Temple Time
I've seen so many Buddhas and multi-armed goddesses in the past few days that I'm starting to get a thing for that one named Guanyin, the Taoist goddess of mercy. The first temple I visited, called Baiyun Guan, which means "White Cloud" temple in Chinese, is a Taoist temple. I have a picture that is supposed to be me at a Taoist alter, but it wouldn't load. I saw other people; the process seemed to be: Kneel down, hands together for a second, mutter something, then stand up and put your hands in the air and mutter something else. Repeat multiple times, and move onto the next Buddha/God(dess). Seems to be the routine, but I couldn't be sure. Very interesting to see people praise a completely different god. It made me recall a question I've wondered for some time, "Why do we believe the religion we believe?" The vast majority of religious America is Christian; the vast majority of religious China is Buddhist. I feel our beliefs are probably based more on how we were raised, rather than which religion is actually the best for each individual. I for one can say I'm not a true Christian. I haven't made that dedication, that change in my life. Maybe I'm not ready. Perhaps I, and others--American, Chinese, etc.--should look into other religions and see what they're about. Make a decision based on what you think is right, not just on where your parents brought you on Sunday mornings. I'm not trying to steer anyone from Christianity--maybe I'm even trying to steer my Muslim or Buddhist readers to Christianity (don't think I have any). All I'm saying is that it's just something to consider. With that said, I had a great time at Baiyun Guan, except that I failed to find a certain big statue. Man, I argued with that monk for quite some time about whether it existed. Because we were talking in Chinese, my argument was pretty elementary, but he was adament that it was there. Needless to say, I left the temple without a picture of myself and the 10 ft statue of Wen Cheng, the deity of scholars. Rubbing his belly is supposed to give good luck on tests! This picture is with the Eight Immortals (4 Immortals not pictured). I figured it was good to get some tips from these guys, but they weren't talking much. Two days later I went to Yonghe Gong, which means "Peace and Harmony" temple. This was a Buddhist temple, Tibetan style. Disapponitingly it was much more touristy. They didn't allow pictures in the rooms, which was a bummer because they had the most amazing Buddha. This badboy was 54 ft tall, 20 ft wide, and carved from a single sandalwood tree trunk. It made the Guinness Book as the biggest carving from a single piece of wood. I think now I will go watch "Hitch", which I bought off the street for 80 cents.