Dayton Is Home Of New 835-Pound Buddha Statue

February 15, 2009

Author: Meredith Moss

Source: The Buddhist Channel/Dayton Daily News

http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=62,7794,0,0,1,0

She expected the giant statue to be delivered to her home in Yellow Springs by UPS.

Instead, Ellen Marie Lauricella was notified in June that the 835-pound statue of Buddha had been sent by air from Nepal and was waiting to be picked up in Columbus.

"It took 10 strong members to get it into the building," said Lauricella, president of the Gar Drolma Buddhist Center in East Dayton.

Crafted of brass and gold, the 5-foot-tall statue was created by artisans in Nepal who, for generations, have passed the sacred arts tradition from fathers to sons.

For the past eight months, excited members of the sangha (congregation) have been busily preparing for the consecration of their new Buddha statue and the 13-foot-high mahogany shrine on which it sits. The special event took place Friday evening, Feb. 8.