All the sheets and the dhurries were folded back and each of the participants was given back apacket with his or her name on it. The ritualistic symbolism had a lot of similarity to the practices of Hinduism. While Hinduism is based on austerities and self-discipline, here the emphasis was on conduct and fellowship. Everyone has elements of Buddhahood, but it is an undefined quantity. Nirvana is not the elimination of the "self" but the complete understanding of the "self", so is the path to Bodhisattva, the eternal being. It is the blessings of the Bodhisattva that can remove misery. Such Mahayana thought is extended further in Theravada, where the living elders are respected and followed. The role of the high priestess in the ceremony interested me. She conducted the ceremony, but did not offer the blessings. All religious orders survive because of women. Kaushalya prayed, so did Sita. Buddha was saved by Sujata, Jesus had Mother Mary, Mohammed would not exist without his wife. But none of the scriptures cared to ordain women as priests. Buddha accepted nuns reluctantly, Catholic church has no women Bishops, no woman Shankaracharya exists nor there is a woman mullah. I offered my silent appreciation to the congregation and slowly exited out. The young teen monastic students were already in lunch. It would be their only meal for the day. I was now in the open area of the Buddhaland. Buddha statues of all sizes and shapes are set in meditative poses, some looking down, some looking out, always wearing a smile and having altered leg positions (yogic Asana) occasionally. These carvings were done by my brothers from Orissa, who might have left their families back home when they would be working on these statues. The date tallies with the time of temple building in Orissa. How Oriyas learned carving is another piece of the puzzle. Stone is not clay to be molded or baked, stone needs be broken, shaped and carved. Most statues are carved out of a single piece of stone. It is possible that the carvers had developed skills on wood carving before they attempted on stone. By observing the material and technology, wood carving would appear to need more skills than to do stone carving. We are told that the entire Ayutthia structures were built in wood in the beginning. As wood structures deteriorated, stone was used. Stone would have the transportation problem. Elephants were imported from the Kalinga land for the task. From the navigation point of view, we are told that the elephants gave the weight to the boat for stability in the rough seas. Silver, gemstones and precious metals added the weight in the reverse journey.
I am reconstructing these on speculation. Most of the old history is constructed through such speculations till research shows up better evidence. We go for what is plausible. Massive stone structures like temples, pedestals and palaces are a different problem. Here we have structural issues of stability and symmetry. We do not have the architectural designs of our temples, but they must have needed extensive planning. It has to be a large collective project like the construction projects of today.
We have no idea of the tools used and the observations done. But the structures stand the test of time. While I walk through the ruins, I admire the patience and the workmanship of the artisans and their engineers. I admire the king who had the vision of construction and the thought to bring the craftsmen for the far away country. The artisans must have made a reputation for themselves to be involved in the construction projects which might have continued for hundreds of years. We have to dig these in Orissa/Kalinga history to get the details.
I entered a massive temple built on a pedestal about forty feet high. The temples which continue to have active worship are clad in yellow cloth on the top. This was one of them. July heat was picking up. I climbed the stairs and reached the beautiful inner quarters. The steps and the inner area looked like a Hindu place of worship. I saw a well decorated Buddhist shrine. Several old ladies were managing it. One could buy packets of incense sticks and place them on the sand box in the front. Bodhisattva is a wish fulfilling deity and many were kneeling down while lighting their incense. Human prayers are the same everywhere!
To the front of this temple at a distance, there was a modern pagoda like structure with a lot of Buddha statues lined up in the front. The statues were clad in yellow cloth meaning that they were being worshiped. People would go around touching the feet of each or dropping an incense stick. Each Buddha is supposed to stand for a trait in conduct that we can cultivate it by emulating a Bodhisattva. While Hindus would think that the highest attribute is to be a witness without being afflicted, the Buddhists would advocate complete immersion. It is a living religion, not emptying the vessel but filling it with a pure attribute! There is an Oriyaness in it!
I walked around to visit the Sleeping Buddha, which is an emulation of Hindu Vishnu. I could not determine if it was a single stone structure and carved in situ. It was well over thirty feet long and was clad in yellow. Then I came under the shade of a tree with various Buddhas like a little Buddha park. There was a silent grandeur of seeing many meditative statues placed together. The effect was psychological. The doctrines of Buddhism are geared to play on the human mind. A lot is achieved if mind is made still. External effects do help!
My taxi has been waiting outside to take me to the Ayutthia palace. I did find him though he had moved location. He escorted me to our new destination, the massive stone palace inside a moat.
