Sept. 13, 2013     Lahaul adventure continues…

Today was spent going to Poekar Monastery, known partly for where Apho Rinpoche had commissioned Bhutanese artists to create a giant Guru Rinpoche statue. One can say that the Bhutanese are present-day masters of sublime Buddhist art. Their style and techniques are favored by Tibetans. I have seen their work grace many contemporary monasteries.

While Poekar was not originally on my radar for visiting, J had learned yesterday at a meeting in Manali with one of Apho Rinpoche’s sons, Jampal-la, that he was heading to Keylong for Tara puja (prayer), to be followed by Guru Rinpoche puja the day after. She immediately called to inform me that I should join them. That is to say, in her irrepressible and talented role of what Malcolm Gladwell calls a “connector,” she invited me to join them at her behest and on their behalf! Right, then, another unforeseen opportunity to observe and experience. So, I said OK, thank you!

I planned to stay overnight (because J said it was fine to) and brought all my camera equipment and some clothing, all jammed in my wheeling suitcase.  But when I got there with the driver, I couldn’t reach Jampal-la on his phone for details, and found while searching for the monastery that it was a good steep half hour hike up!  So much for wheeling in my suitcase.  It became clear that unless I hoisted my rather heavy suitcase up, the only other option was to go back to my Keylong hotel. Driver D, who had climbed up to the monastery with me to ensure that I was safely escorted, was kind enough to offer to go back down to the car to fetch it, but I didn’t feel good about him doing that!

Anyway, perhaps one day was enough. Maybe better to get to Shashur and Tayul, or Guru Ghantal the next day. These were planned destinations and I wanted to make sure I had enough time to document them. Jampal-la suggested also Phakpa Monastery in Triloknath, a sacred site of Avalokiteshvara, and Markula Devi Temple in Udaipur, sacred site of Vajrvahari.

The Tara puja was an annual event that Poekar Monastery’s American sponsor requests.  The resident monks and nuns are yogi retreatants, as most are in Lahaul. Together, they conducted the prayers, chanting in refreshing cross-gender unison, something one doesn’t experience very much since monks and nuns are usually living separate monastic lives.

In fact, Tara as a tantric deity has contemporary feminist appeal. She is referred to in the Perfection of Wisdom (Prajnaparamita) sutra, a very key Mahayana text, and is considered the female form of Avalokiteshvara, the deity of infinite compassion. With these two strong combinations of wisdom and compassion, she embodies powerful aspects of the practitioner’s own Buddha-nature. She has 21 forms or emanations in all, each associated with certain colors and psycho-physical energies.

During Tara puja, we all sat cross-legged on the floor as is customary. I was flanked by two nuns who would hand me grains of rice to toss in the air at intervals during prayer. Jampal and his wife were guests of honor.

It was nice talking to them both in between prayer sessions.  We talked about how the West seems to the East and vice versa.  I shared my observations of what I thought was positive and negative about each social order, their apparent outlooks on life, and expectations of how things should be. Jampal-la and his wife shared theirs. I learned from him that, even though he comes from a line of great traditional solitary practitioners, his view is unexpectedly open to contemporary and Western exposure, and it is this:

Begin on the secular level with teachings about how to simply be a good, moral person before getting to the more esoteric and higher teachings. Let individuals develop and choose whether they want to be Buddhist or not. Then if they do, higher teachings can always come later. He has helped to sponsor a group of young girls by sending them to school and working on exactly this approach. In this way, he is aligned with the Dalai Lama’s initiative on secular ethics.

What’s more, their teen is in the U.S. now attending university through the generosity of a sponsor. They feel strongly that young Tibetans should experience what the West has to offer, and then decide for themselves whether to follow that life or come back to the East.  Otherwise, they will always feel doubt or curiosity that the (democratic/ materialist/capitalist/etc.) grass is greener on the other side. Eye-opening to chance the risks of the world, coming from a family and lineage legacy of hermitic existence.

The day passed so seamlessly from breakfast to morning prayers, to lunch and afternoon conversation, with such friendliness exuding from everyone at Poekar.

Sadly, when I learned that the next prayer session would continue in a different temple an hour’s ascent further up the mountain (surprise once again) I decided it was too late in the day, and time for me to travel back. Upon hearing this, the nuns and monks, who by now were spread willy-nilly on the hillside climbing up, began to wave and smile and utter lovely goodbyes. They repeatedly implored me to stay over. Truly, their sincerity warmed me so much, I found myself walking away hand clasped to heart.

All photos © 2013, Eva Lee.