About

Celebrate the Buddha Birth Day Festival 2018, with a special blessing ceremony of the Gallery's Bodhi Tree. In 2006, artist Lee Mingwei developed the Bodhi Tree Project specifically for the space near the entrance to the Gallery of Modern Art. The Bodhi Tree, sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists, is the oldest depicted tree in Indian art and literature and is described as the mythical 'Tree of Life'. This Bodhi Tree has direct lineage to the original tree in the Indian state of Bihar where Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, is said to have achieved enlightenment. Following the blessing ceremony, witness a traditional tea ceremony led by a Tea Master from the Chung Tian Buddhist Temple. Free, no bookings required. This program is presented in conjunction with Abbess Venerable Chueh Shan, the Chung Tian Temple and the Buddha's Light International Association of Queensland, and The Australian Centre of Asia Pacific Art (ACAPA), the Queensland Art Gallery | Gallery of Modern Art's Asian and Pacific research and publishing arm.