CHUA HUE QUANG TEMPLE
GLEN ALLEN,VIRGINIA
Kathy Fisher Michaels
Introduction to Buddhism
The College of William and Mary
2 December 2023
CHUA HUE QUANG TEMPLE-GLEN ALLEN, VA
As an assignment for my Introduction to Buddhism class at The College of William and Mary, I visited the Chua Hue Quang Temple in Glen Allen, VA. The assignment did not require a visit to the temple, just a Blog post about the temple. For me it is easier to see for myself, what I am to write about. The street address is 8535 Hungary Road, not an easy place to find. The sign marking the address was in red painted on red wood. There was no distinction showing the different letters. The Temple entrance is located on a curb on a busy street. I overshoot the turn in. Drove up to the next entrance which was for an Islam Mosque under reconstruction. So, headed back to Hungary Road and came from another angle. This time I was able to find the sign for the Temple and found the parking lot.
The English translation for the temple is “Temple of the Gift of Light.” It lives up to the English name. Even in the rainy weather, the area of the temple seemed to be bright and shiny. I took several pictures while walking around the outside. The grounds were lovely. As described in another post, the driveway is lined with Buddha statues and bushes. The bushes had many donation items poking out of the branches. Most of the items were flowers, but other items included fresh fruits, bottles of water, and boas made of flowers were wrapped around the hand railings.
Several statues featured were dragons, miniature temples, and a few lion-like creatures of perhaps, they were gargoyles. As I walked around the grounds with my umbrella shielding me from the rain, I noticed an entrance to a building. I followed the walkway to the overhang side entrance. Three pairs of shoes were by the door, so I tried the door, it was locked, I knocked and an older women opened the door for me. Leaving my shoes on the wet concrete was not pleasant, I wore no socks that Tuesday. Oh, well-cold feet never killed anyone.
The grand room I entered appeared to be a main meeting room. Perhaps, thirty to forty people were scattered around the room. Most of the people seemed to be Asian and a few Caucasians, including myself, were in attendance. A service was in progress. There was a Monk seated at a table near the front of the room. A person stood next to him, and he was the English translator. Both had song-like voices. The Monk spoke first, and his words were translated for most of us in attendance.
The seat I chose was along an outside wall. At the other end of the bench was a middle- aged monk. His argyle socks were very colorful. He stood up and pulled out a digital camera. The monk began taking pictures of the backs of the audience. Seems disclosures forms would not be needed if their faces were not photographed. After he took the pictures he settled on the other side of the room and reviewed his shots with a monk who was younger than the two I mentioned before. They both appeared to be pleased with the pictures taken.
Apparently, I entered rather late. The presentation part of the program was over, and the audience was encouraged to ask questions. A woman near the front asked how to achieve mindfulness. The Monk’s answer spoke of ridding your mind of distracting objects which interfere with a calm mind. Personally, I think my mind has a wagon load of monkeys inside it. His description was much more eloquent than mine. He described the Buddha’s practice of breath and the Lotus position. He did not demonstrate those practices. Another woman asked how we, as a world, can achieve peace throughout the world. The Monk’s answer was very lengthy, in my view, it seemed world peace is not within our reach. But prayer and being kind to one another is a step in the right direction according to the Monk.
The translator thanked all who attended their program. He also thanked those who purchased their goods presented for sale. The Monk and the translator stood side by side and talked to each other. Not being a bashful person, I walked up and introduced myself as a student at William and Mary. I presented my business card and showed them my student ID card. Each commented “How nice for me.” I offered a donation to their facility and was told the money would be sent to the Temple in India. I found that strange, because another Blog post from 2019 said this Temple was related to an area in Viet Nam. Things change over time, perhaps, they are now affiliated with another temple and not the temple which they had been with when they started in the 1950s.
After our conversation, I asked if pictures were allowed, the Monk turned to me and said certainly. I was thinking of taking pictures inside the room, his idea was better. He allowed a picture to be taken of him and me together. As we stood there, several people who were looking around the room noticed me having my picture taken with the Monk. They all rushed over. I guess being an older college student is not the only trend I am setting in my life.
As I was leaving the room, I saw three younger monks seated on the floor working with colored sand and creating a beautiful scene. I was not that pushy to lean in and take a picture of their work. As I left the building to reclaim my shoes I saw an outstanding red flamed tree with most of its leaves intact. What a lovely site to continue my journey into a world I have had little interaction with.
Here are pictures I took of my day at the temple:
Kathy F Michaels
Introduction to Buddhism
The College of William and Mary
Professor Kevin Vose
21 November 2023