Full CircleA racy story for the uninhibited |
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November 2006 Hilton's Story Chapter 26 The Buddhists He
lay in a delirium for two days. Chills, thirst and malaria
wracking his body, his mind jumbled by images of gods and the ferocious
Mara, he would have died but a young monk noticed something strange against
the tree. Cared
for by the monks he slowly regained strength and the malaria was controlled.
The monks had searched his backpack to learn who he was and found the cell
phone with the Sanjay's number. Sanjay was relieved to learn what
had happened but was concerned about his health. He told the Senior Monk what had happened to Hilton and what he was trying to do.
The Monk understood but felt Hilton
was not strong enough to go to Calcutta and it would be better if he
stayed in the temple until he could make his own decisions. Sanjay agreed. Hilton
stayed with the monks for two weeks. It was a pleasant place with the
sweet smell of incense in the air, golden statues of Buddha in the
main worship hall and in lesser shrines within the temple. The food was
plain, vegetarian but delicious. He was encouraged to meditate and join in
the ceremonies with the monks. Gradually his mind cleared and he remembered his quest for Kay. The
Venerable Master Monk came to him one morning and told him that they knew why
he was here. “We understand your search, but spirits of the dead do not
manifest themselves even when the love is very strong. You cannot continue
this way. May I suggest you retreat to a monastery in the Himalayas to
recover your spirit?” “Please,
Venerable, I must look for her. Give me time to think.” He
thought for several days more. When an opportunity came to talk to the
Master he said that he would continue his journey to the places in the
south they had visited. If he didn’t find her or receive a sign he would
accept the offer of a retreat in the Himalayas. The
Venerable Master reluctantly accepted his decision and offered a novice
monks as a travelling companion, the same one who had found him under the
bhodi tree. A tall, thin young man in his twenties, with
serious dark eyes and a warm smile, his name was Ananda and they had
become friends while Hilton was healing.
His
western clothes didn’t fit any longer and the monks gave him a robe like
those worn by yogis. When the day came for them to depart, Hilton dressed
in his yogi robe and Ananda in his monks habit, looked much like
wandering ascetics of old. Hilton felt more alive than he had for many
months. Ananda, too, was excited about the journey because he had never
been far from the Ganges River.
“I
don’t think I thanked you for saving my life,” Hilton said as they
waited in the crowded train station in Varanasi. “I was very nearly
finished.”
“Yes,
you were. It was only by good fortune I saw you. You looked like a pile of
rags.”
“Tell
me, Ananda, how you came to be a monk.”
“My
parents were doctors in Lhassa," he said. "When the Chinese came
they were denied a license to practice medicine so they followed the Dalai
Lama to India. They found a new home in Calcutta where I was born. I grew
up in the English speaking neighbourhoods.”
“I
wondered how you came to speak English,” Hilton interjected. “You are
still a young man. Were you not interested in being a doctor instead of a
monk?”
“I
did dream of being a doctor until I met the Dalai Lama during a visit to
his palace in Dharamasala. I realized I could do more good for Tibet first
as a monk and then as a doctor.”
“How
long have you been a monk?”
“I
became a novice when I was eighteen years old. My father and mother
brought me to Sarnath to meet the Venerable Master. I have been here for
six years. The Venerable Master has said that I will soon be sent to
medical school in America.”
“Well,
that's exciting. Congratulations, I’m sure you will have a great career
and I hope you will not regret being with me.”
“I
think travelling with you will strengthen my karma,” he said as the
gates to the train platform opened.
Their first stop was Chennai, the old city once called Madras. The train
pulled into the station early in the morning and among the rush of
passengers was a yogi and a young monk looking decidedly out of place
among the busy executives and call centre operators. Ananda, overwhelmed
by the crush of people, looked decidedly happier when they found the bus that
would take them to Kanchipuram.
The
bus bumped along the road for several hours but when they emerged they no
longer appeared out of place among the tourists, monks and yogis on the
grounds. Ananda wanted to learn more about the Hindu Gods, particularly
Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, even though he believed in karma and the concept
of cause and condition rather than the power of deities. The temples
and the art that decorate them fascinated him so he asked many questions
that Hilton could not answer. Hilton took him to find the guru who had brought him into the Maithuna ceremony at the Kamakshi temple. He was not in his usual place but yogi approached them, bowed and asked if he could be of assistance. Ananda asked about the guru who normally meditated in this place. He was told that his name was Upsali and that he would return the next day. The yogi suggested they stay with the yogis and priests of the temple until Upsali returned. |
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