One Lucky Soul: Dreaming That The Buddha Was Not Fat

Dreaming That The Buddha Was Not Fat by Omar Cherif, One Lucky Soul

The essential reason I initially started writing an article about dreams many moons ago is because I would get messages about things to come. Like repeatedly dreaming of losing my Cocker Spaniel Caramella months before finding out she was sick and had to be put down. Also Dreaming of the Accident Before it Happened is another one of those visions. Spooky, yes, but precognitive dreams are nothing new to humanity. By the time the piece developed to become an exposé then a “research paper”, I had learned how to better remember and record these fascinating subconscious adventures and insights. A year or so later some friends and I came to agree that the writings had become a book and the work on it was carried on.

The information is usually received during these semi-consciousness states right at the moment of waking up — known as Hypnopompic. But on rare occasions the transference may occur while drifting into sleep — known as Hypnagogic.

What was different about this particular hypnopompic dream is that it was simply a sentence or statement I awoke to one morning. It was the sound of an Orphic and somewhat familiar intuitive voice saying: “Buddha was not fat”. What? I knew there was something to the story and the curiosity led me to instantly look it up.

Indeed, the fat jolly Buddha is the not the Buddhism Buddha, but a different figure altogether. A bit of research showed that there is a widespread confusion, especially in the West, about two different figures: Siddhartha Gautama — The Buddha — who lived 2,600 years ago in India on one side and the Laughing Buddha — Budai or Pu-Tai or Hotei — who lived 1500 years ago in China on the other.

Writing about said dream herein, I was reminded by fun childhood memory from the summer of 1988 when this 10/11-year-old boy went with his maternal grandmother to visit his aunt in Los Angeles. After a few weeks there, we flew to Honolulu, Hawaii for five days. We were staying at the Sheraton Waikiki and, as I remember, all I wanted to do was to play Street-fighter arcade games.

Naturally, being tourists, and being with them older people, meant that we visited lots of shops and stores. This is where something began to repetitively happen. As my grandma, aunt, and uncle went about to check the merchandise, many of the Asian-looking sellers would come closer to me, hold one of my earlobes and start rubbing it gently as they smile and say “Ahhh, Good Luck. Good luck” with their distinctive English accent.

 You know how you see a cute child and stroke their hair with your hand? Well in Hawaii, it was always my ears.   As we all came to reckon, my full, meaty earlobe was indeed a sign of good luck as it was a reminder of the Buddha.

For the ancient Indians, I later learned, having large ears denoted that one is all-hearing and was attribute of a “Great Man”.   The Chinese believe it to be a sign of vitality and independence; that such people have the courage to do whatever they want in life. That is why we find that in most statues, sculptures, and paintings the Buddha is depicted with peculiarly long, dangling earlobes.

This however wasn’t the first time people notice or touch my earlobes, it was actually a known feature of mine within the family. In some later years, girls would jokingly tell me that if I were a girl, I would probably have many earrings.

On a much more hilarious note from the same Hawaii trip, here is a story about getting caught with nude playing cards by my aunt, which fittingly became part of the Early Memories Never Worded series.

My earlobes and I having fun during that U.S trip in 1989. This was an L.A
wedding related to the friends of my aunt when I had to rent a tuxedo.

Historically speaking, the ‘Buddhism’ Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, was born (likely in the fifth or sixth century BCE) a Hindu prince in Lumbini and raised in Kapilvastu — both located in today’s Nepal. The culture and tradition then and there was for men to display their wealth and prosperity on their ears. It is believed that he must have adorned large, heavy ear jewellery made of precious metals and stones, which may have resulted in stretching his ears.

After renouncing his royal hedonistic life The Buddha travelled throughout India, following yogis and gurus who taught asceticism. This included extreme exercise and self denial, which is how they quiet the urges of the body in order to master the mind into submission. He eventually surpassed all his teachers while starving himself for six years through deep meditations.

During that time he became almost like a skeleton, before renouncing extreme asceticism as well. He then sat down under a peepal (Bodhi) tree at Bodh Gaya and achieved Enlightenment. It is when he discovered the Buddhist Middle Way — a path of moderation away from the extremes of self-indulgence and self-mortification — which he began teaching. It is something more people ought to remember whenever feeling inclined to reach any extremism.

As such, being fat doesn’t even make sense. The dangling ears are one thing but being overweight is a totally different thing that contradicts all what is known about the Buddha.

So who was fat?

Along with the statue shown in the featured photo (right), this is another
Laughing Buddha I grew up seeing everyday at home.
Thank you Mother for snapping those shots.

The chubby happy Buddha with the large belly, as well as the even bigger earlobes, known as the “Laughing (Oriental) Buddha” we often come across in various places around the world is different from Siddhartha Gautama. In China, this jolly figure is known as Pu-Tai or Budai; and in Japan as Hotei.

  Nicknamed The Laughing Buddha, Budai is based on an eccentric Chinese Buddhist monk and Zen master who lived over a thousand years ago. He was a generous and jovial man who did not speak much. However, he remains exclusive to Chinese Buddhism in addition to Shinto culture.   In Chinese folklore, Budai was later upgraded to a deity. And again, being fat represents wealth, prosperity, and good luck.

While “Buddha” means “The Awakened One” or “The Enlightened One”, “Budai” humbly translates into “Cloth Sack” — reference to the one he would wear, from which he pulled rice plants among other foods and also candy for children.

Next time you’re in a Chinese restaurant and find a statue or an illustration of The Laughing Buddha, remember that he’s not The Buddha, the founder of the Buddhist philosophy. Don’t forget to touch his earlobes for good luck though. Or I can let you touch mine if you can show you have good intentions.

Lastly, here is a collage made up of four different sculptures I came across and photographed during my U.S tour — originally made for a post titled Desiring Not To Desire Is Still Desire.  While the top left was captured at the Art Institute of Chicago, the other three bronze ones at the Denver Art Museum.

Using my own photos for articles on here or even for Facebook posts turned out to be a highly convenient way to avoid copyright issues. I only came close twice in those past 15 years of publication and ever since decided to be mindful. They likewise seem to add more uniqueness and authenticity to the writings... or so both Buddhas would have concurred.

*(Top L.) Buddha Seated in Meditation — Dhyanamudra India, Tamil Nadu,
Nagapattinam Chola period, c. 12th Century Granite
*(Top R.): Seated Buddha — Cambodia, Khmer Empire, 1000s
*(Bottom L.): Seated Buddha — Myanmar [Burma] 1876
*(Bottom R.): Seated Buddha — Thailand, Lanna kingdom 1400s