We continue to explore what happened after Buddha’s Nirvana in this episode; hoping to catch a glimpse about the nature of Buddha’s Nirvana. Some people say Buddha was just an ordinary human being, but is this statement true or just ignorance?

The second week after Nirvana

After attaining the ultimate happiness of Nirvana, Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree for 7 days, enjoying the bliss of Nirvana. In the second week, Buddha stood in stillness for 7 days, gazing at the Bodhi Tree that had sheltered him during his journey.

While all these were taking place in the mortal realm, the gods in the lower heavens were puzzled. This was because they couldn’t read the mind of a Buddha. What they could only perceive was Buddha sitting for 7 days and then standing for 7 days.

Out of compassion, Buddha manifested a golden bridge in the sky and walked on it for 7 days, signifying his transcendence beyond mortal limitations.

The Significance of the Golden Bridge

In ancient beliefs, a golden bridge connected the mortal realms to the lower heavens, appearing only with the gods’ permission. By manifesting his own golden bridge, Buddha showed that he had surpassed human constraints and could access the divine realm without the gods’ assistance or their permission.

Is the belief in such stories important for the practice of Buddhism?

It depends on individuals.

While some may appreciate the core messages of Buddha’s teachings, such as the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path, others can only find inspiration from mystical and religious tales surrounding his journey.

Therefore, such tales can be very important for some people before they are opened to the core messages of enlightenment.

Tales also condition and train an Open Mind

These fantastical tales also train us to keep an open mind, encouraging us to imagine beyond our sensory limitations. By embracing the possibilities beyond our current perceptions, we condition our minds to be conducive to growth and evolution.

This is important because Nirvana is beyond our current understanding. Let us take the metaphor of an untasted fruit to illustrate this point. Suppose someone describes a new species of fruit to us. This fruit can cure any ailments and guarantee a life free from sickness after consumption. However, to taste it, we need to climb Mount Everest and taste it fresh from the branch. Otherwise, it doesn’t work.

If we straightaway conclude that such a fruit does not exist, then we won’t bother to travel to Mt Everest right?

That is why an open mind is important for spiritual progress. When we are too cynical, we shut our minds from further possibilities. It is similar to people who believe that they can never meditate. That stubbornness prevents any meditation practice for them.

The belief in stories help to condition our minds to be open to vast possibilities.

Tales may hold wisdom and information that is beyond our current knowledge

So are all these fantastic stories just Buddha’s imagination or his “method” to educate people? Just like how we tell children to be good or Santa will not bring them presents.

The wisdom of Buddha is really profound and we don’t really know.

For example, Buddhists have been chanting scriptures that state the existence of microscopic organisms for more than a thousand years. Way before the microscope was invented. For a Buddhist who was reading that scripture one thousand years ago, the microorganism would be a tall tale, a fantastic story, a fantasy, This was because mankind was limited by his sensory perception. Yet, today, we know that such organism exist with the help of technology.

Separately, the Buddhist scriptures state the existence of world systems that are different from ours. The idea of alien civilization remains a fiction for now but may become a reality in the future when our space exploration becomes more advanced.

Therefore, we don’t really know for sure if the stories in Buddhist scriptures are fiction or higher truth. People are beginning to understand some of these tales with the understanding of quantum psychics etc.

Join Us on This Journey

As we delve deeper into the teachings of Buddha, we invite you to join us on this journey of discovery and growth. May the inspiring tale of the golden bridge remind us to keep our minds open and our hearts receptive to the timeless wisdom of the Buddha.

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May all be well and happy.

Points for discussion

1. The Importance of Keeping an Open Mind: How can we balance rational thinking with an open-minded approach to life? What are the benefits of exploring ideas beyond our current understanding?
2. The Path to Nirvana: What does the concept of Nirvana mean to you, and how do you think one can achieve it?