Created by Ewam, an international Buddhist organization with centers in Montana, New Mexico, California, India, Nepal, Taiwan, and Hong Kong, this beautiful garden, set in the quiet and peaceful countryside, is intended to "instill lasting impressions of peacefulness and compassion". As well as the 1,000 Buddhas, the garden has been graced with a water garden and native trees and flowers to further enhance the aura of peacefulness. The garden has been dedicated as an International Peace Center.
As of 2010 the "Garden of One Thousand Buddhas" hadn't yet had the advertised 1,000 Buddhas, but when that milestone was reached it was to be visited by the Dalai Lama. According to a news article published on March 17, 2010 by
The Missoulian of Missoula, MT that much anticipated visited was to take place sometime in late 2011.
Excerpts from that article may be read below.
Dalai Lama will bless Arlee buddha garden
By JOE NICKELL of the Missoulian Mar 17, 2010
As soon as there are 1,000 Buddhas in Arlee, they'll be visited by one Dalai Lama.
On Tuesday, members of the Buddhist community of Ewam Montana in Arlee announced that the Dalai Lama, leader of Tibetan Buddhists, will come to western Montana to consecrate the Garden of 1,000 Buddhas when it is completed.
The visit is expected to take place in late 2011, but specific dates have not been set.
"This is going to be such a blessing for Missoula and the surrounding area to have him come here," said Dr. Georgia Milan, coordinator of the Dalai Lama's visit. "We anticipate visitors both nationally and internationally to join us for this event, and help consecrate what will really become a very large pilgrimage site for people to gather in the name of peace and have a spiritual retreat in the heart of the pure lands of Montana."
The visit will be the first ever by the Dalai Lama to Montana. He will appear at the invitation of Tulku Sang-ngang Rinpoche, founder of the Garden of 1,000 Buddhas and himself a respected spiritual leader among followers of Tibetan Buddhism.
The seeds of the visit were planted in 2000, when an anonymous student of Rinpoche's purchased 60 acres of land north of Arlee and donated it to Ewam Montana.
Shortly thereafter, Rinpoche decided to build a garden on the site, featuring 1,000 cast-concrete statues of the Buddha Shakyamuni arrayed around a 500-foot circular garden connected by eight spoke-like paths to a 25-foot statue of Yum Chenmo, or great mother, at its center. When the project was first announced, Rinpoche said he hoped that the Dalai Lama would come to the site upon its completion.
Read on at The Missoulian
THE GARDEN OF 1000 BUDDHAS
The Garden of One Thousand Buddhas in western Montana’s Jocko Valley, just north of Arlee, is being created through the visionary guidance of Gochen Tulku Sang-ngag Rinpoche, an incarnate Tibetan Buddhist lama. Nestled in a peaceful valley in the land of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes of the Flathead Reservation, the Garden of One Thousand Buddhas aligns positive properties of the physical world in a sacred architectural arrangement based on the eight-spoked Dharma wheel. This symbol evokes the turning or awakening of the enlightened qualities of altruism and wisdom.
The purpose of the Garden is to bring about positive transformation within those who visit, in response to the negativity that abounds in the world today. One thousand hand-cast Buddha statues will be arrayed around the central figure of Yum Chenmo, or the Great Mother, the manifestation of the perfection of wisdom. One thousand stupas, representations of the enlightened mind, will line the outer circle. Each will enshrine an image of the female deity, Tara. Elegantly adorned with native trees and flowers, it is hoped that the Garden of One Thousand Buddhas will instill lasting impressions of peacefulness and compassion. To read more about the Garden of One Thousand Buddhas, please visit THE GARDEN WEBSITE or the Facebook page linked on this site.
Dedicated as an International Peace Center, the Garden of One Thousand Buddhas supports people in cultivating inner peace and in preserving the ancient culture of Tibet. The mission of the Garden is to provide people of all faiths with an opportunity to generate profound merit, to reduce global negativities, and to bring about lasting peace. Through the use of the ancient symbols of Buddhism, the Garden awakens one’s natural inner qualities of joy, wisdom, and compassion.
From EWAM