Life at a Monastery

Inspired by several kind words from people I decided it was high time for another session. Yeah that and having the DVD player mercilessly yanked from your apartment helps too.

Tonight I'll write about things at home. I've posted some random pics, and some pics of schools I've visited and my own school, and this will be dedicated to the things I see in my daily life living in a Monastery.

I guess to start I would have to say that I never thought I would be as comfortable in my home as I am. Not only that but being back in a (somewhat) normal city with the luxeries that we take for granted, I actually MISS my humble little home. There's a bit part of me that can't wait to go back and that isn't something I could honestly say at the beginning of this when I was just kind of tolerating things.

I had this moment of clarity one day...I think I had been there for a couple of weeks. I was grumbeling and bitching to myself about one thing or another: starting the fire, the fear of food poisoning from yak meat, walking to use the hole that passes for the toilet...take your pick. Anyway the point is that as I bitched along to myself I suddenly thought "Hey!! What are you complaining about? You arn't the only one living this way!! And your Grandfather who lives in America doesn't live that much different from you. Suck it up!!"

Now to be honest the way I live is closer to my Grandfather's way of life in his youth, but there are still quite a few similarities. And you know what? Over time I have adjusted to the place and even grown to like it.And you know what? Over time I have adjusted to the place and even grown to like it. There is an aesthetic quality that is very soothing. Not only that but the area has VERY strong peaceful vibrations, not only from there being an ancient Monastery but there are also several caves where very powerful Buddhas and Buddhists have done retreats and meditations...the place oozes a spiritual aura that is impossible to avoid.

One thing I have been continually struck by is being a part of a community and culture that is completly foreign to your own. Sometimes I will be at someones house and it just trips me out that one day I will leave this place, go back home to the things I find normal...but for these folks this is normal. It's no big deal to live without electricity up in a remote corner of the world. It's just one of those things.

Life...


This is my room. It's pretty simple, even though it's one of the bigger rooms in the Monastery. I enjoy the solitude, although tibetan people are notorious for not having a clue about personal space and every few days (if I'm lucky) I'll catch someone staring through my window or sometimes opening the door for a look around. Because of this one of the first things I learned to say in tibetan was "I have a nice house don't I?"

Although I am without electricity I have a solar panel that collects enough juice to run a light for a few hours so I can study at night. And without the normal distractions I tend to do a lot of studying, writing, and meditation.

I'm also trying to write a book...even though I am only 25 I have had a pretty crazy eventful life. Who knows, maybe someone would want to read about it or learn a few things I have had to figure out the hard way. Or I could just be an ego maniac...only time will tell.

The Terrace...

As I have already shown, you don't have to look far for a view. Sometimes it's hard to pull myself away even when it's freezing cold. It's just that awesome. Here's a rare day of snow.


My area has the best weather in the District by far...it's usually about 10 degrees warmer than the surrounding counties and gets hardly any snow.




Kora...
Here are some random pictures I took walking around the Monastery on the Kora path. In another words it's the circumnambulation path that everyone walks around daily.
I don't do it as much as the locals, but whenever you feel like going for a walk it's the obvious choice. Most any other place is going to involve some fairly strenuous climbing at some point.





The surrounding area...

These pictures are of the upper areas:

there is a Shedra or Monk's college


here's a pretty one from the roof of the Shedra

This is the Upper Monastery as seen from the Shedra


These are on the roof of the Monks quarters




...and these are looking down on my home the Lower Monastery. The funny thing is if you could enlarge there pictures enough you could see my house!




Upper Mountain wildlife


My roof...

Although it might seem silly to write about my roof, it is a really nice area and leads into the next section well. I like to hang out up there meditating or thinking. I often just stare into that view behind me

and as you can see by the next couple of pictures it is very close to the main temple of the Monastery.




The temple...

How many people can say their next door neighbor is a temple? Here are a few pictures from the best indoor area in the area.

Lord Jigten Sumgon, the Buddha who founded the lineage to which I belong




In this picture you can see some of the cool tormas (ritual offerings) that the monks make


the forefathers of the Kagyupa lineage








the Protector Dieties Mahakala


and our special Protector Jigten Sumgon's Grandma Miss Achi Choki Drolma

this is a mask that a Lama wears to do certain ritual masks



The people...

I have gotten to know lots of people in the community well, including some of the monks that spend their days in the temples.

This Venerable monk is like my father, he's very sweet. He spends his day and half the night doing Mahakala practice




This guy brings me butter lamps all the time.


And last but not least is someone very important to me, my Tibetan teacher

The kids...
What more can I say about them? I love them to death and teaching and involvement in the school is a big part of my life.










So I guess that's about it...life is simple and quiet, it's not like I have a whole lot of drama to report about. Right now I'm in the middle of the experience, but someday I will be back and ready to put into action the things that are brewing in my mind. Because of the circumstances and the distance between me and civilization it's a bit difficult to get the ball rolling on these things at the moment.

Thanks for the support from everyone, either vocalized or kept to yourself. I was talking to one of my friends when I got back here and he asked me if I was surprised that so many people cared about me and thought about me. My answer was an honest yes. Who am I to deserve something like that?

And to the people who have given me props or said that they admire what I'm doing or that I'm an inspiration...well I'm flattered but I would be doing the same thing if nobody cared. Don't think that I'm special or doing something extraordinary, just believe in yourself and have enough faith to follow your dreams...with hard work you can achieve anything. At the root of Buddhist belief there is an extremely profound teaching : that life is no accident and is merely causes and conditions coming together based on cause and effect. This works from the simple act of putting bread, meat, and cheese together to create what we label a sandwich or the profound path that leads without fail to Buddhahood if practiced.

Life is truly what you make of it, and is too short to waste. I always think of the great philosopher and sage Nagarjuna who described frittering life away to filling a beautiful jeweled goblet with shit. So don't shit in your cup...