A Buddhist Shrine

Content

What is the purpose of making offerings to the Buddhas?

Is there a symbolic meaning to each offering?

Q: What is the purpose of a shrine?

A:A shrine reminds us of the qualities of the Buddhas, Dhamma and Sangha, thus inspiring us to develop their qualities. Some days we may feel agitated, angry or depressed. When we pass by a shrine in our homes or visit a temple, and see the peaceful figure of the Buddha, it helps us remember that there are beings who are peaceful and we can be like them. Automatically our minds settle down.

Q: Do Buddhists worship idols?

A:Not at all! A piece a clay is not the object of our worship. When people bow before the Buddha images, they recall the qualities of the enlightened beings and develop respect for their impartial love and compassion, generosity, ethical conduct, patience, joyous effort, concentration and wisdom. The statue reminds people of the qualities of the Buddhas, and they bow to those qualities, not the clay. In fact, it is not necessary to have a figure of the Buddha to bow before; we can remember the Buddha's qualities and develop respect without it. Showing respect to the Buddhas and their qualities inspires us to develop these extraordinary qualities ourselves. We become like the people we respect, so we take the loving-kindness and wisdom of the Buddhas as our example, we strive to become like them.

Q: What is the purpose of making offerings to the Buddhas?

A:We don't make offerings because the Buddhas need them. When someone has purified all defilements and enjoys the bliss that comes from wisdom, he or she certainly doesn't need an incense stick to be happy! Nor do we make offerings to win the Buddhas' favour. The Buddhas developed impartial love and compassion long ago and won't be swayed by flattery and bribery the way ordinary beings are! Making offerings helps us create positive potential or energy and develop our good qualities. At present, we have excessive attachment and miserliness. We tend to keep the biggest and best for ourselves and give the second best or something we don't want to others. But these self-centred attitudes make us feel poor and dissatisfied no matter how much we have. We constantly fear losing what little we do have. Such attitudes make us restless, and lead us to act dishonestly to get more things or to be unkind to others to protect what we have. One purpose of making offerings is to pacify these destructive habits of attachment and miserliness. When making an offering, it is best to do so without any feeling of loss or regret. By offering in this way, we habituate ourselves to the thought and action of giving. Thus, we come to feel rich when we give and take pleasure insharing good things with others. Since the Buddhas are the highest of all beings, it is worthwhile to make offerings to them. Here, we offer to the holy beings because we are attracted to their qualities. We should practice giving with a respectful and kind attitude.

Q: What is offered on the shrine?

A:Anything we consider beautiful can be offered. Traditional offerings are water, flowers, incense, light, perfume and food, but we can offer other things as well. Water is offered each morning and removed at the end of the day. It is thrown in a clean place or sprinkled over flowers and plants. Food that is offered should be removed from the shrine before it spoils. We may eat it or give it to others, although food that has been offered on the shrine is not generally fed to animals.

Q: Is there a symbolic meaning to each offering?

A:Yes. Flowers represent the qualities of the Buddhas, it also represent the impermanent nature of things, incense represents the fragrance of pure ethics. Light symbolises wisdom, and perfume represents confidence in the holy beings. Offering food is like offering the nourishment of meditative concentration.