The earth-touching posture or his 'bhumisparsha-mudra' constitutes the exact central point to the episode of Buddha's attainment of enlightenment. It depicts the phase when seated under the Pipal tree he was engaged in his penance and was almost on the verge of attaining Enlightenment. As always, it alarmed the forces of Evil, which fed on darkness or ignorance and delighted in obstructing the process of enlightening. Hence, Evil, personified as Mara and armed with horror, fear, temptation, 'Kama' and beauty, attacked Buddha and tried on him all its weapons. When nothing worked Mara created confusion all around. There rose voices that said, 'Gautam, you are vanished'. Mara aimed at confusing him but set deep within him and unaffected by whatever happened beyond, Buddha quietly lowered his right arm and extended its middle finger to reach the Earth. He touched the Mother Earth and invoked her to witness that whatever came his way, he did not astray from his path. He thus defeated Evil and a little after there emerged divine light and Gautam was the Enlightened, the Buddha.
