Temple Visit

We drove down to the Burmese Buddhist Temple in Burma Lane yesterday evening.  Having missed out on the Wesak celebrations this year, we thought we'd  make up for it by visiting this beautiful temple which is one of my favourite places of worship.  We hadn't been there for some time and I expected to see a lot of tourists, it being the school holidays.  Fortunately the place was quite deserted with only one or two families taking photos.

Founded in 1803, the  Dhammikarama Burmese Buddhist Temple exudes a quiet, peaceful ambiance that makes one want to sit down and meditate. As we walked up the passageway to the main temple, I noticed that several paintings of the life of Buddha had been put up on the walls.  The wooden benches on either side were still there and always provide a good rest for visitors.

The beautiful altar

We bought small pink lotus shaped candles and after praying, placed them on the altar in front of the large image of Lord Buddha.  A couple of monks were around and we managed to get some much needed blessings!  This is usually done by a monk who sprinkles water over you while chanting a mantra in Pali. He then ties a yellow string round your writs for protection.

After being blessed, we took a walk round the temple grounds.  My Cambodian maid had never been here before and she was excitedly taking photos with her mobile phone
.

Another view of the altar with the lotus candles

As we strolled along, a little story about the Lord Buddha came into my mind.  It was about a Queen who was a great disciple of the Buddha. Her husband, the King, grew jealous of her devotion to Him and demanded who she loved more - the Buddha or her husband.  In those days you had to be careful especially if your husband was the King!  She could very well lose her head; no special privileges, not even for the Queen!  Fortunately, she was a clever woman.  She kept her head and replied with searing honesty:  "I love myself more than the both of you."  This happens to be one of my favourite stories relating to the Buddha!

We would have liked to stay longer and look at the other buildings within the temple grounds but dark clouds were looming  and it looked like rain any minute. Perhaps another visit another day ...

The colourful entrance to the temple

According to the temple's record, the land was purchased by a Burmese, NONYA BETONG from a British named George Layton for 390 Spanish dollars with official permission granted by Lt Governor Prince of Wales Island, George Leith Baronet. After receiving the land grant title, NONYA BETONG donated the land for the construction of Dhammikarama temple.

Side view of the temple - the old and the new (behind)