If you live in Los Angeles and do not know about this amazing “escape” spot, known as the Meditation Gardens of Pacific Palisades, or the Self-Realization Lake Shrine Fellowship, then this is your lucky day!
I make it a point to visit these beautiful 10 acres of quiet gardens about once a month!
It’s a great spot for locals and tourists alike, but it is especially great for someone relocating to Santa Monica and knowing right off the bat that there is a place that you can go and gather your thoughts through the trying times of a move in your life, or whatever else may be troubling you. Well, this place is there when you need it, completely free and open to the public. Not religious per se, more spiritual if anything, but absolutely non-denominational and non-”in your face”, which you will see immediately as you walk around the nature paths.
It’s history is so cool, too. This amazing place is a memorial tribute to the spiritual leader from India who brought yoga to the United States in the 1920s by the name of Paramahansa Yogananda, who was friends with Mahatma Ghandi himself and was the only one outside of India to have been granted a portion of his (Ghandi’s) ashes, which are set within a lovely shrine inside the park.
Opened in 1950, the Lake Shrine still is somewhat of a “secret” to the locals here after all these years. Many native Californians don’t even know that it’s there, as they drive by it every day right off Sunset Blvd next to the Pacific Coast Highway! It is that hidden and discreet… It’s also quite surreal the level of silence that is achieved inside the gardens, in such a populated city such as Los Angeles.
But, I have to say, that it is one of my safe havens and now it can be yours too!
So, locals have you ever been there? Care to share with our guests? If you’re reading this and you are just about to move here, you need to make a note and check out this little piece of heaven. It will save your life some days when you truly just need to get away from it all! I am, of course, speaking from serious experience…
You can also check out the short 1:26 minute video below that I found on the gardens just to give you a visual… if you have your speakers on, you may want to turn them down, as there is a quite loud “flutey” type music playing in the video background… Ok, enjoy!
Hope you have a great weekend!
Until next post…
Tracey
p.s. Don’t forget to head over and check out my website and all the new listings at Santa Monica Real Estate
