Under the Bodhi Tree

I've been wondering why there are so many different Buddhas in Asia. I've seen plump Buddhas in China, skinny Buddhas in Thailand, and meditating (in the lotus position) Buddhas in India. What do they all mean?

I found out that there are three main types of Buddhism -- Mahayana (China, Korea, Japan), Theravada (Sri Lanka, Laos, Cambodia) and Tibetan (Tibet). Yet, despite the different "sects", all of them believe in Buddha as the teacher, the Four Noble Truths, the Eight Fold Path and Nirvana. There's also a kind of Buddhism that is blended with Hindu beliefs. I have two Thai Buddhist friends who don’t eat beef because the mother of the Hindu god they worship is a cow.

I visited Wat Pho (Wat means "temple" in Thai) in Bangkok which is famous for having the most number of Buddha images and the largest reclining Buddha in Thailand. The reclining Buddha was huge and its presence was intimidating.

The Buddha's eyes were slightly shut but his pupils still peered through his eyelids. As I walked under the Buddha, I felt as if his eyes were following me like the moon at night. On one side of the hall were small steel pots. Visitors can get coins at the entrance in exchange for a small donation for the temple. If visitors drop one coin in each pot until the end, Buddha will grant one wish.

Another Thai Buddhist ritual is placing golden leaves on the Buddha. This is considered as a sign of respect and a means to receive merit for requests from Buddha. This gold leaf is actually made out of real gold pounded to a sheet 0.000005 inches thin. Visitor can get a sheet of gold leaf, incense and sometimes a lotus flower from the caretaker by the temple entrance.

This post barely scratched the surface of Buddhism in Thailand. Buddhism is one of the many religions in Asia. The different beliefs, icons, images, and teachings brewing in the melting pot that is Asia make the experience of traveling richer.