anjue monastery

we pass the knapsack cafe (formerly sally's hostel), so we know we're close. i hear the grinding of dowels in sockets, and i turn to see a building housing two giant prayer wheels. four women keep them in motion by continuously walking in ellipses around the two wheels. i walk a few more feet, look to my right, and there is anjue monastery.

when you step through the gate, two lines of prayer wheels are on either side of you. i sat in the entry way, looking at the courtyard before me. i was scared to enter, afraid my presence would disrup the peace that was present in the place. i stood quietly, looking across the courtyard at the main prayer building. everything on the building was painted in bright oranges, blues, reds and yellows. and gold. most of it was in gold. at the top of the temple was a pagoda. in front of that there were four bell shaped objects in a line. two black ones were on the outside, and the inside ones were gold. between the golden bells there were two gold dog type animals facing eachother. between those there was a wheel. over the courtyard hung tons of prayer flags.

the courtyard is grass cut into quadrants by 2 paths. while patrick explored, i just sat and watched. the monks' quarters were on three sides, while the main temple was across from the gate. a rooster picked his way across the courtyard, looking for scratch. occassionally, it would be startled by three pigeons who seemed to be playing.

patrick soon finished exploring, so i returned from my reverie to explore myself. after climbing the stairs, i was in an entry to the main prayer room. the coluns were delicately carved here, and painted brightly with dragons and other creatures. on the walls were painted four murals of buddhas all four of which i did not recognize. i have found out later that one was malahaka. instead of candles lining these walls, they had flickering electric lights to protect the murals from smoke damage.

across from one of these buddhas was one of the only things i recognized--a wheel depicting the six realms with the 12 nidanas encircling it. this was all held by mahalaka, who is a scary looking guy, bathed in fire, clothed in tiger, and with a third eye in the middle of his forehead. the six realms were amazingly detailed, depicting the realms of hell, hungry ghosts, animal, human, jealous god, and gods. the jealous god realm and the god realm were combined, because who else is a god going to be jealous of?

one thing that interested me was the size of the realms. while the hell, animal, and human realms were all the same size, and the jealous god/god realm was twice as big, i couldn't understand why the hungry ghost realm was so large. if anyone can answer my question, i'd appreciate it.

but the mural was breathtaking in its detail, complexity, and vibrancy.

finally i shed my shoes and entered the main sanctuary. directly facing the door was a giant statue of shakyamuni buddha, flanked by two buddhas on either side. there were cusions and rugs everwhere, and an altar where past offers of burnt incense, rice wine, and a strange potato statue sat. on the walls there were more gorgeous murals of buddhas. on the right hand side of the room there was scaffolding put up, and two people working. one, a monk was drawing the outline of another incredibly detailed mural with a pencil, and another, a layman, was painting in the outlines. it was great to witness the creation of one these beautiful works.

at that point, i heard the rooster crowing, and i decided it was time to go. i met patrick, and after we left the monastery, we realized that it was situated right next to an army barracks. buddhism and the army. warriors. for peace and war, right together. great.