Buddha Figure

Antique Chinese Green Stone Buddha Figure Wood Stand
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US $262.25

IMPORTANT OLD PORCELAIN PAINTED FIGURE OF GUANYIN W A KID BUDDHA GOOD CONDITION
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US $209.50

Stone Buddha Collection Lotus Flowers 5 carved figures
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US $38.95

Sitting Buddha ivory composite plastic figure figurine w erotic scene underneath
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US $29.99

NR Vintage Solid Wood Carved 6 1 4 Buddha Indian India Figure Statue
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US $19.99

blessed small Buddha figure from the Temple
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US $9.90

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Where does the fat buddha come from?

Buddha started out as a skinny figure, as is seen as that in India, where Buddhism started, so where does the fat figure come from? and I also heard something about rubbing his stomach giving you good luck, so where does that come from too?

Budai, pronounced Hotei in Japanese, is a Chinese folkloric deity. His name is Chinese for Calico Bag, after the bag that he carries. He is almost always shown smiling or laughing, hence his nickname in Chinese, the Laughing Buddha. In the English speaking countries, he is popularly known also as the Fat Buddha.

His figure appears throughout Chinese culture as a representation of contentment. His image graces many temples, restaurants, amulets, and businesses.

However, the "Fat Buddha" is not the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, and strictly speaking the statue is not an idol. Buddha means "one who has achieved a state of perfect enlightenment" and there are several people who have been given the title. Gautama lived from around B.C. 560 to B.C. 480, it was not until around 127 BC that statues actually depicting him became prevalent. Before that, and still today, statues of the Bodhi Tree and other objects associated with his life were common. Of course by then nobody knew what he really looked like, he was from a noble family and had been described as tall, slender, and of "manly build", but that may have been just because that is what people expected "Nobles" to look like, we still expect that today, few movie heroes are short and squat.

The theory held by most Buddhist scholars is the statue represents a sagely Zen monk who appeared in China around 850 CE and died in 916 CE. He said his name was "Knowing This" (ChiChe). No one knew where he came from, he carried a big fat bag and was famous for his fat belly. When asked how to obtain nirvana he would lay down the bag, not saying a word. When asked about what happened after reaching nirvana, he would pick up the bag and walk away, still not uttering a word. It is pretty much accepted that such a monk existed. He is probably the inspiration for Fat Buddha, as the statues began appearing in the late 9th century, 1200 years after the Gautama's death.

At any rate, rubbing the belly of a fat Buddha statue is not a prayer or idolatrous it's just a more or less superstitious habit and the rubber may or may not really believe it any more than someone knocking on wood or tossing salt.

The Laughing Buddha Statue - Music If I Laugh Cat Stevens