For some, who have walked this long arduous journey of self inner discovery, attachment to the form of the Buddha or more subtlely to the goal of Buddhahood is in itself a hindrance to the practitioner while to many others, such devotion to the representation of this ideal of Buddhahood or self-perfection is merely a skillful means from the ego to the egoless. Whatever the case maybe, many would concur that just as is said about art that “beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder”, in this context, “the sacredness of the Buddha statue lies in the minds of the practitioner”.Having close to completing this journey, one may ask; why all the fuss? It is important to remember that historically, the Buddha never allowed any of his disciples to have images made after him for veneration, when he was alive. And that continued for about 500 years after his passing away. For those disciples who wanted something to remember him, the Buddha said, “ If you see and practise my Teachings, you see Me”.In the first meeting, the artist spared no effort in explaining the intricacies of Thai tradition and iconography of the Buddha statue. He started with a sketch drawing and proceeded thereafter to do up a small wax model in 3 dimension. While we wanted the Burmese tradition, some members expressed their desire for a more Chinese proportion, face and particularly the eyes. After two attempts, we realized that it was rather impossible or even inappropriate to try to put a Chinese proportioning system onto a Burmese Buddha.

十一月十一日早晨，我们顺利的乘搭新航抵达曼谷机场。曼谷导游已在机场，等待着我们的莅临。接着带领我们在曼谷中心拜访皇家皇宫与附近大寺庙。然后就直接入住 Evergreen Place Bangkok 的旅馆。

十一月十二日早上五点，大家都带着欣悦的心情乘坐旅游巴士出发到铸佛像工厂去。巴士车在路上奔驰了约一小时后，我们就顺利的抵达了工厂。老工匠师傅穿着传统的泰国服装在现场欢迎我们的光临。只见场地布置得非常庄严华简，场内亦摆着好多丰富的传统泰国点心，给予团员们品尝。老师傅把场所的时间安排的紧凑有序。很快的敬天仪式在早上七点三十分就正式开始。由大众的宗教顾问果辉法师先上香，接着顺序由会长，理事与团员陆续上香与撒花，然后果辉法师就带领众人诵念北传的经文，并带领大家把各团员拿着祝福的金箔与花蕾撒入铸佛像的模具内，此时老师傅请来之九位南传法师也跟着开始诵经。他们以传统的白线，让所有团员亦牵缚着而跟随法师们诵经。经过了约四十五分钟后，诵经完毕。接着就由九位团员代表大众供养这九位法师，而整个供僧敬天仪式也就宣告圆满结束。

在整个早上的仪式过程中，天气出奇的凉快与清新，风和日暖，微风淅淅，到处闻到花香，而天空的太阳也异常的金亮。此时，我们的张绘测师也无意间拍到天空中出现紫色与绿色的光圈点，在我们敬天铸佛像的上空漫游。让此大众百年难得一遇的殊胜铸佛像仪式场合增添更多的法喜。可说是功德圆满，也为我们留下美好的回忆。

早晨的仪式之后，我们就启程去附近郊外的一个水上市场坐船漫游乡村之美丽景色，也同时参观了水上市场与购买了好些当地的土产与美食，然后才带着欣怡的心情启程回曼谷。

十一月十三日的星期日中午，我们离开旅馆前往大理石佛寺参观，导游向我们一一叙述讲解寺庙内各种佛像的造型与历史。在参观完毕后，天气忽然转阴而下起倾盆大雨。我们乘此时间驱车前往用午餐。午餐后，天气开始转晴，气候凉爽，我们就顺道前往曼谷最大的露天市场逛街，以便在前往曼谷机场启程回国之前，让团员们做最后的购物冲刺，以便能更开心的结束我们这个蛮有纪念性的旅程，留下更好的回忆。

第一副主席黄富成分享

FROM DEVOTION TO SOLID BRASS

What started as an introduction to the artist/sculptor who was previously commissioned for Buddhist Fellowship’s main shrine Buddha statue, inevitably landed me as part of a group embarking on a journey searching for that core symbol and object of veneration, in tandem with the completion of PBSS’s new building at 25 Lorong 22 Geylang. We set out with clear objectives but we did not know what to expect at the end. With Venerable Guo Hui, Yun Qiang our current PBSS President and Hoo Seng, our past President in the trips to meet and work with the artist, we had quite a memorable and fruitful journey. The following is a brief account of our journey.

When the question was first asked as to what the Buddha image for PBSS’s main shrine should look like, the initial response was then to follow the centre’s existing main image which was along the tradition of Burmese white marble carving. Elegant and beautiful in its own ways, such statues were commonly adopted for Chinese Buddhist temples in the pioneering years of Singapore, including many parts of Malaysia. Ironically, Myanmar (or then known as Burma) is predominantly Theravada in their Buddhist tradition while our pioneering Chinese Buddhist compatriots were predominantly Mahayana in tradition. Such irony is testament to the pragmatism of Buddhists and the ideals many broad minded Buddhists would advocate on the philosophy of “Ekayana” (literally “one vehicle”) or what I would elaborate as “one goal, many paths”. Putting definitions aside, it is undoubted that the Burmese White Marble Buddha is an image that many can connect with at once. Defined by simplicity of the proportion, sharp facial features, distinctive Burmese crown and the often elaborate folded robes over the shoulder and at base of the lotus seat.

As the original desired “Chinese Buddha eyes” were taken from a statue in a Kuantan temple (Pahang, Malaysia), a day trip led by Bro Tay Beng Yam was promptly made to visit the temple with the view to understand and possibly “copy” their statue which was originally crafted in China and more appropriately Mahayana in tradition. The temple, Pahang Buddhist Association, tucked in the remote quiet suburban of Kuantan is idyllic and we were instantly inspired by their main Buddha statue which is carved from a block of white marble by a China artist. We were warmly received during the trip and we concluded with the hope of having some exchange program in the near future with PBSS.

These were clearly communicated to the artist with photos and formalized instructions. However, like all artists, there is usually an eccentric part and for Mr Laem Sing, it seems to him that the iconography or rules for the proportioning of the Buddha statue is not something negotiable or adaptable. He also does not work with modern communication media such as digital photos or emails and would insist that we meet and talk face-to-face with him. In this process, we had inevitably built a warm link or connection with him. It was also at this juncture that Ms Vilai had to go ahead with her travel plans to do social work in India for a substantial period of time. Fortunately, her niece by the name Fon Chongco agreed to take over her role to help us follow up with the artist. Fon and her husband Kent has been following up since, without which, our recent milestone on the casting ceremony would have not been possible.

Getting the artist to create an exact replica of the Kuantan statue with modifications seemed a rather difficult task. Initially, I had my little doubts as to whether the artist would be able to move beyond the limitations of the Thai traditions. But later, as we get to see more of his works including some commissions to do Buddha statues for clients out of Thailand, we no longer had any doubt. In a one-off visit to a Buddhist museum in Korat, where Ms Vilai’s own brother is the Project Director, we got to see a statue of the well known Luangpor Koon on the roof of the museum. Though fully gold-leafed, the statue was truly life like and obviously an exact replica of the man himself.

During the initial trips, we had arranged to meet other artists but as it turned out, these artists appeared very commercial in the manner of the process that would be expected to complete the statue. For our experience with Mr Laem Sing, though apparently limited by the strict rules within their local traditions, this also meant that each of the process leading to the final casting and the completion are guided by their age-old traditions of statue making and bronze casting which includes their necessary local rites and rituals along the way, one of which was the ‘Dana’ offering to the Sangha, represented by 9 monks and prayers to Dharma protectors prior to the casting ceremony that was recently witnessed by our Singapore delegates.

At the end of this journey, we have a unique Buddha statue that crosses 3 cultures or traditions in the making, a feat we should be proud of and reflect upon. It is said that the Dharma is a life raft on this ocean of samsara for all humanity who walks his path regardless of the label of one’s belief system. We only need to reflect upon the greatness and profoundness of the Buddha’s Teachings to truly see Him. But come January 2016, we shall get to see the final completed Buddha statue as it is, in solid brass and in our respective state of mind.

TEO KIM SWA

*The opinions expressed in this article is purely the author’s and do not reflect the position or view held by PBSS or the people involved in this process. The author is the architect for PBSS building project.