The Daruma doll (達磨) is a round, Japanese doll modeled after Bodhidharma, the founder of the Zen Buddhism and known to us as Tamo. Typically it depicts the Indian monk Bodhidharma in red, but the one that was given to me is garbed in white. The Daruma has a design that is rich in symbolism and can be regarded as a talisman of good luck or a symbol of perseverance. This makes them a popular gift of encouragement
Monte A. Greer, author of Daruma Eyes, described the “oversized symmetrical round blank white eyes” as a means to keep track of goals or big tasks. The recipient of the doll fills in one eye upon setting the goal, then the other upon fulfilling it. In this way, every time they see the one-eyed Daruma, they recall the goal.

I was given one as a gift sometime after the successful release of the acclaimed children’s picture book Little Monk & the Mantis. Tiger’s Tale had also just been rescued from developmental limbo and I was free to complete it myself. It would not be an animated production (more on that some other time) but it would be a graphic novel I would complete; eventually. All these many years later I can paint in that other eye. But that does not mean work on A Tiger’s Tale stops – I just need a new doll to come my way.
