Back to Samsara
Well it's been 3 or 4 days since I walked down off the hill from Tushita back to my apartment down here in McLeod Ganj - and what a social whirl it's been.
The retreat was truly excellent .... the first eight days an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism - very well presented ... followed by 2 days of meditation ... three pretty good meals a day ... yoga "talking" in the afternoon and evenings ... and chocolate for sale in the Chai Shop. A meditation retreat with chocolate! ... what a concept! The presentor was a Ozzie monk ... Lama Lobsang Namgyel, warm, compassionate and hilarious!
The course was just what I needed .. a pretty comprehensive introduction to Tibetan Buddhism from a Gulugpa Mahayana perspective. Helped my understand ... and appreciate much of what Namgyal Rinpoche at the Dharma Centre was about. I may attend some more teachings at a related centre in BodhGaya - if I ever get there!
Life in McLeod seems to have been especially sweet the last few days ... I'm getting to know quite a few of the regulars around town, along with the rather interesting - some might say quirky - people in my apartment block. That combined with the 46 or so folks I was with at the Tushita retreat and it's impossible to walk anywhere without meeting someone you know ... and heading off for the subsequent chai, restaurant or coffee house gathering. Fun. I think I could quite enjoy living here for quite a while ... it's one of those villages that is a planetary crossroads. however, a southward move may come as soon as temperatures drop ... an Indian Snowbird!
Tomorrow however, I'm heading off on a adventure up the Chamba Valley - with the goal of seeing how far I get. It's the valley one over, and deeper into the Himalaya than the Kangra Valley which Dharmasala and McLeod Ganj are in. It's actually only a few miles away directly over the mountains from here .. across the Indahaur pass I tried unsucsessfuly to cross when I went trekking - but to get there is going to be a very long bus ride ... the long way around ....
I'm expecting to be gone five or six days .. I'm not sure if I'll find internet or not .. watch the space for the next installment!
The retreat was truly excellent .... the first eight days an introduction to Tibetan Buddhism - very well presented ... followed by 2 days of meditation ... three pretty good meals a day ... yoga "talking" in the afternoon and evenings ... and chocolate for sale in the Chai Shop. A meditation retreat with chocolate! ... what a concept! The presentor was a Ozzie monk ... Lama Lobsang Namgyel, warm, compassionate and hilarious!
The course was just what I needed .. a pretty comprehensive introduction to Tibetan Buddhism from a Gulugpa Mahayana perspective. Helped my understand ... and appreciate much of what Namgyal Rinpoche at the Dharma Centre was about. I may attend some more teachings at a related centre in BodhGaya - if I ever get there!
Life in McLeod seems to have been especially sweet the last few days ... I'm getting to know quite a few of the regulars around town, along with the rather interesting - some might say quirky - people in my apartment block. That combined with the 46 or so folks I was with at the Tushita retreat and it's impossible to walk anywhere without meeting someone you know ... and heading off for the subsequent chai, restaurant or coffee house gathering. Fun. I think I could quite enjoy living here for quite a while ... it's one of those villages that is a planetary crossroads. however, a southward move may come as soon as temperatures drop ... an Indian Snowbird!
Tomorrow however, I'm heading off on a adventure up the Chamba Valley - with the goal of seeing how far I get. It's the valley one over, and deeper into the Himalaya than the Kangra Valley which Dharmasala and McLeod Ganj are in. It's actually only a few miles away directly over the mountains from here .. across the Indahaur pass I tried unsucsessfuly to cross when I went trekking - but to get there is going to be a very long bus ride ... the long way around ....
I'm expecting to be gone five or six days .. I'm not sure if I'll find internet or not .. watch the space for the next installment!
posted by Andrew Smith at 6:51 AM
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