The snake appeared
quite unannounced, silently slithering over the red, dusty sand of the drive
leading up to the imposing white, old colonial house, built for grandeur with
little acknowledgement of the hot humid climate in which it is set.
We were quite a way
from the snake and yet, in its shimmering brown progress, it seemed to turn its
glittering eyes towards us before effortlessly ascending the low red cement
wall and disappearing into the newly fallen leaves and branches. We looked carefully
to see where it had gone; no trace was left.
He came into the
large hall where wicker chairs had been put to one side for us to meet. His
head was not shaved, but the thick covering of white hair was very short.
Placing his hands together gently in greeting, he sat down to be introduced to
us, arranging the deep maroon robes so that he was comfortable.
At the age of seven,
having been recognised as the reincarnation in a line of important religious
figures, he became a Buddhist monk and began his studies in a monastery in
Tibet. When he was twenty years old he was part of the group that accompanied
the Dalai Lama in his flight from the Chinese invasion, seeking refuge in
India. In the years that followed he worked predominantly in setting up
educational institutions for the Tibetan refugees that also sought asylum in
India. Recently he had spent a term of ten years as the Prime Minister of the
Tibetan Government in exile.
That evening he was
to give a public talk in front of the white, colonial house entitled: 'Buddha's
Teachings and Krishnamurti's Insights'. However, he had agreed to meet us for a
conversation soon after our arrival at the end of a six hour car journey.
Towards the end of
our conversation we observed that humanity was on an almost irretrievable
course towards disaster; that, even if it was not to be precipitated by human
behaviour, it might equally come about through some natural phenomena. This, he
felt, had the possibility of bringing about some sense of realisation or
understanding of the effects of self-centred or egotistical activity. The
global economic system as it is currently, underpinned by violence and greed,
with the existence of rapid environmental degradation, widening inequality
between the poor and the rich, and increasing religious intolerance is
destroying any semblance of balance or harmony in the world - negating the
values and ethics that might give some avenue to ensuring the survival of the
human race.
We talked of the
education system as it generally is worldwide; the superficial approach to
learning with the tendency towards the acceptance of information without examination
or questioning. From this emerges a form of blind faith whether it be in
religion, modern technology or in the economic system. In Buddhist terms, he
explained, the process of learning is seen as a movement from the imparting and
acquiring of knowledge through to the direct perception of truth, at which
point it becomes authentic learning. Thus the individual, through reflection
and meditation, gains an insight into the truth and therefore is no longer a
second-hand human being, accepting what has been told. When asked about the
relationship between teacher and student, he responded that the Buddhist view
is to use the word 'friend', that is one who removes fear and explains with
simplicity and clarity. And that this relationship, if it is lo lead to
authentic learning had to be a collective, collaborative process, involving neither
comparison nor competition. In this quality of collaboration, doubts and
difficulties would emerge, but in this collaboration there would have to be the
removal of all authority.
The question was then
put as to whether this process was also one that occurred in self-knowledge, or
self-realisation. Learning about the self was entirely dependent on an understanding
of what the 'self' and the 'other' is, as opposed to the misunderstanding that
leads to the confusion of self and ego. He mentioned that the realisation, or
perception, of the self leads to the transformation of behaviour and
relationship, particularly with nature.
He left us with an
apology for his limitations in the English language.
Learning, whether
through the words of wisdom of another or the observation of the snake over the
sand has the potential to be of extraordinary depth and endless.
Our travels in India
continue until March 14th.
