Dharamshala and Home
(If online album of images from the trip)
Getting from Delhi to Dharamshala was completely uneventful. I’d become so used to hard travelling that I barely noticed the ease with which we simply got on the plane and went there.
We were met at the Kangra airport by a group of monks who took great delight in tending to our needs. (If a bunch of crows is a murder, what is a bunch of monks called). We got into the monastery’s van and headed up the mountain.
In this part of town, the roads aren’t so rough. Given that were a mile high in the foothills of the Himalayas, that’s really astonishing. The snow is murder every winter. There WERE signs that the roads can be trouble. Compared to the highway between Kushinigar and Bodhgaya, this was a walk in the park.
We stayed at the Asia Health Resort (click at your own risk…somehow, this site contains a piano version of the theme from Friends), a newer hotel at the edges of McLeod Ganj (the town next to Dharamshala). Don and I were a day ahead of the rest of the travelers so we were able to get to know the town and the shops on that first night.
McLeod Ganj is less like the rest of India and more like the bar from Star Wars. You are every bit as likely to hear English spoken at the next table as an Indian variant. The town is full of wayfaring spiritual seekers of the REI encrusted jet setting variety.
The streets are an endless string of vendors hawking everything but that tour jacket and tee shirt I’ve been hoping for. If you want statues of Buddha, this is the place. Beads, paintings, books, bags, handicrafts, more statues, more paintings, restaurants and small markets. I try to stick my head into each and everyone.
Besides the aggressive tourist hustle, the area is noticeable for the happiness of the people here. This is really not like the rest of the trip.
We visit a number of interesting institutions devoted to Tibetan Cultural Preservation. Several episodes stick out in my mind.
I fell in love again at the Tibetan Children’s Village (TVC). She didn’t say much. The boys muscled her out of the way.She was patient and persistent about visiting with me. (Here’s the other pal I made there)
The village is part orphanage and part way station. As the Tibetan diaspora continues its evolution, children need shelter while their parents navigate new cultures and Economies. The TVC provides continuity and housing for kids in transition as well as a stable environment for orphans. It was very sweet to just sit and play with the kids for a couple hours
The monastery, Kalichakra temple and Dalai Lama Residence provided an interesting insight into the blending of political and spiritual values. Under what could easily be described as house arrest, the property is protected by armed members of the Indian Military. The temple included some of the most amazing examples of Tibetan art that you can see anywhere.
We got to meet with the Karmapa at the Gyuto Vajrayana University and Monastery. Though it doesn’t actually work like this, he is the most likely successor (as a visible Tibetan figure) of the Dalai Lama. It was a rushed affair. As we were leaving, a wrist mala that I had just purchased exploded. The little beads went everywhere.
I happened on this note as I was writing:
“malas are alive. my first spiritual teacher told me that when a mala breaks, it means that many karmas have been destroyed. it is a good thing. she said that one should not restring the mala, nor wear it or use it again. all the japa, all the mantras and prayers that were said on those beads have done their work of transmutation.
Interesting notion.
We flew back to Delhi to wrap up the trip. Another Nikko Hotel across from the market. It was a real let down after Dharamshala.
