March 9, 2004

So today was fairly uneventful in the scheme of things - I decided to skip the morning review session at the Toshita Meditation Center and focus on getting a small monk's bag to carry the things I need to His Holiness' teachings - my daypack from the backpack I got is actually too large to fit in between everyone's legs. So I wandered down into the town and finally found one.  I also picked up a tin cup so I could have tea when the monks come into the crowd to serve tea (after the first 2 1/2 hours of teachings) and a new radio in hopes of better receptivity.  All this took long enough that I was ready to head to the temple around10:30 AM (For a 1 PM teaching - just to be sure that I have a space).

Picking up some bananas and tangerines along the way (a kilo of each to share), I went through security and found the place about 1/2 full (in other words almost empty).  The usual crowd around me has changed today - there's a new couple for the USA - not very talkative, a woman from Ingelshiem (near Mainz across the river from where Petra and I used to live in Germany).  There's Barry - he's lived in McLeod Ganj for 20 years studying Tibetan and the Dharma, and now lives in Auckland, NZ - he's an herbal doctor.  Barry's interesting to watch during the teachings - he reads aloud from the Tibetan manuscripts and chats with the monks amongst us in Tibetan of course.  There's Matt - he's a freelance journalist who's a permanent resident in Kathmandu.  Used to work at the Smithsonian, now he travels to Tibet 3-4 times a year and writes for the Tibetans.  Jessica and her partner (from Oakland across the Bay) have dropped out of sight (although I run into her partner at the Sunrise Cafe later in the evening over a cup of chai).

Today there seems to be a lot of space around us at first - later people squeeze into the free space but at first it's great - room to adjust my legs and everything.

A little on sitting for 5-6 hours.

The floor is concrete with a thin mat over it - I haven't brought a mat to the teachings yet - so after 20 minutes or so my ankles go numb and I'm compelled to shift.  When it's tight this always has me bumping into people - they're generally pretty fine with this - since they're bumping into me as well.  It's cooler today - there was fog in the morning and it's overcast - almost seemed to threaten rain early in the day, so I don't sweat quite as much (until the afternoon when the sun burns through the clouds and it warms up.)

After the first 2 1/2 hours I'm ready for the tea break - we've covered the readings from Longchenpa's Kindly Bent to Ease Us and Patrul Rinpoche's Words of my Perfect Teacher - His Holiness reading the core text, monks and Tibetans (and Barry of course) following, some mouthing the words, along in their texts, and the English translator reading from the English version as we read along.  Every now and then His Holiness will break into a discussion on the personal meaning of a particular portion of the reading, or its implication for the world.

This is one of the three classical forms of instruction in Tibetan Buddhism (the others being pure Text Reading or pure Dharma talk with no reading).  (I've learned something at the Toshita Center after all...)

My legs are numb - my back is killing me.  I try twists and adjusting my posture / pose to no avail.  At tea break we all stand.  Food comes out and is shared - my bananas and tangerines disappear in a moment - I score some almonds and a couple of cookies.  The monastics sing prayers for the tea break which runs about 10 - 15 minutes and then we settle in for the second half of the teachings - continuation of the story of Milarepa.

About 10 minutes into the reading the monks make it to us with the tea.  At Matt's suggestion I make sure I'm getting sweet tea (as opposed to Tibetan butter tea).  My cup is 500ml - very large, and the monk fills it nearly to the brim.  Three other people pass theirs down to me to have filled and we all settle in for a good tea and the story telling.

For a while the story is so entrancing that I forget I'm now sweating and my back is killing me.  My knees ache.  I itch everywhere.

So Milarepa - this is a great story; I'm going to look for the translation of it while I'm here.  Matt is in contact with a filmmaker (who also made "the Cup" - a movie everyone says we need to see) that's filmed it and is in final editing - looking for a channel into the US.  Anyways, Milarepa was born into a very rich family and has a sister.  His father dies when he's about 7 and leaves everything to him once he reaches majority, and entrusts the management of his estate (houses, livestock, gold etc) to his brother - Milarepa's Uncle.  You guessed it - Milarepa's uncle is evil - he treats them as slaves, takes everything and when Milarepa hits majority says that there's nothing for him.  He says get out of my house you ungrateful wretches and don't come back unless you have an army or huge sorcery. Milarepa's mother is furious, sells everything she has left, and sends him to study Black Magic with a lama.  Milarepa perseveres and learns the magic of creating hailstorms, returns to his village in time to catch his aunt and uncle in their house with a bunch of wedding guests (who all by the way sup[ported his uncle against him) and destroys the house and all its inhabitants.  From here the story gets a bit obscure - you'll have to read it, but it's a lesson in impermanence and the destruction of ego on the path to Buddhahood.  Milarepa in the end becomes a true Buddha, and returns from Mount Kailash, flying through the air.

So this reading goes on for an interminable period of time - my back is ready to go out - both upper and lower.  I fidget, unable to keep still.  I look at my watch, especially when His Holiness finishes the reading and goes on to read from Milarepa's 100,000 songs - another text that we're covering.  Finally he decides enough is enough (4:45 - we've been sitting for almost 6 hours) and the teaching is over.

Standing up, my legs feel like jelly, my knees aren't there, just sharp pain.  I have a pressure in my bladder like you wouldn't believe and it's a long walk (about 1.5 miles uphill) back to the room - I won't use the bathrooms here after the experience the other day.  I walk quickly back to the room.

Tomorrow I plan to hike up to a glacier in the mountains - should be about 11,000 to 12,000 feet high.  We need to get back in time for dinner with Sogan Rinpoche - I'm tagging along with the group on just about everything.