Buddhism

Through my research into Buddhism I have discovered many new and different ideas about faith which I have tried to convey through my mood board.  Unlike many religions, Buddhists do not worship Gods or Deities. Buddhists strive for a deep insight into the true nature of life and focus on personal and spiritual development with the aim of reaching Nirvana.

The image of Buddha is synonymous with the Buddhist religion. Buddhists construct shrines and, sculptures and images of Buddha much like other religions do for their Gods but Buddha is not a God. Buddha was a sage whose teachings are the foundation of the Buddhist religion. The name Buddha means 'the enlightened or awakened one' and Buddhists celebrate Buddha as the first awakened human being on earth who shared his insights to end the suffering of others.

The main themes of Buddhism which I wish to convey through this piece are based on the four noble truths which are the basis of the teachings of Buddha. These teachings concern ending the stress caused to a human being through their life such as birth illness, and death and the fear of these processes. Buddha teaches that to end this suffering we must relinquish the idea of 'self.' We must understand that all life is interconnected and we are part of a life cycle. We must also let go of the pursuit of desire and denial of negative experience in order to reach Nirvana. Nirvana is the ultimate state of mind in which you become free of suffering.

I have used photographs which I have taken myself on a trip around Asia a few years ago. While travelling through Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Hong Kong I saw many different sculptures and shrines dedicated to Buddha. I like the fact that the image of Buddha is slightly different in each country but always instantly recognisable.

I have used photoshop to arrange my own photographs to create the idea of the Buddha being all-encompassing and important to the Buddhist religion . Buddha is at the top of the mood board and is easy to discern and I have used a posterize effect to make all the different images seem part of one. This is to convey the idea that of all life is connected and part of a like cycle. I have used bright neon colors which tie all the different images together to create the idea of oneness.

I am fairly happy with my mood board but I think that I should have used a wider range of techniques and sources to represent more about the religion.