TOP 40 BUDDHIST BLOGS

Over the years of researching Buddhism and reading many blogs on the subject, we have developed a fondness for many Buddhist blogs. Here is our list of the top 40 Buddhist blogs we read. Please take a look at them!

Named to the top 40 best Hindu blogs by Lotus Sculpture

1. Tiny Buddha
2. Tricycle
3. Mindful
4. Lions Roar
5. The Karmapa
6. Jack Kornfield
7. Wild Mind
8. Wild Fox Zen
9. Dalai Lama
10. American Buddhist
11. Bodhisattva Road
12. The Buddha Said
13. Buddhism Now
14. Monkey Mind
15. Empty Gate Zen Center
16. Hardcore Zen
17. The Kwan Um School of Zen
18. Global Buddhism
19. The Self Proclaimed Solitary Buddhist
20. Europe Center
21. Tibetan Buddhism
22. Making Ourselves
23. The Practical Buddhist
24. Heart Sutra and Buddhism
25. Bright Earth
26. The Burma Dhamma Blog
27. Buddhism Guide
28. Christopher Titmuss Blog
29. Dhamma Musings
30. Wisdom Quarterly
31. Essence of Buddhism
32. American Buddhist Perspectives
33. San Franscisco Zen Center
34. Lotus Happiness
35 Soka Gakkai International
36. Jade Mountains
37. The Same Old Zen
38. Buddhism Guide
39. Buddhaimonia
40. Buddhist Boot Camp

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Is your Buddhist blog missing from this site? Please let us know if you think your blog should be listed. Email me at [email protected]

The Passing of an Indian Master Artisan

I recently heard the sad news that one of the artisans, with whom I have been working with for over 20 years, had passed away. Elumalai was a master of his craft. He specialized in carving with a grey marble stone that was softer than typical colored marbles. This allowed him to give all his statues intricate details that are often missing from marble statues.

“Looking into the eyes of one of his Parvati murtis is like peering into the eyes of the actual Goddess. She was alive in the statue and looking back into your soul.”

The facial expressions in his carvings had a softness and inner beauty in them that was unique to his sculptures. Looking into the eyes of one of his Parvati murtis is like peering into the eyes of the actual Goddess. She was alive in the statue and looking back into your soul.

Over the years I have unfortunately gotten news of artists passing and it shakes me to my core. It is truly sad to lose someone who has been a part of my yearly trips to India, someone I have spent so much time with discussing their statues. It is doubly sad to know that they will no longer carve statues for the world to see. When a master passes, himself and the promise of his future masterpieces passes with him.

The loss is more apparent when one realizes that there are few new novices to take his place. India is modernizing and there are many other possibilities for earning a living than there were previously, thus there are much fewer younger apprentices learning from the older masters. This is true all over Asia and it worries me for the future of this art form for generations to come.

From the day I came up with the idea to start Lotus Sculpture it was always my goal to keep the industry of statue making alive and thriving in Asia. Every statue bought puts life back into the family who made each statue and gives incentive for future artisans to carry on with the tradition of statue making. Just know that by buying from Lotus Sculpture you are doing your part to keep the industry alive. For this I thank you on behalf of all of our artisans and from Elumalai, whom you supported all these years.

Ganesha’s soft, compassionate features with a finely detailed crown

New Arrivals! Buddha Fountains & Garden Statues!

We have just received a new shipment of Buddha Head Fountains and Garden Statues from Kyle’s buying trip in January and will be posting our new collection in the coming weeks.

Until then, have a look at the photos below from the NEW ARRIVAL!

Mark and Luca unloading a large fountain basin.

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Here are the links to where the new garden statues will be posted.

New Arrivals ~ we post new statues daily!

Garden Buddha Statues

I'm not nervous. You're nervous! — I’m not nervous. You’re nervous!

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If you are searching for something specific please don’t hesitate to email [email protected] lotussculpture.com to ask if we have it. We just may!

Check out the video below from todays shipment:

How to Make a Beautiful Wood Base for your Statue

I often get asked about bases or stands for our Buddha and Hindu statues. You may be looking to add an extra few inches or so to the height of your statue to make it ideal for your home or space.

One of our customers, Michael, recently built a beautiful custom statue base for his Thai Brass Buddha Statue. I wanted to share his process with all of you, so here it is!

It’s an asymmetrically shaped base, so an outline diagram was made first to figure out the positioning of the segments. The base was built out of 1″x7″ red oak boards.

A single coat of ebony stain was then applied (to tone down the red), and the base was finished off with two coats of satin polyurethane (didn’t want it to be too glossy).

Two lengths of different boards were needed to do the job, and one was a bit lighter (much less red). The boards were alternated throughout, which gave an effect that’s not entirely objectionable.

The side grain of the wood was then matched in a mirror pattern which resulted in an interesting “narrow lotus petal” effect.

By design, the base is hollow inside to save on wood, weight and expenses. Numerous clamps and glue were involved in attaching first the doubled segments, then the growing sections, until it was all attached.

The final product is stunning and perfectly complements the statue itself. I sincerely hope that this brief DIY helps you to get started building your very own custom statue base.

Custom Statue Base With Buddha — The artwork on the wall above/behind the Buddha sculpture is by Michael’s wife, artist Gema Alava https://gemaalava.com/

Looking for a base for your garden statue?

Check out our post HOW TO MAKE A BASE FOR YOUR GARDEN STATUE to learn the 3 things that I tell to everyone on how to go about fashioning a pedestal for your statue.