"A big belly can tolerate things that are difficult to tolerate in the world, and a smile can always make people laugh at the ridiculous people in the world."
When we see this couplet, we can always think of Maitreya Buddha , that cute and naive image with a smile on his face. When we enter the mountain gate, the first thing we see is a majestic hall. This main hall is called the Hall of Heavenly Kings, and the person enshrined in it is none other than Maitreya Buddha.
Around Maitreya Buddha, the four heavenly kings are enshrined, namely Zhiguo, Zengzeng, Guangmu and Duowen. Because the treasures they hold are pipa, sword, umbrella and snake, some people also represent "good weather".
Maitreya Buddha plays a very important role in Buddhism.
What does " Maitreya " mean? This name, of course, comes from Sanskrit . It means to be kind and compassionate, to save all sentient beings, and thus bring joy to everyone. Maitreya Buddha has great influence among the people, not only because of his amiable smile, but also because of his special identity.
In Buddhism, there is a saying that there are three generations and one Buddha. Spatially speaking, there is the Medicine Buddha in the glazed world in the east, the Tathagata Buddha in the central whirling world, and the Amitabha Buddha in the paradise world in the west. In terms of time, there are the past Buddha , the lamp-burning Buddha , the present Buddha Tathagata, and the future Buddha Maitreya Buddha. In other words, Maitreya Buddha is the successor of Sakyamuni Buddha.
In fact, before our fifth generation , the image of Maitreya Buddha was not a smiling image with a big belly that could accommodate the world's affairs. During the Five Dynasties period, there was an eminent monk named Qi Shi in Fenghua area of Zhejiang Province, named Changtingzi . This old monk bares his chest and belly, always smiles, is humorous and smart, is always kind to others, and is deeply loved by the people. Because he wears a cloth bag all year round, people also affectionately call him Budai Monk .
During the Five Dynasties Later Liang period, Budai monk passed away and left a verse: "Maitreya is the true Maitreya, with tens of billions of incarnations; he always shows it to the world, but no one knows it." Therefore, people regard Budai monk as the incarnation of Maitreya Buddha. From then on, Maitreya Buddha became the image of a Budai monk with a big belly and a smiling face.
"Great measure, great blessing" is the best annotation for the image of Maitreya Buddha. It always reminds people not to fight to the death for petty gains in the world, but to tolerate the world and have the world in mind.
Budai monk also has a poem that expresses this mentality more vividly: "Pinch the green seedlings with your hands to plant a blessed field, and when you lower your head, you can see the sky in the water; only six clear breasts can make rice. Regress turns out to be forward."
Isn't this what we are? Modern people learn a tolerant mentality.
