Dear Friends and Family,
For the better part of this past week, we have been sequested in the beauty, austere silence, and radical simplicity of the Ashram of Kurimasalu high in the Western Ghats of Kerala. Our retreat was with the community of monks who live in community at the ashram, on their large acreage which supports an active dairy farm. It is a fully sustainable farm, and most of what the monks subsist on comes from their own production. It was wonderful to see how, in this small microcosm, humans can live in close harmony with their natural surroundings. Living within a Bendictine rule, the monks are committed to a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience, but unlike my previous experiences in the States and Europe with "modern" monastic life, this was an introduction and immersion into something quite different, rigorous in its adherence to the simple life proclaimed in the Gospel. Jeannette and I stayed in separate quarters with the strict separation between the monks and nuns who live at Kurimusala. This segragation extended to our meals, which we ate sitting on the floor, side by side in a row, our prayers at the various offices and masses of the day, and at other times during the day of work, rest, and contemplation.
The diet was strictly vegetarian, simple but deliciously prepared, and consisted mostly of produce from the monk's extensive gardens, composted and fertilized by the dung of the cattle, toether with rice, that is the basis of the diet here.
What was extraordinary was the silence. Here in India, in the cacophony that marks so much of life, we were drawn into a quiet that was as startling as it is was blissful. The liturgy of the monks draws from the very ancient practices of the Syrian church, dating back to the time of the primiitve CHristian community. Combined with this, the liturgy integrated Hindu practices, such as meditation and the ubiquitous use of incense, candle ceremony, flower ceremony, and the like. Much of what we experienced was as strange to us as the Hindu practices we have seen in the local temples, but it was equally alluring in its exaltation of the creative power and wonder of the Creator of all that is. Indeed, in so much of what we experienced in Kerala, we have been impressed by the ways in which widely divergent faiths, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity, have melded into a common appreciation and worship of God.
We left Kurimasala deeply grateful and heartened by the simple witness and grace of this community, their vigilant attention to the care of the natrual world as part and parcel of their creed, and the gift of being welcomed into their fellowship to learn at a more basic and immediate level the kind of freedom and joy that comes from living simply.
Being away from the outside world, the news about Haiti, as I know it has been for all of you, was devestating to us. It struck me hard that in the Indian papers, the story found itself buried in the middle of the paper. But as we left for Tamil Nadu, and into the stark human condition that marks so much of life in India, as in Haiti, it became clearer why this is so. Witnessing the vast numbers that live so close to death here, in a population where on a daily basis well over 200,000 die, many in deplorable and tragic conditions, brings us closer to the world as it is, brimming with contradiction, where life and death, joy and sadness, beauty and blight, poverty and grace exist as a seamless garment.
The monks of Kurimasala reminded us that in this world, there is ample reason to entrust our hearts and purposes to the One who creates, restores, and sustains all things, and to measure our own existence by how well the least as well as the greatest of our fellow pilgrims journey through life.
Now it is on to Tamil Nadu, and even deeper into the heart of this strange, beautiful, maddening and enthralling land.
Blessings and Peace,
Steve
Friday, January 22, 2010
India Update #3
Dear Friends and Family,
"Bring your mind to stillness. Be here and now. Be aware of your breathing. Be aware of your body sensations. Relax. Relax. Relax."
Back when our daughter Colleen was a teenager, and we got into the inevitable tiffs that comes with that territory, and just as I was about to explode, she would look at me with her big blue eyes, and say: "Dad, breath. Just breath."
It has taken me a long time to absorb this simple instruction, all the way to this time in India, where for this past week, here in Kuttikkanam at the retreat of Matthew Joseph we have been immersed in a practice of yoga, relaxation, meditation, and ayuvedic massage. Each day, Matthew has given yoga instruction to his guests. For Jeannette, who has practiced yoga for many years now, this has been a refresher, but for me, whose body is tighter that a fine tuned violin, this has been a revelation. Matthew teaches Hadha Yoga, which integrates meditaion into the practice, and it has given opportunity to step into this ancient spiiritual discipline in the milieu in which it orginated. Ayuvedic medicine is another anicent Indian practice, which sees the body holistically, and in nearby Catholic hospital we have been the beneficiaries of this wonderfully restorative healing art. You could think of it as Canyon Ranch on a beer budget, but I am doubtful Canyon Ranch can replicate the simplicity, the intentionality, and pure grace we have experienced here. It all seems a fitting prepartation for the start of our retreat at the Ashram Kurisulama, which begins today, as we leave Mundax, for this Benedictine monastery an hour away. Kurisulama was the community in which Bede Griffith, the renown Benedictine, began his vocation, integrating Indian meditation into the traditional prayer forms of Western monasticism. We are looking forward to our five days at the ashram and entering into the silence, the prayer, and simple practice of this community of monks.
Next week, we will travel to Tamil Nadu, the state and home of the oldest and most venerable of cultures of India, the Dravidians, dating to the time of the Romans and even earlier. We will spend time in Madural, the location of the Sri Meenakshi Temple and a riot of Dravidian sculpture. It will be yet another journey into a world in this dazzling universe of culture and religion.
We think of you often and send our prayers and blessings to you!
Peace and Joy,
Steve and Jeannette
"Bring your mind to stillness. Be here and now. Be aware of your breathing. Be aware of your body sensations. Relax. Relax. Relax."
Back when our daughter Colleen was a teenager, and we got into the inevitable tiffs that comes with that territory, and just as I was about to explode, she would look at me with her big blue eyes, and say: "Dad, breath. Just breath."
It has taken me a long time to absorb this simple instruction, all the way to this time in India, where for this past week, here in Kuttikkanam at the retreat of Matthew Joseph we have been immersed in a practice of yoga, relaxation, meditation, and ayuvedic massage. Each day, Matthew has given yoga instruction to his guests. For Jeannette, who has practiced yoga for many years now, this has been a refresher, but for me, whose body is tighter that a fine tuned violin, this has been a revelation. Matthew teaches Hadha Yoga, which integrates meditaion into the practice, and it has given opportunity to step into this ancient spiiritual discipline in the milieu in which it orginated. Ayuvedic medicine is another anicent Indian practice, which sees the body holistically, and in nearby Catholic hospital we have been the beneficiaries of this wonderfully restorative healing art. You could think of it as Canyon Ranch on a beer budget, but I am doubtful Canyon Ranch can replicate the simplicity, the intentionality, and pure grace we have experienced here. It all seems a fitting prepartation for the start of our retreat at the Ashram Kurisulama, which begins today, as we leave Mundax, for this Benedictine monastery an hour away. Kurisulama was the community in which Bede Griffith, the renown Benedictine, began his vocation, integrating Indian meditation into the traditional prayer forms of Western monasticism. We are looking forward to our five days at the ashram and entering into the silence, the prayer, and simple practice of this community of monks.
Next week, we will travel to Tamil Nadu, the state and home of the oldest and most venerable of cultures of India, the Dravidians, dating to the time of the Romans and even earlier. We will spend time in Madural, the location of the Sri Meenakshi Temple and a riot of Dravidian sculpture. It will be yet another journey into a world in this dazzling universe of culture and religion.
We think of you often and send our prayers and blessings to you!
Peace and Joy,
Steve and Jeannette
India Update #2
Dear Friends and Family,
We have been in India nearly a week, and feel like we have made a good adjustment to our surroundings. We had a wonderful experience with Martin and Lindsey in North Kerala in Kannur, and were sad to leave a place we all have said we would like to return to. One of the highligths was attending a Theyyam, or an ancient sacred dance, that is common among Hindus here in Kerala. Dating to a time long before written accounts, the dance involves actors dressing in elaborate costumes signifying legendary figures from the past raised up by the Gods as saintly figures as well as Gods themselves. Held in sacred groves or in the temples themselves, the actors are members of the lower classes who on this special occasion once
a year are possessed by the divinities. This inverts the caste system
for this occasion and the Brahmin or high caste members of the community are required to acknowledge in reverence those they oversee in ordinary life. In the theyyam we attended, the young man was dressed as a goddess with elaborate bright red costuming and make-up and long flowing hair. Drawn into an ecstatic dance by the five drummers and horn player who accompanied him, the theyyam dancer whirled in ecstacy while attendants whirled firetorches and incense . It was truly a spectacle far from the comparatively staid liturgical practices we are used to, and plumbed a kind of worship that was both primal and alluring. It stirred many things in us, I think, not the least of which was the realization we had arrived in a world that lives close to the elemental experience of this natural world, its wonders, its terrors, and its mysteries.
Yesterday, we travelled for 10 hours by train and car to our next destination in South Kerala in the Western Ghats, or mountains 2 hours west of Cochin. Here we are staying in the retreat of Matthew Joseph, a Christian. South Kerala is predominately Christian, and there are churches, monasteries, and other sacred sites in great evidence here, several of which that are Anglican. There is also the most popular national park in South India, the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Earlier today, we took a guided hike through the preserve, saw many birds, and smaller animals, and on several occasions came upon places recently visited by mountain elephants. It is no smal spiritual practice, I think, to be quiet and still enough to take in such magnificent creatures through the senses of smell and hearing, if not sight itself.
There is a large Hindu pilgrimmage underway here and thousands of pilgrims are now walking barefoot and with their bedrolls on their heads to the holy temple, some as far as 150 kilometers over very hard terrain. It brings on a level of humility and awe to witness this level of piety.
As we anticipated, our first week here has been a stirring awakening of our senses, and we feel acutely aware our own existence as we are confronted with the dazzling reality of the world that is India. Though we are far in distance, we feel your closeness, and we send prayers and blessings to you all.
Steve
We have been in India nearly a week, and feel like we have made a good adjustment to our surroundings. We had a wonderful experience with Martin and Lindsey in North Kerala in Kannur, and were sad to leave a place we all have said we would like to return to. One of the highligths was attending a Theyyam, or an ancient sacred dance, that is common among Hindus here in Kerala. Dating to a time long before written accounts, the dance involves actors dressing in elaborate costumes signifying legendary figures from the past raised up by the Gods as saintly figures as well as Gods themselves. Held in sacred groves or in the temples themselves, the actors are members of the lower classes who on this special occasion once
a year are possessed by the divinities. This inverts the caste system
for this occasion and the Brahmin or high caste members of the community are required to acknowledge in reverence those they oversee in ordinary life. In the theyyam we attended, the young man was dressed as a goddess with elaborate bright red costuming and make-up and long flowing hair. Drawn into an ecstatic dance by the five drummers and horn player who accompanied him, the theyyam dancer whirled in ecstacy while attendants whirled firetorches and incense . It was truly a spectacle far from the comparatively staid liturgical practices we are used to, and plumbed a kind of worship that was both primal and alluring. It stirred many things in us, I think, not the least of which was the realization we had arrived in a world that lives close to the elemental experience of this natural world, its wonders, its terrors, and its mysteries.
Yesterday, we travelled for 10 hours by train and car to our next destination in South Kerala in the Western Ghats, or mountains 2 hours west of Cochin. Here we are staying in the retreat of Matthew Joseph, a Christian. South Kerala is predominately Christian, and there are churches, monasteries, and other sacred sites in great evidence here, several of which that are Anglican. There is also the most popular national park in South India, the Periyar Tiger Reserve. Earlier today, we took a guided hike through the preserve, saw many birds, and smaller animals, and on several occasions came upon places recently visited by mountain elephants. It is no smal spiritual practice, I think, to be quiet and still enough to take in such magnificent creatures through the senses of smell and hearing, if not sight itself.
There is a large Hindu pilgrimmage underway here and thousands of pilgrims are now walking barefoot and with their bedrolls on their heads to the holy temple, some as far as 150 kilometers over very hard terrain. It brings on a level of humility and awe to witness this level of piety.
As we anticipated, our first week here has been a stirring awakening of our senses, and we feel acutely aware our own existence as we are confronted with the dazzling reality of the world that is India. Though we are far in distance, we feel your closeness, and we send prayers and blessings to you all.
Steve
Monday, January 04, 2010
News from India 01/04/10
Dear Friends and Family,
After a long, but uneventful trip to India, we have arrived safely in Kerala in Kannur at the beautful homestay of Nazir and Rosie and their two children, meeting up with Martin and Lindsey on Saturday. The last two days have been spent luxuriating in the natural beauty of the ocean which is right outside our door. We are surrounded by waterways, rice paddies, and coconut groves. The Keralan people are extraordinaryly gracious and friendly, and we have all felt embraced by their hospitality. We are slowly getting our heads above the fog of jet lag to recognize in the prism of paradox of India the great complexity in simplicity of things here, the richness in having little to distract, the novelty in ancient practice and culture. We feel blessed to be here and offer our prayers and love to you from halfway around the world. We feel buoyed by your affection and well wishes.
Blessings and Peace,
Steve
After a long, but uneventful trip to India, we have arrived safely in Kerala in Kannur at the beautful homestay of Nazir and Rosie and their two children, meeting up with Martin and Lindsey on Saturday. The last two days have been spent luxuriating in the natural beauty of the ocean which is right outside our door. We are surrounded by waterways, rice paddies, and coconut groves. The Keralan people are extraordinaryly gracious and friendly, and we have all felt embraced by their hospitality. We are slowly getting our heads above the fog of jet lag to recognize in the prism of paradox of India the great complexity in simplicity of things here, the richness in having little to distract, the novelty in ancient practice and culture. We feel blessed to be here and offer our prayers and love to you from halfway around the world. We feel buoyed by your affection and well wishes.
Blessings and Peace,
Steve
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
