Fo Guang Shan Buddha Museum

Chen Yu Shan Pressed Flower Art Exhibition

“In a moment of pure thought, lotuses bloom everywhere；
Each flower, a world of its own； and each leaf, a Tathagata.”

Over 2,000 years ago in India's Lumbini Garden, Prince Siddhartha was born. Out of compassion, he vowed to save all beings and came to this world to teach and bring happiness. When he was born, he walked seven steps, and lotuses bloomed under each of his footsteps. With one hand pointing towards the sky and the other towards the earth, he declared, "In heaven and on earth, I alone am the honored one," hoping that all beings would realize their inherent Buddha-nature. In this season of warm spring and blooming flowers, all beings are filled with hope and joy, like the original innocence and purity of life. This is the understanding the Six Perfections of flowers that pressed flower artist Chen Yu Shan comprehends in her creations. Despite the impermanence of birth, aging, sickness, and death, she still believes in the flow of life with a compassionate and inclusive heart. For her, pressed flower art is a method of spiritual cultivation.

This exhibition is divided into four themes: "Enlightenment in the Human World," "Flowers Blossom into Buddhas," "Offerings to the Buddha with Flowers," and "Flower Language and Chan Mind." It shares Chen Yu Shan's journey in pressed flower art creation and the imprint of the bodhisattva's heart. This exhibition is an invitation and blessing from nature. Through the blooming and falling of flowers, the enlightenment of Siddhartha and Buddha, and the realization between the world and Nirvana, a pure heart leads to enlightenment.