Cherry Blossom in D.C.

The blooming of the cherry trees around the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C. has come to symbolize the natural beauty of our nation's capital city. Hundreds of thousands of visitors from across the nation and around the world come to the Nations Capital to witness the spectacle, hoping that the trees will be at the peak of bloom for the Cherry Blossom Festival, Washington, D.C.'s rite of spring.
The famous trees, a gift from Japan in 1912, signal the coming of Spring with an explosion of life and color surrounding the Jefferson Memorial on the Tidal Basin in a sea of pale pink and white. Exactly when the buds will open is not an easy question to answer, but the National Park Service Regional Horticulturalist Robert DeFeo has been fairly accurate in his forecasts over the past several years.
Once the buds begin to expand in late February or early March, they can be monitored and the days counted before they can be expected to bloom. The forecast is based upon the weather forecast, and close inspection of the trees themselves to determine the stage of bud development.
The history of the cherry trees dates to 1912 when the original trees were planted by First Lady Mrs. William Howard Taft and the Vicountess Chinda of Japan.
Today more than 3,700 cherry trees of several varietiesgrow around the Tidal Basin, at East Potomac Park, and on the Washington Monument Grounds. Most trees are the Yoshino variety, Japan's favorite cultivated cherry tree that was developed about 1870 and presented as a gift in 1912. They encircle the Tidal Basin and can also be seen in abundance on the Monument grounds.
Since the National Park Service has been keeping records of the blooming dates, the earliest blooming date as been March 15, 1990, and the latest date was marked on April 18, 1958. The average blooming date--that time when the blooms are considered to reach their peak--is April 5 for the Yoshino and April 22 for the double flowering Kwansan trees, mostly seen in East Potomac Park.

Niagara Falls

Lama Monks.

By ASHOK SHARMANEW DELHI,

India March 24, 1999 (AP) _ Clad in flowing, dark red robes,nearly 200 Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns ended a three-day conferenceWednesday by rejecting violence and pledging to follow the Dalai Lama'speaceful approach to resolving conflicts with China.Organizers said this was the first meeting of all the leading monks,nuns and administrators from the Tibetan monastic community living inIndia and abroad, including the United States, Europe and SoutheastAsia.``All delegates and participants at the conference have agreed to followexactly all and any advice given by His Holiness the Dalai Lama ofTibet,'' said a resolution adopted at the conference held in New Delhi,the Indian capital.The statement was a setback to those who had suggested a more radicalapproach to settle the Tibetan issue with China. Impatience with theDalai Lama's peaceful methods erupted last year when a group of Tibetansdemanding independence went on a hunger strike in New Delhi.A monk died after setting himself afire, an unprecedented act in thepeaceful, tightly knit community.``The Dalai Lama is a very wise man. The middle path he is advocatingin dealing with China is the correct path,'' actor Richard Gere, afollower of the Dalai Lama, told reporters after the closing sessionWednesday.The participants at the New Delhi conference were followers of thepowerful Gelug tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, whose monks are oftencalled the ``Yellow Hats'' because of their headgear.

I am Little Earth.

My name is Earth. "เอิร์ท". I am 4 years old. I like Thai temple , monks and all of my friends. I am so happy to come to study at Wat Thai. Do you believe? I speak Thai well.

Pictures by Sam.

Students at Wat Thai, USA.

Offering.

Offering Food... A Buddhist Tradition
The two kinds of alms, material and spiritual, have the endowment of boundless merit. Now that they have been fulfilled in this act of charity, both self and other gain pleasure there from."Shasta Abbey"

Chinese Class.

Happy in the class.
Be, Pe, Me, Fe, De, Te, Ne, Le.

Nin Hao! Wo shi Zhongguo ren.
Before we start the class, we chant in Chinese too.
All my Chinese students.

With little Boys and Girls.

I teach young students at the temple.

Meditation-Yoga.

There are about 200 monks at Wat Thai D.C., Silver Spring MD, USA.
Standing Meditation.

Wolking Meditation.
Listening Dhamma Talk.
Sitting Meditation.

Nice to sit maditate under the tree.

Yoga and Meditation Class.
Start the Class.
Relax.



Yoga Class on every Wednesday 7:30 P.M.

Come and practice with us.
MEDITATION

Meditation is frequently confused with various forms of concentration. The purpose of concentration exercises is to focus our full undivided attention on a specific aspect of functioning of our mind and/or the body in order to accomplish a certain goal or develop a certain skill. Exercises such as yoga, tai-chi, breathing exercises, visualization are all forms of concentration. In contrast, meditation is an exercise, aiming to prevent thoughts in a natural way, by deeply relaxing the physical body and then trying to keep the mind completely "blank" with no thoughts whatsoever. This state may be maintained for a few seconds or a few hours, depending on your skill. Purity of the mind achieved during meditation is essential to gain access to Higher Self. It seems that our Higher Self does not admit any impurities.