Namaste meets Shukran

Upon early completion of my course, I exited myself out of Nepal and am now back in Egypt! I hate to say it but I was ready to leave countries of Hinduism. I will miss very much the Tibetans though - their culture and way of life is so amazingly beautiful. What a beautiful people I have met - thank you to all that I encountered. And a special thanks to the few in Boudha that take care of the small black dog that was sick. Thanks to the volunteer vet that gave me medicine and to those that feed her now! I just heard from a friend that she is still doing well - what a sweet dog she is! Perhaps her next life will be in an upper realm.

Yes, I'm back in Egypt - land of the Pharoahs. Feels so good to be back in the Middle East. This time will feel a bit different due to not only the cooler weather (everyone thinks its cold but to a westerner, this feels like a wrm spring day), but now spending more time learning about Egyptian culture, Islam, hopefully learn more about Pharonic history, more Arabic & see a few sights that I missed last time. Would love to hit Dahab and just got back from spending 5 days in Alexandria on the Mediterranean Sea. Beautiful city and such fresh air.

Having returned, Egypt has a different perspective for me especially after having spent time in India and Nepal. I can appreciate more of this place and delve deeper into it's roots. It doesn't feel like such a shock and this time it appears more westernized than Asia - or at least for Cairo. I'll just say that crossing the street feels a whole lot easier now!

Kopan Monastery

It's been a while since I've made an update - alot has happened since the last one. I'll start with the course.

As you may or may not know, one reason for my trip is to learn more about Buddhism. I have had some great luck thus far with the 7 day retreat in France, sitting in on teachings in Dharamsala, India and at Shedra in Boddhanath, Nepal just ouside of Kathmandu. Up to this point, everything I have experienced has exceeded my expectations and has had a major impact on me and my life. I wanted to continue this process at Kopan monastery by enrolling in the 30 day retreat. Keep in mind, I've only started to learn about Buddhism since June, 2005.

This retreat focused on an intensive study of the Lam Rim. In addition, we also received 2, one hour guided meditation sessions each day in addition to some meditation sessions to start the various classes each day. We had two western instructors, one of which grew up in Chicago, Illinois, I believe.

I thought to myself at first, ok, fine, I don't know what "Lam Rim" means but what the heck - I'll learn about it. However after the first week, my first impression of the course was not good. Several things played a role in this. For one, several people got sick, including myself. Seemed like at least 4 new people each day had to stay in bed with some kind of viral or bacterial infection including fever - this continued for 10 days from the start of the course. About the time one person would feel better, a new person would get sick. I realize that it is common for a few people to get sick from the food in a new country however, it seemed excessive. In some instances people would clear out of class only to hopefully make it outside to up-chuck!

The teachings themselves were rough. It wasn't so much the content as it was the delivery of the material - unskillful. It was obvious to everyone and as the course progressed, more and more people would skip his teachings and instead, just read the material or related materials on their own. More and more gaps in the "classroom" became apparent as folks either left the course all-together OR just hang outside reading, stretching, or meditating waiting for the evening meditation session. In fact, I counted at least 3-4 people left the course entirely every day since inception - that I knew of for certain! However, I do want to note that upon the second week I noticed that the teacher became a little more skillful in his presentation with the material.

A significant turn-off for me was how the material's delivery was implied. It seemed to get conveyed that I must believe such and such instead of, these are the facts - learn about them if you like. Very difficult to explain this point but I could definitely feel a different tone being communicated versus all the other teachings I have listened to. I didn't like that and it came across as very religious; some descibed it as dogmatic.

The material seemed a bit heavy for me and unfortunately, I was hoping for a more gentle approach especially since I'm not yet ready to accept everything as my own belief.

I decided to leave the course early and retreat to samsara (cyclic existence) earlier than expected. It was for the best especially since I didn't want to harbor any negative feelings around those that were attending in peace. However, I did learn alot including some great meditation techniques and I met some really fabulous people. And I'm happy to report that I had an opportunity to listen to Robina Corbin, an Australian monk, speak one evening. I had heard so much about her and missed an opportunity to experience her teachings in India. Amazing lady!

All in all, I'm glad I experienced part of the course and in no way does this experience deter me from my quest for knowledge about Buddhism. Although it is sad to me that it seems they had a significant drop-out this time, for me it is just a stepping stone to the next level.