First 2 months of 2009
- a houseboat in Alleppey, backwaters, not so beautiful any more,
- warm champaigne and a very dark night,
- senseless talks abt the origin of Universe with students of science from Switzerland;
- extremely hot Varkala beach,
- vast Arabian sea, and a cool evening breeze,
- many ugly and short-tempered Nepalese waiters,
- 2 days train journey to Mughal Sarai,
- a shared tempo to Varanasi Railway station,
- the dirtiest local bus I've ever seen to dusty Sarnath,
- winter fogs of North India,
- the huge red sun and kites around,
- a sea of cycle rickshaws,
- a sea of monks in maroon robes,
- a sea of Buddhas and bodhisatvas,
- Thousand armed radiant Chenrezig on a jeweled throne,
- "the best masala chai" I never tried coz I was staying "far away"
- yummy food in Vaishali restaurant,
- endless queues,
- "Bodhicharyavatara",
- drizzling rain on the first day of the teaching, many dusty days to follow,
- oily Chowmein in the food joint next to the gate,
- impressive Dhamekh stupa and candles lit arnd it,
- the Four Noble Truths and relics of the Buddha,
- early morning, me and stray dogs watching the sun rising above the ruins of what used to be great University,
- ruins of the temple where Bhagavan used to meditate,
- the first monsoon retreat,
- people running after HHDL's car,
- a sea of khatas,
- TT Rinpoche handing me his visiting card,
- A. undergoing "suffering of change",
- the XVII Karmapa in Toyota Innova passing by,
- 2 days train journey with students from Bihar,
- an overnight bus to what sounds almost like Kushinagar,
- Thousand armed radiant Chenrezig on a jewelled throne,
- sunlit vast fields of beloved Karnataka,
- a sea of monks in maroon robes,
- breath-taking palaces,
- sacred mandalas,
- U. with a red thread, fully ordained at last,
- a sea of Buddhas and bodhisattvas,
- "whose physic heat can desiccate Brahma",
- short sweet Mr. Ganganna at the local FRO with his "I like your face",
- "feeling close to some and distant to others",
- "The three prinicple aspects of the Path",
- Geshe Dorjee Damdul with his puzzling questions,
- missing someone way too much, and meditating on impermanence doesn't help,
- missing someone way too much, and the time passing by doesn't help,
- missing someone way too much, and "being busy" doesn't help,
- hot afternoons under a cherry tree,
- being upset, being confused, being inspired and enthusiastic,
- a lot to look forward to,
- Hri Benza Kroda Hayagriva Hulu Hulu Hum Phat
- warm champaigne and a very dark night,
- senseless talks abt the origin of Universe with students of science from Switzerland;
- extremely hot Varkala beach,
- vast Arabian sea, and a cool evening breeze,
- many ugly and short-tempered Nepalese waiters,
- 2 days train journey to Mughal Sarai,
- a shared tempo to Varanasi Railway station,
- the dirtiest local bus I've ever seen to dusty Sarnath,
- winter fogs of North India,
- the huge red sun and kites around,
- a sea of cycle rickshaws,
- a sea of monks in maroon robes,
- a sea of Buddhas and bodhisatvas,
- Thousand armed radiant Chenrezig on a jeweled throne,
- "the best masala chai" I never tried coz I was staying "far away"
- yummy food in Vaishali restaurant,
- endless queues,
- "Bodhicharyavatara",
- drizzling rain on the first day of the teaching, many dusty days to follow,
- oily Chowmein in the food joint next to the gate,
- impressive Dhamekh stupa and candles lit arnd it,
- the Four Noble Truths and relics of the Buddha,
- early morning, me and stray dogs watching the sun rising above the ruins of what used to be great University,
- ruins of the temple where Bhagavan used to meditate,
- the first monsoon retreat,
- people running after HHDL's car,
- a sea of khatas,
- TT Rinpoche handing me his visiting card,
- A. undergoing "suffering of change",
- the XVII Karmapa in Toyota Innova passing by,
- 2 days train journey with students from Bihar,
- an overnight bus to what sounds almost like Kushinagar,
- Thousand armed radiant Chenrezig on a jewelled throne,
- sunlit vast fields of beloved Karnataka,
- a sea of monks in maroon robes,
- breath-taking palaces,
- sacred mandalas,
- U. with a red thread, fully ordained at last,
- a sea of Buddhas and bodhisattvas,
- "whose physic heat can desiccate Brahma",
- short sweet Mr. Ganganna at the local FRO with his "I like your face",
- "feeling close to some and distant to others",
- "The three prinicple aspects of the Path",
- Geshe Dorjee Damdul with his puzzling questions,
- missing someone way too much, and meditating on impermanence doesn't help,
- missing someone way too much, and the time passing by doesn't help,
- missing someone way too much, and "being busy" doesn't help,
- hot afternoons under a cherry tree,
- being upset, being confused, being inspired and enthusiastic,
- a lot to look forward to,
- Hri Benza Kroda Hayagriva Hulu Hulu Hum Phat