Wesak Celebration

Wesak, wesakha puja, is the celebration of the birth, enlightenment and passing of the Buddha. It is traditionaly held on the full moon observance day (uposatha) in May. In some Buddhist countries this is major occasion lasting a number of days. At our Monastery in Devon the Wesak celebration took place yesterday, entirely outside in [...]

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More bread

I love bread, particularly made from quality, fresh, organic ingredients. So today, avoiding the madding crowds flocking to the coast, we headed inland to another organic Dorset baker. Hidden deep in the beautiful countryside, north of Wimborne, you’ll find the village of Long Crichel and the Bakery. They have been baking in their wood fired [...]

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Oleander Hawk-moth

It’s surprising what you can find at a motorway service station. On exiting the automatic doors, dodging the coffee carrying visitors I noticed something strange on the ground. What looked like an ornate brooch turned out to be a large Hawk-moth lying vulnerably on the mat. It’s markings were shades of olive green with exquisite [...]

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Compton Acres

This afternoon we braved the cold wind and used our new RHS membership to visit Compton Acres. This is the nearest Recommended Garden to us, just round the harbour a couple of miles. We were rewarded by a fabulous show of maples and azaleas in glorious colour. There are a number of other themed gardens [...]

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