Recap...

Let's just recap my health in the past three weeks now shall we? I was poisoned in Pakistan by chicken and found myself in a hospital with an IV and no fluids whatsoever in my body; after recovering from the absolute desaturation of my body the night before I was to leave to India I caught a cold from the air conditioner, the fan and me sweating; and now the little rash I found out to be called 'chicken pox'. Yup, that's right... chicken pox. I have the chicken pox. I never had them as I child and was bound to get them one day. One day is now and I look to the brighter side of things, I'll never get them again ;)

I have been unable to enjoy the wonderment of Dharamsala and McLoed Ganj to it's fullest. However, today I ventured out of the room and to the waterfall in Bhagsunag. I stood a mere six feet from where it met it's descent and was misted by the most magnificent crisp wind. I think that's what gave me the energy to keep on keepin on. After that, I kept walking. I walked down to Kalachakra Temple, the Buddhist dialectics institute. I was thoroughly entertained by the theological debates. The monks would state their point and all would have personalized version of the same act or motion, that is driving their hand in a punching motion while bringing the other hand up to meet with a loud slap and a "Hoooggeeeee" kind-a-sound. From what I understand it is the end of a point made or argument reached. Whatever it was, there was one big monk that kept me laughing with his version of it. I have taken pictures that I'll stick up whenever it is possible.

An interesting thing happened to me the very first day I was in Dharamsala (I bet that's said quite often). I was wandering aimlessly through market streets when I was pulled back into a direction I wasn't moving in. Didn't know why, just thought I'd better go that way. And as I looked up the road there was a store called Kundalini. I approached the front of the store and knew I had to go in as soon as I saw the sign "BELOVED PLEASE REMOVE YOUR SHOES". So I did and looked about all the magnificent Pashminas, stones and unbelievable crystals. As I was leaving the owner walked in and the room became big. He offered me chai and we sat and talked... and talked. I had recently purchased a book entitled Aghora II: Kundalini by Robert E. Svoboda and had been searching for the first one but it was not to be found in over a dozen bookstores I had searched it out in. It was Yakub, the store owner that presented Aghora: At the Left Hand of God to me to read. I was in the right place at the right time in more times than one ;)

After this I was walking back to Bhagsunag and a young Kashmiri fellow started a dialogue with me. He told me he did this and that and so forth and so on... you have to understand that with Indians there is always an exaggeration to their stories, so you just have to adjust your reality to really understand what they mean. He showed me a shop where he teaches how to make Malas, where he practices his gemology, Reiki treatments and yoga. We continued up the 45 degree slope to a German bakery. Nice little place. I was starving and here I thought this kid knew that I was. He continued on about trying his hand at business franchises all over India but he was bad with money so it all slowly came crumbling down. He is left in Upper Dharamsala just trying to make enough to get a meal each day. There was something I was feeling and I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It was during our meal when I realized what it was. It was his thoughts. They were disturbing me and I finally figured out how to translate them if you will. I said to him "You have a lot of tension, you need to get out of your head". At this he agreed and I continued, "You know that those thoughts that you have in your head right now are very bad and your mind is convincing you that they are a good idea... you know for a fact what your body is telling you - yet you ignore it and allow your mind to convince you otherwise". He also agreed with that adding that his friends also told him that he should go sit on a rock and contemplate. We continued on speaking and at the end of the meal bought him his food and told him this, "I am buying your meal not because of the stories you've told me, or out of pity - I have done it out of kindness. I am showing you unconditional love." He began crying and thanked me. Now there is part of this story that is missing. His thoughts were to try and steal from me. He was trying to concoct a way of gaining possession of my iPod and digital camera. No doubt about it. That's why he broke down. He realized that I saw right through him and instead of reacting in belligerent manner, I took the other road. He knew that I knew and couldn't believe I still bought him his meal...

It was a very eventful day in randomly non-random fashion.