jade to create a beautiful Buddha statue, since teakwood is very durable, sometimes sandalwood and rosewood is used, sandalwood is very expensive and is only used for small figurines.

Marble Buddha statues

are also looking good, people even use them as garden Buddha statues, to give a exotic and beautiful touch to the surrounding