Thanks to everyone who is participating in the auctions! The artists are really excited about your comments and about the opportunity we have together to give more to the animals affected by the disaster in Japan.

Today, I offer some of my own human’s photos for readers to look at and even to bid on.

If I could brag for a minute, my human takes some really nice pictures. Her trip to India in 2009 was, pretty much, a contemplative photography odyssey. Robin and her friend spent more than two weeks in the Himalayas experiencing Buddhist monasteries. They both returned from the trip spiritually renewed. Robin has printed quite a few of the images and would like to share two of them with our auction crowd today.

First, an image of the hands of a bodhisattva. The root words in bodhisattva mean enlightened being in sanskrit. In essence, bodhisattvas are people who are motivated by pure compassion. They seek the end of suffering for all sentient beings, not just for themselves. The statue represented here is about three stories tall. The base is in the basement of the temple, the chest is about main-floor height, and he face is at the level of the second floor.

The area Robin visited, Ladakh, was part of the Mongol Empire a long time ago, and the tax collectors carried bags made of the skin of a mongoose. That’s how the mongoose spitting a jewel became a symbol of prosperity in this part of the world. The mongoose in this photo is part of a large wall painting at a monastery she visited.

Both images are 5×7, matted, and ready to frame. 

Now that readers are becoming expert bidders, this auction presents you a small complication to test your skills: we’ll take bids on each photo separately. If you want to bid on Bodhisattva Hands, indicate that in your comment. If you want to bid on Mongoose of Prosperity, indicate so in your comment. We’ll start the bids at $10 on each photo.

Remember, answering bids for each photo should increase by $5 or $10. Bidding will be open until 7:59 CDT on April 8. All bids received will be donated to World Vets for their relief efforts with animals in Japan.