Even the fiercest figures in Buddhist tradition have a posture reserved for humility. This hand-carved, standing Bodhidharma — solid cypress wood, carved by family artisans in Thường Tín village, Hanoi — is shown with his hands joined at the chest in Anjali Mudra, palms pressed together in reverence.
🌿 Meaning & Symbolism: A Different Side of the Zen Founder
Bodhidharma is most often depicted with a fixed, almost confrontational stare — the intensity of nine years facing a wall in unbroken meditation. This piece shows something quieter: Anjali Mudra, the same gesture used across Buddhist and Indian tradition for greeting, gratitude, and reverence — the gesture behind "namaste."
Placed on the founder of a tradition built on discipline and resolve, the gesture reads differently than it would elsewhere. It's a reminder that humility and strength were never opposites in his teaching — that the same figure capable of sitting, unmoving, for years was also capable of simple, quiet respect.
For a home, this is the piece that says: strength doesn't need to announce itself.
🌿 The Wood & The Craft
Cypress is a naturally aromatic, straight-grained wood, long favored in temple carving across East and Southeast Asia for its light, honey-gold tone and its natural resistance to insects and decay — qualities that come from the wood's own oils rather than any applied treatment. It's a lighter material than Padauk, in both color and weight, suited to a smaller, more intimate piece like this one.
Every statue is hand-chiseled from a single block by artisans continuing a wood-carving lineage in Thường Tín village across generations. The joined hands and folded robe are carved with particular care — small, deliberate work that shows clearly at this scale.
🌿 Where to Place It
A desk, an entryway, or alongside your other Bodhidharma or meditation pieces — small enough for a shelf with limited space, but still meant to be seen at or near eye level.
🪵 Display Base
For the cleanest finished look, we recommend pairing this piece with a matching Ebony wood pedestal base — sold separately — which lifts the statue slightly and gives it a more considered, gallery-ready presence on any shelf or altar.
🎁 Gifting
Its smaller scale and gentler gesture make this an easier, more universal gift than the fiercer Bodhidharma pieces:
- Someone starting any meditation or mindfulness practice, not only Zen specifically
- A housewarming gift for a small apartment or first home altar
- A companion piece for someone who already owns a seated Bodhidharma statue
- Anyone who appreciates the quieter side of a demanding tradition
