Dungeshwari cave

Two nights ago, a friend showed me to a Thai Buddhist nunnery where I could stay for free (by donation). It is really wonderful there. I have made a new friend, her name is Micki, an english teacher from thailand. She is here with her lama (monk) teacher. Yesterday morning, just as I was going to head out to call you on skype, she said that she, her teacher, and several of the nuns were heading out to visit the cave where buddha spent 6 years in meditation before coming to bodhgaya and acheiving enlightenment under the bodhi tree. It was a free ride for me in their hired jeep.


We took the jeep to the nearby river, and walked to the cave (by a mountain) from there. It was quite surreal. Micki's teacher wears all tan robes, and goes barefoot wherever he goes. the nuns wear all white robes. we walked for several hours approaching the cave, across a river (we waded through barefoot), and through fields and indian villages. the village children hounded us for money and biscuits. they finally left us alone after a while.


It was a very intense experience at the cave for me, when we finally reached there. it was the most beggars i have seen so far on this trip, maybe several hundred all lined up along the path to the cave. i was overcome with emotion. it was really hard to see so many women and children, old men, and crippled people (from polio) just sitting on the side of the path with their hands open in the begging posture. and they are sitting on piles of plastic from the candies and biscuits that tourists buy from the nearby sellers to give away.


i was really glad to be in the company of a good friend and several holy people. after giving our offerings at the cave, we gathered beneath the prayer flags to pray. it was so beautiful. Micki's teacher led the prayers, sung in the Thai language. I added my heartfelt intentions and knelt alongside them.


India is a place of great extremes. Of incredible beauty and holiness, and also the deepest depths of poverty. Bihar state, where Bodhgaya is located, is the poorest state in India.


today was easier and included another nice surprise. I took Micki to a deserted, 2,000-year-old buddhist/hindu temple by the river. several days ago, some local teenagers selling omelets on the street had shown it to me. i bought some flowers on the way as an offering. this time, the son of the brahmin priest who does puja there was available to show us around. this place is POWERFUL. the statues vibrate with intense presence. there is a room full of buddha statues, a room of statues for hindu deities like lakshmi, saraswati, and vishnu, etc, and a whole series of 21 separate small shiva temples with lingams inside, as well as several seats where the very holy men like shankaracharyas, rajas (kings), and gandhi used to sit, atop very old tiger skins. there was also the ruins of a building that the raja (king) used to live in nearby.


The man who showed us around invited us to attend puja tomorrow morning, so we will go and bring flowers and fruits. there is a whole fire pit, by the shiva temples, where they do puja. I am looking forward to it, to say the least!


On the 15th of January (day after tomorrow), I will catch an early morning train to Varanasi with Micki and her teacher. They know Thai people who we can stay with there, either at a temple or at the university.