November 26 - A team of British archaeologists has played a key role in a breakthrough discovery into the origins of the Buddhist religion.

About 15 years ago, Barbara Reeves of Cary visited the N.C. Museum of Art where Tibetan monks meticulously built what is commonly known as a sand mandala – an elaborate artwork designed from crushed marble that had been dyed many colors.

Since the parasol tree was believed to be appealing to the phoenix, the Chinese people venerated it as an auspicious symbol. There are records dating as early as the Book of Odes. Zheng Xuanjian of the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 – 220 CE) stated: “the phoenix stops on no trees other than the parasol tree”. Yao Jiheng said in the Introduction of the Book of Odes: “The parasol tree grew in the high mountain facing the sun. The phoenix stopped on the parasol tree and sang. Today, we use the phoenix to mean the high mountain and the parasol tree to mean the sun”. Therefore, the phoenix follows the parasol tree as the mountain’s apex follows the sun. 

Buduruwagala is an ancient buddhist temple in Sri Lanka. The complex consists of seven statues and belongs to the Mahayana school of thought. The statues date back to the 10th century. The gigantic Buddha statue still bears traces of its original stuccoed robe and a long streak of orange suggests it was once brightly painted. The central of the three figures to the Buddha’s right is thought to be the Buddhist mythological figure-the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. To the left of this white painted figure is a female figure in the thrice-bent posture, which is thought to be his consort-Tara.

The Society for Asian Art presents a talk with Tamara Hill on the wrathful, ironic, and amusing depictions of skeletons, bones, and skulls in Tibetan Tantric Buddhist arts and rituals.

To explore Buddhism’s intricate link between India and South-East Asia, festival organiser Aruna Vasudev is all set to host a five-day-long “The Inner Path: Festival of Buddhism” at the Indian Council for Cultural Relations here beginning this Friday.

People having interest in Buddhist philosophy have been attracted to the exhibition of paintings entitled ‘Buddha’s Faces’ by artist Sandhya Regmi. This is her seventh solo painting exhibition, state-owned news agency RSS reports.

The Shoton Festival, which ended Monday in Lhasa, capital of Tibet, featured multiple displays of Tibetan culture, including opera performances and exhibitions of painted scrolls and Tibetan calligraphy.

A statue of a Bodhisattva from the 2nd Century will star at Sotheby's NY in September.

When we started putting this list together it seemed like it was going to be nothing more than a shallow, trivial — although perhaps welcome — distraction from all the news about disastrous wars and sordid political scandals, but as we dug deeper into the web we found that we felt at times inspired by reading about the practice of famous Buddhists, some of whom have had their trials. We hope that you too will be inspired — and entertained — by Wildmind’s Top Ten List of Celebrity Buddhists.