NationalGeographicPersonalExplorer

Founded in 1950, the Self Realization Fellowship Shrine in Pacific Palisades is a serene ten-acre enclave of flowers, trees, and statues surrounding a large man-made pond, populated by koi, swans, and ducks. Individuals from all religions are welcome to wander the grounds, and there are markers erected which pay tribute to each: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, and Hinduism. The Lake Shrine’s focal point is the Mahatma Gandhi World Peace Memorial. The "wall-less temple" houses a one-thousand-year-old stone Chinese sarcophagus, which contains a portion of Gandhi's ashes. A small museum off the eclectic gift shop features relics from the founder’s travels around the world. And, keeping true to Los Angeles’ reputation, even this spiritual hideaway has a little celebrity trivia: After George Harrison’s death, his friends and family gathered at the windmill chapel on the lake’s edge for private services.