9/27
Rimpoche
Today His Holiness the Rimpoche of some regions/Gompa came to the school, and this was a BIG deal. Last night the school was cleaned and decorated and they even took furniture and carpets from our house to use for the stages.
This morning Yanchan dressed me up in Dorjay's Goncha + skeratz- traditional Ladakhi clothes and belt with a marigold pinned on for the event (see picture). All of the other teachers were also dressed in their best Ladakhi,or Tibetan clothes and I was a big hit with staff and students.
Before 10 ALL the 1200 (K-12) students were either seated on the ground I'm front of the stage or lining both sides of the long driveway leading to campus from the main gate. They sat like this for almost an hour until the Rimpoche's car finally drove up the road to the stage. He ( in maroon monks robes and a long pony tail) emerged from the car and made his way down the gauntlet of staff and students with (Khatas-silk scarves) to his chair on the stage. A few speeches were made and them he spoke in Tibetan (translated into Ladakhi and then my friend Dorjay(another one) translated into English for me). He spoke for over an hour as the sun rose and high and began to bake us all. His message was simple and a good one: academic education is important but so is moral, ethical and cultural education and it is important to be a good person ( for now, the next lives and for society). He used examples of Doctors who are not honest and treat their patients in a way that requires them to keep returning for more appointments.
As far as I could tell their was no actual mention of any gods.
The speech was then followed by a long prayer. Now the students had been sitting for almost 2.5 hrs and the younger ones were pretty restless!
The Rimpoche, principal and his contingent then proceeded upstairs in the new science building to the library. The staff were all invited inside and we sat on the floor, we're served tea and treats and he spoke to us (in English) for another 20- 30 min (students still out in the grounds). The message this time: sometimes students need to be disciplined or corrected, but it should always be done with love and compassion.
The the staff all lined up and received a blessing (tap on the head with some special object) and a red good luck string that he had blessed. I decided it couldn't hurt and a
So got blessed.
We then all went back out, the students lined up and he proceeded to walk out to his car and left. Sweet treats were handed out to the students, Principal announced that classes would not begin until after lunch. Some teachers and a few students then proceeded to entertain the rest of us with singing and reciting poetry! I was very surprised to see my young friend Munguel, the physics teacher, get up to sing and to hear the cheering from students and staff- turns out he is actually a local Ladakhi pop star and an excellent singer! He tells me he has a number of CDs and will give me one. I also am hopeful I will get to see one of his "stage shows" before I leave.
Other than the Katarina and myself there was one other Westerner at the event. A tall distinguished older gentleman was sitting in the VIP section. He is a longtime German sponsor of the school named Edward Roof, staying with the principal. Turns out he had run a trekking company in Nepal and was the first Westerner to enter Ladakh in 1975 when it was opened to Westerners. He has done many treks in the area and was the first rafting expedition down the Zanskar River. He was fun to talk to and shared numerous interesting stories.
After school I hiked/ran on a trail high up the ridge behind the school to a site with a great view of the valley and many prayer flags. Was good to work off some energy- I haven't done much like that in awhile. The best part was I finally saw a falcon. Two (maybe the same one twice) small grey falcon(s) flew right over my head near the top of the ridge. Not positive, but I think it may have been a Eurasian Hobby. Maybe the blessing and string are good luck. At the top the sun dipped behind the mountains to the West. Had to rush down, skipping a lot of the switchbacks, to be sure I made it back before dark.
Indian TV Tidbit: On the Kashmiri news station they show little inset scenes of Kashmir scenery and activities about every 5 min. One scene that shows repeatedly, after a scene of a snowball fight, is somebody skating on Nordic skis.....?
Rimpoche
Today His Holiness the Rimpoche of some regions/Gompa came to the school, and this was a BIG deal. Last night the school was cleaned and decorated and they even took furniture and carpets from our house to use for the stages.
This morning Yanchan dressed me up in Dorjay's Goncha + skeratz- traditional Ladakhi clothes and belt with a marigold pinned on for the event (see picture). All of the other teachers were also dressed in their best Ladakhi,or Tibetan clothes and I was a big hit with staff and students.
Before 10 ALL the 1200 (K-12) students were either seated on the ground I'm front of the stage or lining both sides of the long driveway leading to campus from the main gate. They sat like this for almost an hour until the Rimpoche's car finally drove up the road to the stage. He ( in maroon monks robes and a long pony tail) emerged from the car and made his way down the gauntlet of staff and students with (Khatas-silk scarves) to his chair on the stage. A few speeches were made and them he spoke in Tibetan (translated into Ladakhi and then my friend Dorjay(another one) translated into English for me). He spoke for over an hour as the sun rose and high and began to bake us all. His message was simple and a good one: academic education is important but so is moral, ethical and cultural education and it is important to be a good person ( for now, the next lives and for society). He used examples of Doctors who are not honest and treat their patients in a way that requires them to keep returning for more appointments.
As far as I could tell their was no actual mention of any gods.
The speech was then followed by a long prayer. Now the students had been sitting for almost 2.5 hrs and the younger ones were pretty restless!
The Rimpoche, principal and his contingent then proceeded upstairs in the new science building to the library. The staff were all invited inside and we sat on the floor, we're served tea and treats and he spoke to us (in English) for another 20- 30 min (students still out in the grounds). The message this time: sometimes students need to be disciplined or corrected, but it should always be done with love and compassion.
The the staff all lined up and received a blessing (tap on the head with some special object) and a red good luck string that he had blessed. I decided it couldn't hurt and a
So got blessed.
We then all went back out, the students lined up and he proceeded to walk out to his car and left. Sweet treats were handed out to the students, Principal announced that classes would not begin until after lunch. Some teachers and a few students then proceeded to entertain the rest of us with singing and reciting poetry! I was very surprised to see my young friend Munguel, the physics teacher, get up to sing and to hear the cheering from students and staff- turns out he is actually a local Ladakhi pop star and an excellent singer! He tells me he has a number of CDs and will give me one. I also am hopeful I will get to see one of his "stage shows" before I leave.
Other than the Katarina and myself there was one other Westerner at the event. A tall distinguished older gentleman was sitting in the VIP section. He is a longtime German sponsor of the school named Edward Roof, staying with the principal. Turns out he had run a trekking company in Nepal and was the first Westerner to enter Ladakh in 1975 when it was opened to Westerners. He has done many treks in the area and was the first rafting expedition down the Zanskar River. He was fun to talk to and shared numerous interesting stories.
After school I hiked/ran on a trail high up the ridge behind the school to a site with a great view of the valley and many prayer flags. Was good to work off some energy- I haven't done much like that in awhile. The best part was I finally saw a falcon. Two (maybe the same one twice) small grey falcon(s) flew right over my head near the top of the ridge. Not positive, but I think it may have been a Eurasian Hobby. Maybe the blessing and string are good luck. At the top the sun dipped behind the mountains to the West. Had to rush down, skipping a lot of the switchbacks, to be sure I made it back before dark.
Indian TV Tidbit: On the Kashmiri news station they show little inset scenes of Kashmir scenery and activities about every 5 min. One scene that shows repeatedly, after a scene of a snowball fight, is somebody skating on Nordic skis.....?
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