The first day of a huge Buddhist gathering was held on Friday, July 29, 1994, at the Manjushri Centre at Conishead Priory, on the Furness peninsula near Ulverston.
PRIORY: Joanne Geekie and Kelsang Dawa in the garden during the two-week festival at the Manjushri Buddhist Centre at Conishead Priory in 1994
The festival was due to be attended by people from as far afield as Brazil and Mexico.
The event would have an international feel and spokesperson Jim Belither estimated 250 visitors would be travelling from abroad with a delegation of 50 arriving at Conishead from Switzerland.
To cope with the influx of guests, the Buddhist centre had hired a 1,000-seat marquee and dormitory tents to accommodate several hundred people.
The Mail reported that in the first week, the less-experienced Buddhist students would embark on an introduction to the religion, but during the second week everyone would be taking part in daily meditation.
This would take the form of chanting in full voice and in silence.
Mr Belither said: "This is the third consecutive festival we have held, but this is the largest yet, and could even be the largest gathering held in Britain to date."
VISIT: Kelsang Dekyong helps put out some of the seats to accommodate the visitors at the festival in 1994
The Mail's Anne Benson visited the festival and wrote a special feature. She said more than 800 people had gathered.
She described how the smell of incense and the sound of chanting wafted through the air.
People lounged in the grass, sat on garden walls or wandered about chatting to each other, she stated, adding: "It feels as if you had stumbled on a large gathering of friends having fun in the sun."
FESTIVAL: Lucia Amaral, from Sao Paulo, Brazil, looking after the flowers prior to the opening of the two-week festival
Kelsang Jigme agreed: "It's like a big family get together as well as a chance of seeing new faces."
Anne wrote that behind the simplicity and tradition of peace and harmony was a slick administrative operation.
For example, in one corner of an office a monk was using desk-top publishing to print chants while on the table was a bundle of laser-printed stickers - reminders to be quiet when meditation was happening.
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