SUMMER LUNCH AT HOLZKIRCHEN, PART 2 - BENEDIKTUSHOF MONASTERY

maydang.blogspot.com - In my last post I described a peaceful summer lunch at the old millhouse-turned-inn near Würzburg, Germany, with one of my students. You may have noticed in my last post a photograph of a table in the restaurant with golden sun streaming through the windows. On that windowsill were a three sculptures by a local ceramic artist. I was taken by the simplistic beauty of her work and ended up buying the one in the photo below. Interesting is the fact that the base "rock" is actually a cobblestone!

I emailed the artist but have yet to hear from her. An internet search told me she exhibits fairly often in and around Würzburg. Maybe some day I can meet her. As I'm writing this in my old apartment and her card is at my new one, I can't give you her name just now. My apologies to the artist!

After lunch, Rosa led me on a 30-minute walk past the millhouse and through the woods to our next desination. Here's a shot of one of the three mill wheels:

The other two wheels were to the left of this photo under the ground, catching the water. This must have been quite a mill!

The journey down the gravel road through the woods was a wonderful way to follow up our delicious lunch:

The destination: Benediktushof. It is the site of a former Benedictine monastery dating from the 8th Century. After about 30 minutes walking through this cool wood, we saw an original wall of the monastery:

Most of the grounds and buildings have been renovated and updated:

Benediktushof is now a spiritual center, with meditation rooms, dormitories (the former cloister) for retreats, a vegetarian restaurant and a gratifyingly well-stocked bookstore and gift shop.

The big name here is Willigis Jäger, a renowned German spiritual leader. One of his followers, a businesswoman, bought the grounds and crumbling buildings in 2002 and had it totally renovated so that he would have a place to teach.

In fact, we saw him lunching at the cafe. Rosa was very excited to see him and warned me not to take pictures of him! Her plan was to show me the grounds and beautiful fountain in the meditation garden. Alas, there were silent retreats in progress and we were not allowed past the front gate.

However, here is a shot of the emblem of the place, depicting five major world religions flowing together:

You can buy jewelry, calendars and other accoutrements in the gift shop bearing this emblem. In addition, there is much paraphernalia bearing the pattern of the famous grassy maze located in one of the gardens, where people can follow the path indented in the lawn while meditating:

Fortunately it was located where I could see it near the terrace of the restaurant where Rosa and I had our afternoon coffee.

Also part of the monastery is a round chapel that we visited. The chapel is taller than its diameter and very beautiful. Here's the ceiling:

There was a delightful machine where, for a 20-cent offering:

...you could see a little mechanical Jesus come out and wave to you. Just before this photo, his right arm was down at his side. As I snapped the picture, the arm flew up into this position:

Also inside in one of the alcoves was a very interesting depiction of Jesus in the crypt:

The figure inside was probably about a foot long. Although it was somewhat morbid, the metal filigree scrollwork surrounding the "body" was amazing!

It reminded me of the paper filigree quilling I do.

Soon it was time to make our way back to the millhouse, pick up my artwork and head home. Rosa dropped me at the train station and I was safely back in Bamberg in timely fashion.

As you can see, I owe so much to my students for enriching my life. They continue to do it on a daily basis. I hope your time on this planet has as much charm as mine does! Have a good week!

Photo for No Apparent Reason:

source : http://cnn.com, http://google.com, http://komnatachista.blogspot.com