Sleeping Buddha - Bangkok

Don't miss to visit a big sleeping buddha statue inside the Wat Po if you are roam around Bangkok. The location is near Wat Arun, you just need cross the river and walk for some minute.

The statue of Sleeping Buddha here is realy huge. 15 m high and 43 m long with his right arm supporting the head with tight curls on two box-pillows of blue, richly encrusted with glass mosaics.The 3 m high and 4.5 m long foot of Buddha displays are inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

As im not a buddhist, i ask my self, why Buddha have sleeping position statue...?.

Here the story behind. The Sleeping Buddha is represent Sakyamuni on his death bed entering nirvana. Before the Buddha's death, he became severely sick. He walked northwest with his disciples and had the food offered by a blacksmith.

His illness was getting worse. In the end, he came to a river and took a bath. Then he made a rope bed among eight sal trees, with each direction has two. He lied on his side, right hand supporting his head, the other resting on his body. All later reclining Buddhas (called Buddha's Nirvana) are in the same posture.

The Buddha's disciples kept watch on him after they were told the Buddha was going to nirvana. At night, a scholar of Brahman went to see the Buddha, but was stopped by Ananda, a disciple of the Buddha. Hearing this, the Buddha called the scholar to his bed and worded for him.

Sakyamuni died at the age of eighty years old. People excavated the vestige of the cremation of his remains and the reclining Buddha carved in stone at where he died in Kushinagar - India , hope i can visit someday :)

What make controversy right now is what the buddha eat so make him die and enter Nirvana. Manys say's Buddha eat non vegetarian food - Pork - sukara maddava (sukara = "pig," maddava = "mild, gentle, soft," also "withered"). It could therefore mean either "the tender parts of a pig" or "what pigs enjoy" like mushroom, favored truffles (which pig's love and are obtained by having pigs root for them)

Buddha die suddenly after eat the food. Was food poisoning the cause of the illness? It seems unlikely. The symptoms described do not indicate food poisoning, which can be very acute, but would hardly cause diarrhoea with blood. Usually, food poisoning caused by bacteria does not manifest itself immediately, but takes an incubation period of two to 12 hours to manifest itself, normally with acute diarrhoea and vomiting, but not the passage of blood. If we talk from the medical side.

For me, because the food or because another reason, Buddha die is destiny that written. His job to teach kindness to the human is already finished. That's why Nirvana call. To give place to him for rest in peace after spend whole of his life to serve around suffering.

What we can do now is to continued all the good teachings of the Buddha taught. Bring happiness to all creatures. Without conflict , differences and violance.

Because Kindness is One Language.

Rest In Peace Buddha...