converts for a day

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...or more, if lucky.

Ganden. One of three famous monasteries in Tibet, one of the three great Gelukpa monasteries . It sits at around 4500 m, perched on and nesteled into a small mountain, wee dirt road snaking below to the east, river snaking below to the west.

Before being bombed and fired at, and very much destroyed (in those wonder years around late 50s to 60s), it was a biggee, with around 10,000 monks. Now it is being, has been, reconstructed in parts. Like Drepung and like Sera, it is a blend of ruins and fantastic architecture.

Aaaaaaaand, for the hiking deprived, it is an aosis of pathways to test the legs and lungs.

My timing, tho unplanned, was impeccable. Sundays are when the most pilgrims turn out. Certainly, today's re-walking of the Kora path proved this: no one in sight. Appropriately, it was a misty, melancholy sort of day.

I met a family who took me around.

But back to the converts.

Not missionaries, or vegetarianaries... but environmental.

I had decided there was so much crap that i would pick up whatever (non-prayer flag or prayer paper) lay in my path. After about 15 minutes of breathless (not the scenery, the lungs) ascent, a couple of girls caught up to me. Soon, they began to mimic me, without my knowing. They had found plastic bags (dime a dozen on the trail) and were picking up bits of plastic, pop can tops, bottles, cigarette cartons, milk cartons... Ugh. There is an astonishing amount of crap on the mountains, on the streets, in the pristine fields...everywhere.

T and C are equally awful to the environment. I am wondering if with the Ts it is a learned behavious. The girls demonstrated that no one had ever told them to do other than throw used stuff away quickly as possible. Really, it is like they've a hot potatoe in their hands and must chuck it immediately. Ouch, ouch, get this nasty plastic packaging OUT of my hands.

I digress.

It was pleasing that they mimed me without being told to, simply because i was the different one doing something different. In fact, i got the feeling in the end that it was simply a game for them, but perhaps later in life it'll come back to them and alter the instinct to chuck.

Later, i broke from them to explore the narrow lanes and alleys of the monastery. I came across a man who'd be incredibly jokey on the bus. Turns out he is a scripturist and i had barged into his apartment complex, a narrow tunnel which immediately invited me to enter.

He was good about it and had me sit down in his living area. While he blended tea, i took in his very interesting photos. Later, he fed me and his friend joined him and we all danced through my phrasebook trying to communicate.

I retired to my vacant monastery guesthouse with a thermos of sweet tea and a T novel. A few hours later, i heard the cheering of a soccer match, so i went to investigate.
My football match was noneother than the evening debate session of the monks, another lively affair similar to Sera's debate. Heaps of claps and shout-speaking.

After politely sitting against a wall for a while, a handsome (ooops) monk invited me to sit with them, on a cushion. Soon, we began the phrasebook dance, though my memory for key questions is now improving. And soonafter, i plucked the courage to ask if i could photograph them. Like they had been waiting for my request, they were soon a variety of actors, posing with pride for the camera and giggling like schoolkids at the results. Lovely monks.

And a lovely night, in my empty room with the view of the complex and some purty stars too.

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Photos

bus to monastery
The 2 hour bus ride to the monastery was one of the best I've had. The entire bus was mirthful. A scripturist monk and a friend joked the whole way, leaning into eachother on curves and spreading quite a bit of good spirits.

family pilgrimage
A couple of families joined together for the pilgrimage. I was morphed into the group after a short while.

incense offerings
At the many fire pits smoldering on the crest of the mountains, offerings of juniper branches, or T beer, live yaks (kidding) are made.

flags on the crest
all across the ridge, flags high and low.

cleansing the prayer flags
Before stringing these across a very wide dip between two points, they were fluffed in incense smoke.

naming
After cleansing, family members names were written on squares of the flag.

stringing up the flags
Finally, the two ends were attached, names fluttering in the wind along with endless prayers.

converts
The girls admirably carried the boxes and bags of trash throughout our 3 hour hike, despite it distinctly being against T and C culture to even consider picking up litter.

bounty
And here is a fraction of what we saw all over the mountainside.

from my dorm room
...my empty dorm room!

postcard asses
It's as though they knew they'd be transmitted across the wires and just had to show off.

blending butter tea
Traditionally, butter tea would be made with a long, wooden churn. Modern technology blessed Ts with blenders.

clamour
They clamoured more for peeks at pictures of my family, or to star in pictures themselves.

yak
at last, a yak photo.

dl
he can be found, though it is a great shame that secrecy must be involved in the first place.

Comments

[Gav]

Hey Eva, You and the hot monks.............. indeed. You're looking well. Keep the photos coming. Take care Gav

[dong-hyun]

fighting eva^^
eva^^ you look tired~~~ cheer up~~~ and i wish your dream come true~^^