“The Giant Buddha, Taiwan,” Print, 8″x11″, $5.85 Ea

Here is an image of the free-standing Giant Buddha which is about 120 feet tall located on the hilltop of Fo Guang Shan (or Buddha’s Light Mountain) in Da-shu (or Giant Tree) District of Kaohsiung City, Taiwan. Fo Guang Shan, founded in 1967 by Venerable Master Hsing Yun , emblematizes the Master’s vision of a Humanistic Buddhism. Fo Guang Shan, encompassing over 600 acres, includes a splendid temple, monastery, Buddhist college, museum and more. The famous Fo Guang Shan is the home of its hundreds of branch temples around the world. It is the ideal of Master Hsing Yun to propagate Humanistic Buddhism and to build a pure land on earth. One of its branch temples is Hsi Lai Temple (or Coming West Temple), which is located in Hacienda Heights, Los Angeles County, California. Hsi Lai Temple was completed in 1988 and its cost was more than 30 million dollars, and it is the largest Buddhist temple in the western hemisphere. The hand positions of Buddha have specific meanings that represent the Buddha’s activities. Here, the Buddha’s right hand is raised in the gesture of “no fear,” this indicates that he is offering “protection” to his followers. Although sometimes seen on seated Buddhas, this gesture of “no fear” is more common on standing Buddhas. His left hand gesture signifies his offering of “blessing.” The sense of compassion, generosity, wisdom, harmony and beauty conveyed in this Giant Buddha makes one feel calm and serene. Master Hsing Yun said: “A life that comes with joy and sorrow is full. A life that comes with success and failure is reasonable. A life that comes with gains and losses is fair. And, a life that comes with birth and death is natural.”