Oakland Buddhist Monastery to Receive Vietnamese Statues

July 2, 2003

Source: Register-Pajaronian

http://www.zwire.com/news/newsstory.cfm?newsid=9033567&BRD=1197&PAG=461&CATEGORYID=410

On July 2, 2003 the Register-Pajaronian reported that "tucked away in the green foliage and down a very narrow road is the Tu Vien Kim Son Meditation Center, a monastery dedicated to the teaching of Buddhism and the art of meditation... The half-dozen statues, weighing from 6,000-125,000 pounds apiece, were shipped from Vietnam to Oakland [CA] on large cargo ocean liner... In a three-phase project, different statues are being shipped in accordance with the development and needs of the monastery... The master of the monastery, clad in a Vietnamese-style hat and the traditional red and orange robes of the religion, Master Tu, said the statues are hand-carved white stone and each figure represents a different theme or idea in Buddhism."