| The statues and figurines of Buddha we see all around | | | | Buddha's passage into death or Nirvana, as the |
| us are the statues of Shakyamuni Siddhartha | | | | disciples, angles and gods bade farewell to never |
| Gautama the "Buddha" who was born in Kapilavastu, | | | | returner Shakyamuni Buddha. Medicine Buddha statue |
| an ancient province of Nepal, as the son of king | | | | symbolizes the belief that Buddha parted knowledge |
| Suddhodana and Queen Maya Devi. The Queen had | | | | on medicine along with spiritual guidance. |
| few auspicious dreams before the lord entered her | | | | The Mudras or postures of Hands of the Shakyamuni |
| womb from the Tushita heaven. | | | | Buddha figures are either in abhaya (Fearlessness), |
| As Prince Siddhartha Gautama came to the age 28 | | | | Dhyana (meditation), Dharmachakra Parivartana |
| he renounced the kingdom and lived the life of a | | | | (turning of the wheel of Dharma or doctrine or religion) |
| mendicant. He sought and attained enlightenment in six | | | | and Bhumisparsa (calling the earth goddess to witness |
| years under a pipala tree and became a Buddha, in | | | | the touching of the earth by the right hand) |
| Bodhgaya. After enlightenment he uttered this stanza: | | | | Buddha statues are hand made and thus they are |
| "Through many births I have passed the builder of the | | | | artisan's labour of Love, or a loving heart and moving |
| house of pain is gone and I am free from any more | | | | hands giving them shapes in definite postures. The |
| births" | | | | earliest representations of Buddha were mounds |
| Shakyamuni Buddha preached dharma through out his | | | | erected on the relics of Buddha, also known as |
| life and the light of the world had gone out and lord | | | | "Stupa". The external decorations on the stupas |
| passed away into Nirvana at an old age of over 80. | | | | display the entire life of the Buddha from leaving home |
| Talking of Buddha statues & figurines, the statues of | | | | to enlightenment and to Mahaparinirvana. |
| Buddha are found in a wide variety of poses, the most | | | | The largest and tallest Buddha statues were found in |
| common of all the type is the sitting Buddha statue in a | | | | Afghanistan which were colossal in size and have |
| lotus position. The posture displays inner and outer | | | | been much recently destroyed by the Taliban's. The |
| balance and tranquillity. In meditating Buddha statues | | | | Statues of Buddha in Nepal are generally made out of |
| the posture of the hand or the mudra, have the fingers | | | | gold, granite, bronze, copper, brass, resin, silver, ceramic, |
| of the right hand resting lightly on the left as they lay in | | | | wood, etc. And, they are put on sale in a fine work of |
| the enlightened one's lap and legs are crossed in a | | | | display in Thamel and Durbar Square in the ancient city |
| Lotus position. Many Buddha statues sit on a pedestal | | | | of Kathmandu in Nepal or sold in various online Buddha |
| in a lotus blossom which represents the enlightened | | | | Statues store like at wholesale or retail. The standing |
| being or emptiness. | | | | Buddha statues with flowering robes is also common. |
| Another posture is the Abhaya mudra in which the | | | | And Buddha heads and hands are also found for sale. |
| right hand is raised and is the gesture of dispelling fear. | | | | All these meanings behind the Buddha statues bring |
| Statues calling the earth to bear witness are | | | | forth the memories of the enlightened master who |
| represented by postures where the right hand is | | | | once walked upon this earth 2500 years ago. In other |
| touching the earth below, which displays total faith. | | | | words they are reminiscences of the "Grand Master". |
| And, finally the reclining Buddha statue represents | | | | |