Fire at ancient Tibetan temple in old Lhasa

From The Sydney Morning Herald  FEBRUARY 18 2018 - 10:51PM

·      

Kirsty Needham

Kirsty Needham is China Correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age

The most important Tibetan pilgrimage site, the Jokhang Temple in old Lhasa, was ablaze on Saturday night but few details have been released by the Chinese government about the extent of the damage. The 7th Century Tibetan building, which sprawls over 2.5 hectares, is protected by law and is listed for its "outstanding universal value" by the United Nations cultural protection agency, UNESCO.

London-based Tibetan expert Robert Barnett told Fairfax Media: "The Jokhang is widely regarded as the most sacred site in Tibetan Buddhism, with thousands of pilgrims travelling across the plateau for centuries to reach there and still doing so today, when allowed to."

The Dharma Wheel on the Jokhang Temple, Lhasa, Tibet

"It was the earliest Buddhist temple to be built in Tibet and is seen by many Tibetans as the symbolic heart of the country and of its cultural heritage."

A UNESCO report in 2016 stated the temple was in a good state of conservation but noted fire was a "high disaster risk" and prevention measures were in place.

After multiple videos of the large fire in Lhasa's old town, in which Tibetans can be heard gasping and crying, spread on social media on Saturday night, Chinese state media confirmed there had been "a partial fire in the Jokhang Temple. The fire was quickly extinguished and no casualties reported".

Read more here

Benedict - author of The Rule, founder of Western Monasticism

From the blog of Malcolm Guite

A sonnet for St. Benedict

On July the 11th the Church celebrates the feast of St. Benedict of Nursia, the gentle founder of the Benedictine order and by extension the father of Monasticism. A moderate and modest man he would have been astonished to learn that his ‘simple school for prayer’, his ‘modest rule for beginners’ led to the foundation of communities which kept the Christian flame alight through dark ages, preserved not only Christian faith, scripture, and culture,but also the best of Classical Pagan learning and culture, fed the poor, transformed societies, promoted learning and scholarship, and today provides solace, grounding, perspective and retreat not only to monks and nuns but to millions of lay people around the world.
Here is my sonnet for Benedict, drawing largely on phrases from the Rule, I dedicate it to the sisters at Turvey Abbey. It appears in my second book with Canterbury Press, The Singing Bowl

As always you can hear the sonnet by clicking on the ‘play’ button or the title.

Audio Player

00:00

00:00

Use Up/Down Arrow keys to increase or decrease volume.

Benedict

You sought to start a simple school of prayer,
A modest, gentle, moderate attempt,
With nothing made too harsh or hard to bear,
No treating or retreating with contempt,
A little rule, a small obedience
That sets aside, and tills the chosen ground,
Fruitful humility, chosen innocence,
A binding by which freedom might be found

You call us all to live, and see good days,
Centre in Christ and enter in his peace,
To seek his Way amidst our many ways,
Find blessedness in blessing, peace in praise,
To clear and keep for Love a sacred space
That we might be beginners in God’s grace.