The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas located near Ukiah, CA in Mendocino County is geographically one of the largest Buddhist communities in the Western Hemisphere.
The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas is residence for hundreds, and is an international tourist destination to countless visitors with an amazing vegan restaurant! The large rural property tucked along the edge of the Mayacamas Mountain range amongst vineyards and pear orchards is a sacred place for spiritual practice and meditation retreats, and more than anything the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas is a center for education — hosting top-level kindergarten through twelfth-grade students, and it is the main campus for the fully accredited Dharma Realm Buddhist University’s esteemed liberal arts program.
The Jyun Kang restaurant makes up the heart of the 480-acre protected Buddhist city. The name of the restaurant Jyun Kang means “To Your Health” and within this quaint restaurant’s storybook stucco exterior surrounded by redwoods and palms, you’ll find the most delicious and nourishing Malaysian-style Indo-Chinese vegan cuisine, and a friendly staff to greet you with warm barley tea. There is a gift shop and a check-in center as you pass by the large Mountain Gate. The Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas makes up the centerpiece of the city’s landscape with ornate hedges and statues lining its regal courtyard entrance. Inside the Buddha Hall is adorned with art, ancient carvings, and Buddha statues. Upon entering the large building you may smell sandalwood incense and hear the beautiful songs of the meditators singing lovely mantras.
The City of Ten Thousand Buddhas was established in the late 1970s, and it is a branch monastery to many other monasteries throughout California and the world including the famous Shaolin Monastery, established in 495 AD in Henan Province, China. The Buddhist disciples at these monasteries make the common vows to uphold the five precepts of no killing, no stealing, no lying, no taking of intoxicants, and no sexual misconduct as their basic premise for good moral conduct.
The monks and nuns at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas practice what is known as Chan meditation which is rooted in the ancient Indian Yogacara meditation practice that was brought from India to China by the legendary Buddhist monk known by the name of “Bodhidharma” in 527 AD. Bodhidharma’s physical training with the monks at the Shaolin Monastery using Chan meditation practices led to the creation of Shaolin Kung-fu. Kung-fu movies were made popular in the West by Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan in the 1970s.
Buddhist scriptural works dating from the seventh century detailing the life of one of Bodhidharma’s successors known as “Hui Neng” were discovered in one of the most notable archeological finds of the early 1900s at the Magao Caves in Northwestern China. The Sutra of Hui Neng is one of the texts studied by the resident cultivators as an introspective spiritual guidebook. Alongside this ancient Buddhist Sutra treasure found in the Magao Caves was discovered a combination of various biblical works and scrolls of the Nestorian Christian Church written in Aramaic dialect — the language of the ancient Syrian Christian Church; as well as vast collections of Eastern religious texts and ancient artwork.
Following the lineage of these legendary Chinese Buddhist teachers, dating back from Bodhidharma of ancient times — to the present day are Hsu Yun-Empty Cloud (1840-1959), and one of his successors Hsuan Hua-Proclaim Transform (1918-1995). The Venerable Hsuan Hua was a major contributor to bringing Chinese Buddhism to the US, and he is the founder of the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas and many of its education programs. Hsuan Hua is also known for making the generous donation of 120 acres of mountainside land in Redwood Valley, CA to the Abhayagiri Monastery, which practices after the Thai Forest Buddhist tradition.
The community at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas maintains many large buildings both old and new, lush summer gardens, beautiful landscaping, and unique artwork and architecture. If you plan on visiting the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas be sure to drive carefully, be reverent, and check ahead for the restaurant’s hours of operation and other community event offerings.
