I Can’t Believe It’s Not Buddha!
Sorry. That title had to be used one of these days. Anyways…
We’ve all seen him: roly-poly fat, happy, laughing Buddha. Rub the Buddha's belly for good luck!
Except that’s not Buddha… That’s Budai!
Budai? What’s Budai?
Well, I’m glad you asked. Mostly Budai is thought to derive from an 8th century Chinese monk. That’s 13 centuries too late to be The Buddha, but apparently the image of an obese bald monk lugging a sack around was so compelling that he (or someone very like him) has surfaced in several Asian cultures under varying names, including Japan where they call him Hotei.
On the other hand, “Buddha” is actually just an honorific title, not a personal name. It means “some guy who is awakened”. The real/original/historical guy we think of as The Buddha was named Gotama, and as a longtime ascetic you can bet your last rupee that he wasn’t fat. And he might not appreciate you rubbing his underfed stomach!
So now you know: Budai’s not Buddha!