Best of Sri Lanka

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One of those 'Sri Lanka' stories...

Wandering around in a buddhist monastery, in the middle of the woods somewhere between Ambalangoda and Kandy... an old monk calls me to come over to him. His teeth had already found their way out of his mouth, his face was full of wrinkles and his orange clothes could have needed some washing... He asks me to send him a razor knive from Germany as soon as I am back ("German quality is the best"). I try to explain that I don't go back to Germany, I will head towards India. He doesn't understand (doesn't want to) and keeps on chewing on whatever it is (later on I found out that it's a kind of root that old people in Sri Lanka love to chew, for whatever reason). Suddenly, he spits all the liquid, quite read and smelly, out of his mouth, onto the floor - without hitting me, but almost. It was very close and I can tell you that in this moment I didn't feel the least respect for this old man who had dedicated his live to Buddha...

Anyway, another monk of the monastery should impress me by another type of feeling...
He stepped out of his little hut when I passed by and called me in. My singalese friend and tuktuk driver Janaka came with me to sit down on the floor and listen to that buddhist monk who told us his life story and how he came to be a monk... He had everything he wanted, success in business, a son who now studies biology in Russia, a loving wife, a position as professor of chemistry in Australia and Colombo, houses, money, travels, women... but couldn't really appreciate the thought of doing all this again and again - as buddhist belief is that you return and return to this life, in one or the other form of being - and decided together with his wife to end this eternal cycle by dedicating the rest of theirs lives to meditation, each one of them in a monastery, separated from each other, individally seeking the path to nirwana... He said, it's good, do it all, try it all, live it to the fullest and deepest level you can whatever comes your way, enjoy... and when one day when you have had it all and you ask yourself: 'and that's all there is?', try meditation and dedicate some or all of your time to find more about what's within than without...

Quite impressive men, as he sat there telling his story, very calm and with an aura of wisdom (or: having lived it all but not in need of it anymore). And then... this flow of energy I felt running through my body when I sat there, listening to him, like electricity, warm and flowing... quite strange experience, but as pleasant as it can be...

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