Holy parots and sacred monkeys.

Holy parrots and sacred monkeys.

In between bowls of soup, an amethyst crystal necklace, soups of balls, and other flower noodles, I assisted to 3 days of the Dalai Lama's teachings. 3 days to fill me up with Emptiness. Cause and results, result being a cause in itself. Dependent arising, emptiness, result and cause, the concepts get repeated over and over again. For the sake of all Sentient Beings, His Holiness repeats.
The last morning of the teachings was a Avalokishtera (Bodhisattva of Compassion) intitiation (Chenrezing in Tibetan). Red eye folders get passed amongst the audience, mostly composed of Tibetans, a few foreigners, and some barefooted Hindus. The red eye folder signifies the secrecy of the teachings, we can not speak about what we see. Only an initiated teacher can transmit the Tantric knowledge. Strings get passed around for wrappings around our wrists.
We all take the Bodhisattva's vows, repeating after the Dalai Lama. We are on our way to become "heros" of the enlightened mind, or one who possess the compassionate motivation of bodhicitta; whose spiritual practice is directed towards the acheivment of enlightenment for the sake of all sentient beings, or a practitioner on the path to Buddhahood.

I watch all of this from a far away eye, wrapping the red string around my wrist, I feel like a kid. My reward for being here today is this little red string.

I contemplate the meaning of rituals, all too aware that I have my own type of rituals, just very private and personal. I feel the void the shared rituals create in me, even a certain dislike mixed with a type of jealous admiration. The rituals seem childish in a way. It seems so simple to have someone tell us what to do. Repeat those words after me says the Dalai Lama. "Put your hands above your head" says Grand Master Flash, "examine my words " said the Buddha.
I wander how much of what The Ocean of Wisdom (The Dalai Lama) says is really understood by the average Tibetans, many of whom are illiterate, and untrained in philosophical concepts. Philosophy as any other art form is a learned skill. Without basic comprehension, the words are just that: empty words.
Yet, for the crowd sitting here today, just being around such a Holy person as the Dalai Lama is enough. Proximity is their communion with the Pure Land. The words don't matter in this concept, just being there is enough.
As for any systems, only a few understand the concepts lying behind the words. The rest, being happy parrots, repeating the words, chanting mantras and doing rituals.
The Tibetan tradition being to give the third son of the family to the monastery, man have been monks since their early childhood. For them, it is not so much a vocation, but rather it is what they do as a Tibetan. They chant mantras, renouncing what they have never tasted, they read the sutras and follow the monastic vows as best they can. The female nuns conditions still being a matter of debate for the Tibetan Buddhist community.

"Repeating the words, doing mantras and rituals will not get you anywhere if those actions are done without any understanding of what the mantras and rituals stand for" repeat other parrots and wise men around the world. "Rituals are a lower form of worship, yet, they reassure people" writes a Hindu sage.
Each stage of life has it's own rituals. If many like to think that modern society has lost touch with rituals, it is not understanding the nature of rituals. The rituals have changed, that is all. Nowadays, going to a 3 days music festival is as much of a ritual than doing a few days of pujas. Rituals sculpt and reinforce our identity by connecting us with chosen aspects of ourselves. To each time, it's rituals.


One has to wander how so much ritual has arisen out of real or mythological figures. The elaborate costumes, the feathers, the colors, the images, the songs, the books, the funny hats. So much has been created out of one (or many) persons speaking out their understanding of life, the Universe and everything. So many parrots looking at the finger pointing to the moon.
"It is made out of cheese, you know".
"It is made out of cheese" repeat the multi-colored parrots.
The monkeys climb the temple trees, jumping from branch to branch, showing their bare nacked red asses. I sit in this organized jungle like atmosphere, translators headphones in my ears, echos of Tibetan teachings in the background, monks sitting in rows like so many crimson flowers. I savor the moment.
"It is made out of cheese, you know".


"Many of the new comers to Buddhism are more inquisitive than those who have been Buddhists for generations. When I go teach in China, or other Asian countries, I find that the old Buddhists are more asleep, and that the new ones have many questions. What is the Dharma? They really want to know. That is good" says the Dalai Lama.


Another day, in the crowded temple, I sit. In front of me an elderly Tibetan woman in full traditional clothing, sets up her prosternation wood board. She starts prostrating, again and again, purifying 10 sins. Her joined hands to the top of her head, to purify the 3 sins of the body (killing, stealing, sexual misconduct), hands to the mouth level, to purify the 4 verbal sins (lying, derisive talk, harsh words, gossip), hands to the heart level, to purify the 3 sins of the mind (covetousness, harmful intent, wrong views). She then gets down on her knees, fore head on the ground. This prosternation can be seen as a way to venerate the Buddhas, but really, it is mostly a way to cut down one's ego. It is a prosternation to one's ultimate Self.
As she goes on, and as I write those words, I feel the similarities between each of our actions. I write, she prostrates, both communing with the Ultimate in our own ways. Each with our understanding of our own Ultimate. If our languages and actions might seem different, in reality, I am doing just as the old lady does, only the form changes.

3 hours later, the crowd stands up. A korean woman, pushed around by one of the security men responds in an annoyed tone:"the empowerment isn't even finished yet!!! I don't want to go there!!!". The Dalai Lama walks out of the teaching room, waves, touches a few people's heads, walks down the stairs, climbs in a car, waving some more. A few meters later, the car disappears behind the doors of his Holiness private quarters. Moved along the crowd, I go towards the door I came in from, pick up my pack of smokes and my lighter ( neither being allowed in the Temple). I feel happy and light, thinking how nice it is not to be a famous person, to walk down the streets freely, insignificantly, so anonymously.
For the rest of the day, the town floats in sanctified smiles, everyone a bit high on having been so close to his Holiness.

Reflecting on the Teachings, and the differences one can see between rituals of other religions, would be the focus on the main Buddhist concept: the work is to be acheived for the sake of all Sentient Beings. Happiness is desired by all beings, all deserve happiness, no matter of religions, faiths and funny hats, the Buddhist works for everyone equally. There is no "us versus them", because everyone was and will be our Mother. There is no "we're right and they are wrong", because really there is no "we" or "they", there is only Mind. Mind, itself as clear as an ocean blue sky.

Meanwhile the Holy month during which Mohatmmet, visited Allah after being guided by Gabriel has started. Muslams around the world celebrate Ramadan, fasting, singing and purifying. Each of their prayers is now worth 72 merits. I sit in Why-Not, Latif sings the Koran as I read a book, watch one of the Buddha paintings on the walls, monks and Hindus walking around the streets. "Islam is the complete religion" says Latif as he puts down the Koran. He tells me about the prayer Mohatmet got from Allah, the vows every muslam takes when entering the Faith. Baptism, refuge, prayers, rituals, all have a part to play. Every one has their own initiation rites in this Holy circus of faces. So many parrots with so many brightly colored feathers, each feather being a holy way, each color a sacred symbol.
Outside, the hour late afternoon rain has stopped, the sky clear as a mirror reflects the daily rainbow. In a bit, the sun will set coloring the mountain peeks of pink and lavender tones.
"Come on Choeyang, let's go on the roof and watch the sunset."
"Why? It's every day same" he answers sitting in his room with the window facing a wall.

"Mc Leod is a black hole" says the old alcoholic, a Friday night, in Pokhara Nepal, sitting at My Beautiful Restaurant. He's one of those misfits that chose to spend their retirement pension in Asia, the cost of life being so much cheaper than in Europe, or North America. "I don't like Mc Leod" he goes on with a discusted look on his face.
If Mc Leod is a black hole, then, I surely will come out of it renewed, reconfigured. I'll get out on the other side, the logical white hole. As information can not be destroyed, as it can only be transformed, I welcome the change. I'll get stored for a while in fuzzy balls, I'll get spit back out.

"White holes are made out of whip cream, you know" says a holy parrot with rainbow wings.
"yeah yeah, and you're really a monkey with a funny hat"...

On the other side, back to Nepal for visa renewal and then some well deserved beach time!!

A week laters. Back in Nepal, I spent a week in Kathmandu. Rainy and muddy. I spent some time making designs out of my Electric Gnomes, and got made some glow in the dark T-shirts out of them. Thanks to Laxman, a charming nepale man, I spent a beautiful and sunny day on his bike around Kathmandu valley. Buddhanath, and a monastery close to Pokan monastery. Durbar square becomes familiar streets, as I walk the muddy and noisy labirynth.
The night holy parrots play the same classic western songs over and over again.

Next step, a stop by Buddh'as birth place, then back to Dehli for a train direction coconut trees, hammack dreams and waves.

Links:
white hole : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_hole

Whether you'd like to do some yoga, become a reiki master, help the Tibetan community, meditate, sit on your ass and enjoy the mountains, learn Hindi or Tibetan cooking cooking, study buddhism (from beginner's level to higher levels), Mc leod Ganj can give it to you.
For concrete information, here are a few helpfull adresses.

Contact magazine:
http://contactmag.org

Volunteer work with the Tibetan community:
http://volunteertibet.org
http://lhaindia.org
http://tibchildren.org
http://guchusum.org
http://tibetmec.org


For yoga:
http://vijaypoweryoga.com
http://himalayayogavalley.com
http://hiyogacenter.com
http://neoyoga.net
http://siddharthayogacenter.org
http://rishiyoga.com

Meditation centers:
http://tushita.info
http://sikhara.dhamma.org

Tibetan massage and Ayurvedic rejuvenation center:
http://tibetanmassage.com

Photos to come laters...