Walk through any collection of Buddhist figures and you are looking at two categories of being, not one. Most people do not know there is a distinction, and it is genuinely useful once you can see it.
The short version
Two different things
A Buddha is one who has awakened. The historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, is the one most people mean, though Buddhist traditions describe others including Amitabha and Maitreya.
A bodhisattva is a being who has committed to awakening for the sake of all beings, and who postpones final liberation in order to help others. Still on the path, deliberately.
The difference is not seniority. It is a difference of role and, in Mahayana traditions particularly, of vow.
How to tell them apart in a statue
This is the practical part and it is easier than you would think.
| Buddha | Bodhisattva | |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing | Simple monastic robe | Often richly dressed |
| Jewellery | None | Crowns, necklaces, earrings, armbands |
| Hair | Tight curls with the raised ushnisha on the crown | Often elaborate, piled high, sometimes with a crown |
| Posture | Frequently seated in meditation | Often seated in royal ease, one leg pendant, or standing |
| Objects held | Rarely anything, sometimes a begging bowl | Frequently something specific, a lotus, a sword, a vase |
| Overall impression | Renunciation | Abundance |
The jewellery is the giveaway. A figure wearing a crown and necklaces is almost certainly a bodhisattva, because a Buddha has given all of that up. Our guide to Buddha statue meanings and poses covers the Buddha side in full.
The main bodhisattvas you will meet
Avalokiteshvara, compassion. Known as Chenrezig in Tibetan traditions and as Guan Yin in China, where the figure is commonly depicted as female. Frequently shown with multiple arms, which represents the capacity to help many at once.
Manjushri, wisdom. Usually holds a sword, which cuts through ignorance, and often a text.
Tara, a female bodhisattva in Tibetan Buddhism appearing in multiple forms. Green Tara is associated with active compassion and swift help, White Tara with healing and long life. Our Green Tara singing bowl gift set at £57.99 carries the imagery.
Ksitigarbha, associated with beings in difficulty and, in East Asia, with children. Usually shown as a simple monk rather than richly dressed, which is an exception to the rule above.
Where the traditions differ
Worth knowing, because it explains why some collections are full of bodhisattvas and others are not.
In Theravada Buddhism the term refers principally to the Buddha before his awakening, and the emphasis is on individual liberation. In Mahayana traditions the bodhisattva ideal is central, and taking the bodhisattva vow is a defining commitment.
That is why Tibetan and Chinese collections carry many bodhisattva figures and Thai or Burmese collections carry comparatively few.
Does it matter when choosing a figure
Honestly, only a little, and only for two reasons.
If you are choosing for meaning, the distinction gives you something to choose on. A figure of compassion says something different from a figure of awakening, and if a gift is for someone in a caring role that difference is worth having.
And if you are asked what it is, being able to answer properly is more satisfying than saying it is a Buddha statue when it is not.
Our brass figures include the Amitabha figure at £49.99, which is a Buddha rather than a bodhisattva, and is associated with Pure Land traditions.
What about the laughing Buddha
Neither, strictly. Budai was a tenth century Chinese monk, later regarded as an incarnation of Maitreya, who is the Buddha of the future.
So the answer is that he is associated with a Buddha yet to come, rather than being either a Buddha or a bodhisattva himself. Our article on who the laughing Buddha actually was covers it.
Questions people ask
What is the difference between a Buddha and a bodhisattva?
A Buddha has awakened. A bodhisattva has committed to awakening for the sake of all beings and postpones final liberation in order to help others.
How can I tell them apart in a statue?
Jewellery is the giveaway. Crowns, necklaces and earrings indicate a bodhisattva, because a Buddha has renounced all of it and wears a simple monastic robe.
Is Guan Yin a Buddha?
No, a bodhisattva. Guan Yin is the Chinese form of Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, commonly depicted as female.
Is a bodhisattva less important than a Buddha?
Not less important, differently positioned. In Mahayana traditions the bodhisattva ideal is central and the vow to help all beings is the defining commitment.
Which is the laughing Buddha?
Neither. Budai was a Chinese monk later regarded as an incarnation of Maitreya, the Buddha of the future.
