Buddhists do not worship idols

I as well as many other people was shocked when the 6th century monumental statues of standing Buddhas carved into the side of a cliff in the Bamwam Valley in the Hazarajat region of central Afghanistan were destroyed in March 2001 by the Taliban, on orders from leader Mullah Mohammed Omar after the Taliban government declared that they were idols.

Muslims are against idol worship. They, as well as others who do not understand Tibetan Buddhism, call Buddhists idol worshipers.

Buddhists do not worship idols. 

The art of Tibetan Buddhism especially is rich with imagery of many beings. Tibetan iconography is chock-full of symbolic imagery developed from Indian tantra and early Bon.  I am not going to speak of the minutia of Tibetan iconography here as there are great articles that can be found via an internet search that go into great detail. 

These beings represented in Tibetan Buddhist paintings and statues are either depictions of  historical persons, such as Padmasambhava, who is called the second historical Buddha, or others of the many who reached Buddha realization, as Yeshe Tsogyal did.  Marpa, Milarepa, Atisha, Mandarava are all historical people shown in regal garb symbolic of their achievements and station.  

Or, the beings depicted in paintings and statues are representative of principles that speak to aspects of our true being, our enlightened nature. 

Such as Tara, shown sitting on a lotus, her hand outstretched her foot poised in action to assist all who call upon her.  She is the mother of all the Buddhas.  She represents the principle of compassion.  All enlightened beings are born of compassion.

Avalokisvara, Chenrezig, is also a depiction of compassion, with a thousand arms, each having an compassionate eye in the center seeking out those in need with many hands to aid.

Kwan Yin  is the female form of Avalokishvara and the Chinese form of Tara.  She is the compassionate Mother who answers all who call upon her for aid.

These three above represent the principle of ourselves as Bodhisattva aiding us in dispelling those negative or troublesome aspects within ourselves that stand in the way of our realization of our true nature. 

Sarasvati means the one who gives the essence (Sara) of our own self (Swa).  She is the power of memory, the power of knowledge.  Her form represents intelligence, the power of intellect, the power of forming ideas.  She is the principle of our creative nature that is our intelligence and that produces all the arts: music, painting, sculpture, dance, and writing.

Manjushri, the principle of wisdom, holds aloft a great sword in one hand that cuts through delusion.  In the other hand he holds the texts of the teachings that show the way.

Vajrasattva, the principle of purification, purifying one of negative karma.  Lustrous white light emanates from his heart center as a mantra spins, each syllable casting light out that engulfs the world and all in it.

The wrathful-looking beings are in most cases wrathful forms of a peaceful principle.  The principle of using strong forces within ourselves to overcome negative and evil influences, which peaceful means cannot conquer.

Like Mahakala, the fierce and powerful emanation of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion.  In some cases one needs a wrathful means to guide and protect the individual practitioner from all kinds of deception and delusion and to bestow the power to overcome life struggles and to eliminate one’s obstacles and any impediment that hinders.

Yamantaka, the principle of protection of a Buddhist practitioner against evil influences, reminding them to destroy passion and evil in themselves.

And of course there is the depiction of Buddha Sakyamuni, the symbol of our enlightened true nature.

There is an old saying attributed to the Ninth century Buddhist master Lin Chi, “If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him.”  

He said this because Buddha is not outside yourself, it is your nature, awakened.  His teachings explicitly instruct one that it is a mistaken idea to misunderstand imagery and forms as idols for worship.  

It is a mistaken idea that Buddhists worship idols.  Rather through the use of art in imagry, song in mantras and dance as in ancient movement yoga, Buddhists use that which speaks to our true nature for the purpose of awakening.