Wat Buddhalavarna presented itself to me while I was walking Molly and Jennifer in December 1999. At the time I was cutting cardboard at a nearby Arst Studio helping my Circus Solarus friends with their contribution to the Centenary of Federation Parade in Sydney on 1 January 2001. See www.peacebus.com/graeme/010102FedRotunda.jpg
My then 25 year old daughter, Holly, had recently told me that she had decided to pursue post graduate studies in anthropology in Laos, the country with the most relaxed approach to life and development that she had encountered in her Asian travels of the year before.
Wedderburn is a district within the City of Campbelltown, 60 km south west of Sydney, an area orchards and bushland reserves. The sign on the gate described the Wat as a forest monastery established and maintained by the Lao community of Sydney. I went in with sheep and dog to introduce himself. It seemed appropriate to do so.
We were received with curiosity and kindness by Phra Khamphaeng Saenprasent, the secretary and project development coordinator of the Wat. The Wat I learned was relatively new (10 years old) and has made extraordinary progress. At the time it was supporting five monks. A grand temple was envisioned.
I later took his daughter Holly and son Silas to meet Phra Khamphaeng and Holly, before departing for Laos made another visit and carried letters and presents from the monks. The Wat Buddhalavarn sangha there after took a keen interest in Holly and her studies always eager for news.
I had written asking Phra Khamphaeng for advice and guidance on a pilgrimage in Laos. He expected me to be at the Wat on 23 December but delayed by troubles securing vaccinations and US dollars for the trip, I arrived late the next day and found the Wat gates closed for evening prayers.
But not too late. Happy Wheels was noticed at the gate and one of the younger monks, Phra Bounsu, ran to greet me, saffron robes flying through the green gardenscape at sunset. So many obstacles, so much driving through Sydney traffic and Christmas shopping hysteria and now to me leaning on the gate, a peace greeting. A perfect moment.
The monks invited me to witness their prayers. Five monks, and the chanting so sonorous and heart present.
After prayers they turned around. A line of smiles under the benevolence of the golden Buddha icon behind.
Monk Khamphaeng Saenprasent introduced me to the Abbot, an older man of bright eyes and beautiful face.
The Ven. Santitthito Mahathera, a monk of German origins translated for him. He remarked how auspicious it was to hear the monks in prayer before visiting the culture. A prior taste as it were. He told me that south Laos was a place of Buddhist pilgrimage for South East Asia for over a thousand years before being interrupted by the Indo China Wars.
The Ven. Santitthito was impressed that Holly would become "A Doctor!" (of Philosophy). He was even more impressed when I told how she had undertaken one to one daily training sessions with the trainer of the Cuban Olympic boxing team whom she had met during in her year of preparation in Vientiane.
Two evenings before departing for Lao for a second time, and this time with a post graduate scholarship from the Anthropology School of Australian National University under arm this time, she had participated in the first legal woman's boxing tournament. She had lost the bout, wisely in my opinion because now she is not required to defend any titles in any hierarchy of belters what so ever.
All the monks were fascinated by Holly and her studies. So is her father. Proud and wondrous. This one was once an infant whom I held in my arms as frail and tender as a flower?
My friend Phra Khamphaeng was joyous and excited. He went off to write letters of introduction using a blue biro on paper from a school notebook. "I want to facilitate", he said. "All my dreams have come true."
Three of the five monks at Wat Buddhalavarn, including Khamphaeng, had come from the
south of Laos where Holly is studying and Khamphaeng's mother and brother lived in a village 45 km south of Pakse. He was eager for me to meet his family.
Another monk Phra Khaophone invited me to meet his brother Phra Nakhom Savengphanh, a novice at Wat Ban Fai, Vientiane, who spoke some English and might help as a guide.
Such a sweet young man. I inquired how long in robes. "Fifteen years," he said. Entered when he was 13 years old. His mother had died six months later.
"Your mother must have been very proud of your taking robes," I said and he had replied: "I pray for her every night." In that moment a mirror reflected how badly and disrespectfully I had treated my mother. The mirror of pure devotion opened my heart to tears.
The upshot of all this was that I carried to Laos 5 letters and a small box which contained gifts from Phra Khamphaeng to his brother and 75 year old mother. The declaration for customs makes plain that it held for the brother, an English Oxford dictionary and two DVDs burned by the monks with a video documentary about a remnant of the Lao culture in Yunan, China, and for the Mum packet of antacid tablets and some vitamin B tablets.
The letters of introduction included one to Phra Ajanh Bounma Simaphom, the Abbott of Wat Ban Fai, Vientiane, and another to the Venerable Phoum Dejvongsa the Abbott at Wat Xampakhaet, in south Laos, I understood. the Venerable Phoum was a meditation teacher. The letter contained a gift of $AUS20 from Wat Buddhalavarna to Wat Xampakhaet.
Phra Khamphaeng had also rung his family to confirm our coming. And posed for photos to take to his mother. He entrusted me with photos of his mother and brother, so we might recognise them. As I was leaving Khamphaeng touched me affectionately and I reached to embrace his friendship and found his embrace as light and tender as the brush of a butterfly's wings.
Phra Khamphaeng also had a gift for Holly. It was a CD he had burned of a Thai women's choir singing a loving kindness mantra. On the CD in Texta pen, Khamphaeng had written "Loving kindness for Holly". I put the CD in Happy Wheels' player as I drove off. Such sweet sounds. Such sweet poetry. Such sweet blessings. Played non stop for hours. Its kindness erasing the congestions in my mind thoughts of regret and resentment with the ease of waves erasing sand castles.
What an introduction to a culture that can boast of being the most bombed people per capita in the world (by the United States of America of course, one more poor country a victim of the big lies and mass death of the US military).
At the time the neo conservative Bush regime was beating its drums in preparation for the invasion of Iraq so it was appropriate to be visiting Laos and recalling the tragedy of the US War in Indo-China. I was setting out on a pilgrimage and a pilgrimage is, at heart, a peace mission.
I had been preaching from the Peacebus roof all year "Turn towards kindness!" and here was the essence of kindness. Following the path of kindness it had become a veritable river of kindness. May it win the peace too.
May I be a voice for peace for these times and future times.
Graeme Dunstan
4 December 2002
An account of Graeme's pilgrimage can be found in eight chapters and some 25,000 words plus pics.
