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12/29/2005 – Joseph - Pune
India is an intense place for the senses. The moment you step out of your room, the commotion begins. The chatter of honks, mooo’s, beeps, toots, “just have a look”, “how much your price”, hustle and bustle, bright color garb, lush greens, dirt everywhere, blackened cement buildings, thick grey clouds behind vehicles, cows roaming randomly, dark skin everywhere, gestures of hand to mouth, deformed people crawling, sad faces, desperation, exhaust fumes, incense, sweet flowers, smiles in perfect kayos.
Most of our interactions with India people are the merchants, who are usually friendly until you decide not to buy something. They can get quite rude and pushy, which leaves me feeling that their friendliness wasn’t real to begin with. I am learning to get more firm and bold, which is something that I have wanted to work on. Other wise they will over charge you every chance they get. Even if they did, it is still rather cheap, but I don’t like being taken advantage of, so we learn quick.
I have been having more vivid dreams here. Last night (in my dreams) an Indigo child who spoke with his mind, tried teaching me to fly. He said that I was a bit too heavy with old patterns and not open minded enough, so I will work on that. Also I told Bella (in my dream) that once you find the place of complete being, you will be like a big pot with a rounded lid on the stove, if someone tries to dump something on you (like an insult), it will just roll off and get burned up in the fire, but until that point you will be like an open frying pan, and an insult thrown in will be cooked and processed with everything else and the flavor will remain. Seems like I am picking up on the wisdom here, indirectly.
Pune is the place of the Osho Ashram, and a rather spiritual city. This morning we went to the Ashram for our mandatory HIV test (yes it is very strange) and tomorrow we go for our orientation. Then we will be able to participate in the many meditation classes available. From what we saw of the grounds it seems like an amazing place.
The Osho Resort in the early morning.
At the famous "German Bakery"
Ghandi's burial
(Samadhi is enlightenment)
12/29/05 - Daniella
Hello all....
So....India..now in Pune....I am enjoying my time here....most times I
am sentenced to silence....then the words flow faster than I can type....my
view changes daily.....as my experiences here challenge me more....
.....I think of all the people I know who have seen this crazy country
and wonder where they went...
I find myself often seduced by everything here....the bright colors of
all the shops selling everything I would want to buy....the womens' beautiful
smiles....the music...the food...the incense.....
and then the darkness rears its head.....
There are many times where I feel like I am falling....falling falling......falling
deep down....the further I travel upwards...heading north....the more
intense India becomes challenging me...humbling me some more....
The poverty here is some of worst i've seen and every time I have a passing
thought of how much my back aches from my backpack or how cold I am as
I fly down the streets in the early morning in a rikshaw....I see a homeless
and/or crippled woman or child sleeping in the gutter and I am deeply
humbled again.
This morning an Indian woman came into my room as I left the door open
to let the morning air and sun draw me awake...she said her friendly hello
and then went into her daily routine of begging...offering massage in
return...at first I declined as I was not desiring massage at that moment...and
then it just got worse from there.....she told me of her children...her
home...her starving belly (which didnt' look too starved but who am I
to judge)her injuries(little scrapes on her leg) and no matter how many
times I said no....she would not let up....so she began to cry looking
me deep in the eyes...which I knew if I did there would be no way to escape
seeing and experiencing her pain. She also touched my head closed her
eyes and gave me some sort of blessing which of course I did not understand.
Joseph the whole time was at his laptop...distancing himself from the
whole situation....tuning her out as fully as he could.... as by this
point this was about the gazillienth time we had experienced someone begging
for money.
It was clear she was not going to leave without some money so finally
joseph gave her some rupees which she was grateful to receive....kissed
us and said she would be back tomorrow morning to give a massage.
This degree of begging...the crying, the kissing, the blessing.....wrecked me as I could not have even found some solace in my own space....sent me into a state of silence, confusion, heart wrenching pain....i could not move nor say anything.....just process....process.... process what just happened.
There are many times when it is all an act...and they will
say anything to get as much money from you as they can....so on the one
hand you feel angry that they are trying to screw you...but then you feel
sad and compassionate because of the living situations that they are in,
forcing them to be this way! There are times when I give...then there
are times when I dont'...when i need a break....its too hard...it's too
painful....it's too fucking unfair.
How does one discriminate when they are sincere or when they are just
plain dishonest?...I've seen both...sometimes easy to see most times not
at all..
Whatever the case....it brings up alot of emotion.
....not only do I get to see my reaction to all that transpires here...I
get to see my partner Joseph's and I get to see ours.....so much to integrate......
India is full to the max of everything...every emotion we feel as humans
flows through me at immense and powerful levels...on a VERY regular basis.
It softens me as much as it hardens me......
...from the briliant to the ugly.....and just when I think
I've skirt-tailed around the ugly...didnt let it in this time...I place
myself on my mat, my altar....I breathe...I stretch....I meditate...and
after a few heart opening asanas, my body goes crumbling to the floor
as the tears go flowing out.....
I am in Pune now...with a feeling as if i've been stung in the heart and
dazed in the head, we will go to the Osho Ashram tomorrow to see what
that is all about....a friend from santa cruz is staying there...it will
be nice to see a familiar tribesman.....
I send you all much love and blessings and carry you
with me through all my experiences here....
~ our new years experience at the Osho Resort was fun but not extraordinary ~
Daniella - Pune India, January 1st 2006 (Happy New Year!)
Hello all….
Still in Pune..spending most of our time here at the Osho Ashram which
is such a lovely escape from the crazy streets. The Ashram is filled with
lots of bamboo, beautiful trees…thus cleaner more breathable air…healthy
food, a pool , lots of classes, workshops, and audio talks with Osho.
They have transitioned to call it the Osho Resort rather than the Osho
Ashram which is more aptly named because when I am there, if I think of
it as an ashram I shake my head in disbelief as it does not follow the
guidelines of an ashram in the traditional sense. However, if I think
of it as a resort, it is one of the coolest ones I’ve been to.
I have taken a few classes here, listened to a talk from Osho, and have been spending time by the pool simply relaxing and reading some books by Osho that I bought from the bookshop. I like and can resonate with Osho’s message regarding the path of yoga and meditation. He basically says that we are here to celebrate life. Not to renounce everything. Have our earthly pleasures and with that integrate the practice of yoga, of meditation applying it to our modern world. To me this seems more practical and makes more sense.
One of the major highlights of my Pune experience has been my time with
this clairvoyant Tibetan woman doctor. It was the most unique and enjoyable
“doctor” experience I have ever had. Both Joseph and I went
to go see her. She was a beautiful and very sweet “mama energy”
woman who was probably in her late forties early fifties. She had with
her a very sweet man who was her translator since she did not speak much
English at all. Once we found our way to her home we were warmly welcomed
by her endearing smile as she gestured for us to come in. She had a very
beautiful and clean home and she took us into one of her rooms and had
me first lay down on a very cosy bed on my back as she palpated my abdomen
and torso. Then she did the same with me in a sitting position as well
as standing. Then my exam was done. She began talking to her translator
while she would alternate looking at me and smiling. She told me things
about my health and my body that I have been aware of and working with
for years which very much validated her authenticity. The only major thing
she found with me which was no surprise was the state of my liver. Everything
else was just fine. So she prescribed to me some Tibetan herbs to take
for 3 months. As she continued talking in her native tongue and her translator
telling me of these herbs, she went over to a large chest sitting on the
floor…unlocked it and opened it to reveal all these bright yellow
colored bags…the same golden yellow color one would expect to see
on a monk walking the streets. She grabbed at four different sacs which
she separated into bags for me to take. The herbs are very bitter, very
strong tasting but already I have noticed a positive shift in my digestion
and my energy. She also has the ability of doing long distance healings
so when I am done with this 3 months of herbs I will have her do this
long distance “check up” for me and see what has changed or
if I need to continue a little longer on the medicine. This is something
which would be easy for the mind to judge and be skeptical about but both
Joseph and I whole heartily agree…..that our intuitions speak loud
and clear of the realness of this woman healer and her gift. It is also
interesting to note that she is the doctor of the Dalai Lama himself and
he had tested her somehow in his own way to see if she was for real and
found that she did indeed have a true gift.
So for this gift of meeting with her I am grateful…a truly unique
experience for sure.
At the Resort/Ashram it is required that you wear maroon robes.
1/2/06 - Joseph
India is a place of contrasts... here are the photos from one beautiful mornings stroll at:
The Osho Teerth (Gardens)
Joseph – written later as a reflection…
I really enjoyed the Osho Ashram, it was an amazingly zeb beautiful place. It is definitely more like a resort which it’s now called, than what I imagine an Ashram to be. We participated in a few “meditation” classes, which had as much movement and dance as stillness. I like the expressive nature of Osho’s Philosophy. In general its one that celebrates being human rather than trying to move beyond it and renounce it. We did find that there was still a bit too much dogma with all the rules that they tried to enforce. For example the dress code was a bit ridiculous. During the day it is required that anyone inside wear only maroon robes and maroon under layers and accessories. Then for the evening meeting which you could only be at the resort if you where attending, you must wear white robes, and only a specific white robe style was accepted. You had to be at the meeting/meditation exactly on time or you were sent home. The meeting was held in a giant pyramid and consisted of expressive dance to live music for a bit, then sitting in complete silence (if you had a cold or cough, or couldn’t be completely silent, you had to be in a different building), then more dance, then sitting in silence watching a pre-recorded Osho video/talk. Does the word occult come to mind?
Then for the dinner after the meeting, you were not allowed in the café unless you changed out of your white robe into what ever clothes you like. The dress code was an experiment in unifying and removing the separation between people, making everyone seem equal, which is a good intention, but to us it seemed to be rather limiting and too strict. We did really enjoy hanging out at the giant beautiful pool (in our maroon bathing suits of course).
Osho’s pre-recorded talks were interesting. Most were designed to not really make too much sense. The goal was to create space between your thoughts and peace in your mind by not offering much that you could agree or disagree with and a stream of thought that was not predictable. Although his books and audio books did offer a lot of wisdom, I haven’t had a chance to dive in. I recommend checking out the website if you are curious about the center or his teachings. Osho Ashram
In front of the train station on our way out of town...
Whole families sleeping on the street together.
Young children with no pants as an alternative to dippers.
So now our time in Pune is coming to a close as we feel the pull to continue onward….next stop Udaipur...
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