The Buddha is NOT Hotei, the fat laughing monk

It is common to confuse two Buddhist figures who are, in fact, separate characters. The fat laughing monk with the pot belly, is NOT "The Buddha." That is, he is not the same as the founder of Buddhism, Gautama Buddha. Myth asserts that this fat monk, Hotei, will be reborn as the *next* Buddha, an immeasurably long time from now.
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The founder of Buddhism -- 2,500 years ago in India -- was Siddhartha Gautama of the Sakyans. *This* is the historical Buddha. He left a life of riches to be a starving ascetic monk in the forest for six years. He nearly died of undernourishment and realized that this was not fruitful for his quest, so he decided on a Middle Way between starvation and gluttony.
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He then sat in meditation and reached Awakening, thus becoming known as The Buddha, meaning "The Awakened One." He is often identified as the Sakyamuni Buddha ("sage of the Sakyan clan"), because legends say that there were several Buddhas eons before him and one to come in the far distant future.
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For the rest of his life, The Buddha ate just one meal a day. Statues of Gautama Buddha show a figure that is trim and not obese. The controlled smile is usually one of benevolence, equanimity, serenity and wisdom.
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The jolly pot-bellied monk is Hotei. (Japanese: Hotei. Chinese: Pu-Tai Ho-shang.) Hotei is said to have been a monk in a former birth. He is a bodhisattva and will be the next Buddha, named Maitreya, in the far distant future.
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A bodhisattva is a saint, primarily emphasized in Mahayana Buddhism, who has taken a vow to postpone his own entry into the bliss of Nirvana until he has helped ready *all* sentient beings in the world to enter with him. This will take *many* rebirths.
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So, Hotei was believed to be a "Pre-birth" of a future Buddha. He is now residing in a heavenly realm for an extremely long sojourn before someday, eons from now, being reborn as a human again and becoming Maitreya Buddha. As Maitreya, he will lead *all* beings to Awakening. So Hotei laughs, for he knows that all sentient beings will eventually enter the bliss of Nirvana with him.
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Theravada Buddhism, in Southeastern Asia, is more centered on Gautama Buddha and his teachings. The various traditions of Mahayana Buddhism in East Asia honor other Buddhas and bodhisattvas in addition to the historical Buddha, and this is the area where the traditions about Hotei are more widespread.
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Many people today confuse the two characters. Hotei would just laugh out loud about it. The Buddha would smile.
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-Zenwind.