Origin of the hand gestures
This oratory meaning is probably the
original “source” of showing Christ raising His hand, as more than anyone else
He has something important to say. However, to any Orthodox or Catholic
Christian, Jesus’ right hand in Icons is unmistakably shown as being raised to give a blessing. The
arrangement of the hand is repeated by clergy when blessing others and so the
Saints in icons, if they were clergy, often hold their right hand in the same
way. This has a symbolism all of its own which has developed over time, and is
worth investigating.
Symbolism of the Blessing
The three fingers of Christ – as well as
spelling out “I” and “X” – confess the Tri-unity of God: Father, Son and Holy
Spirit. The touching finger and thumb of Jesus not only spell out “C”, but
attest to the Incarnation: to the joining of divine and human natures found in
the body of Jesus Christ.
Similarities with Buddhist Iconography
The above meanings are worth emphasizing because otherwise there can be some confusion, or even scandal, caused by similar images of the Buddha holding his hands in a very stylized way. In response to this there are a few things which need to be considered:
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Given
the well-established use of hand-gestures in ancient Greek and Roman oratory
explained above, and the geographical location of Christ’s Incarnation and the
early Christian Church, it is far more likely that the hand gestures
were “borrowed” by Christians from the Roman senate than the disciples of
Buddha.
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There
is meaning behind the way Christ holds His hand in Icons; there is meaning
behind the way Buddha holds his hands in statues: but there the similarity
ends. The symbolic hand gestures of Buddha are called mudras, and whilst they are rich in their own
meaning, they are not communicating the same faith as Icons of Christ. If we
rejected every medium for conveying Truth just because another religion uses
the same medium then we’d be left with nothing! We must accept the similarities
and discern the differences.
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Just
because a religion was around before Christ was born, doesn’t mean that all its
teachings predate Christianity. Of the common Buddhist Mudras, the Vitarka Mudra is the one which most resembles
Christ’s right hand in icons. Yet the earliest representations of the vitarka mudra show the three fingers straight,
rather than curved. Much later we see images, which look remarkably like Christian
iconography. Yet the image is from the 8th century A.D., centuries after the iconography of Christ is
established. We can be forgiven for questioning just exactly which religion is
influencing the other.
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Finally,
the Buddhist mudras are didactic; they are hand gestures designed to convey a
message. Yet the “IC XC” Christogram is much more than this: it is both a sign
and means of blessing. A statue of the Buddha holds his hands just so and his devotees are supposed to remember
a certain teaching; Christ raises His right hand and Christians receive the
blessings of God. More than this, even if His servants, the Saints, holds their
hands in the same way, we are assured of receiving the blessings of God,
through the name of Jesus Christ.
Source: https://iconreader.wordpress.com/2011/05/26/what-does-this-hand-gesture-mean-in-icons/
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