Temple Field Trip Blog Post

For our Religious Journey unit, all of 7th grade visited a Chinese Temple, Hindu Temple and an Islamic Mosque. From my experience, I noticed both the diversity and unison between each religion. Although there are many things I missed, I saw that in each temple, there were many geometric shapes, especially in the Hindu temple and the Mosque. They all had many beautiful patterns, particularly the Mosque since it was purely a work of art since it is against the religion to have statues or drawings of human beings or God. The many aromas blurred my senses, whether is came from fragrant Sampagita flowers or the flickering flames cherishing the prayer papers, but the most common was incense. Although the Masque didn't seem to have incense, both the Hindu and Chinese temple definitely provided enough of the scent to go around. The atmosphere between each place differed, the Hindu temple emitting a serene aura, the Chinese temple giving an easy going effect (for me, at least) and the Mosque displaying a serious mood. The colours very well contributed to the character of each temple, the Hindu temple bursting with vibrant colours, a simply elegant monochromatic red and gold Chinese temple and a pure white Mosque. The journey between each temple provided for me the much needed time to think and consider the personality of each religion and how that affects both the architecture and the people. I felt the heat of the flames licking at my arms when I cast away my wishes into the avid inferno. I could practically feel my shoulders lighten as I was surrounded in a flurry of amazing colours, either from the ceiling or the many statues of the Hindu Gods. The taste of incense still lingers on my tongue, as does the other emotions I feel, but cannot express fully. This field trip was an exceptional experience that I, for one, will not forget.