TIBETAN WHEEL OF LIFE PUZZLE

Working on this 1000-piece puzzle is great way to focus on the Wheel of Life, a traditional Tibetan image containing the essence of Buddhist teachings. The image is a superb color reproduction of a thangka.

The Wheel of Life (Bhavacakra) is commonly seen on the entrance walls of monasteries and on painted scrolls and woodblock prints throughout Tibet and the other Buddhist countries of the Himalayan region. In graphic form, accessible to everyone including those who cannot read, it illustrates the essence of Buddhist teachings, the Four Truths: the existence of earthly suffering, its origin and cause, the ending or prevention of misery, and the practical path to liberation from suffering. Picture by picture, the Wheel reminds us that everyone is responsible for his or her own fate because, according to karma, causes and their effects are the fruits of one's own deeds.

The Wheel is held by Yama, Lord of the Underworld, who symbolizes the inevitability of death and the impermanence of all things. In the center of the wheel are three animals symbolic of the three root delusions: lust (dove or rooster), hatred (snake), and ignorance (pig). The next ring symbolizes beings with virtuous karma ascending to Nirvana (heaven) in the white on the left and beings with evil karma descending to hell in the black on the right.

Continuing outward, the next six compartments represent the six realms of existence into which one may be reborn. The three superior realms are symbolized by the gods, the demigods (or titans), and humans, respectively, while the three lower realms are symbolized by animals, hungry ghosts, and hell beings. Karma dictates into which realm a being is reborn; the being will inhabit that realm until the karma has been exhausted. The realm of the gods represents a happy and relaxed state of mind and existence. The realm of the titans represents an aggressive and competitive state of mind ruled by suspicion and jealousy. The realm of human beings represents the capacity for the awareness of self and the state of the world. The realm of animals represents consciousness concerned simply with sensual indulgences, such as food, sex, and simple material comforts. The realm of the hungry ghosts depicts weak and faint beings with bloated stomachs and tightened throats, symbolizing neurotic desire or addiction to something that cannot give satisfaction, like overeating. The realm of hell beings shows Yama, Lord of the Underworld, who represents the forces of karma; here we see the possible consequences of one's past misdeeds.

The Wheel's outer rim symbolizes the twelve-fold circle of causation (interdependent causes of rebirth): (1) a blind man with a cane-represents ignorance of the world's true nature; (2) a potter molding a pot-symbolizes the shaping of our own destiny through the workings of karma; (3) a monkey climbing from branch to branch represents the mind wandering aimlessly and out of control; (4) people traveling in a boat on the river of life symbolizes consciousness giving rise to name and form; (5) the doors and windows of an empty house symbolizes the developing senses of sight, smell, taste, hearing, touch, and thought; (6) lovers embracing symbolizes the intimate contact between world and mind; (7) a man with an arrow in his eye symbolizes strong sensations that blind us to the truth; (8) a man drinking alcohol or a couple falling in love symbolizes attachment to pleasant feelings and experiences; (9) a man (sometimes a monkey) picking a fruit represents desire or attachment, like clinging to life even at death; (10) a couple making love symbolizes procreation and existence; (11) a woman giving birth symbolizes that existence culminates in birth into the human realm; (12) an old man carrying a burden symbolizes that birth naturally leads to aging and death.

And the circle continues, one state of being always leading to another as the Wheel depicts the endless cycles of Samsara, or impermanence. But the Wheel of Life's ultimate purpose is to show the way out of all these worlds of suffering into the sphere beyond. Buddha himself, as an "Enlightened One" in the upper right corner of the painting, points to the path out of Samsara. Liberated from the cycle of rebirths on the Wheel, Buddha is illustrated outside of it.

Thoughtfully conceived and engagingly intricate 1000-piece interlocking jigsaw puzzle combine superb color reproduction, stunning and unusual images, and sturdy construction to delight generations of novice and veteran puzzle solvers.