What do the eyes on the stupas signify? Do the colors on a Buddhist flag mean something? How is the swastika related to Buddhism? Here’s a quick guide to a few Buddhist symbols you may encounter while visiting monasteries or depicted in the souvenirs you buy.

1. Dharma Wheel

The 3 swirling segments symbolize (1) Buddha, (2) Dharma (teachings), and (3) Sangha (spiritual community).  The wheel can also be divided into 3 parts, each representing an aspect of Buddhist practice. These are (1) hub: represents discipline, (2) spokes: represents wisdom, and (3) rim: represents concentration.

2. Bodhi Tree (Palior Sanskrit word for enlightenment)

After wandering for about 6 years, the Buddha finally came to rest in a forest beside the Naranjara River, not far off from modern day Bodh Gaya. After ardently practicing meditation under the Bodhi tree (fig tree), he finally realized his true nature.

3. Lion

It is one of Buddhism’s most potent symbols. Traditionally, the lion is associated with regality, strength, and power. It therefore makes it an appropriate symbol for the Buddha, who according to tradition was a royal prince. Buddha’s teachings are sometimes referred to as the “Lion’s roar.”

4. Buddha’s eyes

They look in all four directions, representing the omniscient mind of Buddha.

5. Three precious jewels or triple gem

The core of Buddhism is made up of three pillars: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha (monks and nuns).

6. Stupa

The Tibetan word is chorten, which means the “basis of offering.” It is a symbol of an enlightened mind and the path to its realization. Stupas generally house sacred relics but were originally built to house the remains of Buddha and his associates.

7. Seven water bowls

The most common type of offering on shrines is made with 7 water bowls, also known as yonchap. It’s performed to cultivate generosity and to devote oneself to the welfare of others. The idea of the water offering is that all offerings should be given as freely as we would give water, which in Tibet is considered plentiful and free, and therefore painless to give.

The 7 bowls signify drinking, foot washing, flowers, incense, light, perfume, and food.

8. The eight lucky articles or eight bringers of good fortune

The eight articles—mirror, curd, druva grass, wood apple, right-coiled conch, vermilion, white mustard seeds, and precious medicine—represent an aspect of the 8-fold Noble Path. The mirror represents right intention, curd represents right livelihood, druva grass represents right effort, wood apple represents right action, right-coiled conch represents right speech, vermillion represents right concentration, white mustard represents right understanding, and precious medicine represents right mindfulness.

9. Lotus (different forms)

White lotus: This signifies the state of spiritual perfection and total mental purity (bodhi). It is associated with the White Tara and proclaims her perfect nature, a quality that is reinforced by the color of her body.

Red lotus: This signifies the original nature and purity of the heart. It is the lotus of love, compassion, and all the other qualities of the heart. It is the flower of the bodhisattva of wisdom.

Blue lotus: This is a symbol of the victory of the spirit over the senses and signifies the wisdom of knowledge. Not surprisingly, it is the preferred flower of Manjushri, the bodhisattva of wisdom.

Pink lotus: This is the supreme lotus, generally reserved for the highest deity. Thus, naturally, it is associated with the Buddha himself.

10. Buddhist flag

The Buddhist flag was designed in 1880 by Colonel Henry Steele Olcott, an American journalist. It was first hoisted in 1885 in Sri Lanka and is a symbol of faith and peace and is now used throughout the world to represent Buddhism.  The five colors of the flag represent the colors of the aura that emanated from the body of the Buddha when he attained enlightenment.

Blue: Sowing kindness, peace, and universal compassion.

Yellow: Middle path—avoiding extremes, emptiness

Red: Blessings of practice—achievement, wisdom, virtue, fortune of dignity

White: Purity of dharma—it leads to liberation, outside of time and space

Orange: The Buddha’s teaching—wisdom

11. Swastika

In the Buddhist tradition, the swastika symbolises the feet or footprint of Buddha and is often marked as beginnings of texts. With the spread of Buddhism, it has passed into the iconography of China and Japan, where it has been used to denote plurality, abundance, prosperity, and long life.