Lord Buddha is depicted standing holding an alms bowl.
Soon after Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment the four great Great Guardian Kings of the four directions each presented him with an alms-bowl, the most beautiful of which was made of precious gems and the simplest from common clay. Shakyamuni was said to have either chosen the simple clay bowl or to have accepted all four bowls and miraculously convert them into one plain bowl that was sufficient for the needs of a humble mendicant.
The traditional alms bowl of a Buddhist monk or bhikshu is shaped like the inverted head protuberance (Skt. ushnisha) of the Buddha, a symbol of the highest attainment of Buddhahood, as the wisdom that directly realizes emptiness.
