This Precious Life

If I can contemplate how fortunate I am to have this precious life

to work on accomplishing my own and others happiness

how rare how great!

It is easy to take for granted.

So easy to take for granted

so many precious resources

we require to survive and be happy

water

food

air

the earth itself

our homes and clothes

and cars

and computers

electricity

roads

family

friends

pets and all animals

that have there important role

to play in natures

balance

the seasons

the vast ocean

clouds

rain

all the libraries of knowledge

the laughter of children

the smile of the elderly

our own breath

that connects all these

precious things

Back In the Studio

How hard it is just to let go and let be and do what is right in front of youHow many lifetimes minutes in just this day week month year has it taken just to get to this point

a threshold

a stage

a scene

a picture plane

a roadside

a gallery

a store

a labratory

a museum

a feel good place

a room

a spot

a niche

a garrett

Raga surges

sitar bites acerbic plaintive notes into the thrumm of tabla drum

thum tAK TAK TumbS

AND THE FLUTE WAShES OVER WITH SILKY light

sitar dances like a snake in the cool grass

head and eyes in rapture

beyond hope beyond fear

beyond beyond

and simultaneously even more here at hand

The Eye: Older Blog Still Open

http://thirdeyegallery.tripod.com/themuse/

To flashback to original blogposts over a year ago!

Afghan 'Indiana Jones' hunts lost Bamiyan statue

Lyse Doucet meets the man on the trail of the legendary lost Buddha Lyse Doucet BBC Newsnight, Bamiyan Dr Zemaryalai Tarzi is an Afghan with a big dream. To be exact, this archaeologist dreams of a giant - a 1,000ft (300 metre) sleeping Buddha. Try to imagine a stone statue reclining across the length of three football fields. A Buddhist civilisation once flourished in Afghanistan's central highlands But it is more than a dream. Dr Tarzi is trying to make it a reality. "At first, people told me I must be mad," he recounted, barely concealing a smile, as we stood at his excavation in the midst of potato fields in the ancient Afghan city of Bamiyan. "An archaeologist needs proof. We need to keep searching." Dr Tarzi, who has been mapping the landscape of Bamiyan for 40 years, is renowned world-wide for his knowledge of the Buddhist civilisation that flourished centuries ago in the central highlands of Afghanistan. Bamiyan was a storied destination for travellers journeying on the Silk Road between East and West. Ancient text In the 7th Century, a Chinese pilgrim, Xuan Zang, marvelled at a colossal reclining statue: "To the east of the city there is a monastery in which there is a figure of Buddha lying in a sleeping position, as when he attained nirvana. The figure is in length about 1,000 feet." The Taliban destroyed the giant statues leaving just a hole where they stood His detailed journal piqued Dr Tarzi's curiosity. It read like tantalising proof because Xuan Zang also wrote with passion, and precision, of two magnificent stone Buddhas which stood guard over the valley. The Taliban smashed those statues, the world's largest standing Buddhas, in 2001, denouncing them as un-Islamic idols. That gave further fuel to Dr Tarzi's drive to find the third Buddha. It was an archaeologist's revenge. "A country's history cannot be destroyed," he fumed. I first visited Dr Tarzi in 2005, during the summer months he spends at the dig. It was hard not to find myself willing him to succeed. He confessed, his voice breaking, he still could not bear to look at the gaping niches in the stone cliffs towering over the place where he was working. Stunning finds He is still there, looking for all the world like an Afghan Indiana Jones of the epic films, with his chino apparel, floppy hat, and air of scholarly adventure. Dr Tarzi demonstrates the repose of a sleeping Buddha statue The earthen cavities are hives of activity. Afghan archaeologists trained by Dr Tarzi and French colleagues from Strasbourg University gently tap picks and trowels in the dust and dirt, backed up by a small legion of labourers. His team's diligent search for hidden treasures has yielded a stunning array of stone remnants from the remains of Buddhist monasteries - small feet from statues, chiselled folds of monastic robes, sacred stupas. Then, last November, a cry of excitement rang out across this verdant valley. At last, a sleeping Buddha had surfaced. But it was not the fabled giant. Their persistent digging had uncovered fragments of a reclining figure estimated to be 62 feet (19 metres) long. One hand protruded visibly, without a thumb. The head was destroyed. Bigger prize It was still hard for a novice to visualise. Dr Tarzi gave it his best, stretching himself sideways along a flat hard surface, one hand tucked neatly under his head. Indiana Jones could have done no better. I ask whether this smaller statue may be all there is. It is, after all, a wonderful find. Afghans trained by Dr Tarzi work alongside students from Strasbourg "I will persist," the sprightly 70-year-old declared with a firm shake of his head. He guided us to another area running along the foot of the sandstone cliffs where he believes a much bigger Buddha still lies sleeping. Dr Tarzi does not want this remarkable history to be forgotten. In the middle of the day, when a hot sun blazes in the sky, he teaches a master class for young Afghans training to be tour guides at an eco-tourism centre set up with the help of the Aga Khan Foundation. Bamiyan is one of the few places in Afghanistan now safe enough to dream of tourists too. Playing the role of a would be tourist, I asked enthusiastic students to convince me to visit. "Welcome to Bamiyan, historical place, safe for tourists," was the practised but heartfelt reply of an earnest bespectacled woman. An older male student shouted from the back row, "Bamiyan is exceptional in Afghanistan". All the students nodded in agreement. When darkness descended, Dr Tarzi was honoured at a musical evening attended by a gathering of Bamiyan residents who wish him every success. A trio of musicians sang of destroyed Buddhas that are still very much alive. The legend of a giant still lives in Bamiyan. He has slept through centuries of conquest, a quarter century of war, and the end of Taliban rule. If he ever wakes, it would be a dream come true for Dr Tarzi, and countless other Afghans with their own dreams of a lost past and a brighter better future. Watch Lyse Doucet's film in full on Newsnight on Thursday 10 September 2009 at 10.30pm on BBC Two, then afterward on the BBC iPlayer and Newsnight website.

Letter to a friend about Travel in Nepal

Yes there is a lot to say about Nepal but when I went in 04. You just get a tourist visa at the Tribhuvan airport as you check through customs. Usually 30 days and then you extend it as needed up to 5 months. I assume it is the same but better to double check. Also you can get a much better exchange rate for your money in town from black market money changers. It is a common practice and I did it with out any worries. It is best if you have cash$100 bills for best rate but travelers checks are ok I didn't bother because I am careful with my money and locked my suitcase or baggage or had money belt. I never had any problem but sometimes westerners get targeted. But don't worry too much. just be mindful of your purse wallet etc! esp. in crowd or bus. It is always important to haggle and find a fair price! Ask locals what the going rate is and just be friendly but firm and go to another cab or whatever if they don't meet you at least half way! You can always give a small tip after for good service! I tried to develop relationships with the best grocer, barber, restaurant, butter lamps, beggars,cabs etc it is like being a bit of a big shot but if you aren't rude about it it is ok. Always try to get small change bills this is like the monopoly money game and it gives you bargaining leverage because if you don't have it then they will say sorry no change and you have to pay more or else waste time haggling down another guy. so have to pockets and dont be flashy so they will not be upset and think you are not a rich westerner but a dharma pilgrim :)

Look to rent a room or an apartment for a month is cheaper than a hotel at a daily rate! Everything is cheaper if you ask and agree to stay longer or make it easier for them. Have a cab wait for a round trip if you are only going a short stop or take the local mini bus if you don't mind crowds and have time to go native. Always ask directions of people who are not going to want to become your tour guide unless you want one! Ask old women not young boys! Be careful to only drink boiled or bottled water and no street food unless you are very sure or brave. Be aware that many Sadhus and locals will want money for photos some don't care but better to ask if they make eye contact often with just a gesture like camera is ok? Also people love to play the what country are you from guessing game. They also appreciate a few words in Nepali and Tibetan. bathrooms are few and fare between and clean ones are like an oasis in a dessert especially for women who don't want to squat over a filthy hole! So find them be it a restaurant or cafe and make friends with those people! So if you need it in transit somewhere you can pop in smile and they wont mind if you don't order something because you'll be back for your regular thukpa soup and big tip at diner etc. Book shops can be quite good for certain publishings' of indian or malaysian tittles but western books will be the same or more expensive. Ask local ex-pats about everything and nod as if they are the most savvy person you ever met but then double check with many others to find out who really knows who to talk to and how much to pay and were to get etc.

Always double check all details before you strike a deal because once the money leaves your hand its not coming back short of an all day argument! Also don't appear to knowledgeable or to gullible its like a poker game there and everybody watches and talks about everybody its like a village which is good and bad. Bad for your privacy and wasting time gossiping but good in that you meet friends everywhere and they usually stop to say hello and compare news and even have tea. Don't take tea unless your prepared to spend some time and probably get a life story and perhaps a request for financial help! Also I found that people are less ecumenical over there. So I try to keep my Rime' mind set to myself unless in certain company. People want to know your root guru and if he is the same as theirs then great if not..then ok your not so cool. Anyway It is all good! You will have an amazing time it is so inspiring and photogenic and rich and diverse and unpredictible and you will meet amazing people and make lots of life long friends even if you only see them once or twice you will always remember their warmth and humor and the smells and sights etc etc! I love that place! Oh and don't neglect to visit some of the Hindu holy places even if your Buddhist friends look askance! Pashupatinath cremation ghats are very special and there is a naropa cave down by the river and so many little shrines and rock emanations! Also You must promise me that you will take the couple hour bus ride to Guru Rinpoche cave in Pharping or Yangleshu as tibetans call it! Its a great day trip leave in the morning from the bus park with a friend or two and enjoy the drive out of the smoggy valley into the clear mountain air you will feel a weight lift off your shoulders! You may have deep stirrings of dharma thoughts like I want to spend my last days here practicing or I was a hermit here in some life or Ahh the holy Himalayas Im home and such things all to the happy din of hindi bus driver music and bus horns and local people with there BO and chickens and beautiful saris and magical glint in there eyes! Also I recommend Namo Buddha as a nice day trip where the buddha offered himself to the pregnant tigress in a previous life! Also good day trips and half day trips to Changyu Naryan and nagi Gompa the nunnery up there is inspiring and of Course Ani Choying in Pharping at Arya tara nunnery. Lovely nuns who I volunteered and taught some art! Bhaktapur is like a living museum and how nepal was at its golden age of architecture! It is a bit of a tourist trap expense wise but I think it is worth it for everyone to go once because it is spending rupees for a once in a lifetime thing. I spent the night there which people usualy dont due but if you haggle you can get a fair price and be hosted by the family guest house complete with meals. so if you have time you must do this and the main thing is to walk around at dusk in Bhaktapur because you have no cars and motorcycles and street lamps and blaring disco so it is like going back in time to when it was the age of the buddha or something and just a quiet threshing and pottery town the water wells the cows the villagers a different pace of life! I will always remember this night! then to come home at dark so my host wouldn't worry to tea and some meditation with one candle inthe old wooden house and windows my mosquito coil for insence and my mantras vibrating like the earth itself and the calm clear meditation like the sky ornamented with the sunset and stars! Ahhh !!!

Of course you will wake up early!!! to puja bells and people clearing their throats and rolling up the metal shutters on their shop fronts like a cacophony of maras! and only after a few precious hours of sleep when the street dogs werent wailing and barking and howling! Yes earplugs helps but somehow it is just easier to get used to it and the rooster crows and the sense that the whole valley is waking up at once! People getting up to pray and make offerings and pursue their livliehoods like they have for thousands of years and now little girls going to school in their bright clean yellow and blue and white uniforms little scarves and ties and big square book bags and old people walkin them hand in hand and the splashing of water to keep the dust down and sweeping the store fronts and sacred cows in the middle of it all chewing their cudds' and insence wafting and eyes staring and glancing so as not to get run over in the narrow streets!

Ok Offer a big butter lamp for me and a prayer for all sentient beings!

and spin those giant prayer wheels!!!

Where is the Love?

Where is the love?

Where is the wine?

Do I sit back

waiting for my vineyards to ripen,

cows to bellow,

flocks to lay,

cheese to curdle,

roses to bloom,

hay to harvest,

wood to split,

Ashes to sift?

Where is spiritual poem

that will flow into

all cups

and

spill over into

all walks of life?

How to make better questions

for the Lama Guru

Deity Mother of Wisdom Womb

Open fist of truth?

With Explosions of Color, Tibetan Art Flourishes

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/30/world/asia/30sengeshong.html

SENGESHONG, China — Sitting on the floor of his monastic chamber, Lobsang Lungtok pointed to the canvas with the thousand-faced goddess.

Enlarge This Image

Shiho Fukada for The New York Times

A painted scroll.

Enlarge This Image

Shiho Fukada for The New York Times

Lobsang Lungtok works 10 to 12 hours a day in his monastery in Sengeshong, in China’s Qinhai Province, an area famed for its thangkas, or painted scrolls, depicting Tibetan deities.

The New York Times

The valley outside Rebkong is a center of Tibetan art.

It had taken him three months to finish the painting. Her many faces, all gold, were stacked atop one another in a pyramid. A thousand arms fanned out in a radiant circle.

There are rules, he said, that have been handed down from one Tibetan painter to another through the centuries: The head and body must be perfectly proportioned; the gold paint goes on after the pencil outline; this particular deity has a thousand faces and a thousand arms — no more, no less.

Out of that had emerged Chenresig, the bodhisattva of compassion.

“Why do we draw this god?” said Lobsang, 33, who, like many Tibetans, goes by his given name. “If we don’t, in the future how will people know what the gods look like?”

The monasteries in this mountain valley are some of the most important centers of art in the Tibetan world, famed for the creation of painted and cloth scrolls called thangkas that depict Tibetan gods and other religious iconography. In 1999, artists in the area finished the 675-yard-long Great Thangka, which Guinness World Records certified as the biggest thangka in the world.

The artists here practice the Rebkong style of thangka painting that has flourished since the 17th century. Thangkas from this part of northwestern Qinghai Province are commissioned by monasteries as far away as Lhasa, the Tibetan capital. In recent years, thangkas have gained a following among some ethnic Han Chinese, and individual collectors from Chinese cities and foreign countries have driven up the prices. (For his painting of Chenresig, Lobsang was asking 3,600 yuan, or about $530, a fortune for most Tibetans.)

The commercialization will “drive thangkas far from their origins, from their use as religious objects,” said Zhang Yasha, a teacher of fine arts at the Minzu University of China who specializes in Tibet. “We see more young people learning the art because it’s lucrative.”

The paintings hanging in the back room of Lobsang’s chamber show the range of traditional thangka subjects: Gods like Padmasambhava and White Tara and Green Tara, and the circle of life with people reclining in heaven and roasting in hell.

The thangkas are explosions of color. The paint powder comes from grinding materials like coral, agate, sapphire, pearl and gold.

Of the monks in the two monasteries in Sengeshong, about 60 can paint with some skill, said Lobsang, a compact, cheerful, Red Bull-drinking man who entered the monastery at age 7 and began studying thangka painting seven years later.

“There are only a few good ones, and a lot of ordinary ones,” he said of the painters.

This valley outside the town of Rebkong, known in Chinese as Tongren, offers the kind of isolation that artists often crave. The upper monastery is set against snow-covered hills. The sweet smell of juniper incense drifts through the air. On a recent afternoon, a steady drumbeat emanated from the dark recesses of the main temple, while dozens of monks sat on the temple steps wiping brass yak butter lamps.

Lobsang’s chamber is plush compared to rooms at other Tibetan monasteries. The carpeted living area has a central stove and a framed portrait of the Dalai Lama, the exiled spiritual leader of the Tibetans. There is a photograph of Lobsang standing in his red robes in front of the Shanghai skyline; he lived for five years in Shanghai and Beijing painting thangkas for a businessman.

A safe in the rear room contains some of Lobsang’s more expensive thangkas. The front wall of the foyer has wide glass windows, and it is in this sun-drenched space that Lobsang paints during the winter.

Skilled thangka and mural painters are valued across Tibet, with artists sometimes traveling thousands of miles to do commissions for prominent monasteries. Many monasteries and temples were destroyed or sacked during the Cultural Revolution, and those that have begun rebuilding are in need of painters.

“That’s meant the painters of Rebkong are wealthy compared to other groups in Tibetan society,” said Mark Stevenson, a senior lecturer in Asian studies at Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia, who has studied the painting community here.

Painting thangkas is simply one component of an array of artistic skills among monks, Dr. Stevenson said.

“Every monk has a need for artistic talent,” he said. “They make and assemble tormas, which are offering cakes. Many may have to work on mandalas as well. This is part of being a monk. Every monk needs some manual skill dexterity in designing ritual objects.”

The first monastery in the Rebkong area was founded at the start of the 14th century, when the Mongols ruled China and turned to Tibetan religious leaders to guide their practice of Buddhism. But the distinctive Rebkong school of painting, with its brighter colors and finer lines, did not emerge until the 17th century, when the Gelugpa sect became dominant. The Dalai Lama, believed to be the reincarnation of the thousand-faced Chenresig, belongs to this sect.

Rebkong achieved fame in modern times because it was home to several notable artists, in particular a monk named Shawu Tsering.

“Watching him paint was remarkable, as if the lines were already there, and he was just moving his hand to bring them forward,” Dr. Stevenson said. “It was just so effortless, and the skill and memory were there to allow him to do that.”

The art tradition here suffered a break from 1958 to 1978, when Chinese authorities shut down the monasteries, first during the suppression of a rebellion, then during the Cultural Revolution. Monks were persecuted. Shawu Tsering, for example, was forced to wear a dunce’s cap.

In the 1980s, the government opened up an art research institute in the town of Rebkong, eventually converting it into a gallery. The gallery supported local artists. After the revival of thangka painting, monks took up the art in large numbers again.

In warm weather, Lobsang sits in his front yard with a brush in hand, working 10 to 12 hours a day.

It is an art that he now teaches to others, some of them laypeople from nearby villages.

“We want them to transmit Buddhism,” he said. “We want them to teach people that the gods are kind.”

Scope!

I have tuned in to your yearning for resolution, O Seeker. I know that your heart fervently wants the riddles to run their course, the mysteries to be revealed, the uncertainties to be quelled. And I have ransacked my imagination in search of what consolation I might provide to appease your quest for neat, simple truths. But what I have concluded, O In-Between One, is that any solutions I might try to offer you would not only be fake, but also counterproductive. What you actually need, I suspect, are not answers to your urgent questions, but rather, better questions; more precisely formulated questions; more ruthlessly honest questions. Dig deeper, please. Open wider. Think fatter.