A wonderful city full of the parallel lives of maintaining the ancient Chinese culture dating back 5,000 years and living a thoroughly modern life with cool restaurants in shopping malls that are lively centers of communal dancing, skateboarding, or a walk with your date. Bicycling on the city wall this morning with a new friend, LeeAnne. She is preparing to take a big exam in traditional Chinese medicine.
Afterwards we visited the Guangren Buddhist Temple run by Tibetan monks. The master meets us with golden prayer shawls placed around our necks.
The various smaller temples house many beautiful seated Buddhas. There is a large and steady group of devotees lighting incense sticks and offering prayers.
I draw a large standing Buddha between 20-25 feet. We are invited to the private library on the second floor of the golden temple. I am so close to the face and hands in a devotional posture. My world focuses in. Perfect quiet. Just me and the Buddhas’ enormous hands, face, body.
Amazing again.
