Po Lin Monastery and the Tian Tan Buddha

Over the Thanksgiving weekend I had four days to explore Hong Kong. My favorite day was the one that I spend on Lantau Island. After a metro ride (metro! Hurrah for public transportation) I climbed on a cable car to take the trip over the hills...from the window the water and greenery led up and up until off to one side a giant Buddha sat nestled into the side of hill. This 112 foot tall bronze statue is a major attraction and point of religious journey for many Buddhists. The 268 steps up the hillside gave me a chance to contemplate the peacefulness that surrounds the statue, despite the large number of people surrounding me. As I took a stroll around the base of the statue my attention was split between the beautiful views and the smaller bodhvistas, who put off their entry to nirvana to guide others' path and symbolize that journey with gifts that represent the characteristics of charity, morality, patience, zeal, mediation and wisdom.

 

However, the giant Buddha was not the only source of peace in the area. The Po Lin monastery itself was also awe inspiring. The brightly painted outside, showcased the intricate carvings that decorated nearly every surface. The interior focused one's attention on the Buddha again. In addition, a short walk away, was the Wisdom Path...a short figure eight trail that passed by giant (half a tree trunk) poles engraved with Chinese characters. I might not know what they said, but the peaceful setting and impact of the stroll, left me feeling refreshed and at peace. Definitely a good way to embrace being out of Delhi.

Hunder Monastery

After a rest, with a few hours left until dinner we decided to take a walk through Hunder village. We set off on a route we hadn't wandered before. As we were turning a corner I happened to look up on the mountainside and spotted what looked to be a string of old monastic cells. Stone one room huts were actually scattered across the hillside. I wonder if that is Hunder monastery that the guidebook so briefly mentions? And how can we get there? We kept walking hoping that maybe the road would curve around and take us there. We've been continually drawn to some of the small concrete paths that veer off from the road and finally decided to follow one. We were excited when it took us by a small field of shrines, but even more thrilled when it led us over the stream and then up to where we wanted to go. Across the main road stood one of the prettiest prayer wheels we have seen. To the left stood a long stupa covered with intricately carved stones. Beyond that pebble stone paths led up to different areas of the mountainside, all of which held a handful of old monastic cells. We climbed one promising looking path for a ways, but due to impending night fall had to turn back before reaching anything of interest...unless you count more carved stones or the view of the field of over 50 white chorten across the river. We were still unclear as to if this was solely an abandoned monastery or still a working one as we began our walk back down to the little footpath. All of a sudden I noticed a monk coming out of a stone house. I guess it is still a monastery! We greeted him with a friendly "Juley" and then he came out of the gate holding a key. Did we want to visit ... something? Oh, yes. If a monk is willing to unlock a door I will follow him to see where it leads. Down some rocks and through a new door led us to a prayer hall that appeared to still be under construction. On the far side a fabric hanging hid a doubly locked door to a four hundred year old temple. Inside, the darkness barely pierced by a few candles, standing behind a glass wall was the most stunning Buddha I've seen this trip. His serious face and prayerful position dominated the space, keeping your attention. "Wow," was an echo inside my head. Look at what we stumbled upon...and we almost didn't go for a walk!

Thailand Snapshot: Reclining Buddha

At the end of my winter break (yes, I am still posting about winter break, but I'm convinced I'm going to finish with this before I leave for the summer in a week) I spent a couple of days visiting with a friend in Bangkok. He took me out to see some of the sights one of the days and I have to say going with someone who knows a place is great! Partly because I didn't have to worry about how to get to anywhere or where I was going, but also because I had no idea of what we were going to go see so everything was a surprise. My favorite surprise was when he took me to Wat Pho. Wat Pho is known as the origin of Thai massage, but that is not what caught my attention. Under a pavillion there is an enormous reclining Buddha. And I do mean enormous. It measures 43 meters long (about 129 ft) with  feet that are 4 1/2 meters (13.5 ft) alone. Once your eyes land on the graceful gold Buddha it is hard to take in anything else at the temple. As we walked around I couldn't draw my eyes away. Definitely different from what there is to see at most other temples!