Reeelaaaax.... (Nov 27 - 28)

We spent the next two days at the Root institute from 6:45 am to 6:00 (or so) pm. Yes, we actually dragged our sorry butts out of bed in time to walk to the temple and catch a rickshaw to Root so we could participate in the morning meditation. (Yes... really... Brad did get out of bed that early!)

The two days was basically a crash course in Tibetan Buddhist meditation practices. We started each morning with a meditation and then had breakfast (you should never meditate on a full stomach). After breakfast, we had a talk from a monk. Her name was Rita and she was from Switzerland. She's been a monk for 14 years. She was really quite interesting and down to earth in how she viewed and presented things. She and the other woman presenting(who's name unfortunately escapes me) both spoke with no notes, just going with the topic and the questions from the group. There were nine of us in class - the Australian couple we'd met a couple of nights ago, a German couple, a French couple, and one young American fellow.

There was a 10 day silent retreat going on at the same time as we were there so we were requested to spend the full 2 days in silence (except during the question and answer periods). Because of this, we never really got to know the other participants.

After our post-breakfast morning talk, we did a walking meditation out in the garden until we heard the ringing of the singing bowl. The walking meditation is interesting - paying close attention to every sensation and movement as you slowly walk up and down your selected strip of grass. After the walking meditation we would go back inside the gompa for a seated meditation. We spent the two day course seated on meditation cushions. You know, those cushions get really hard on the posterior after a couple of hours and my feet kept falling asleep. Brad, who was sitting behind me, was uncomfortable due to the fact that his back was still bothering him (I could hear him shifting around alot). On a positive note, after two days of discomfort seated on the floor, it opened his hips a bit and made his back loosen up!

On both days, as we sat in the gompa a crested bird (rather like a bluejay) landed on the sill outside and started pecking at the glass. I guess it saw a spot that it really wanted to use to build a nest. We had to close the curtains to discourage it!

After the seated mindfulness meditation was lunch. The food there was all vegetarian and really excellent. Lunch was in silence as well - so you could stay inside your head and be mindful of what you were eating. We both noticed how much less you actually eat (or want to eat) if you pay attention to each bite. After lunch we would have another discussion / lecture, a tea break followed by two different afternoon meditations and then dinner. One evening, on the way back to the hotel, one too many children had asked Brad if he was Muslim. Not that that's a bad thing but we decided not to tempt fate with airport security so he shaved off the beard. I guess family and friends will just have to live with the photographic evidence that he did have a full-on beard going.

On the second day, I was standing watching the goats that belong to the institute. They were on leads staked to the ground in various spots where the grass needed trimming. I noticed that, no matter how long and thick the grass was around them, they always seemed to be straining against their rope to get that one blade of grass that was just out of reach. I guess it's not just human nature.

There are also three dogs who live at the compound. One is a very playful doberman. He may have been the first doberman I've seen who didn't have his ears and tail clipped. They're really rather comical looking if you're used to the clipped variety. He wanted to play one day after lunch. The only problem was that if I threw a stick, he'd run after it, bite it in half and then just stand there looking at me, waiting for another. I thought maybe he didn't know how to play fetch. When I was out of sticks I was standing there, looking at him expectantly looking at me expectantly - he came over, dug a bit in the garden, pulled out a clod of dirt and dropped it in from of me. Ok. I threw it, he chased it and brought me back a rock. I guess he only knows how to play fetch with rocks. Whatever works!

Meditation and sitting is hard work but we decided its not really that hard compared to the rickshaw driver we had one morning. He had no shoes and could barely reach the pedals from the bicycle seat but he only had one arm so he couldn't stand on the pedals. Still, he was cheerful and he was working it.

After dinner on the second day, we were invited to join the group to give light offerings at the Mahabodhi Temple. At first we weren't planning to attend. Rather like not taking communion at a Catholic wedding - it seemed disrespectful to give a light offering. The monk, Rita, encouraged us to go, explaining that you were simply offering a light to the universe or anyone you thought could use it. The Aussie couple we had met commented 'when will you have another chance to attend a light offering at the Bodha Tree with Tibetan monks?' Ok, that decided it. (Sidebar... Sarah, the Aussie woman, has a cousin who is cousins with Belinda Stronach - small world!)

We arrived at the temple around 7:30 pm and bought some candles outside the gate and found a spot for our group to sit. We had brought some small mats from the compound to (partially) cushion us as we sat on the marble. I was asking one of the monks what the prostrations were for. I asked whether she felt that the Buddha had become a religious idol, being worshipped. She said that the prostrations were more to show reverence to what the man achieved (enlightenment) rather than the man himself so, in that way, she didn't feel that she was worshipping an idol, just an ideal. Ok, I can buy that. I guess what you see depends on how you look.

We did a meditation to set our intention for the light offering (thoughts become things) and then circumambulated the temple to the small park where there were tables set up for the light offerings. We all lit our candles while we visualized a sky filled with lights. All the candles lined up on the tables with the group standing quietly smiling - it was a very serene and peaceful moment. To top it off, we headed back to the hotel for a very peaceful sleep.