Why does Buddhism use lotus flowers? Why did the Buddha use the lotus flower?

Wang Zumin once wrote an article "The Chinese Cultural Significance of the Lotus Imagery", which said: Stepping into the temple, the Bodhisattva with low eyebrows and a smile is on the lotus seat; Guanyin, who rescued the suffering, stepped on the flowers and sprinkled the rain on the fire house. The good books printed in the dojo are readily available in the arcade outside the storefront, and the red lotus on the cover is accompanied by low-hanging lotus leaves, which is less gorgeous and beautiful in the lake and pond, and more kind and holy.

The lotus seat is known as a symbol of Indian Buddhism, but the oldest lotus symbol is probably part of ancient Egyptian mythology. The ancient Egyptians believed that the sun was a golden child, rising from a lotus flower in water every day, so the lotus flower in ancient Egypt means reincarnation and resurrection, and another symbolic meaning of the lotus flower is reproduction. This symbol was finalized in Egypt long before Buddhism was created.

In particular, a kind of blue lotus flower is often used in various artistic shapes of ancient Egypt because of its medicinal value of immortality. So when we see some lotus shapes in some remote minority areas, we can't take it for granted that they come from Buddhist influence, and it is likely that they came directly from Egypt.

Contamination .........Thing .........No .........Thing .........Empty empty ......Finish.

1. The meaning of the lotus flower.

Lotus is a symbol of beauty, purity, has the characteristics of "out of the mud and not stained", in Buddhism, the life is compared to the sea of suffering, hoping that people can be liberated and reach the pure land, which requires people to have good in their hearts, do more good deeds, so as to embark on the road of practice and epiphany to become a Buddha, just like the lotus flower, out of the mud without staining, in the mud bloom the most colorful flowers.

At the same time, although the lotus flower is born in the mud, it keeps the body and mind clean, and sets an example for the practitioner, so that the practitioner can achieve inner purity, so that he can devote himself to cultivation and move towards the ultimate path to liberation.

2. The symbol of the lotus flower.

The lotus flower blooms in the summer, and the summer is the hot weather, people are irritable, see the lotus can let their hearts get a kind of purity, so as to eliminate their own heart of envy troubles, so the lotus in Buddhism symbolizes beauty, nobility, this is not what Buddhism says "giving"? Give up the greed, hatred, and ignorance in your heart. In this way, we can get the peace and tranquility in our hearts, so that we can live and die and be liberated.

3. The expression of the lotus flower.

The lotus flower is a state of wisdom, and Buddhism believes that the saint is the incarnation of the lotus flower, with incomparably special merits, and is a symbol of the Dharmakaya and retribution.

Fourth, the lotus flower is a metaphor for the Buddha.

After Shakyamuni Buddha established Buddhism, in order to make people more intuitive to accept the teachings of Buddhism, he compared the lotus flower to the Buddha, as the so-called: "a flower and a world, see the flower to see auspicious, see the flower as to see the Buddha."

Buddhism often says that "flowers bloom to see Buddha nature". This flower is the lotus, it can be seen that the relationship between the lotus and Buddhism is inseparable, and Buddhism also enshrines the lotus flower as a teaching flower, in order to learn the pure heart of the lotus flower and the characteristics of not staining out of the mud, and at the same time to guide people to accumulate virtue and do good, and have good in their hearts, so that their hearts are peaceful, and they are liberated from life and death.