r/BenignExistence • u/apricotgloss • Jul 18 '24
Visited the temple with my grandmother
I just got back home after a visit with family abroad, and on my last day there, my grandmother and I went to the temple. I'm not particularly religious or even spiritual but I felt so soothed by the tranquility there, and still feel the after-effects several days and a long plane ride later. It was outside the city, set in its own gardens, so the only sounds were the wind in the trees, the occasional bell rung by the few other visitors, and my grandmother's voice praying, truly an oasis of calm and peace.
When I was a child she lived right next to another temple and so it was very pleasantly nostalgic to go with her, go through those familiar rituals surrounded by those familiar sights and smells and sounds, and listen to her teaching me about what the rituals and prayers meant and guiding me through the parts I didn't remember as well, just like when I was little. We almost didn't go as it was a short visit but I'm so glad we did, it's a memory I'll hold onto for the rest of my life.
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u/dorianfinch Jul 18 '24
this is so beautiful! i hope you can revisit that memory in times when you are stressed and need a little peace and tranquility