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In Buddhism, 'offerings' (Pali: ''pūjā'') are expressions of "honour, worship, devotional attention."^[1] Honoring those "worthy" (Pali: ''arahant'')^[2] of honor is one of the "highest blessings" in Buddhism, as reflected in the following words attributed to the Buddha:

''Asevanā ca bālānam'' ''panditānañ ca sevanā'' ''pūjā ca pūjanīyānam'' ''etam mangalam-uttamam''....

With fools no company keeping, With the wise ever consorting, To the worthy homage paying: This, the Highest Blessing....[3]

Contemporary Western practitioners often find the making of offerings to be occasions for gracious mindfulness.^[4] Within the traditional Buddhist framework of karma and rebirth, offerings also lead to:

★ a better rebirth in the cycle of birth and death (Pali: ''vattagamini-kusala'')

★ progress towards release from suffering (Pali: ''vivattagamini-kusala'').^[5]
Buddhism traditionally identifies two different types of offerings:

★ material or hospitality offerings (Pali: ''amisa-puja''^[5] or ''sakkara-puja''^[7])^[8]

★ practice offerings (Pali: ''patipatti-puja''^[9])

Contents

Material offerings

Practice offerings

See also

Notes

Bibliography

External links

Material offerings

Symbolic offerings to the Triple Gem are often made prior to meditation.^[10] Typical material offerings involve simple objects of one or more of the following:

★ the lighting of a candle or an oil lamp (''padīpa pūjā'')^[11] represents the light of wisdom illuminating the darkness of ignorance.

★ the burning of incense (''sugandha pūjā'')^[12] represents the fragrant scent of morality.

★ flowers (''puppha pūjā'')^[13] represents the aspiration to achieve the body of the Buddha with the Thirty-two marks of the Buddha as well as the teaching of impermenance.

★ food, fruit, water, drinks^[14] represents the nectar of Dharma and the wish to achieve it.
These are ''external'' offerings of "words and deeds."^[5]
Material offerings nurture generosity (Pali: ''dana'') and virtue (Pali: ''sila'').^[16] The act further honors the Triple Gem (the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha), deepening one's commitment to the Buddha's path. By contemplating on an offering, one tangibly sees life's impermanence (Pali: ''anicca''), one of the three characteristics of all things upon which the Buddha encouraged his disciplines to recollect. For instance, the end of a traditional chant (in Pali and English) when offering flowers to an image of the Buddha is:

''Pujemi Buddham kusumenanena'' ''Puññenametena ca hotu mokkham'' ''Puppham milāyāti yathā idam me'' ''Kāyo tathā yāti vināsa-bhavam''[17]

I worship the Buddha with these flowers; May this virtue be helpful for my emancipation; Just as these flowers fade, Our body will undergo decay.[18]

In addition, ''puja'' refers to the act of raising ones hands together (''anjali'') in a gesture of homage. Traditionally, one offers puja to the Buddha's likeness in a statue (''rupa''), to a ''stupa'' (a pagoda that enshrines bodily relics of the Buddha) or to the Bodhi tree. Traditionally, one offers puja to one's teacher and parents as well.^[19]

Practice offerings

Practice offerings may be manifested by practicing:

★ giving (Pali: ''dana'')

★ moral conduct (''sila'')

★ meditation (''samadhi'')

★ wisdom (''pañña'')^[20]
The Buddha declared practice offerings as "the best way of honoring the Buddha"^[21] and as the "supreme" offering.^[5] This is primarily an ''internal'' offering for mental development (Pali: ''citta'', ''bhavana'' and ''samadhi'').

See also

★ Almsgiving (Buddhism)

★ Chanting (Buddhism)

★ Dana (Buddhism)

★ Householder (Buddhism)

★ Prostration (Buddhism)

★ Recollection (Buddhism)

Notes

1. PTS (1921-25), p. 471.[1] See also, for example, Khantipalo (1982).
2. PTS (1921-25), p. 77.[2]
3. From the Sn 2.4 and Khp 5. English translation by Soni & Khantipalo (2006).[3]
4. Such an appreciation might be experienced, for instance, by those practicing in the style of Thich Nhat Hanh.
5. Lee & Thanissaro (1998).
6. Lee & Thanissaro (1998).
7. Khantipalo (1982).
8. See also Alms#Buddhism regarding the traditional Theravada offering of providing daily alms to bhikkhus.
9. Khantipalo (1982); Lee & Thanissaro (1998).
10. See, for instance, Indaratana (2002), p. v; Kapleau (1989), pp. 191''ff''.; and Khantipalo (1982).
11. Indaratana (2002), pp. iv, v; Kapleau (1989), p. 193; Khantipalo (1982); Lee & Thanissaro (1998).
12. Indaratana (2002), pp. 11-12.
13. See, for instance, Indaratana (2002), pp. 11-12.
14. Kapleau (1989), p. 193; and, Khantipalo (1982).
15. Lee & Thanissaro (1998).
16. See, for instance, Lee & Thanissaro (1998).
17. Indaratana (2002), p. 12.
18. ''Ibid''., p. 11.
19. Indaratana (2002), pp. iv, v. Indaratana states that the basis for venerating stupas comes from the Mahaparinibbana Sutta. See, for example, Vijira & Story (1998), verses 25-31.[4]
20. Khantipalo (1982); and, Nyanaponika (2000), pp. 298-299. On the other hand, Lee & Thanissaro (1998) identify ''only'' meditation as patipatti-puja.
21. Kantipalo (1982), ''n''. 1.
22. Lee & Thanissaro (1998).

Bibliography

★ Indaratana Maha Thera, Elgiriye (2002). ''Vandana: The Album of Pali Devotional Chanting and Hymns''. Penang, Malaysia:Mahindarama Dhamma Publication. Available on-line at: http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/vandana02.pdf.

★ Kapleau, Philip (1989b). ''Zen: Merging of East and West''. NY:Anchor Book. ISBN 0-385-26104-7.

★ Khantipalo, Bhikkhu (1982). ''Lay Buddhist Practice: The Shrine Room, Uposatha Day, Rains Residence'' (The Wheel No. 206/207). Kandy, Sri Lanka:Buddhist Publication Society. Also transcribed (1995) and available on-line at: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/khantipalo/wheel206.html.

★ Lee Dhammadharo, Ajaan & Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998). ''Visakha Puja''. Available on-line at: http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/thai/lee/visakha.html.

★ Nyanaponika Thera (2000). ''The Vision of Dhamma: Buddhist Writings of Nyanaponika Thera''. Seattle: BPS Pariyatti Editions. ISBN 1-928706-03-7.

★ Pali Text Society (PTS) (1921-1925). ''The Pali Text Society's Pali-English dictionary''. London: Chipstead. Available on-line at: http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/.

★ Soni, R.L. & Bhikkhu Khantipalo (2006). ''Life's Highest Blessings: The Maha Mangala Sutta''. Available on-line at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/soni/wheel254.htm.

★ Vajira, Sister & Francis Story (1998). ''Maha-parinibbana Sutta: Last Days of the Buddha'' (DN 16). Available on-line at http://www.accesstoinsight.org/canon/sutta/digha/dn16.html.

External links

★ "About the Buddha-altar", Soto Zen home alter with offerings.