From Monk, to Terrorist, to Archeologist

So...
Call off the search party. I am alive Yes, I know. It's been a while. Far too much has happened since my last post to sum up adequately. You'll have to make do with a few short anecdotes.

The Vipassana meditation was amazing, and NOT what I was expecting it to be. It was quite a rude awakening to discover that meditation is not sitting in blissful contemplation with one's eyes closed. It's bloody hard work. At least Vipassana is. From 4am until 9pm I followed a strict schedule of meditation and attending a nightly discourse. For 12 days I essentially lived the life of a monk. Staying focussed on the sensation of one's natural breathing for 12 hours a day demands an incredible amount of concentration. And that's just the beginning. On day 4 I discovered that the first 3 were simply a preparation for the practice of Vipassana. By observing my breathing and focusing my attention on very small area between my nostrils and upper lip, I had sharpened my mind to the point where I was able to concentrate intensely on any area in my body. I was able to feel very subtle sensations throughout my body as I moved my mind from part to part. Of course, there were unpleasant and very unsubtle sensations as well (sitting on the floor all day not being allowed to change position brings out a world of pain and numbness.) I eventually came to the realization that both the pleasant sensations (subtle or not) and the unpleasant sensations have the same characteristics... they are impermanent, they rise and they fade away. I observed the sensations with the same intense awareness that I had observed my breathing. By simply observing the sensations in my body with impartiality ("equanimity" in the words of my teacher) I began to feel cravings and aversions from my life come to the surface... I observed them... and, like the sensations saw them rise and fade away.
I left Dhamma Giri feeling much calmer and prepared to deal with the hassles and general unpleasantness of travelling in certain parts of India.... A very good thing. Because the day I left the center, my camera (along with my pictures since Jodhpur) decided to fall off an obscenely high cliff, never to be seen again. I searched for 4 hours. No dice. Gone.
I'll admit, losing that stuff hurt... a lot. But I think it would have hurt a lot more had it happened before I learned Vipassana.
The next day I was accused by an ignorant mob of having a bomb in my daypack as I walked the extremely crowded streets of Trimbak. Another very stressful situation. Things could have become very ugly, but I managed to calmly talk my way out of trouble. Again, I think in large part thanks to my meditation.

Ellora

Ellora

Kailash Temple, Ellora - yes this was carved out of one rock

Kailash Temple, Ellora - Yours truly looking very small

Ellora

Ellora

Ellora

Ajanta

Ajanta


I spent a number of days checking out the ancient caves at Ajanta (Buddhist) and Ellora (Bhuddhist, Hindu, Jain.) They were both spectacular in their own ways. Ajanta's caves were covered in frescoes and were illuminated with electric lights. They were beautiful, and well preserved, but it felt like a museum, and the outside was very toursity, full of touts and aggressive shop owners trying to make a few rupees.
Ellora's caves were very cool. Less crowded, and less controlled.... but still well preserved and lit only by natural light. Many of the caves were filled with bats. It was easy to imagine how it might have felt to rediscover the ellora caves. What made them particularly impressive was the knowledge that they were carved out of the same rock.
Ajanta

Ajanta

Ajanta

Ajanta

Ajanta

Ajanta


I'm moving generally south towards Goa. Planning on some relaxing and a bit of yoga. Thanks for all of the encouraging emails and comments folks. It's always nice to hear about home.