Brisbane Buddhist Pilgrimage Photos

Annual Brisbane Buddhist pilgrimage Click here to read stories about our Pilgrimages here in Brisvegas Download the itinerary and addresses of each temple
1. Quang Am temple, just behind the Breakfast Creek pub. The first Buddhist temple in Queensland, built in 1880. It’s a triad temple (no, not that sort!); Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian. This ancient temple is set in the back streets among corrugated iron and red-brick factory walls.	2. We recited the Heart of Wisdom Sutra in Cantonese. This very warm, gentle and enthusiastic monk explained how we must recite from the heart otherwise it is meaningless, and how our heart is like a glass of water with rubbish in it, but the rubbish can settle, and then we can have clear, not tepid, water.
3. On the steps of the Phap Quang Temple pagoda in Durak, sitting at the feet of the Buddha.	4. The larger-than-life size porcelain Buddha, serenely smiling out over the car park, with beautiful fresh oranges as offerings.
5. We arrived in the middle of a class. After the prayers we became surrounded by a sea of gently twittering Vietnamese grandmothers, smiling as we towered over them, and all fifty of us had our photo taken!	6. The larger-than-life Buddha statue is lit with natural light from a built-in skylight.
7. At the Amitabha Buddha’s Light centre a smiling monk showed us around the on-line lecture hall. Behind an imposing video camera the size of a TV, he opened a magic door in the wall to reveal the inside workings of a computer link-up able to send the Dharma live on-line to millions around the world!	8. We visited Geshe Loden's centre in East Brisbane. They also reside in an old Queenslander, and we had tea with them under their very tall bodhi tree. At one time their resident lama Kechok Rinpoche also gave regular teachings at Langri Tangpa Centre.
9. Side altars at the Vietnamese temples. This is the elephant with 6 tusks that came in a dream to the Buddha's mother.	10. A statue of Quang Ying, the Goddess of Compassion (Chenrezig in female form), surrounded by offerings.
11. The Queensland Zen Centre welcomed us with peach tea and a koan. Kwan Myong Sunim, a Canadian nun for 20 years, effortlessly composed a koan for us out of our own conversation — the sign of a true master.	12. At Linh Son nunnery we consumed a never ending stream of steaming hot vegetarian buns at the feet of a 20 foot Buddha with a multi-coloured neon halo. It felt uncannily like a version of the last supper, or first supper, like we were part of an age-old practice of breaking bread (or buns) with pilgrims.
13. Tibetan relics displayed traditionally in a miniature stupa in the Chang Tien museum.	14. The huge Quang Ying Statue, smiling benignly from the temple grounds, at the newly built Phat Da temple. There was a photo of our very own Geshe Tashi Tsering on the wall (when he blessed and consecrated their land) along with photos of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Geshe Legden, Geshe Loden and other lamas.
15. The entrance to the enormous Chung Tian Temple in Priestdale, a compound the size of a large city city block with impeccable feng-shui.	16. The Reverend (as the nuns are called) Shan, the Abbess of Chung Tian Temple. This kind and gentle woman has a spot-on sense of humour and an almost frighteningly direct way of talking about everyday life and the Dharma.
17. There is an enormous thousand-armed gold Quang Ying, seated, with sixteen main arms, instead of the eight that we recognise.	18. The gardens at the front of Chung Tien have miniature saints and depict stories from the Buddha's life.
19. Every part of the walls of the main meditation hall are tiled with many thousands of 3-D images of Chenrezig in Bodhisattva form and the Tibetan 4-armed aspect. Even the chandelier is surrounded by literally hundreds of Bodhisattva Chenrezigs.	20. In the 'smaller' meditation hall (the size of a house), where they also teach yoga and other exercises.
21. The very straight to the point food dedication in the dinning room.	22. Amitabha pure land Buddhas in the "lotus world" room.
23. The Buddha statues in "lotus world". This is a smallish room, the walls of which are completely covered in mirrors. There is a lotus garden of fake flowers and wandering elephants, with the many fairy lights reflecting to infinity.	24. Rainie Harding in the central courtyard, sounding the huge gong.
25. The main Buddha statue, covered in jewels, in "lotus world", with a halo made of strips of brilliantly reflecting holographic paper.	26. The beautiful smile of the Buddha, full of peace and happiness.
27. Beautifully presented Buddha statues from different eras and various countries and traditions, in the temple museum.	28. A 3-foot carved wooden statue of the Buddha, practicing as an ascetic before his enlightenment, when he lived on just one grain of rice a day.
29. Carved wooden Buddha statue, painted in brilliant and rich colours and very subtly gilded.	30. A 3-foot stone Buddha, in the Chinese tradition.
31. Leaving Chung Tian temple, happy and inspired by all the wonderful variety of life in the Dharma.
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