Buddhism - Jamie's Project and A Visit to the Temple in MK

Jamie has been doing a project for school on Buddhism and this has been really interesting for all of us, as we have all discovered a whole lot more about Buddhism and its philosophy.  We are lucky enough to have a Buddhist temple here in Milton Keynes and I am ashamed to say that we had never got around to having a look around it, even though we have walked past in many many times.  So as part of Jamie's project we headed camera in hand to explore The Peace Pagoda and the Nipponzan Myohoji Temple which are both at Willen Lake in Milton Keynes.  Photographs largely courtesy of Jamie as they were for his project.


A view of the Peace Pagoda from the Cedar Tree

Here are some photos from the outing, there is another blog to follow about a very unusual thing which happened to us while we were walking around, but here are some views of The Pagoda and The Temple.  The only other thing to say is that both Jamie and I were quite caught by some of the Buddhist philosophy and beliefs and I suspect we will be exploring more of those in days and weeks to come.  If you ever do come to MK then I can heartily recommend a trip to Willen Lake, The Peace Pagoda and The Temple - then possibly followed by a drink the pub on the other part of the Lake!!

The Cedar Tree



A memorial to the Buddhist Monk who was head of the Temple and died in a tragic accident about 4 years ago.

A frieze on the Pagoda telling of The Buddha Life and Road to Enlightenment

A view of Willen Lake from The Peace Pagoda



Jamie stood in front of The Pagoda





A statue of The Buddha





TheNipponzan Myohoji Temple



The above statue is called Hiroshima and is by Ronald Rae, it was created in 1988 from 470 million year old Scottish granite and part of the plaque reads "The nameless pathetic, scarcely human form conveys only the appalling history of innocent men, women and children suddenly extinguished by nuclear bombs.  Ronnie is also remembering those today who die in the world's continuing conflicts".

'After Hiroshima' installation by Edna Eguchi Read, "One seems to hear a kind of music in the ash covered things, the chairs, the teddy bear, the tennis racquet......It is the sound of the screams that were never heard - extinguished with all the lives in that death flash" Jun Furusawa, Founder of the Annual Yokosuka Peace Exhibition.

This was moving because it consisted of such normal things, things which would be left after such a tragedy as Hiroshima.

The gardens were lovely and so peaceful......

The Peace Pagoda is just peeking over the top of the hill .... behind the prayer pole .....

Inside the Temple was peaceful and striking.  There were many gifts and donations which largely consisted of food for the monks at the temple.  Lots of images of Buddha and the founder of this branch of Buddhism.

The Samadhi Garden - a zen garden with raked stones, in a variety of directions.

The Memorial Stupa

The Japanese Garden, which represents a microcosm of the world we live in ....

Jamie at The Stone Lantern

This was a fascinating and informative visit and I am so glad we all had the chance to explore and gain some understanding of the religion, philosophy and culture - it was a lovely and valuable experience.

Ciao
Sue
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Reading challenge 15/16 - currently reading War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy - need to get my reading head on again  (not off my reading challenge)

A Sad Day!

Sunday 10th May

Today is a sad day, one of those days you dread coming round. Today is the second anniversary of the day we had to say goodbye to Mika and Nelson and it is a difficult and sad day for all of us, but particularly for me as they were my dogs. We had planned to go to Willen Lake and put a photo and note on the tree, just between the peace pagoda and the Nipponzan Myohoji Buddhist Temple.

Jamie and Kian were joined by David and the boys played happily until about 1.30pm when they were sent on their way. Jamie and I then made our pictures and wrote some words to Mika and Nelson, fastened some ribbon to tie them to the tree and set off to Willen. It was a lovely thing for us to do as it allowed us to spend a few quiet minutes in peaceful surroundings, thinking about them. It was sad but cathartic. After we had hung our pictures on the tree a lady came along and read it to her daughter and commented on how touching the note was.

We had a little wander around the Peace Pagoda and saw the memorial to the Rev Gyosei Handa. Whilst a sad thing to do it was also a positive way to express our sadness at their loss.

Mika chilling on the chair and Nelson watching the world go by in the window.

Much loved and much missed - Mika and Nelson.

Ciao

Sue

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