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A beautiful statue of Kwan Seum Bosal, the bodhisattva of compassion,, stood in the community garden at Empty Gate Center since the work retreat of 2002. She was the focal point of the garden, where people of the neighborhood walked by and often relaxed, socialized, and played music while sitting on the benches near her. But one day in 2005, she was gone. Only her fractured and crumbled foundation remained to mark the spot where she once stood, listening to the cries of the world.

In the spring of 2007, Diana Soline, who created the garden, was visiting and made us promise that there'd be a "Return of the Goddess" by June. Plans were made to order and install a new statue. But, Diana's cries had already heard by someone else. And in the early days of June, the old Kwan Seum Bosal statue reappeared in the garden at Empty Gate Zen Center.

That day, there was much speculation on what had happened to her, and where she had been - such as, she was abducted and held within the walls of a UC Berkeley fraternity (the victim of an initiation prank). But soon, thanks to our vast international Sangha, sightings were recounted of her "lost" years; and photos were sent from around the world.

We assembled the photos into an album entitled, "Kwan Seum Bosal Travels". However, her missing days are still incomplete. So, if you are in possession of any photographs that will help complete her story, please send them to us. Some photos, already received, strongly suggest that she visited many of our fellow Kwan Um Zen Centers around the globe in her quest to respond to the many cries of the world.