Not Quite "Buddha in a Jar"

Bowl of Leftovers/Lunch

I looked for meal planning inspiration online, last night, and came across something called "Buddha in a Jar"! You don't say!  Here, I've been a Buddhist all my life and had no idea that the Buddha could be found in a jar of food!  Imagine that!

I was...well, let's just say that I was incredulous (yes, that's a good word, much better than others I could think of to convey how I felt!)  So, what was it?  Was it a salad?  Some other type of vegetarian food?  No!  It was rice (yes), vegetables (yes), and chicken!  Well, now!  How come I always thought the Buddha was vegetarian?

I mentioned it to my daughter and she said she has seen something called Buddha Bowls, too.   Now, I have heard of "begging bowls" - they are the bowls the Buddhist monks carry with them when they go begging for alms of food as instructed by the Buddha, but not Buddha Bowls.  Buddha Bowls are apparently bowls of food, mostly vegetarian, but it's up to the individual who prepares it to decide what to include in them.  Indeed! 

It is said that one day, when the Buddha was still alive, one of the monks came back from begging for alms of food, quite upset and refusing to go begging again.  He complained to the Buddha that the people in the village had insulted him and the Buddha about their begging and so forth.  The Buddha instructed the monk to return to the village the next day and beg for alms, but, this time, to tie a knot on his robe every time someone insulted him to capture the insult.  The following day, the monk returned to the temple with his robe covered in knots.  He was then instructed to untie each knot, one by one.  After all the knots were undone, he was asked what he found in the knots and the monk answered,  "Nothing".  Because, there was nothing tied up in the knots.  The insults were words, not tangible things.  The monk was getting upset over nothing. 

What does that story have to do with the Buddha in a Jar/Buddha Bowls?  Nothing, really, except the writing about Buddha bowls and begging bowls made me recall it and I thought I'd share it.   

Pictured at the top of the post is my lunch that I took to the office, today.  It is a glass container with the last of the Thai beef fried rice I had bought on Sunday and the last of the chicken stir fry I had made.  Not quite a "Buddha in a Jar" and nothing like a Buddha Bowl, but, perhaps, more like what the Buddha might have received in his begging bowl in the sense that, originally, when he begged for his food, he was given leftovers. 

Daughter asked me if I was offended by the whole Buddha in a Jar/Buddha Bowls concept.  That's a good question!  I told her that I have chosen not to be offended.  I don't think they mean any harm; in fact, they might even think they are being complimentary.  But, I don't think the name by which they call it is in good taste, and the pun is definitely intended!

What do you think?