By Kerri Hikida
The City of Angels may be known for its sunny demeanor, but the daily grind can chip away at the best of us. Whether you’re a high-flying studio exec or a self-employed computer slave, everyone needs a little break.
Fortunately, L.A. offers a profusion of sanctuaries to nourish the spirit, including these lesser-known sites in various corners of our far flung city.
Of course, the best sacred sites are the ones you stumble onto yourself . . . a secluded spot by a creek, an ancient tree in a public park, or perhaps a quiet trail in the hills . . . but these may help you get started.
The Wayfarers Chapel
Built in 1951 by Lloyd Wright, son of American architectural pioneer Frank Lloyd Wright, the Wayfarers Chapel is a memorial to Emanuel Swedenborg, an 18th century Christian mystic, theologian and scientist. Wright designed the transparent chapel almost entirely in glass constructed with 30/60-degree angles, like those occurring naturally in snowflakes, crystals and tree branches, and surrounded it with redwoods to create dialogue between the indoor and outdoor space.
At the entrance to the chapel is a small sign: “Open daily for meditation.” Pause there and savor the scent of roses wafting on a gentle sea breeze. Inside, the beauty of the design—from the glass angles to the walls made of local stone to the interior ferns and ivy that further evoke the redwood forest—invites quiet reflection.
Afterwards, tour the chapel grounds overlooking the magnificent Palos Verdes coastline: the small rose garden, paved with bricks engraved with the names of the couples who married in the chapel; the bell tower, dubbed “God’s Candle” by sailors using the Catalina channel at night; and the outdoor grass amphitheater used for performances and some services. Rest a moment at the picturesque meditation garden and hillside stream, then round the corner to the reflection pool and an apple tree dedicated to John “Johnny Appleseed” Chapman, an early missionary who dispensed Swedenborg’s spiritual writings while planting apple trees across America.
The Wayfarers Chapel, 5755 Palos Verdes Dr. South, Rancho Palos Verdes; 310.377.1650
James Irvine Garden
Angelinos in the downtown area looking to “take five” from high rises and industrial views can escape to the James Irvine Japanese Garden in Little Tokyo. Designed in 1978 by L.A. landscape architect Takeo Uesugi, the 8,500 square foot garden is suitable for a quick lunch break or a short timeout from a shopping adventure, and is in the midst of Little Tokyo’s theater, restaurant and shopping district. A path wanders through a small bamboo grove, past native Japanese plants and rocks, to a tiny grassy knoll where you can refresh next the bubbling stream, and over a small bridge.
Like all Japanese gardens, symbolism is an integral part of the design; in this case, the garden was created for the thousands of Japanese immigrants who became American citizens. The 170-foot stream running through the center of the garden represents the struggles of the immigrant Issei (first generation Japanese American) against harsh economic realities and prejudices. The stream divides in two halfway down, expressing the conflicts experienced by the Nisei (second generation), who volunteered for wartime service while interned in concentration camps during World War II, to prove their loyalty to the U.S.
The stream ends in a serene pond, symbolizing hope for ensuing generations of Japanese Americans.
James Irvine Garden at the Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, 244 S. San Pedro St., Los Angeles; 213.628.2725
Chumash Interpretive Center
Ventura County is bustling, but there are still plenty of rolling green hills. Nestled amongst them on several hundred acres of wilderness is the Chumash Interpretive Center.
On Saturdays, the center hosts a nature walk to a cave containing ancient pictographs. Any other day, you can still enjoy a reconstruction of a Chumash village, a museum exhibiting Chumash artifacts and a peaceful hike.
I hit the trail surrounded by the sprawling, towering oak trees so ubiquitous in the Santa Monica Mountains. A blue jay flitted among the trees, butterflies danced in the sunlight, and I admired nature’s sculpture—smooth, rounded rock formations tucked into the hills.
Resting alongside a creek on its last trickle before the summer heat, I found stillness and slowly became aware of the buzz of activity around me. Trails of ants streamed up and down the tree beside me, and fluffy white seedlings seeking fertile ground drifted through the air like a spring snowstorm. In a pool of still water, I caught a glimpse of an undulating tail, then spotted one, then two, then a multitude of orange salamanders drifting to the surface for a breath of air before descending into the black bottom of the pool. A few coupled off, harbingers of spring.
Finally, a small lizard rounded the trunk of a tree and rotated his right eye directly upon me, eyeing me curiously. He watched me for a long time before I did my best impression of the lizard-eye rotation right back, and he scampered off into the wilderness.
Chumash Interpretive Center, 3290 Lang Ranch Parkway, Thousand Oak, 805.492.8076
Bronson Caves
In many cultures, caves represent the womb of Mother Earth and are associated with birth and regeneration. In the southwest corner of Griffith Park are the Bronson Caves, reminiscent of a time before L.A. became la-la land.
Like our beloved city, this womb is no longer virgin territory. Because of its notoriety as a popular filming site, a steady trickle of visitors passes through, and while most treat it with reverence, other use it like a two-bit whore. On the day I visited, there was a wee bit of graffiti on the exterior, and an empty beer bottle or two from midnight revelers tossed just outside the caves.
However, the cave interiors are relatively unscathed, and their cooling darkness is refreshing on a warm day. A tunnel mouth leads to a passage that splits into three mouths exiting out the other side. You can hike through and all around the caves, and the Griffith Park hillside is as stunning as ever, in lush contrast to nearby city streets.
Bronson Caves, 2960 Canyon Drive, Griffith Park
Forest Lawn Labyrinth
The first labyrinths were created hundreds of years ago in Europe, and today they’re as relevant as ever. The perfect timeout for the busy modern lifestyle, a labyrinth can be a simple yet powerful walking meditation completed in mere minutes.
Unlike a maze with its dead ends and wrong turns, a labyrinth has no bad moves. A pathway leads you around twists and turns till you reach the center, then you turn around and wind your back out, all of which brings your focus into the present.
The Forest Lawn Cemetery in Glendale features a labyrinth modeled after one in Chartres, France, said to have been symbolic of Christ’s walk to the cross. Christian or not, all you need are good intentions to reap its benefits. The Labyrinth Society suggests general guidelines: let worries and concerns dissipate and remain receptive to insights when traveling toward the center, be conscious of integrating insights received when retracing your steps back out, and offer an acknowledgment of completion upon exiting.
I jotted down a question regarding my own life before entering the Forest Lawn labyrinth, and as I traversed the meandering pathway, many metaphors for life became apparent to me. Somehow, these insights were even more appropriate than a straight answer. I emerged feeling refreshed and present, with a sense of complete clarity. Though I didn’t receive a direct answer to my question, I knew that in proper time, I’d be able to answer the question for myself.
Forest Lawn Memorial-Park, 1712 S. Glendale Ave., Glendale, 800.204.3131
Self-Realization Fellowship Lake Shrine
Serenity, tranquility and the ashes of Mahatma Gandhi . . . only the Self Realization Fellowship in the Pacific Palisades offers this unique combination. Dedicated by the venerable Paramahansa Yogananda (author of the classic Autobiography of a Yogi) in 1950, this 10-acre natural amphitheater surrounded by richly forested coastal hills was specifically designed to be a spiritual sanctuary open to all.
A stroll around the spring-fed lake takes the sojourner through well-tended gardens bursting with flowers and greenery. Along the route, you’ll encounter the Court of Religions, with small monuments paying tribute to Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism in a spirit of inclusion and unity. A quaint 16th-century style Dutch windmill chapel sitting lakeside is open for personal prayer and meditation from 1-4:30 p.m., and the stunning Golden Lotus Archway, designed by Paramahansa Yogananda, is wondrous to view both up close and from across the lake.
Behind the archway lies the Gandhi World Peace Memorial, a brass coffer containing a portion of Gandhi’s ashes. Enshrined within a stone coffin, the memorial is surrounded on both sides by statues of Kwan Yin, Chinese Goddess of Mercy. Finally, a seemingly unremarkable houseboat sitting at lake’s edge holds more secrets than one might think, as it is said that Paramahansa Yogananda spent many hours inside communing deeply with God.
Waterfalls, statues and spiritual quotes on wooden placards are interspersed with benches that allow for quiet contemplation.
The Lake Shrine, Self-Realization Fellowship, 17190 Sunset Blvd., Pacific Palisades, 310.454.4114
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