Katherine Stier's Rubin Museum Project
Katherine Stier
04/19/2017
Rubin Museum Project
The Wheel of Life is also referred to as The Wheel of Existence (Himalayan Art, 2017). The Wheel of Life can be found painted in the entrances of most Buddhist temples, and is used as a visual aid in the “Buddhist world that explains the cyclical process of life, death, and rebirth (samsara)” (The Rubin, HAR65356). The red figure holding the wheel is thought to be either a “demon of death” or the “lord of death”. The dark figure is wearing a crown of skulls, and has its teeth sinking into the wheel, which is thought to represent the impermanence of everything in existence. The lord of death can swallow everything in one moment, reminding us that nothing in life is constant. (Himalayan Art, 2017). The center of the wheel uses three animals to portray “poisons” on existence, which are “a black pig (ignorance), snake (anger) and a rooster (desire)”. There’s also a visual representation of karma in the surrounding circle, which shows the cycle of one’s actions and its consequences (Himalayan Art, 2017).
Outside of the circle that represents karma is “a circle of five sections portraying the six realms of existence; god, asura (anti-gods), human, animal, ghost (preta) and hell” (Himalayan Art Museum, 2017). The wheel of life is divided into different sections that represent each living being that is currently bound to the cycle of samsara. In addition to the obvious representation of humans and animals, there are gods displayed as well. Specifically, we can see “The King of Judgement (the Law of Karma) holding a stick in the right hand and a mirror in the left to reflect the actions (and consequences) performed by each individual that comes before him” (Himalayan Art, 2017). As we move outwards of the circle, the next layer consists of visual representations of the Twelve Links of Dependent Arising. Outside of the wheel, the hell realms are depicted with Yama, the lord of death, who technically lives in the “Realm of Ghosts”, but is connected to hell through karma (Himalayan Art, 2017).
The Wheel of Life highlights the doctrine of samsara. Samsara is the cycle of “repeatedly experiencing aging, decay, suffering, death, and painful states of rebirth” until nirvana is reached (Hamilton, 77). We can see the numerous cycles of life and stages of enlightenment represented throughout The Wheel of Life. Being liberated from samsara can’t be achieved without improving your karma. In order to improve karma, we must make morally conscience decisions that mirror the teachings of The Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Path. The only way to free ourselves from the cycle of samsara is to reach nirvana. We can only reach nirvana if we become conscious of how to
break the habits that lead to the continuation of samsara. In The Wheel of Life, the stages of enlightenment are depicted to remind us to not become distracted by desire, greed, and anger. If we’re conscious enough to remember that detaching ourselves from those poisons can inevitably break the cycle of samsara, we’re that much closer to reaching nirvana. These different stages of enlightenment and the actions that either move us closer to or farther from nirvana are represented through the different sections of the wheel.
I think The Wheel of Life was painted at the entrances of temples as a way for people to reflect on the cycle they are currently in and trying to be liberated from. The demon holding the wheel is a representation of the end of samsara through the end of existence, ultimately representing impermanence. Alternatively, I think the demon can also be interpreted as evil’s role in the continuation of samsara. Since the demon looks like it has a tight grip on the wheel, I think of it as how living an unconscious or evil life has full control on the cycle of samsara. If we become aware of how evil is in control of the cycle we are trying to liberate ourselves from, we are one step closer from separating ourselves from the demons that have their grip on us.
Samsara is found in both Hinduism and Buddhism. In both religions, the definition of samsara is the same- “the karma-run wheel of life, death, and rebirth” (Hamilton, 43). Buddhism shares some of the same core values as Hinduism, and in this case both religions believe in samsara through karma and reincarnation. Hinduism and Buddhism are both religions that work towards liberation of the cycle of samsara through karmic actions. This makes both religions extremely similar when analyzing them from a general lens.
To reach enlightenment in Hinduism is referred to as achieving moksha, while in Buddhism it’s referred to as achieving nirvana. Both moksha and nirvana are thought to be states of spiritual enlightenment. Although Hinduism and Buddhism both believe in liberation from Samsara, their beliefs of who can reach enlightenment greatly differ. In Buddhism, enlightenment can be achieved by anyone. “The Sangha- the monastic order that developed from the Buddha’s early disciples- accepted people from all castes and levels of society” (Hamilton, 72). While Buddhism believed that liberation from samsara could be achieved by anyone, regardless of social class, Hinduism varies from this belief. In Hinduism, you must end the cycle of samsara and can only reach moksha by “leveling up” through the caste system. In Hinduism, your caste dictates your role in society, and restricts your capabilities of achieving moksha, depending on your caste status. For example, if you’re classified as an “untouchable”, you must work towards gaining good karma throughout an unknown amount of years in the cycle of samsara. If you continue to earn good karma, you will eventually escalate throughout the caste system. Although following them isn’t necessary in order to achieve enlightenment, the Buddha gave guidelines to breaking the cycle of samsara known as The Four Noble Truths and The Eightfold Path, which anyone could follow as a means for liberation from samsara.
Through my perspective, Buddhism is a religion. While it’s unique from other religions in that it doesn’t focus on worshipping a god in order to achieve enlightenment, but rather teaches how to live a life that enables you to liberate yourself from dissatisfaction, Buddhism is still a set of practices and beliefs that are used in order to achieve a state of mind that surpasses our human comprehension. The fact that there are Buddhist temples and relics that are worshipped by Buddhists. In the PBS documentary, The Buddha, they tell the story of how Siddhartha became enlightened. The lord of desire, Mara, attempts to challenge Siddhartha in order to stop him from becoming enlightened. Through meditation, Siddhartha defeats Mara by staying true to his state of equilibrium (Grubin, 2010). These references to spiritual experiences involving demons and dark lords contributes to my belief that Buddhism is a religion, because they describe the aspects of The Seven Dimensions of Religion in regards to narrative and mythic and rituals.
Through the activities in this project, I learned a lot about the ways religion and philosophy intertwine. It was difficult for me to distinguish whether or not Buddhism was a religion or a philosophy, when I realized that it exemplifies both. Being born a Catholic, my idea of religion always revolved around worshipping a god in order to gain eterenal happiness. Buddhism taught me that religion can help yopu uncover your oown path to happiness, or in this case enlightenment. I love the theme of acceptance that we find in Buddhism. Accepting your fate as impermanent, accepting your desire as the root of dissatisfaction, and accepting that you are in control of your own liberation are some values that I learned throughout this project.
Works Cited
Hamilton, Sue. Indian Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction. New Delhi: Oxford UP, 2009. Print.
Item: Wheel of Life. Himalayan Art Resources Inc., n.d. Web. 12 Apr. 2017. <http://www.himalayanart.org/items/591>.
The Buddha. Directed by David Grubin, narrated by Richard Gere, PBS, 2010.
"Wheel of Existence Early 20th Century." The Rubin Museum of Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2017. <http://rubinmuseum.org/collection/artwork/wheel-of-existence>.
Buddhism is a religion! This is something we can both agree on for similar reasons. I agreed with most of your statements, specifically the part where you said that although there is no God, the religion itself has a set of practice and beliefs and that is one of the more essential parts that make up a religion. The only part that caught me off guard was the part where you said “ While it’s unique from other religions in that it doesn’t focus on worshipping a god in order to achieve enlightenment”, I myself don’t believe that the main focus of other religions is achieving enlightenment, or going to heaven or hell, other religions are focused on what you do while you are alive, there’s not necessarily a rigid code of conduct but rather has practices intense to benefit the follower. But I do agree that unlike most religions involving worshipping and a set of punishments, Buddhism, is more about spirituality and self.
ReplyDeleteWhen I mentioned how people in other religions worship god to obtain "enlightenment", I meant that people in Abrahamic religions worship God and follow doctrines because they don't want to go to hell, they want to go to heaven, and I feel as though belief in enlightenment and belief in heaven are similar,concepts. It’s true that religion has other purposes in life, but I have to disagree with the statement that heaven and hell is not a main focus of other religions. For instance, what is the difference between a genuinely good person who isn’t religious and a morally good person who is religious? The religious person feels that worshiping and believing in God, whether it’s Jesus or Allah, will get them into heaven. If we know that being a morally good person doesn’t require believing in God, and some religions believe that not accepting God as your lord and savior will damn you to hell, we can claim that longing for the existence of a heaven and fearing the existence of hell is one of the key reasons why people follow religions.
DeleteWith that being said, I’ve actually changed my stance since having written The Rubin Museum Project. Even though there are Buddha relics, Buddhist temples, and communities that consist of Buddhists of all levels of spiritual liberation, I no longer consider it a religion, but rather a philosophy. I looked back in the course reader to read again about what religion means, and the first definition shown is by The Oxford English Dictionary, which defines religion as “recognition on the part of man of some higher unseen power as having control of his destiny, and as being entitled to obedience, and worship.” Buddhism is the opposite of this definition. Instead of believing that God is in control of your life, Buddhism teaches that you are the only one in control of yourself. Buddhism is a philosophy that is used to find balance, closure, meaning, and perspective of one’s life, and provides a way to attain peace within ourselves. Even though the goal of Buddhism is to become liberated and reach nirvana, Buddhists don’t concentrate on what actually happens in nirvana. Also, unlike Abrahamic traditions, Buddhism is not concerned with what created the universe, as they feel there is no purpose of knowing someone that can’t be altered.
ReplyDeleteOf the many moral debates I’ve had with myself regarding the reasons anyone would believe in God, there’s a question I’ve stressed more than others: Why would anyone believe in God and his healing powers if he created a world full of misery and evil? Why do people of faith pray and hope for assistance through trials and tributes? Are you so special that God has chosen to help you but has neglected the terminally ill and poor? Now, I would call those questions the problem of evil, and while I still don’t believe in God, I have gained a new perspective on how to rationalize the belief of God as omnipotent in a universe that contains horrendous and gratuitous acts of evil. If God was all powerful and going to make the best possible world, he would make one where faith and disbelief both have values. He would create one where opposites are understood through recognizing the differences between the two, and the ability to make your own decisions using the gift of thought to analyze possible results and consequences, no matter how minor or major the task at hand is. Simply put: this best possible world is a world with free, because having free will and understanding that good and bad things happen allows us the power to make of it what we want. Therefore, if free will exists, all circumstances that are capable of happening must be possible, regardless of how grotesque or amazing they may be, because if God interrupted or altered the outcome of what he chose to, free will wouldn’t actually exist.
In conclusion, I’ve updated my stance and now believe that the presence of evil in the world is not enough to prove God doesn’t exist. This is because free will exists, which means evil must exist, but the existence of evil is not as bad as a world without free will. This is beneficial towards communicating with devoted religious followers, as I used to automatically classify them as ignorant in regards to critical thinking skills, because they believed that God helps them, but not the people in the world that need it most. Understanding free will and its role in our world has made me less judgmental towards religious people, and although I may not agree with them, I can at least find rational perspective of why they may believe in God although evil exists. It’s important to try and find common ground with anyone if we want to promote understanding and respect towards each other, especially with the growth of religious tension in the world today. In order to have important conversations that may be uncomfortable, we need to learn how to view things with an open mind, or no one will learn from and respect each other.