Buddha Calling for Rain

Standing next to the Buddha Calling for Rain

On a rainy Sunday, my daughter and I visited Crocker Art Museum. It was not crowded at all and we were helped immediately upon arriving. I paid the college student price and my daughter was free because she’s five years old. Although I made the trip to the museum, I did not have very much time to explore the whole museum. We spent about 1.5 hours in the Asian section looking at every piece of art work, and did a very quick walkthrough in the Europe section.

There were a lot of beautiful art pieces that I encountered, but the one that stood out to me the most was the Buddha Calling for Rain. It just felt right choosing this statue since it was raining. Per the information provided by Crocker Art Museum, the artist to this statue is unknown and its location is either in Northern Thailand or Laos from the 19^th century. In this region, their religious belief is Theravada Buddhism, which is the basic doctrines of early Buddhism.

Buddha Calling of Rain
from the 19th century
located at Crocker Art Museum

It was hard to find resources about Buddha Calling for Rain. However, the text Cultures of the World Laos stated that the Buddha Calling for Rain is rarely found outside of Laos. As stated by Crocker Art Museum, “This pose does not reference any specific event in the Buddha’s life. It is unique to the region.” The mudra has its fingers pointed down towards the ground. Because of the concern for the crops and the crops inability to stay alive without water, the purpose of this mudra is to call for rain, thus was made for the people living in Northern Thailand or Laos region. According to Trade Wind Statue, “The “calling for rain” mudra was one of the miracles in the story and life of Lord Buddha when after years of drought, Buddha stood in meditation and summoned the rain, ended the drought, and created a rainfall that brought nourishment to the rice fields.”

Information provided by Crocker Art Museum
regarding the Buddha Calling for Rain

The material used for this statue is wood and covered with gold gilt. This material was often used during the 19^th century as it is also the material used for other statues. I was able to find another standing Buddha made in the 19^th Century from Laos, and its material is also gilt wood. Therefore, the Buddha Calling for Rain represents the 19^th century fairly well because craved wood was one of the common material used for sculptures or art pieces during this era. The Buddha Calling for Rain differs from other Buddha statue because it is standing with its arms straight down. While there are other standing Buddha, its hand gesture is different.

In the future, when I have more free time, I definitely want to visit Crocker Art Museum again and be able to explore the whole museum. Through Asian Humanities and Introduction to Humanities, I no longer think narrowly when it comes to looking at art. I’m not an expert yet, but I appreciate art more and am able to see the importance of the art piece and its details.

Works Cited

“6ft Rare Big STANDING BUDDHA Statue Laos Rain Mudra GOLD GILDED Teak Wood.” Www.tradewindstatues.com, www.tradewindstatues.com/6ft-Rare-STANDING-BUDDHA-Statue-Laos-Rain-mudra-p/623-i.htm.

Crocker Art Museum. 216 O Street, Sacramento. 1 Dec 2019. Place

Mansfield, Stephen, and Magdalene Koh. Laos. Marshall Cavendish Benchmark, 2009.