A Muslims trip to a Buddhist monastery.

 Most of my time in Atlanta is spent south of the capital building. The close proximity of friend’s family school and work afford me the luxury of realizing my needs without venturing too far from home.

Its no wonder then that I had no idea the Drepung Loseling Buddhist monastery existed. Not 20 minutes from where I live is access to a very rich and evolved eastern spiritual tradition.

Pulling up to the monastery I was a bit unimpressed. I had expected something resembling a temple instead of a regular office style building. 

Something inside gave me pause with my judgement. I couldn’t help but to reflect on the physical structure of the mosque where I pray and worship. The building I attend every Friday is a lightly rehabbed old department store gutted and converted into an assembly hall for our worship and congregation.

 From the outside our building doesn’t fit the mold of a Muslim Mosque. 

Parking in the rear of the building. I came in through the entrance on the back of the building. Immediately I was welcomed in by an attendee of the monastery. The smiles shared were warm and genuine. This helped me to relax and feel welcomed.

I love good smelling things. . I’ve never been to a place that smells more pleasant to me than a mosque…part of our tradition is the use of incense and fragrant oils to color the air with a symphony of sweet and musky scents. I’ve grown to associate these smells with home and the familiar. Boy was I pleasantly surprised when I walked into the monastery. I had no idea that the place would smell so good. The air filled with sweet and musky scents that for me is synonymous with worship and the familiar. I cant help but laugh at my self reflecting on how a something as simple as smell made me so comfortable in this new and foreign place.       

When I walked up to the door of the inner sanctuary I was surprised to see a sign saying no shoes. That said I am accustomed to this practice as we do the same thing in the mosque. Quickly I removed my shoes placing them in the designated area and went into the sanctuary for the worship.

Ahhhhaaa! That’s what I expected to see.

 The years of eastern martial arts movies have conditioned me to connect Buddhism with an orange robe and the gold stature of the Buddha. Walking into the sanctuary my eyes sought out and found these two familiar symbols of the faith alive and present. Now this was my image of Buddhism…confident that I had full grasp of the scene I sat down in a chair directly behind the veteran worshipers sitting on the floor. There bottoms cushioned by flat pillows and there legs crossed in the classic meditation position..I listened as the service began. 

A picture of  a Buddhist Monastery



The service was outstanding. As a Human I found my self swept away in by the intense spiritual presence of both the prayers being chanted and the people chanting. The meaning of the mantras was something I immediately knew were a benefit to my soul and began to allow my self to open consciously to the teachings.
The experience is something I am still digesting now. But in the spirit of the world house metaphor I look forward to visiting my brother again.