"Mere sitting at home and meditating on the divine presence is not enough for our time. We have to come to the end of a long journey and see that the stranger we meet there is no other than ourselves — which is the same as saying that we find Christ in him."

— Thomas Merton, Trappist monk, Abbey of Gethsemani

This rosary was inspired by the dialogues between Thomas Merton and Tenzin Gyatso, His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama — and by their shared dedication to interfaith dialogue and to deepening compassion.

The delightful Four Birds Coptic cross is made in two parts, and hinged. The four small birds are a traditional element of the old Ethiopian design; the interlaced pattern is reminiscent of Celtic knotwork. It's hand-cast from a 19th century original, in solid bronze.

The very large Pater beads are old, well-traveled, red Masai glass — with tiny nicks and scratches they've picked up along theilr way. Alongside the Paters are caps of antiqued brass, beads of red horn, and ribbed beads of solid brass.

The Aves are Bodhi seeds — traditional Buddhist prayer beads — separated by beads of red horn.

The rosary is made all-in-one-loop, rather than in the familiar "Y" form. We don't see lots of all-one-loop rosaries lately, but they were pretty much the norm until just a couple centuries ago.

The connecting rings are solid brass and bronze. The rosary is strung on premium quality Soft Flex jewelers' cable, composed of 49 strands of steel encased in nylon, with a test strength of 26 pounds. Each end is double-crimped for security.

Cross: about 2.5" including its bail
Pater Beads: about .9" long
Ave Beads: about .5" (14mm) diameter
Length: 21.5" from the top of the loop to the bottom of the cross