As the New England Peace Pagoda in Leverett celebrated its 38th anniversary this month, late Wampanoag medicine man Slow Turtle, as well as the intercultural peace he advocated for, were on the minds and hearts of those who visited the spiritual site.

The 103-foot-tall pagoda, one of approximately 80 worldwide, was built by volunteer labor and inaugurated in 1985. According to the New England Peace Pagoda website, these structures are intended to serve as “a monument to inspire peace, designed to provide a focus for people of all races and creeds, and to help unite them in their search for world peace.” Indeed, all aspects of the 38th anniversary ceremony on Sunday centered around the importance of attaining peace in a world suffering from hardship, inequality and a climate crisis.

The importance of unity was emphasized throughout the ceremony.

“Today is particularly a very special day because we are all here together,” emcee Christianna Elaine Riley said in her welcome address.

A traditional Buddhist ceremony, held after Riley’s introduction, lasted about an hour. It involved an invocation; a veneration to the Buddha, Dharma (the concept of universal order) and Sangha (the Buddhist monk community); an offering of incense; a bestrewing of flower petals; and various recitations.

Subsequently, Elder Presiding Monk Gyoway Kato took to the microphone to express gratitude for how many nations the attending monks hailed from, with some coming from as far as England, Poland and Japan. He also acknowledged the Indigenous tribal representation present before transitioning to his “Dharma talk.” The speech, delivered in Japanese so as to adhere to tradition, was accompanied by an English interpretation and critical of ideals such as militarism and capitalism.

“Today, climate change, wars and unstable social conditions are all situations in our world affairs that are creating anxiety and fear,” Kato summarized. “Climate change is basically caused by our lifestyle in modern times, and the expansion of inequality between the poor and the rich in modern society is caused by the ... political and economic policies of our leaders.”

The talk encompassed a desire to “start building global peace” right from the New England Peace Pagoda. Through brief speeches and prayers to follow, speakers from other faiths concurred.

“All of us are valuable. All of us are worthy. All of us are needed to be part of the whole,” Elise Barber, cantor at the Springfield Jewish Community Center, said in her speech, which she said she delivered with the weekend’s attack on Israel in mind.

“Where there is hatred, let me sow love. Where there is injury, pardon. Where there is doubt, faith. Where there is despair, hope. Where there is darkness, light. Where there is sadness, joy,” prayed Jane Morrissey from the Sisters of St. Joseph.

After prayers, some additional “messages of transformation” and songs of peace performed by Shelburne Falls musician Sarah Pirtle, attendees marched a ceremonial loop through the woods and convened at the pagoda’s new monument for Slow Turtle. The stone bore temporary dedications to the “supreme medicine man,” holding the place for bronze lettering that could not be installed by the time of the ceremony. It celebrated the legacy of Slow Turtle, also known as John Peters, who served as executive director of the Massachusetts Commission on Indian Affairs from the position’s inception in 1974 to his death in 1997. In this capacity, he served as the liaison between the Legislature and the state’s four tribes, while also traveling around the globe as a spiritual leader.

Even more than a quarter century after his death, Peters’ legacy of fostering peace continues, as the monument dedication invoked the welcome address he had delivered at the peace pagoda’s inauguration on Oct. 5, 1985.

“We’ve been honored by the Buddhist monks who have come amongst us and told us of their ways and their thoughts, and wondered if we felt the same and thought the same about peace throughout the world. And we do,” Peters said that day, immortalized in a handout distributed to those in attendance. “We’re saddened that many times, so much bad has come from our land, Turtle Island, and not from our doing. We’re joyful to see that people have come here with a true thought in mind of love and being able to give the great gift of love to all the people in the world and the idea for peace.”

Reach Julian Mendoza at 413-930-4231 or jmendoza@recorder.com.