Full Moon Rising by PadburyPhoto

Photo at Flickr

One of the reasons why I chose Tarski theme for my blog was because it made me think of the story of the three branches Bodhi tree in the moon that my mom told me when I was little.  At the time, the story seemed so real because there was an image that looked very much like a big tree when there is a full moon, of course, I know better now that there is no big tree up there.  But I’m sure we all see different things up there, and I’m wondering what do you see when you look at the moon.

So when I visited Wat Lao Buddhavong of Catlett, VA in July 2007, I was excited to see the real Bodhi tree again, I even wrote a post of ‘The Legend of the Bodhi Tree’, this is one of the biggest one that I’ve seen in the US.  Then I visited Laos last year, this one is huge.

The one below is at Wat Xieng Thong in Luang Prabang, Laos.  It’s down, but not far gone, still thriving with green leaves.

In Laos, I didn’t have to look for the Bodhi tree, it’s everywhere, it’s even grown in the oddest place, and I’m not sure how it got up there.  This one is at the entrance of the temple.

This one below is at That Dam (Black Stupa), According to travel.yahoo.com, this historic statue is said to be built on the cave of a dormant seven-headed dragon which rose to the rescue of the Vientiane population in the 1828 war with Thailand. Now standing guard over the town’s center, the imposing and mysterious stupa is overgrown with moss and the black spire creates an ominous impression against the blue sky. Legends aside, it is a curious and fascinating sight in Asia where all that is precious normally glitters in gold. The old black stone feeds your imagination evoking bygone eras and ghosts from the past.

So it is not a surprise when I see colorful clothes wrapped around the Bodhi tree, it is believed that big trees have spirit or guardian angel.

I think the leaves are real pretty, it shapes like a heart.

Photos are from my Laos Trip.