House debates

Monday, 26 November 2012

Statements by Members

Throsby Electorate: Nan Tien Temple

1:49 pm

Photo of Stephen JonesStephen Jones (Throsby, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

On the weekend I had the honour of representing the Prime Minister at the official 'piling and blessing' ceremony at the Nan Tien Buddhist temple and new university site in Berkeley, in my electorate of Throsby. The Nan Tien Temple, which is also known as 'Southern Paradise', is the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere. Over the past 10 years, the Nan Tien Temple has become a favourite venue for religious study groups, school excursions and community group outings.

The recent ceremony signalled the beginning of the first stage of a new education campus which is to be built at the temple and which will expand the temple's religious education and business education services and cater for approximately 3,000 students from around Australia and the world. The new campus will include an art gallery, a library, an auditorium, teaching areas, a meditation hall and a roof garden. It will offer undergraduate and postgraduate courses grounded in Buddhist wisdom and values.

It is great to see that the land on which the temple stands and which was formerly an eyesore is now home to a magnificent temple that offers a beautiful and peaceful sanctuary to people from all walks of life. It also functions as one of Wollongong's most popular tourist attractions. I welcome the investment that the Nan Tien Temple is putting into religious and cultural education in the region. This investment will become increasingly important as we move into the Asian century.