The few days in between trekking and departing for Australia
were spent in the chaotic and loud Kathmandu. I figured I’d take my first day
after the trek easy as my knees were pleading for mercy. My plan was to go to
Swayambhunath (or Monkey Temple) to visit the stupa, museums and monasteries.
But it wasn’t easy. When I arrived I was greeted with a tower of stairs, 365 to
be exact, to the top. It wasn’t a difficult climb, since I had been doing nothing
but for a few days and a higher altitude, but it was still a tiring day.
At the
top of the steps there were a few monasteries and shrines filled with solid
gold statues, lines of fires in pots, candle offerings and other relics. The
paths were lined with prayer wheels (not wind or water, these ones you spun
with your hands) and filled with people circumambulating the premises.
There
was a small ensemble of musicians with drums, horns and flutes, about half an
hour that ensemble turned into a parade of monks, some dressed like Trojans?
And the music turned into a cacophony of noise, the drummers beat with no
rhythm and the horns sounded at random. I was told this was to make sure the
gods were awake because they were about to read a prayer and make an offering.
I’m still not entirely clear on where the gods and offerings and worshiping comes into play in Buddhism.
I asked a few people but no one could give me an
answer. However, although he couldn’t give me an answer, Ram offered a very
nice explanation of religion. He prefaced the thought with the fact that he was
raised Hindu, and throughout his life has met people of all religions, and
quite a few people that tried to convert him or save him. From learning about
all the different religions this is how he describes his faith. Religion is
like Mt Everest. The Nepali call it Everest, but the Tibetans call it something
else, and the Bhutanese have another name and the Pakistani another. There are
also many routes and trails that you can take up to the top of Everest. All are
difficult, but some are much more so than others. But when you get to the top,
it’s the same place. Just like religion. You can call it different names, and
you can practice in many different ways, but the end result for everyone is the
same. Pretty profound.
in 6 months. I’ve rung in 2004, 2013 and 2070. That’s a lot
of time travel. For the holiday I went to the Boudha Stupa, which is the
largest in the world. This is where different sects of Buddhists go to
celebrate the New Years, all in their different traditional clothing, speaking
different languages and worshipping in slightly different ways. Some people
were in the monastery giving money, others bowing to the statues of Buddha. The
younger people were mostly using the holiday to parade around in their best,
brightest and most bedazzled outfits. There were a few groups of people
cheering and throwing rice in a circle as an offering for the new year. I
enjoyed this a bit more than the previous site because it was more natural and
fewer tourists. Watching the celebrations was a unique cultural experience and a
great way to end my first Nepali adventure.
Today I am writing from Western Australia, but those stories
will come a bit later.
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