Symmetry?

My possessions have exploded all over my house. Insect repellent, Chacos, my well-traveled copy of Siddhartha, power adapters... It's really beginning to hit me that I'm leaving for India in less than three days.

It's a bit disorienting to have barely three weeks between a monumental summer in Tibet and a four-month dunk into Monastic life in India. However, as I was sorting my socks earlier today, I remembered a painting that I saw hanging in the Potala Palace less than six weeks ago. I can't find a digital image of it anywhere, so I will describe it:

Tibetan kings sit in the foreground, holding various jewels and scepters. It is the background, however, that draws my attention. Amid the swirling clouds that are typical of Thangka, in the left and right upper corners of the painting, there are two architectural monoliths. On the left there is the Potala Palace, and on the right is the Mahabodhi temple in Bodh Gaya. They are connected by a rainbow.

Also, an ex-monk turned tour guide on the Nepali border told me that the first place I should visit (besides Tibet, of course), is Bodh Gaya, the site of the Buddha's enlightenment.

So, although I felt random and haphazard as I struggled to make these two experiences actually happen, I'm thinking that there may a more-than-sublte connection here. I'm excited.

Breakneck Transitions

Well, it happened. I spent the summer walking the plateau of Tibet, and now, as August in the Pacific Northwest flaunts its evergreen warmth, the profound beauty of that Himalayan country lingers in between my toes. Metaphorically. Maybe literally too--my toe scrubbing hasn't been extensive since I got back.

And this Tuesday I'm leaving for India. I will spend 14 weeks there studying Buddhism and Tibetan (http://aea.antioch.edu/india/). I will contemplate the Bodhi tree and struggle to meditate. I will meet interesting people, hold my arms up to the monsoons, and hopefully remember to brush my teeth. I will keep track of the moon, wonder about happiness, and learn, learn, learn.

I'm reeling. My time at home evaporated before I had the chance to exhale, and I haven't even started the summer assignments for my study abroad program. However, I am excited. Change is my element.

So come on future! Happen, I dare you! Life may be a bit crazy, but I'm loving every second of it.

...and stay tuned as the days progress. I'm planning on writing on this blog with some regularity while I'm in India.