Thoughts on Farewell

Three long years come to an end.

This farewell is quite distinct from that of three years ago.

I feel tempted to make profound claims like "these three years were the most wonderful years of my life" or "studying philosophy changed my life" (which it did), but these statements are mere shadows of the myriad emotions and experiences that comprise these years. 

First few weeks of college were intensely emotional. In a good way. My excitement and optimism at the start of college was successfully fulfilled as I easily fell into place with a new group of friends. Old emotions resurfaced, matured and wrapped in new circumstances, with different actors. New concerns, new decisions, new desires.

People say college is about 'freedom' and 'rebellion'.

I found myself envelopede by new responsibilities and the desire to conform, to fit in, to belong. But in all this- there was a space for individuality, for difference, and conflict. 

Most of all, the first year was about finding a footing.

Gradually, followed the anger, the frustration, the idealism. Philosophy only added fuel to the fire. Disgust at the apathy and lethargy around, including at me. Anger at the apparent futility of what I was studying - philosophy. Ideas, talk and very little action, or so I thought. 

It was in this frame of mind that entered the incredibly charged environment of 'Little Lhasa', Mcleodganj, Dharamshala. It is intensely difficult to grasp and explain my  motivation and inspiration from the Tibetan people, without grossly exotic-izing, romanticizing and patronizing. 

Very simply, I guess at some point in everyone's life, one needs a push. An extremely disturbing and painful (at least in my case) reality check. It hits you, and there is literally no looking back. You're energetic and alive. Confident and assertive. A little more peaceful perhaps, because you think you've found an exit for your anger.

This is what I experienced in that one month. Intensely personal, and at the same time

This experience, consequently, transformed my interactions in college. There was a tangible difference in me, claim my friends. For the better, most feel!

Nonetheless, it was a struggle: juggling the manifestation of this experience in my work with SFT Delhi, and my life in college. Would I be able to successfully integrate the two? 

That was the essential challenge in the last one year.
I am still not sure I have been successful.

However, at the end of it all, there is a feeling of happiness, and contentment.
Obviously, there is sentimentality and melancholic reminiscence of days gone by, but under that, there is a sense of strength (from the friendships I suspect) and satisfaction. 

Ngaba, Amdo (Tibet)

a few days from now, on May 21st, the Chinese Communist Party will celebrate 60 years of its annexation of Tibet. 

proof: the '17-Point Agreement' signed under duress and with fake state seals in 1951.

a monk, not much older than me, self-immolated exactly two months ago (in Ngaba), to mark the third year anniversary of the national uprising in 2008. he died. 

the burnt body of Phuntsok

thousands of Tibetan monks attend Phuntsok's cremation

ever since, his monastery, the historic Kirti Monastery, has been the focus of the PLA's latest militarization. the situation is reminiscent of a Nazi concentration camp. a group of 300 monks were arrested, and taken to four prisons for 're-education': synonymous with intense torture and beating.  

 

PLA troops surround Kirti Monastery

high school students are staging hunger strikes as a sign of their solidarity with the Kirti monks.

large masses of common people are out on the streets, trying to prevent the monks from being arrested. an elderly man and woman were shot in the process.

three tibetan men, executives of the largest Tibetan NGO, the Tibetan Youth Congress, enter their 24th day of hunger strike today. they sit in the sweltering heat of Delhi, at Jantar Mantar. 

three brave men: Konchok Yangphel (finance secretary),
Dhondup Ladhar (vice-president), and Tenzin Norsang (joint secretary) 

there has been no concrete response from any front.

what will unfold now? how long will these men starve themselves? 

and yet, life goes on.

i have three more exams to write.

Losar

I came across this video a little while ago. Its not particularly stunning, but I was moved. This maybe because it also happens to be Losar, the Tibetan New Year, traditionally celebrated in Tibet for 15 days to a month. Can you imagine picnic-ing, singing, dancing, drinking chhang and having fun for an entire month with family and friends? 

My Tibetan friends in exile, here in Delhi, are celebrating Losar 2138 (the Iron Rabbit Year) just for three days. 

A little bit of History (courtesy, Wiki):

The celebration of Losar predates Buddhism in Tibet and can be traced back to the pre-Buddhist Bön period. In this early Bön tradition, every winter a spiritual ceremony was held, in which people offered large quantities of incense to appease the local spirits, deities and 'protectors'. This religious festival later evolved into an annual Buddhist festival which is believed to have originated during the reign of the ninth King of Tibet. The festival is said to have begun when an old woman named Belma introduced the measurement of time based on the phases of the moon. This festival took place during the flowering of the apricot trees of the Lhokha Yarla Shampo region in autumn, and it may have been the first celebration of what has become the traditional farmers' festival. It was during this period that the arts of cultivation, irrigation, refining iron from ore and building bridges were first introduced in Tibet. The ceremonies which were instituted to celebrate these new capabilities can be recognized as precursors of the Losar festival. Later when the rudiments of astrology, based on the five elements, were introduced in Tibet, this farmer's festival became what we now call the Losar or New Year's festival.

I wonder how many years it will be before all Tibetans return to their home to celebrate Losar the way it is meant to be celebrated: in the midst of family and friends, with pride and no fear. 

character assassination

The media has gone beserk. Its so frustrating to read and hear baseless accusations flying around like paper planes in a classroom. Claiming the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa to be a Chinese spy based on a large sum of unaccounted-for money obtained from his monastery in Dharamsala is unjustified, apart from being a completely invalid argument. There seems to have been no research whatsoever done on behalf of the journalists. For the first few days I was just in shock: I couldn't believe that people could actually jump at the opportunity to blow an innocuous incident completely out of proportion. The kinds of arguments and facts used by the media to prove the 'Chinese connection' are infuriating. Where is the sensitivity? Knowing the issue to be highly complex, involving the sentiments of over 1 lakh Tibetans, in addition to scores more Buddhists, there should have been careful analysis of all possible scenarios before making such a claim. Questioning the legitimacy of a reincarnate lama on insubstantial grounds is a serious offence. I am so embarrassed, and dont know quite how to make it up to the thousands of Buddhists whose sentiments have been irrevocably hurt. 

HH the 17th Gyalwang Karmapa, Ugyen Trinley Dorje

The Karmapa's Office of Administration has just released a direct message to Indian media outlets, and the message is, "Back Off!" The complete text is as follows:

The Karmapa Office of Administration firmly denies the published allegations that His Holiness the Karmapa has rallied in support of the communist Chinese government whose oppression he fled 11 years ago. We repeat that the preposterous claim that His Holiness is a Chinese spy or agent is a complete fabrication, utterly baseless and reckless slander.

The Karmapa Office of Administration appeals to the press to cease its character assassination of His Holiness the Karmapa, one of the most revered figures in Tibetan Buddhism, and a spiritual leader to Buddhists worldwide.

The Karmapa Office of Administration respectfully requests the press to refrain from publishing further uncorroborated and unfounded charges. It offers below the phone number and email address of its spokesperson, and beseeches the press to seek confirmation or denial from its spokesperson, in accord with the standards of responsible journalism.

Spokespersons

Karma Topden
Former Indian Ambassador to Mongolia,
Former Member of Parliament
Adviser to Karmapa Office of Administration

Deki Chungyalpa
Adviser to Karmapa Office of Administration
koapress@gmail.com
(91) 8894 502 910

This statement follows yesterday's lengthy statement, which in part addressed the issue of "SIM cards" allegedly taken during police raids at Gyuto Monastery. The complete text of yesterday's statement is as follows:

The Karmapa Office of Administration adamantly denies the baseless fabrications touted by some media claiming that His Holiness the Karmapa is a Chinese spy or agent. Specifically, reports have circulated recently claiming that His Holiness the Karmapa has acquired lands along the Sino-Indian border. We state categorically that His Holiness owns no such property whatsoever, nor does the Karmapa Office of Administration. Additionally, some reports cite an unnamed source claiming that the Enforcement Directorate seized Chinese SIM cards and possess records of conversations between His Holiness the Karmapa and Chinese government officials. Such inaccurate reports constitute fiction masquerading as journalism and slander one of the most highly revered figures in Tibetan Buddhism. Therefore, the Karmapa Office of Administration respectfully requests these media sources to cease and desist its defamation of character of His Holiness the Karmapa.

We reiterate that the presence of Chinese Yuan among the 20-plus other currencies found by police has been put forward by some media stories as indicative of spy activity. In response to this preposterous claim, we wish to point out that the currency used in Tibet is the Chinese Yuan, and therefore Tibetans from Tibet often make donations in Yuan, as do Buddhists from mainland China. We further stress that the donations in Yuan formed less than 10% of the total cash amount. The notes came in multiple denominations, ranging from one-Yuan notes upward, clearly reflecting their origin as donation from multiple individual sources. Some of the Yuan were new notes bundled together, reflecting a practice among Chinese and other cultures of offering only new currency notes to high abbots or spiritual leaders. Furthermore, disciples from Chinese cultures often visit India in groups, pool their offerings and make a single collective donation. The Karmapa Office of administration maintains records of all visitors who receive private audience with His Holiness the Karmapa, and these lists record numerous groups of individuals visiting together from Tibet as well as from mainland China.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama has publicly expressed his confidence in His Holiness the Karmapa. The Tibetan government itself unequivocally demonstrated its support of His Holiness the Karmapa, who is the revered head of a 900-year old order within Tibetan Buddhism. Members of groups across Tibetan society have voiced unwavering support for His Holiness the Karmapa. His Holiness himself stated yesterday in public that he had faith in the Indian rule of law and that the truth will prevail in time. He emphasized that India is a second homeland to Tibetans.

thoughts on migration

The philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti says, ‘Your consciousness as an individual represents the consciousness of humanity’. I thought I had comprehended the meaning of this statement when I first encountered it in high school, and volunteered to teach English to rural children. I realized how naïve my understanding was when I spent one month this summer in Dharamsala. 

Who is a person? What is consciousness? Such philosophical questions have frequently visited debates and discussions in my class. My exposure to the Tibetan community has helped me engage with the concept of an individual’s identity, how this identity is constituted, and ways in which identities undergo change in relation to external and internal environments.

I had earlier taken the connection between being a citizen of a free country and individual identity for granted. Having myself always felt a sense of belonging to a family, a nation, a culture, I was jolted out of my comfortable cocoon. Tibetans who have been born and brought up in India, whose idea of ‘home’ is grounded on the recollections of their elders, experience an uneasy sense of loss. Where are they from, and where do they belong? I observed that the Tibetans, having been forcefully displaced from their land, experience a greater urge to preserve their culture and identity as Tibetans. It then becomes critical to understand the complexity through which identities are constituted, especially for those in exile. The poignancy of this human condition is captured by poet and political activist Tenzin Tsundue, “I have nowhere to call home and in the world at large all I’ll ever be is a ‘political refugee’”.

The physical movement of people globally, and the fluidity of such movement, results in flexible and often fragmented identities. In my understanding, the premise for a phenomenon like migration (whether forced or voluntary) to exist is Krishnamurti’s statement, ‘you are the world’. In other words, the universality of the human experience allows the global movement of people. A study of migration is then a study of this global consciousness in its various manifestations be they economic, political, or social-anthropological.