The eight auspicious symbols of good fortune are an important part of Bhutan culture. When you are traveling in Bhutan, there are many places where you can find these symbols.
Bhutanese people believe that when they see all the eight auspicious symbols of good fortune, they will be blessed with good luck and prosperity.
There are many symbols in Buddhism, which are often used to illustrate meanings that may be difficult to express in words. For example, the lotus flower can represent the purity of the mind and the bodhi tree can represent enlightenment.
The most common symbol is the dharma wheel. It represents all the teachings of Buddhism, including those about how to live a virtuous life and how to achieve enlightenment.
The Eight Symbols of good fortune are said to have originated from the offering made by the gods to Buddha. They are often seen as a sign of wealth and prosperity in Buddhist culture.
In Buddhism, these eight symbols of good fortune represent the offering made by the gods to Buddha. They are often seen as a sign of wealth and prosperity in Buddhist culture.
Early Buddhist aniconic representations of Buddha’s footprints invariably depicted auspicious symbols as divine marks on the soles of his feet. These included the lion throne, victory banner, Vajra, water flask, elephant goad, hair-curl, eternal knot, swastika, and conch shell; but the most common of these marks were the lotus and wheel.
As an insignia of the Chakravartin, an eight or thousand-spoked wheel adorns the palms and soles of Buddha images or bodhisattvas. One of the meanings of the word deva is “auspiciously drawn”, referring to the body markings on the palms, soles, breasts,s, or throat of divine beings or gods. Indra, for example, bears the insignia of the Shrivatsa or eternal knot on his breast.
In early Indian Vajrayana Buddhism, the eight auspicious symbols were deified into eight goddesses, known as the Ashtamangala Devi, who each carry one of the auspicious symbols as their attribute.
Bhutan tradition identifies the eight auspicious symbols as forming the body of the Buddha, with the parasol representing his head, the golden fish his eyes, the lotus his tongue, the treasure vase his neck, the wheel his feet, the victory banner his body, the conch his speck, and the endless knot his mind.
The representational meanings and the symbols of the Eight Auspicious Signs are briefly presented below: