An Outing To Ba Gua Mountain (to see my mentor)

Jo and I headed out for a drive the other day last weekend and ended up at Ba Gua Mountain, after randomly choosing a direction headed out of the city. It was not far away - only about 40 minutes drive, which is the average time for cool things to pop out at you while driving. Oh, by the way, Ba Gua means "Eight Diagrams" which is symbolic of the Yin/Yang relationship in Buddhism and Taoism.

Below is a picture of the Ba Gua patterns:

To be honest, Jo has been a great help in getting my butt in gear to go exploring again. I did a lot of traveling when I first got here in Taiwan, but it petered out after awhile. Thus, when Jo asks if I have been somewhere, I just say "Maybe, but let's assume not." since it has been a long time since I have seen the beautiful countryside (which IS very beautiful, by the way...)

Anyway, I was not sure what to expect and was pleasantly surprised to not only find one of the largest Buddha statues (that you can walk in and peer out his Third Eye (that alone is worth it...), but I got a chance to see one of my mentors (or at least the person I am trying to emulate, even though Jo dislikes this....). So overall it was a great trip.

We plan to make a trip every other weekend or so, so I will try to keep this thing updated...sigh...haha

Below are some pics of the day.

Here is the Buddha with the typical Dragon Pond in front

Getting closer to the big guy....you can see his Third Eye better now.

Since we can actually climb up inside the Buddha, I had wanted to peer out of his Third Eye.....for both dramatic effect and symbolic meaning. However, when we got to about his chest level, we could not go up any further since the head area was undergoing remodeling. Too bad.... But we did have a chance to learn more about Sakyamuni (the title of the Buddha - his name was Siddhartha - great book by Hermann Hesse, by they way) and his life by little diaramas through out the interior, like the ones below. Interesting!

This is depicting the birth of Buddha - for those of you who don't know this story, it is worth reading - or if you are really lazy - check out the movie The Little Buddha, which (even though it has Keanu Reeves in it) is still pretty good..

I liked this one since all the animals are offering him gifts as well...the monkey is offering what looks like a corn dog or an egg, but it was cute regardless.

Jo laughed when I took a picture of this, but for most Westerners, this is a new thing. No, it is NOT a candy dispensing machine - but close....you put in some money to give you the right to ask the Buddha or a prayer.

Honestly, we both did not know what the buttons were for, but maybe it is a game you play. Anyway, you put your money in, take 2 little moon-shaped rocks, pray to Buddha, and then throw the rocks. Depending on the side the rocks land, you will get an answer. Basically, both rocks down means that Buddha declines your request, both rocks up means that Buddha is frustrated with you, and that one up and one down, has a positive response, BUT you then have to go to pick one of those wooden things (coming out of the top there) and read the inscription on it to figure out what the Buddha is trying to say.

We did not try it, since I don't want to press my luck, but it is interesting to watch the whole process.

This is the ornate temple behind the Buddha, where you go and pray, of course. I did not take any pics inside, since that is a general rule around here, so you will just have to trek on over and see for yourself. Just prepare your eyes...it gets awfully smokey from the incense.
This is one of the few pictures that I think is pretty good (from all the angles), but I admit I still need to improve my skills...

Here is a funky elephant guarding the entrances to the temple - which I thought was cool since most of the time lions or dragons guard the entrances. Take a look at his tusks! Cool! (Can you tell I love elephants?)

A close up of some of the carving skills. Very detailed and beautiful. Plus, more elephants. I am not sure, but I think the reason there are many elephants here is that they were thought to be the largest being, yet they are extremely intelligent, brave, kind and passive (unless they are protecting their young).

Ah! Here we are! As we were walking around, I found my mentor - the great Mi Le Fo - or Happy Buddha (Fo is Chinese for Buddha and Mi Le is Happiness).
Much to Jo's chagrin, I am emulating Happy Bud - as I call him - fat tummy, cool ears, plump breasts and all. As you can see, I have a long way to go yet, but I am sure I will make it!

After all, he is happy since he knows how to take advantage of good food and relaxing activities and is a general inspiration to many! Who can not like the Happy Buddha?!

Here is the traditional mode of praying to Mi Le Fo - by rubbing the belly or the breasts....seriously!
Course, I guess 'cupping' is more a personal thing.....


Below are a few random shots from outside the temple grounds:

Alright! Geez, some of you were getting ready to berate the fact that you have not seen Jo in these pics...so here you go! Yes, I love my lovely wife, but she usually tells me I take terrible pics of her anyway! (course that probably only a 'woman' thing anyway haha)... This one is ok though....sigh....

Jo asked me why I wanted to take this one, since I was laughing to myself. I mentioned that I would not really have picked that particular place to sit.....finally Jo chuckled, too...

Another thing that was cool here was that there were about 10-12 large carved calligraphy pieces that looked beautiful (for those of you who don't know, I love Chinese calligraphy and often incorporate it into my abstract art). Anyway, both Jo and I stood here looking at these for awhile and then picked our favorites to stand next to.


Mine is obviously much better, but that is ok...haha..

Close up of the calligraphy carvings...yes, they are carved and then painted in.

Here is another close up of one cool character.

Another part to this area was a nice walking area with waterfalls and paths, so we explored a bit more. However, the battery was getting low, so we could not take too many pics....

And there you have it - Our day at Ba Gua Mountain!

(please don't make me post such another long post again!) haha