THE FOLKLORE OF PLANTS: Lotus

Lisa Karen Miller

          A belief in karma can be a great relief; it relieves you of troubling urges to take revenge on those who have wronged you.

          Marx put it succinctly: “Time wounds all heels.”

          Groucho, that is, not Karl.

          May 26^th is the birthday of Prince Siddhartha Gautama – the Buddha. He is said to have first appeared floating on a lotus blossom; as a child, they sprang up in his footsteps.

          Born into luxury in the 6^th or 5^th century BCE, he renounced soft living and took to the road as an ascetic (one who forsakes sensual pleasures – Siddhartha sometimes ate dirt) and a beggar. After years of wandering and meditation, he awakened to what he called the Middle Way – the path between indulgence and asceticism.

          Buddha means “I am awake.”

          This path, he taught, will lead to Nirvana – freedom from ignorance, craving, rebirth, and suffering.  Continual rebirth results from failure to learn the lessons we need in one lifetime.  Central to this path is karma – the consequences of actions from past lives.  Good lives result in good karma and good rebirths; bad lives the opposite.

          Buddha is often depicted sitting on a lotus flower, which has long been associated with the sacred in many eastern cultures. This is commonly known as the lotus position, and is adopted by meditators worldwide.         

The rows of petals of the lotus, a member of the water lily family, symbolize life, death, and rebirth.  The Dalai Lama, leader of Tibetan Buddhists, is known as the Lord of the White Lotus. 

          Almost all parts of the plant are used for food. The stalk is served in salads, the root can be cooked several ways, and the seeds can either be cooked or eaten raw like nuts.

          Its most remarkable abilities are regulating its own temperature and generating energy.  As the sun sets and the air cools, the lotus produces enough energy to raise its temperature. A single plant can produce one watt of energy, and a group of 40 creates the energy of one light bulb. As the sun rises, the lotus cools itself down.

          This is an apt metaphor for an awareness of karma – it cools your wrath, so you are not temped to harm those who have wronged you.

          So no matter what someone has done to harm you –  cheated, lied, robbed, ridiculed, gossiped, disgraced your sister, stole your Bible, or shot your dog – don’t spend even a moment of your precious life studying revenge.

          The universe will sort it out.

© Copyright 2023 Lisa Karen Miller