Okay, I admit it, when I first decided to stop here I figured it was one of those tacky little roadside attractions I grew up visiting along the byways of this country. I mean c’mon….a thousand Buddhas in Montana….expectations were low but I had to check it out.
There are no billboards, no signs of any kind that I saw pointing the way to the garden, just me and google maps getting off I90 @ exit 96 and heading north into the hills. Took about 20 minutes of driving through the beautiful Montana countryside onto the Flathead Reservation to the garden which is a little bit past Arlee.
As I turned off highway 93 on to a basically one lane road into the farm fields I was beginning to feel the doubt that comes when Google has led you astray in the past and you think it’s happening again. But I kept on and sure enough, there it was on the left, a large red Paifang (hope I used the right word) looking totally out of place on this country road.
Grabbing my phone and my camera bag I stepped out on to the slightly damp dirt parking lot to the sound of birds singing and a rainbow lingering over the grassy hills as a shaft of bright sun highlighted the direction I should take. Just kidding, there was no rainbow or sun shaft, but it did look like it had rained recently and there were birds. However, there was indeed a meandering path and I quickly realized this was the path I should take ( it was also the only path). FYI-also a bathroom in the parking lot if needed. Well, really a outhouse, but it’s there if you need it.
The path weaves softly through the grasslands from the parking lot to the first of the Buddhas. It’s so quiet and peaceful I could feel the serenity settle over me like a warm blanket. Let me say, I am not a Buddhist, I’m a Christian but many of the teachings of the Buddha are also the teachings of Christ just told in different ways.
After viewing the Eight Great Stupas [there were many prayer offerings left at each of the Stupa alters (? are they called alters?)}, I continued down the path. Dispersed randomly were large rocks engraved with the Buddhas sayings which I found very inspirational.
Then I came upon the actual buddhas and it was amazing. Picture a large wagon wheel. Ewan is in the center. The white Buddhas you see in the pictures below radiate out in spokes from the center, and the cream colored vessels make up the wheel around it all (each vessel contains a small buddha). No, I did not count, but do not doubt that there are 1000 buddhas there.
If you ever get the chance to stop here, I highly recommend it. No matter what your religious preference is, it’s a beautiful peaceful place to unwind and refresh. I’ll leave you with some pictures of the reflecting pool, happy travels.
Wow! What an unexpected gift, huh?
Absolutely! Little treasures everywhere…even Montana hay fields 🙂
I really love this one! Who would’ve thought and so much to think about! Truly a sanctuary of beauty and grace! Thanks for sharing!
Truly a wonderful place, I’m glad you enjoyed 🙂