Adrian Montford, Born 1923, Buddha’s sermon of the Flower Bronze, Signed, Number 1 from an edition of 3, 184 cm high by 91cm wide
Larger than life figurative bronze sculpture of a nude man holding a flower
The Flower Sermon is a Zen Buddhist story about the Buddha giving a wordless sermon to his disciples by holding up a flower. The sermon is a demonstration of the importance of wordless insight and discovering truth within oneself.
The story
The Buddha held up a white lotus flower in front of his disciples. The disciples were confused and tried to understand the meaning of the flower. Mahākāśyapa was the only one to understand the sermon and smiled. The Buddha confirmed Mahākāśyapa’s understanding by entrusting him with the “true dharma eye”
The meaning
The Flower Sermon demonstrates the ineffable nature of tathātā (suchness). Mahākāśyapa’s smile signifies the direct transmission of wisdom without words, The sermon is a moment of mutual recognition between the Buddha and Mahākāśyapa
The significance
The Flower Sermon is a teaching that emphasizes the importance of wordless insight and discovering truth within oneself. The Flower Sermon is a silent, direct pointing to reality
