So as you can see, our Arizona sangha are engaged in their own Stupa work! Thus, it all worked out. I screwed up my camera settings and blew almost an entire days worth of photos, and Ani Dawa from Arizona sends me some photos of their Stupa Renovation, which just happens to include our very own Stupa Dude!

It is our sincere hope that whether you're in Arizona, or the D.C. Metro area, you'll take the time to visit these amazing structures! All that we do, all the efforts you see on these pages, are devoted to offering this tremendous blessing to the world. The Stupas bring benefit to all they encounter, to the insects that crawl on them, the birds that fly over them, and the humans that take the time to visit them. They don't care if you're Buddhist, or if you have any faith at all. They are here simply to benefit you, whoever you are.

November 7th...Connections...

Here's a look at the Stupa as I found it this morning...getting there...but you can see that with only one coat of gold it still looks pretty yellow. Don't worry, we're working on a second coat today!

Here's a shot of the bumpa after a second coat, you can see it's starting to look more gold, less yellow.  

Ashby joined me early today, disappointed I didn't tell him I was here earlier!  

Ardys brought her husband Bill with her today to help out! They worked on the west wall (we're trying to get those shady areas covered first, so as temps drop we can continue working on the sunny side. It's a theory anyway...Short post tonight as I'm heading back to the temple (after a quick shower and getting properly dressed (in my robes) for tsog. It is our sincere hope that all who see this will come see these magnificent Stupas in person. As we get the second coat on Migyur Dorje the gold really begins to shine!  

November 6th....Meditation....

I'm posting Guru Rinpoche's photo tonight, as I am heading off to bed early to catch as much sleep as possible before my early morning prayer shift. For those of you unfamiliar with our temple here in Poolesville, we maintain an 24 hour prayer vigil to end suffering. That's right, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day, for 20 + years this has been upheld.

This week I'm stepping in as caretaker of the chart (we have quite a system for keeping folks in the prayer room!), which means I get to fill in places no one volunteers to fill. That means a lot of middle of the night shifts...So even us Stupa dudes get our sit down practice time!

This photo is from the main altar in our prayer room, which is open 24 hours a day, everyday, and like our Stupas, welcomes all regardless of faith. So even with the precious Guru as my subject, I can continue to invite all of you to visit our temple here in Poolesville, Maryland. Whether to see our Stupas, or our ceaseless cycle of prayer, our doors are open all the time...

For those of you worried about the Migyur Dorje Stupa, we do have a plan! We're praying for the weather to hold out long enough for full implementation! I'll be going out to keep the paint rolling bright and early, fresh after my morning practice in the prayer room (that's 8 am for anyone looking to join in!).

November 5th...Obsession...

Though I worked today (for a living) Lisa Banana did go out early to get some time in on the Stupa! She reports the upper steps now have a complete first coat, and she's planning on squeezing more time in tomorrow morning. The report on paint consumption is encouraging. We might actually have enough to begin a second coat! We're keeping a close eye on the weather, and praying hard for continued warm, sunny days (a lot to ask in November!).

It is our sincere wish that all beings may enjoy the benefits of our labors. Whether you're Buddhist or not, whether you like Buddhists or not, we hope you will come and see these amazing structures for yourselves.

They are rare and precious by any standards, even if you have no faith in their spiritual power. They contain relics of past Buddhist masters, have been constructed according to ancient Tibetan traditions, overseen by authentic Tibetan masters. All of this right here in Poolesville, Maryland, a short drive from Washington D.C. We welcome people of all faiths (including those with no faith). There are Stupas out in isolated corners of our 65 acre Peace Park, where you need not talk with anyone at all, as well as right next to our parking lot, if you don't want to walk. We promise to leave you alone if you wish, or answer your questions if you have any. So come on out and see them for yourself!

November 4th...Ladybugs...

Here's the Stupa at the beginning of the day. You can hardly see what Lisa did yesterday (she did the harmika and top of the bumpa). Antjia had joined Lisa yesterday, painting most of the lower steps. I started off the day by myself (but then I am getting out here pretty early these days...for those of you that know me you know that's unusual). I headed up to get the spire finished, my goal was to finish it before lunch...we'll see...

Though I was focused on painting all day (so much so I took very few photos) this little guy got me to pull my camera out. He is big (for a bug) and really odd looking. He moves really slowly, and I guess he's suppose to look like a chip of bark. Our issues with insects got worse as the day drew on, with ladybugs covering the Stupa once again.  

Antjia and Amber joined us this afternoon (Amber even brought us all lunch!). Ashby had been working since mid-morning (no photos, sorry, I am bent on getting the Stupa painted!). Here Antjia examines our insect visitor more closely... 

Antjia worked all afternoon. You can see the merciless sunset already starting to happen here. Ashby and Amber stayed until it got dark. We gave it our best shot, and once again, got a lot done, but not as much as we'd hoped. : )

The first coat of gold is nearly complete, and the spire and top of the bumpa now have 2 coats of gold on them. We're nursing our last gallon of paint, and looking for places to get more. The color is brilliant (hard to really appreciate it in these dark photos). Though it's perfect for us, one can see where it's applications might be otherwise limited, hence, the relatively small supply. We'll be fanning out across the Metro area though looking for sources!

Our budget is gone, so if you'd like to help us get this precious Stupa gilded before winter hits we'll put your offering to good use! There's a link on this page, or you can contact us directly if you prefer (just send a comment with your info and we'll give you all our info--we're a 501c non-profit so it's tax deductable).

Of course, there's never a need to make an offering (though it's always beneficial to do so, whether it's incense, water, food or flowers, or the funds needed to keep the Stupas in good repair). The Stupas offer their blessings constantly, free of charge. It is our sincere hope you will come and see these magnificent structures for yourself. Khenpo Norgye refered to them as spiritual "power spots" when he was here, but even if you're not spiritual you can still enjoy their beauty...

November 3rd...Earning a living...

Well, as I had no update today (Lisa did go out and work for a few hours today!) I cannot report on what Migyur Dorje looks like now. However, this is a "before" shot, as a reference for what I post tomorrow. This photo is from last year. Now we're applying a new coat of gold paint.

The sooner I get some sleep, the sooner I can get out there, so a short post tonight! As always, please do come see the Stupas for yourself! They are open to all, and the Enlightenment Stupa is right by the parking lot of the temple. It's illuminated 24 hours a day, every day, so you can visit whenever you wish! Of course, we'll keep you close to them here online as well!

November 2nd...Glimpses...

Yekta (foreground) brought the gold paint from Virginia this morning, and offered to stay and help for a few hours this morning! This is how the Stupa looked when we arrived. You can see there are areas that need priming still, so that's where we start...

Ani Rene and Yekta got to work on our one bare wall. We'd hoped to finish priming yesterday, but we picked up where we left off and kept going. I devoted the day to the spire, hoping to get the burgundy and gold rings painted so we can take down the upper ladder.  

Luck joined us early, and spent all day with us! She stumbled on us painting yesterday, jumped right in, and came back for more! 

Ashby brought everyone lunch, and then helped Rene figure out what still needed to be primed... 

Once the priming was complete, Ashby joined Luck working with the new gold...

As the sun began to fade Ashby snapped this shot. Ardys is working with Luck painting our first gold on the front wall. I'm up on the spire (where I spent the entire day and still didn't finish) starting to apply gold to the side I'd been working on. It took much of the day just getting the burgundy in the inner rings on one side (I decided to do one whole side, thus only having to move the ladder once). I managed to get the gold on before it got too dark to work though!  

We worked until sunset (which is too early!). It gets dark quickly, and when the sun goes down it gets cold.

Here it is. You can't really tell how shiny the gold is in the dim light, but I assure you, it's fantastic. With a second coat, the Stupa will look gilded!

I talked with Lisa Banana, and she's planning on spending at least an hour or so out here tomorrow (she'll at least get to see how brilliant the new gold is!) after work. Unfortunately, it's my turn to have to earn my living, so I won't be out. I'll be back Friday though, the goal being getting at least the first coat of gold on! We're in the final hours now, chilly nights already giving us headaches, so if you'd like to come out and paint a Stupa, even for an hour, we'd love to have you! We have the brushes and paint. And, as usual, there is never a need to work on the Stupas. They are here for you, always, for free. We're just offering the opportunity to accumulate some amazing merit!

Whether you come to see the new gold going on, or to visit the Stupa Park, or just to walk the wooded paths through our 65 acre Peace Park, it is our hope you will take us up on our open invitation. We maintain all of this as an offering to you, whoever you are...

November 1st...Gathering...

When I arrived today I found this! You can see Ani Rene was able to get the bumpa painted yesterday, and two walls of the throne were done. Today we're going to try and get the rest of the primer on...

I thought I got there early (anything before 10 am is early for this lazy gal). When I arrived Yekta was already working! Though you can't see her here yet, Ani Rene was also hard at work...making phone calls. We're having trouble locating paint. It turns out we did find a vendor that can get it for us quickly, but it costs a LOT more. We're now really out of money (always the way isn't it?), so we're not sure if we're going to be able to swing two coats of gold...We don't want to stop moving though, so we're buying all we can so we can get at least one coat of gold on. If you'd like to contribute to this amazing effort, there's a link on this page! Or if you prefer, you can come on out and lend a hand! 

Ani Rene took over painting the upper steps after lunch while I power washed the last areas down near the ground. We had hoped to finish the priming today, but as you can see, the sun was already sinking in the sky... 

Ani Rene took a few photos (I was too busy working all day to take many). Here's one of Lisa. She came out after work today to catch what little daylight was left... 

Luck, who comes often to circumambulate the Stupa, found us painting it today. She's helped work on the Enlightenment Stupa before, and was eager to get going! 

Despite the maddeningly short days (sunset at 5 pm!!) we managed to get quite a bit done. We had hoped for having the whole Stupa primed, but we are now use to overshooting the mark. : ) We're content to aim high and get as close to the mark as we can. We had some surprises today (Ardys came out, and Beth, no photos guys...sorry). Luck didn't even know we were painting, but jumped right in. So if you've ever wanted to gild a Stupa tomorrow is your chance! We'll be finishing up the primer, then starting to apply the gold! Of course, if you don't want to work on them we won't make you! It is our hope that you will come out and see these amazing sources of spiritual power for yourself. You don't have to be Buddhist, you don't have to be religious, you certainly don't have to paint. They are here to bring benefit and good fortune to all who connect with them, whether you see them online right here, or in person in Poolesville, Maryland. If you prefer to steer clear of the work, the Enlightenment Stupa is right next to the parking lot, and the Stupa Park is now sporting a new shiny finish (some lingering repairs...we know), so you can visit Stupas without having to run into us. So whether you're shy or want to ask us questions, there's a place for you here...