The demi-gods and the gods also depict degrees of happiness and suffering. The damned tortured by fire or ice are as interesting as the damned portrayed in Christian artists such as Bruegel or Bosch. Although possessing large bloated stomachs, they will never satisfy their craving for food or quench their thirst with drink because of their extremely narrow throats. The hungry ghosts suffer from hunger and thirst, but will never be satisfied. Three realms depict some degree of happiness, the gods, the human, and the demi-gods three realms depict some degree of suffering, the hungry ghosts, the animals, and those punished in hell. Without going into too much detail, I love some of the explanations I’ve read and been told. These realms depict various heavens and hells. Proceeding clockwise, at the top is the realm of the gods, the realm of humans, the realm of the hungry ghosts (those who have died, but who wander not yet reborn), the realm of the damned, the realm of animals, and, finally, the realm of the demi-gods. Moving beyond the inner circle, we find a ring broken into six compartments depicting various realms of life. Yet, maybe the question of why the animals are associated with these particular traits is less important than the more important assertion that harmful behavior can be linked to desire, ignorance, and anger, the three “poisons.” Pigs certainly show more intelligence than other animals such as cattle. Having lived in farming communities for five years, I know that some livestock owners would say that pigs are definitely not dumb. While I can understand the Jewish and Muslim sources for their practices, I have more trouble with this Buddhist symbolism. Pigs have symbolized the impure as in the Jewish kosher rules and the Islamic prohibition to avoid pork, possibly because of pigs laying in the mud. Snakes have been a symbol of “tempting evil” as in the Genesis story or of transformation because of their shedding their skin. I can understand the rooster symbolism since they “angrily” defend their hens from threats I don’t understand the other two symbolisms. I’m not sure of the origin of these specific symbolisms. The standard interpretation is that the snake symbolizes desire the pig symbolizes ignorance the rooster symbolizes anger. The innermost circle contains three animals, a snake, a pig, and a rooster. This circle consists of several other circles and rings. I can stare at the first larger circle for a long time because of the proliferation of figures. While I can’t describe each of the three parts thoroughly, I can offer some description and interpretation. What is the purpose of the Wheel of Life mandala? From a Tibetan Buddhist perspective, the purpose is to gather and present themes about samsara, the cycles of life and death in one great pictorial narrative. The third part is a figure of the Buddha and a few other figures scattered around the edges of the mandala. Without being disrespectful, the figure is like a panda bear lying on its back chomping away on bamboo. A second part is a terrifying figure holding this larger circle. One part is the large circle crowded with many figures and images in smaller rings and circles. Along with the Life of the Buddha mandala and the geometric mandalas, the Wheel of Life mandala is one of the most widely used mandalas.Īlthough the colors vary in intensity and some figures are drawn more clearly than others, the Wheel of Life mandalas have three basic major parts. Whether on the left or on the right, the mandala, an artistic representation of key Tibetan Buddhist figures and themes, is displayed. Like a Greek Orthodox Church with required placement of specific Biblical figures on the iconostasis, a Tibetan Buddhist monastery will always have the Wheel of Life outside the dukhang, or main assembly hall. Here it is at Hemis here it is at Thiksey here it is at Lamayura here it is at Alchi. I gaze at the Wheel of Life mandala, the Bhavacakra, over and over again in Ladakh.
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