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What’s a smart, 2022 way to celebrate the Buddha’s 1459th birthday?
By
Published: May 17, 2022
Category:
Spirituality
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If my math is correct, May 8th marked the Buddha’s 1459th birthday.
I’m usually smart about gift-giving, but I was stumped by this milestone. How do I honor an Enlightened Being who gifted us the most precious treasure of all: a way out of the cycle of pain, craving, suffering, and ignorance.
More correctly: how can I mark that day in a way that brings the Buddha’s gift to all who suffer today — and as I look around, that’s everyone I know, starting with me.
Americans are action people, disinclined to sit quietly and look within. So I looked for objects and processes that might be relevant to us now.
I recalled my long-ago interview with Thich Nhat Hahn:
JK: So many people think religion is heavy. You say: In every image, the Buddha is smiling.
TNH: Yes, because the Buddha confirmed that it is possible to live happily in the here and the now — even if you still have lots of pain and sorrow within yourself. Mindful breathing helps you become fully alive. And when you are really there, you can touch all the wonders of life that are available in this very moment for your enjoyment…for your nourishment…and for your healing.
So I looked for a smiling Buddha, as a reminder to lighten up. Lamentably, the Buddhas on Amazon zoom right past enigmatic smiles and have him laughing like a guy listening to illicit, un-woke jokes a few minutes before last call at the saloon.
I found a modern-as-tomorrow gift: a solar powered prayer wheel. It doesn’t require any effort from you — the sun does all the work. It’s shiny gold, of course, but it’s made out of plastic, and not as perfect as it ought to be. For that matter, buyers report that it stops working after a day or two. But as a dashboard ornament or desk enhancer, it’s at least a conversation piece. [To buy the Solar Prayer Energy Spinning Wheel for Car from Amazon, click here.]
A more traditional present: a prayer wheel. It’s 4 inches tall, 4 inches wide, bigger than a toy, not overwhelming on a desk. Amazon reviewers suggest a drop of 3-in-1 oil under the wheel stops the inevitable squeaking. The traditional prayer as you turn the wheel is “Om Mani Padme Hum” — “The jewel is in the lotus,” which is said to contain all of the Buddha’s teaching. Each turn is also said to be equivalent to the merit gained from completing a year-long retreat. I say: whatever you pray is a benefit because it takes your mind away from yourself and your petty concerns. [To buy the prayer wheel from Amazon, click here.]
I’m of the school that says there’s no gift better than a book, and if I were giving a book that delivers the Buddha’s message in digestible form, it would be “Siddhartha,” by Hermann Hesse. As you know, Siddhartha is the given name of the man who became the Buddha. That is not this story — Siddhartha will meet the Buddha, be impressed by his message, but he will reject him and move on, believing that no teacher can deliver self-knowledge. For this alone, the book is a service. “Nobody finds salvation through teachings,” Hesse writes. [To read about it on Head Butler and buy it on Amazon, click here.]
Someone has noted, “The Buddha did not worship the Buddha.” Knowing and understanding that may be his greatest gift.
