LOUISVILLE, Ky. — It's hard to tell from a distance, but up close you can see what's missing from the Tu An temple Buddha.
Security cameras show the moment someone climbed the statue and knocked not one, but both hands off. Weeks before, its face was painted over around the eyes and lips. Temple leader Thay Han Ly knows it's only temporary.
"That reason, something like that help me more," he said. "[Easy to] let go. We don't keep everything in."
Impermanence is what they keep in mind as part of their Buddhist beliefs. Fruits and flowers on altars in the back of the temple represent the cycle of life. They sit below pictures of the temple's Vietnamese community. Reminders to pray for them.
"It's unfortunate to see the hands missing," temple-goer Joe D'Ambrosio said. "Although the smile on the Buddha's face is still smiling at us."
He came by the temple for his birthday; Thay is one of his former students, but now the roles are reversed as the monk teaches D'Ambrosio about Buddhism.
"The response out of compassion would be to feel pain for the person who did this to the statue Not the other way around, which is typically way that we look at things in life here," he said.
"In Buddhism, only have compassion, loving, forgiveness. Don't have, anger, hatred, anything," Thay said.
Alongside the compassion, they're also practicing caution. Extra cameras installed around the building will hopefully deter any more trouble. Whether it happens or not, they trust good karma will come back to them.
If you're interested in learning more about Buddhism at the temple, you can show up during the week from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
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