The begging bowl is an important symbol in
Buddism.
It is a story told in this religion that says that
prior to the period of enlightment of the Buddha was undergoing a process of sacrifice
in which he was eating very little food. All of a sudden, he was offered a bowl of rice
by a woman by the name of Sujata. He partook from her offering only because he realized
that, regardless of his sacrifice, stretching it further would not make him any more
austere, in fact, it could hurt him. So he only ate what he needed. After he reached
englihtement, he threw away what was left in that bowl and made an oath of
poverty.
So, the begging bowl is the only thing the Buddah
would carry around. He will only eat whatever the people put in the bowl for him. Only
what people will share with him. This is a way to completely renounce all material
possessions.
Yet, what this teaches is that Buddhism is not
about extremes, but about balance. There is a NEED to find a happy medium between
sacrifice and life. There is no need to detach oneself from what's neccesary for the
sake of calling it a "good deed". Instead, one must find the perfect middle for
it.
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