Sometimes he half lies back and laughs at us and with us as we scurry by. Sometimes he holds a staff and carries a hemp sack over his shoulder filled with the original life-force, chi, which he dispenses freely wherever he goes. Some legends have him giving sweets and presents from this bag to the children like an Eastern Santa Claus. Whether he is sitting solid in a squat happy meditation or standing holding a golden boat of prosperity over his head, it is good luck to rub his ever protruding round belly.
Buddhism is the only religion I know that has a representative figure who laughs. All the other religions are so incredibly serious about attaining whatever they consider salvation that they forget how ridiculous we are with our all-important busy yet insignificant lives. Even the jokester gods of "primitive" religions tend to lack true humor and focus more on the cruelty of trickery.
Laughter is indeed a great medicine. It stimulates the system and breaks up the convoluted dead end trains of thought that we follow to the dark corners of our minds. It prevents wars and saves marriages. When we can laugh at ourselves harder than we do at the other person, we are nearing satori. As Elsa Maxwell said, 'Laugh at yourself before anyone else can.'
Zen Buddhism, with its koans and morality tales and the slapstick whacking of the student blind to his own actions invites humor. It asks us not to seek the eyes of religious ecstasy rolling back into our heads, but rather to seek the peaceful smile of contentment, the gentle laughter that arises when one discovers the simple joys of life.
The promise is that one can always be Ho Tai. |
