Blessing Ceremony Held at the New Shaolin Temple Mayan Riviera
On October 24th, 2012, exactly 8 years after Shifu Shi Yan Ming first set foot on Mexican soil, a blessing ceremony was held to begin construction of the new Shaolin Temple Mayan Riviera, located on 8 acres of land deep in the jungle only 25 minutes from the airport in Cancun. In the weeks before the ceremony, students of the Shaolin Temple Mexico trained hard to clear a road through the jungle to the temple entrance, then cleared and laid down sand where the entrance will be. Two columns had been build to mark the entrance gate to the land, which is now still covered with trees and foliage – some poisonous to the touch! Several disciples who had come with Shifu to attend the ceremony from NY remarked how while building the new temple in Fleischmanns, NY had been difficult, it could not compare with the work ahead for the Mexicans!
The ceremony was attended not only by students and disciples of the New York and Mexico temples, but also by local media, Master Angel Postigo and students of the Tai Chi Parque Kabah group, and the man who had sold the land to the Temple.
Shifu began the ceremony with the “Jingshui Zhan” sutra to purify the land. The group followed by paying respects to Shakyamuni Buddha, Amituofo, Guan Yin, and Bodhidharma, then Shifu led a recitation of the Heart Sutra. Several more awards were presented in gratitude to those who had made the day possible, including several of Shifu’s disciples from New York who were not in attendance. After the Shaolin ceremony, one of the elders of the Tai Chi Parque Kabah group led a traditional Mayan ceremony paying respects to the spirits of the 4 directions, asking for blessings for us to build within their jungle. Shifu then cut the ribbon, and with the help of Heng Yi’s student Eylif, placed the final stone into the left column of the entrance that read “Amituofo – Shifu Shi Yan Ming – 10.24.2012”.
After celebrating with some sandia (watermelon) and snacks, which were much appreciated in the intense heat of the tropical sun, it was time for the group to part. Love and blessings to the new Shaolin Temple Mayan Riviera!