In a small temple of north of Thailand’s ancient capital Sukotai, there once stood an ancient clay statue of Buddha. It was said to be there for more than 500 years and was revered for its sheer longevity. Violent storms, change of government, enemy invasion happened, they came and went, but the Buddha endured. One day in 1955, due to some restoration work in the temple a tool hit the statue so hard that a crack appeared. As the night fell, a monk saw some glitter from that crack. On removing the mud around the crack, it turned to be gold. Later the temple residents discovered that the whole statue was of gold.
Clay Buddha became Gold Buddha
It was most probably covered in plaster and clay, centuries ago, to protect during evil eyes of greedy enemies. It is now established by experts valuers that the gold used in the statue is the purest form of gold and weighs 5.5 tons (5500 kg). Today millions around the world visit this gold Buddha and pay their obesience. But not to see the glitter of gold but the message behind.
There is a golden Buddha inside us, which is pure, sparkling and magnificent.
But we have concealed it with a layer of fear guilt and doubt, perhaps to protect ourself from the outside world.
Haven’t we covered it with negative thinking and a poor self image of our real self.
We have forgotten that there is a golden Buddha inside us.
It is waiting to realise us of the the layers of clay we have plastered on it over the years.
It is begging us. It is begging to release it from captivity and the limitations we have imposed on it for so long.
There is golden Buddha inside every one of us. It wants to shine in all its glory. It wants to brighten the world with its magnificence.
Let go of the fear. Let go of the doubt. Let go of the guilt. Let go of the mistakes we have made in the past. Let go of all the experiences that have conditioned us. Let go of the clay, the mask we keep wearing.
Let go, just let go. And shine ! Know the truth, who you are !
Learnings from a visit to Bodhgaya, Bihar in November 2017.
With inputs from various divine souls, Dr Shivangi Maletia , Gargi Nanda, Jawahar V Israni, Shreeya Shree , Sadh Guru, Sri Sri Ravishankar, bk Shivani and Sir Sri …
Mukesh Bhatnagar
