Year 9 Ignite Visits the Great Stupa

After a short bus ride, we arrived at a carpark in the middle of the bush. Confused I looked around, then I saw it: The Great Stupa of Universal Compassion. The gardens were quite peaceful, the whistle of the wind and birds was the only sound (other than our chit-chat). When we started the tour of the gardens, I realised that there is so much more to the Stupa and Buddhism than what I had thought. It was not just Buddhist statues in the garden, there was a statue of Saint Francis of Assisi and a Small Temple with a statue of Ganesh. The most striking sculpture to me displayed four animals: a bird, a rabbit, a monkey, and an elephant all working together to reach some fruit. It symbolised the things we can achieve if we work together. When we entered the Stupa itself, the sheer size of the structure amazed me. Whilst the Jade Buddha was amazing to see, I really enjoyed the monk’s explanation of Buddhist culture and practices. It was fascinating to learn about the focus on self-betterment in Buddhist culture. I learned that we should focus on ourselves and not changing others. All in all, it was a fun experience for everyone.

Vivek Vattakatuchery (9 Riley)

The Great Stupa of Universal Compassion was an amazing learning opportunity for the Year 9s as we have been studying diverse cultures in class recently. The trip to the Stupa was a great way to get to know different cultures and it was a great experience all round, apart from the heat. 

When we arrived, the Year 9s split up into two groups, one to tour the gardens first, and the other to a guided meditation and an exploration of the Stupa. My group started with the Stupa. As we walked up the garden, we could see statues of Buddhas on either side of us and we even got to see a stumpy-tailed lizard. When we got to the top of the hill, we saw the prayer wheels that covered the building. In these prayer wheels were prayers for millions of different people and when spun clockwise, the prayers would get released and sent out into the world. 

Inside the Stupa we were met with the confronting but nice smell of essence (which the public can burn) and the jade Buddha sitting on the stage. Once seated, we started the guided meditation (run by Ven. Jampa Choephal). In the meditation we were guided to relax and let our mind settle before carrying on with the journey in the Stupa. Once the meditation was finished, our guide took us through some information regarding the jade Buddha and other Buddhas in the Stupa. The thing that I found most interesting in the Stupa was that the jade for the jade Buddha cost one million dollars at the time and is now priceless. Then we got to explore the Stupa, looking at the thousand-year-old relics and interesting artifacts they had up for display. 

With that, our trip inside the Stupa was over and it was time to meet Donna Attewell, our tour guide for the garden. 

In the garden, we learnt more about Buddhism and other religions that the Stupa represents. We walked around the garden enjoying looking at all the statues around the garden. 

Overall, the Year 9 trip to the Great Stupa was an immense success and one that is to be remembered in the future. Thanks to Mr Smeelie for organising the trip and to all the Year 9 Ignite teachers! 

Rowan Edwards (9 Jenkin)

Our trip to the Great Stupa was an amazing learning experience where we were introduced to a variety of different cultures. We got to experience some of the interesting features about Buddhism and learn about significant parts of their culture. We saw many different artifacts, the oldest one dating back to hundreds of thousands of years ago. Our groups were taught about some of the priceless artifacts such as the Jade Buddha. The Jade that the Jade Buddha was made from was over $1,000,000 but since the Jade Buddha has been carved it is now priceless. We were also taught about the Stupa itself, from what is a Stupa to what does a Stupa symbolise. When we entered the Stupa we all sat down on the seats, and once we were seated we started meditation. After the meditation, we were taught about all the different Buddhas and artifacts. We were then shown through the gardens looking at various different artifacts. The day was extremely fun and I am so glad I got the opportunity to go.

Zoe Dean (9 Jenkin)