And down the loaded air there comes,The thunder of Thibetan drums,And droned-"Om mane padme oms"- A world's width from Kamakura. - Rudyard Kipling
This Buddha is no ordinary Buddha (although I bet there's really no such thing as an ordinary Buddha). This Buddha is known as Daibutsu and apart from being Unesco World Heritage Site and a National Treasure Daibutsu is over 13 metres tall and weighs in at just over 121 tonnes. (See those little orange things? Those are some damn big oranges!). I will have a post lined up about my visit to Kamakura to see this incredible Buddha but I wanted to share him with you early as he has become a bit of a gift for two people in my life.
It was recently my boyfriend's 25th birthday. This is considered an unlucky birthday in Japan known as Yakudoshi. A year of calamity stemming from the idea that this is a year that boys must step up and become men (hence calamity haha!). In order to prepare for this men must worship at temples and ask for Buddha's protection. Thus bringing a little Buddha into his life seemed like a good idea after I learnt about this!
More sentimentally I am not a religious person but I'm not an atheist and so I took the time to be swept up in the atmosphere found in the surrounding grounds of Kotoku-in as a sign to pray that my late step-grandmother is now at peace.
He's a great little piece that I'm chuffed with and worked hard on and he means a lot to me. So while I work on making some prints of my own I made a few things available in my Society6 featuring Daibutsu the Kamakura Buddha so you can bring some peace into your life or hopefully pass some on to others.
It was recently my boyfriend's 25th birthday. This is considered an unlucky birthday in Japan known as Yakudoshi. A year of calamity stemming from the idea that this is a year that boys must step up and become men (hence calamity haha!). In order to prepare for this men must worship at temples and ask for Buddha's protection. Thus bringing a little Buddha into his life seemed like a good idea after I learnt about this!
More sentimentally I am not a religious person but I'm not an atheist and so I took the time to be swept up in the atmosphere found in the surrounding grounds of Kotoku-in as a sign to pray that my late step-grandmother is now at peace.
He's a great little piece that I'm chuffed with and worked hard on and he means a lot to me. So while I work on making some prints of my own I made a few things available in my Society6 featuring Daibutsu the Kamakura Buddha so you can bring some peace into your life or hopefully pass some on to others.
"A tourist-show, a legend told,
A rusting bulk of bronze and gold,
So much, and scarce so much, ye hold
The meaning of Kamakura?"
-taken from Rudyard Kipling's "Buddha at Kamakura"
The meaning of Kamakura?"
-taken from Rudyard Kipling's "Buddha at Kamakura"
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