Discover Ju Raku En 寿 楽 園 Preview

Ju Raku En 寿 楽 園 is much more than just a group of rocks stitched together by water and artificially created hills and forests of trees and flowers. It is inspired by a combination of ancient, medieval and 18th century Japanese forms strongly influenced by the Chinese philosophy of Daoism and Amida Buddhism. Ju Raku En represents a Buddhist paradise with the celestial sea (lake) lapping the rocky shores of its three islands.

Cross the bridges to the islands to discover where the Daoist legend of the Eight Immortals, a group of legendary, transcendent, super-human celestial beings are said to dwell. The most well known is Lu Dong-Pin. He is a Taoist scholar with a magic sword used to slay demons and evil spirits and a fly-whisker that cures illnesses. He symbolises scholastic luck and protection.

Instructions

There are 7 places for you to visit in this tour. You will see your location as a black-dot. Walk toward the place marker No. 2 and the GPS in your mobile phone will activate it when you arrive to reveal screens of rich digital content (video, audio, images, text) and sometimes tasks for you to complete.

Take [+] photos along the way as evidence of your search for the immortal Lü Dong-bin.

Ju Raku En encompasses Buddhist legend.

Its elements include a mountain stream and waterfall, azalea hill, dry garden and central lake which features three islands. It showcases some 230 species of Japanese and Australian Natives, 3 km of paths and wide open spaces.

Cross the bridges to the islands and take a symbolic journey from the material world to the Buddhist Paradise of Ju Raku En and perhaps discover the Eight Immortals, a group of legendary, transcendent, super-human celestial beings and their leader Lü Dong-bin who dwell on the islands.

Take [+] a selfie of the group and upload to the game to validate your visit to this location.

According to the oldest published Japanese text on garden-making (Sakuteiki), water should enter the garden from the east or southeast and flow toward the west because it will then carry away evil.

Can you verify that the design of Ju Raku En follows this principle? How will you do this? Discuss in your group.

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Flow and direction of inquiry is important, and in particular with educational technology use we need to ensure that students are directed in how to use technology for learning, and not for distraction

In dry gardens, ponds, streams and waterfalls are symbolised by raked gravel, sand and upright stones.

The 'dry garden' is an example of minituarisation. The rocks create an abstraction of a mountainous coastline. Rocks are arranged in careful compositions of two, three, five or seven rocks, with three being the most common. In a three-arrangement, a tallest rock usually represents heaven, the shortest rock is the earth, and the medium-sized rock is humanity, the bridge between heaven and earth.

Water is represented by white sand. In Buddhist symbolism, water and stone are the ying-yang, two opposites which complement and complete each other. In traditional gardens, the ponds and streams are carefully placed according to Buddhist geomancy, the art and science of putting things in the place most likely to attract good fortune.

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Look around you - can you discover a Stone Lantern nearby?

This stone lantern is located near a large pebble beach to remind visitors of a seascape.

Stone lanterns in their complete and original form represents the five elements of Buddhist cosmology. The piece touching the ground represents chi, the earth; the next section represents sui, or water; ka or fire, is represented by the section encasing the lantern's light or flame, while fū (air) and kū (void or spirit) are represented by the last two sections, top-most and pointing towards the sky. The segments express the idea that after death our physical bodies will go back to their original, elemental form.

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The interconnectedness of differing ways of learning and knowing (including blended learning methodologies) is an aim of increasing and sharing knowledge.

Walk on to the bridge.

Bridges are privileged sites to linger on and take in the beauty of the landscape, and enjoy the softness of the breeze. They symbolise the spiritual journey from one world to the next. Take time to reflect on the beauty and enjoy the scenic views around you then take a photo that captures a reflection on the water and Add [+] it to the tour.

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Learning something new, for a real purpose, is fertile territory for reflection.

Using digital tools provides a range of options for reflection and documentation. Keeping ‘reflection’ novel, creative and fun will add to engagement and improve the quality of thinking undertaken.

The Rock Island in front of you is the pivotal point of the garden representing the sacred Mt Sumeru which is the centre of the Buddhist universe around which all life rotates. The remaining two islands (one of which you are standing now) are where it is said that the immortals dwell.

The Immortals are a group of legendary, transcendent, super-human celestial beings who are said to dwell on these islands. They represent every aspect in human life: male-female, old-young, rich-poor and aristocrat-common people. Each individual immortal's power can be transferred to a tool of power that can give life or destroy evil.

Every immortal has their own talisman that can be used as weapon to destroy evil, or as tool to save people. It is said that the immortals leader Lü Dong-Bin (top-centre) may sometimes appear to visitors of Ju Raku En.

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Student-centered learning, encompasses methods of teaching that shift the focus of instruction from the teacher to the student. It requires more than just an increase in technology implementation. It represents a shift in the educational culture as both a mindset and a culture within a given educational institution.

Take a photo of Mt Sumeru and Add [+] it to the tour to validate your visit to this place.

Lü Dong-Bin is the most well-known of the Eight Immortals and is sometimes portrayed as their leader. He carries a sword on his back which he uses to banish evil forces and a fly whisk which represents the sweeping away of ignorance and negative mental impieties. He is usually portrayed as a scholarly, clever man with a genuine desire to help people obtain wisdom and enlightenment but does have some character "flaws". He is sometimes portrayed as both a ‘ladies’ man and as having periodic bouts of drunkenness.

Does he remind you of anyone you know!

Thank you for taking the time to complete the tour. We hope you have enjoyed the peace and serenity within this magnificent garden in Toowoomba. Please rate and comment on your experience and share further on facebook and twitter.