Buddha Dharma without a school?

toujour_333 said:
namaste,

does anyone know where i can find any information about Hotei? one of the many things that i have yet to delve into further is the other Buddhas and bodhisattvas, however i have read a bit on the bodhisattvas. was Hotei an actual Buddha or just a chinese bodhisattva? ive heard a bit of both really, but nothing conclusive. im sure it probably has a lot to do with the different schools and their thoughts on the matter
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Different cultures I think especially - in China many Taoist and traditional/folk deities have become synchretic with arhats boddhistavas and buddhas, much like saints in Christianity. Which is to say they may or may not bebased on real people though they usually are, but go on to take up attributes and symbols very like old Gods. Theres quite a thorough Wikipedia article under Hotei - I too have been meaning to do more research, particularly from the perspective of art and the diverse ways of representing the Buddha.
 
namaste no essential nature,

i actually decided to look at wikipedia after posting my reply since wikipedia has just about everything one needs to know on it. however, you are right, the article answered many of my questions about Hotei and his legacy. thank you for the response.

be well in peace
 
Namaste toujour,

thank you for the post.

Hotei is a Bodhisattva as we know that the next Buddha to arise in this world system is the Buddha Maitreya and the conditions for this arising are not and have not occurred.

a Bodhisattva is an Awakened and Liberated being the main difference between a Buddha and a Bodhisattva is not the degree of Awakening, per se, rather it is that a Buddha is able to completely expound the Dharma for all sentient beings to understand and a Bodhisattva is not.

the next Buddha to arise, Maitreya, is residing in the Tustia heaven which is where all Bodhisattvas dwell until they take their final rebirth as a Buddha.

whilst it is certainly interesting from an academic stand point, it has little to do with ones own practice ;) wouldn't you say?

metta,

~v
 
Just wanted to mention, Vajradhara, that I am always pleased and interested with the sometimes obscure knowledge of Buddhist cosmology that you concisely provide. Thank you for your posts.

-jiii
 
much like saints in Christianity.
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Did anyone know that Buddha Shakyamuni is actually a Catholic saint? I don't want to get in trouble plagarizing, so I will quote the whole section in ESSENTIAL BUDDHISM, A COMPLETE GUIDE TO BELIEFS AND PRACTICES by Jack MaGuire. Page 30 and 31:

Sometime early in the second millennium c.e., the Roman Catholic Church unwittingly made the Buddha a saint. It happened when a centuries-old hero named Josaphat was canonized. Church authorities knew him only by popular legend, but that's all it took back then, as long as the story was engrossing, inspiring, and doctrinally sound.
Josaphat's story qualified on all three counts. He was born to a royal couple in India, at which time it was prophesied that he would become a religious leader rather than succeeding his father as king. Determined to thwart this fate, the king wouldn't allow his son to leave the palace grounds for many years. Finally Josaphat did, and what he saw horrified him: the old, the sick, and the dead. Fortunately, he also encountered Barlaam, a Christian monk from Sri Lanka, whose wise counsel impressed him so much that he too brecame a monk.
Desperate to win Josaphat back, the king gave him half the kingdom to rule. Josaphat quickly turned this land into a model Christian state. His father was so moved by the results that he himself converted to Christianity. When he died shortly afterward, Josaphat refused to take the throne. Instead, he joined Barlaam as a wandering ascetic and performed many miracles before his peaceful and widely mourned death.
In Josaphat's legend, modern scholars recognize the story of the Buddha, which apparently shape-shifted as it traveled west from region to region. They attribute the name Josaphat to a linguistic contortion of the Buddha's title, Bodhisattva (in an earlier, Arabic version of Josaphat's story, his name was Yudasaf). Even the name Barlaam probably derives from the term Bhagavan (Blessed One), which is often bestowed in the Buddha. Thus Josaphat's story can be interpreted symbolically to describe Josaphat saving hmself-a truly Buddhist concept!
Although Josaphat is no longer liturgicallyh celebrated by the Catholic Church, his name remains in the Roman Martyrology, the official catalog of saints, and his day of worship is still listed as November 27. Because he was made a saint before the canonization process was reformed (1588),
 
namaste,

V- thanks for that interesting information. i do appreciate it. and your right, it doesnt have much to do with ones practice, per se. but i do find it rather interesting that these things exist. but thank you for 'enlightening' me on Hotei and Matrieya.

Bodhi- thanks for that quote as well. i had personally never heard of that saint, even though i went to catholic school for a short time. i guess that goes to show one the interbein of religions and religious concepts and practices, dont u think? also, did u get my reply message to your email?

be well in peace
 
jiii said:
Just wanted to mention, Vajradhara, that I am always pleased and interested with the sometimes obscure knowledge of Buddhist cosmology that you concisely provide. Thank you for your posts.

-jiii
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Namaste jiii,

thank you for the post and the kind words :)

my posts simply reflect my understanding, such that it is, of the topic at hand. if you derive any benefit from my words it is due to your own good karma ripening.

metta,

~v
 
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