India

I've been traveling in India for the last five days. I flew to Delhi on Thursday and then met friends from Australia, Tony, Emily and William traveling with them up to Durhadun for six days of empowerment from His Holiness Sakya Trizin. It has been a time of wide stimulation. India is a visual, olfactory, auditory and sensual overload. And then there are the hours of sitting in the temple while His Holiness reads the empowerments that he has been integrating since 3AM and some twelve hours later is sharing with us. The temple is full of some 100 plus monks chanting, blowing horns, having tea, chanting and then sitting quietly while His Holiness chants. Outside there are 100 plus more Tibetans doing the same. And then there are the sensations all mixed together. The fatique of sitting for four hours, the tingling in my brain that makes me wonder what is happening, the dreams at night that are unique--images that I have not ever had before, images of power. So I wanted to write to let you know where I was and will write more when I can, when things have settled and Emily isn't waiting patiently for me to finish so we can walk the mile back to the guest house, past the dogs, monkeys, watching out for the motorcycles, tiny buses that run on LP gas, cars, trucks and tractors. It is India and it is so loud in every sense. The saris of the women are rich in color, the garbage that lines the roads, the cows and pigs that root through it, the monkeys leaping among the trees, they all shout to be seen, heard, and smelt.

I'm sorry if this is chaotic. But then it is India.