Namaste on behalf of my friend Buddha

After a very profound and contemplative 10 day course on Tibetan Buddhism at a gompa, or monastery, far removed from the crazy life of Kathmandu, I feel it's time to add to the blog...

But first, a quote:

Stop.

Be still.

Remain silent.

Meditators should be seen,

Not heard.

Ssshhh.

Still.

All the senses.

Let everything be.

Let go, and let it all

Come to you.

Relax.

Being is in.

Doing it out.

Do nothing.

For a moment

Just be.

Silence

Is golden.

Enjoy.

(Lama Surya Das)

It has been a very interesting week with lots of sitting and meditating and learning amongst the safron robes of the monks and nuns. I have learned a lot about the Buddhist philosophy, which is all about self discovery and developing compassion towards all other beings. Beautiful really, the Dalai Lama is quoted as saying: "Kindness is my religion". And the laughs of the Tibetans is truly as joyful as ever- they can sure light up the room with their smiles and spontaneous laughter. Pretty amazing for a culture that has been so victimized, and still is today.

Lots of profound moments. Namely the notion that our inherent, objective and concrete view of ourselves is an illusion that is real, only by convention (a conceptual reality), but the ultimate reality of all phenomena is emptiness. Not to say that Buddhists take a nihilist attitude towards the reality, but that everything is dependant on everything else and impermanent in nature. This was a profound realization to me, though I don't think I fully grasp the full implications of this ultimate truth, but it made me realize that our attachments to "myself" of "I" is the root of many of our challenges in the world, from war to personal issues we face. Anyways, I'm not claiming to understand all this, but perhaps it's an interesting thing to ponder.

In addition, talk of karma and reincarnation were other topics that came up a lot, that I'm still questioning a lot and meditating on. But I think the biggest lesson for all of us, on which Buddhism is compassion, that we are all dependant and thus will all be happier if we work for the benefit of others.

And living in the moment, of course is a biggie. That I'm really working on, a shift from my very future oriented tendancy. We spent every morning in silence till mid-afternoon and the last few days in silence and doing hardcore analytical meditation on compassion, death, and such. Yikes. Hardcore!

Anyways, in short, a great experience though boy am I tired of thinking and contemplating!!!

But to leave, I will write one more quote:

"One instant of total awareness is one instant of perfect freedom and enlightenment." (The Wisdom Diety, Manjusri)

Peace and greetings to all.

Namaste,

Kristy

This image is a traditional "Puja" or offering to thank Buddha for passing on his wisdom in the main Gompa (temple) at Kopan. Kopan has about 300 or so monks studying there. There is much chanting and food offering (including the very popular instant noodles, biscuits and of course tea!). Oh, and lots of insense! The Tibetans also occasionally sound trupets and the big gong drums as well as cockle shells- not really the most harmonious sound in the world, but it's pretty cool considering the context! ... I'm always amazed that the students, even the little monks, can sit for over an hour when my feet go to sleep in like 10 minutes!!! ...