The last post :-)

So this will definitely be my last post, but I wanted to get a few more words and images in before completing the trip.

The past month at KYM has been a tremendous learning experience. There has been learning inside and outside of class, on the streets of Chennai and in the homes of new and old friends. I have been alone, in welcome company, and sometimes (although more rarely) in more difficult company. Sometimes the days have flown by quicker than I could realize, and other times - especially when tiredness or loneliness kicked in - time has dragged slower than ever. I have been exposed to so many different elements: the monsoon rains and the sweltering heat, the direct exhaust of autos and large trucks and the disorienting honking, so loud that I have jumped on a few occasions. The program has proved engrossing and I have been able to feel critical about the less nourishing aspects without feeling too overwhelmed. 

I write all this because I look back on the month with awe at all the fluctuations that have defined it. In our classes at KYM we have spoken a lot about how change is constant, and its results and effects are always part of our lives: whether they be in the form of suffering or rejoicing. Being away on an adventure for a structured period of time is giving me the chance to look back and notice how challenging it is to find one's balance again and again. I don't think I take enough time to reflect on this when I am home, even though much can happen in a day, or a week, let alone a month! So I am sharing some of these thoughts as an invitation: you might want to reflect back on the last week, month, maybe just today, and just observe, noticing how again and again you too might have worked towards a new balance as different circumstances have arisen.

The next pictures are snapshots from my last day here, another day filled with discovery and with the particular sense of gratitude that can sometimes descend upon me when I know I am coming to the close of an experience.

This morning I caught one of the women designing the Lakshmi offering on her doorstep. I had been hoping to catch this on camera for a while, here is a little sequence:

Adi, Jacqui and I wanted to buy a few books and check out the garden at the Theosophical Society, a wonderful organisation that was born out of a concept of "universal brotherhood" in NY at the end of the 19th century. The gardens and buildings of the Society are a real sanctuary in Chennai.

The gardens of the Society are green and luscious, and relatively "wild" for Western standards. Jacqui caught sight of a very large snake hanging out on the side of the road. It moved beautifully as it slithered away, but it did give us a bit of an adrenaline boost.

Beautiful bugs - an inspiration for "A Bug's Life II", one that could take place in the tropics...

Inside the main building of the society.

This panel gives a brief history of the foundation of the Society and the order in which countries have adhered. I was proud of Italy's number 9.

Theosophical Society - the logo?

To celebrate the end of the program, Milena very graciously invited anyone who was willing and free to dine at the apartment she shares with Adi and Einat. Here is a short documentation of the evening - it was heart warming!

Einat working her Healing Bowl on Matt. Anjuli in the background.

Milena in action, with a very shirtless assistant Miguel!

Waiting for food...

...still waiting...

Louise presents the deliciousness. 

Milena reassured us on several occasions that "Don'tch worry, everything is sterilized." 

(To be read with a delightful Brazilian accent).

A triumph of pasta with fresh tomato sauce!

Final group photo. Milena, super host and master chef and overall mama, at the forefront.

I am now home, my backpack and "abidas" bags all ready and packed.

The abidas bag was a necessary purchase do to the extra books and other nicknacks that I have purchased over the past month. It's designed to continue increasing in size, with magical zippers that turn it into a sort of Mary Poppins bag, except it can become gigantic.

I am deeply grateful for the opportunity of having spent the past month here. Here are a few shout outs to thank all of you who have made this possible: 

to my teachers for showing me the way and planting the seed of this adventure; 

to my students, for inspiring me to learn more and for patiently waiting for me while I have been gone so long; 

to KYM and all the people that have made this month possible; 

to the wonderful group of fellow students and practitioners who have come together here in Chennai and have been a supportive and warm community; 

to my friends and family for encouraging me and appreciating my decision; 

and to David, for being there for me to come home to. 

Grazie.

With my warmest (from India!) and most loving wishes,

B

- 1

Here it is - last day of classes! Tomorrow morning I leave Chennai at 5.30a. I have spent the past couple of days rushing around, picking up precious books and gifts, having meals with my classmates and generally getting in the move to head West. I have two notebooks filled with more information than I can actually grasp and words like "trust", "practice", "power of discrimination", "consciousness" and "freedom" floating in my head - except they are all in Sanskrit! 

Here are a couple of images from the past two days:

Evening time at the Ganesh Temple.

On my walk home, I met this very hip auto driver. He combed his moustache before the photo was taken.

An evening photo of one of the smelliest sections of my walk to and from KYM: above, the railway, below a small stream turned sewage by the illegal housing that has developed along its shores. It's a pity that Chennai can be so dirty and uncomfortable. During the past month I have often imagined what it would be like to visit a clean Chennai... maybe in 30 years?

Post monsoon Rain sunset skies.

Tia Milena Santissima, Protector of Sangheeta's new deluxe restaurant,

Provider of Food and Abundance.

On Wednesday night a large group of us met for a last dinner at Sangheeta's. It was a joyous meal, filled with laughter and good conversations. I also received one of the most informative and useful 15 minute intensive tutorials on cameras, lenses, photos, and ratios from Matt - hurray!

After dinner, Matt, Anjuli and I made our way to the renowned Sri Krishna Sweets - 100% pure ghee! The sweets were  amazing! Here M+A are kindly posing as customers, to the delight of the staff.

I might be able to add one more entry before I take off, but if not, take care!

xx B

Weekend Rituals

Saturday and Sunday have come and gone, and I feel grateful for the weekend. It's amazing how restorative a small break can be - last Friday I felt so tired I wasn't sure how I would be able to participate and concentrate on this week's classes, but the two days off created a lovely space from which I have been happy to return to my note taking.

On Saturday I ran several errands around town, and at sunset made my way to the Kapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore. David and I visited this temple in 2009 but reached it with a car and did not spend much time walking around the area. On this occasion, I arrived at the temple by foot, through the "back entrance": the entrance that looks out onto a large water tank. It's hard to catch the light from the hazy sunset on camera, but there was a very soothing feeling as the sun went down and people looked out at the water.

As most of the other temples, the one in Mylapore has its share of vendors off everything you need for your pujas (religious rituals). There is always at least one mound of jasmine on the stands, which makes the air around the temples smell sweet and inviting.

A first glimpse of the main tower of the temple.

Socializing under a portico within the temple's grounds.

Although Kapaleeshwarar dates back to the 7th century CE, the stucco figures that cover its gopuram ("gateway tower") were built in 1906. While I don't find the figures individually beautiful, the overall effect of the composition is wonderful. I imagine this is how the Greeks could have sculpted Mount Olympus with all its gods, goddesses, and various attendees.

Main entrance to the temple, with hip neon signs.

Flower vendor at the front gate: transaction in action.

From the temple I walked over to the Bhartiya Vidhya Bhawan, a performance center for Bharatanatyam dance. I had heard of a free dance festival taking place and was happy to get a chance to see another performance while here. Unfortunately the theater space was too much like a fridge in temperature: after 30 minutes of literally chilling, I decided to make my way home.

Outside the streets were buzzing with the early evening energy. 

 I finally bought a few custard apples that evening. I was told to look for the ones with "large eyes" (the divisions on the peel), yellow in color, and soft to the touch. They are delicious!

On Sunday, 4 of us (Adi, Jacqui, Miguel and myself), decided it was time to pay homage to another Tamil place of worship: the movies. We set our minds on going to see a Tamil romantic comedy and made our way to what we discovered to be... the Majestic Mall!

In the background, Majestic Mall (also known as Express Avenue Mall).

From L to R: Jacqui, Miguel and Adi. They are also hair models, on the side.

Mall interior... everything was so quite! And clean. We were a little in shock.

We followed a false lead to the wrong theater, and walked away wondering: 5D?

It turns out that we were not the only ones interested in watching a movie on a hot Sunday afternoon. We finally arrived to the movie theater only to find out that every Tamil movie until 10p was SOLD OUT. It burned. To recoup, Jacqui decided to get a coffee. She got it in a cup "to go" and mentioned she felt very at ease holding the cup and walking around with her right arm bent at 90 degrees - it brought her back to NY. Here she is, caught in action as she exercises self-service at the cashier's.

We left the Mall and headed for the local Auroville Showroom, the the best alternative to visiting Auroville itself :-) Here is Miguel shopping with us.

 

We hopped on an auto and headed back to Sangeetha's for lunch. When we arrived, we found the new area of the restaurant had just opened up (deeeeelux), and we celebrated with Thali.

This triptic is dedicated to Jonatan, Adi's husband.  

Hands and mouths attacking our Thalis.

Adi, Jacqui and I spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out at 6th Main Road. 

Post shopping stretching.

Terrace ladies Adi and Jacqui.

Jacqui and I headed back home around 6pm. On our walk back we passed the local Ganesh temples and heard children's voices singing within. We stepped inside the temple for a quick listen and came across a lovely group of young women singing and rhythmically keeping the time by clapping their hands on their thighs. They were accompanied by a slightly older man on the drum and a young woman on a violin. Super!

Today is Tuesday. For the past two days I have gone back to enjoying our classes without feeling weighed down by the overload of information and experiences. The approaching end of the program is making me savour these last days and I feel grateful for the opportunity of such a full immersion at KYM.

Wishing you all a week filled with learning,

B