Buddha's Hand--a Masterpiece by Nature

This morning I picked a Buddha's Hand from the tree in my mother-in-law's garden for a colleague.  (I said sorry to the tree.)  It is in the first two photos. 







Isn't it amazing that Mother Nature can produce such a masterpiece?  

The follwoing is the tree which grows this Buddha's Hand:



In the next photos are two different Buddha's Hands.  The photos are close-ups.  In fact, the Hands are still very small.  That was why I didn't choose to pick them.  They are too young.





In the evening I got online and learned that Buddha's Hand is a citron fruit.  It is usually used to perfume rooms or person items, such as clothing, in China and Japan.  In the West, it is used to flavor food in cooking.

When Buddha's Hand is used as a religious offering in Buddhist temples, a closed hand is preferable to an open one, for people pray with their hands closed.

An intriguing fruit!