Time
Time passed in the monastery, and everyday life became a sequence of habits. My master reminded me that it was my habits that would define my outward appearance, which of course would provide insight into my "true" person.
Getting up, getting dressed, spirituality, washing, eating, exercising, eating, washing, spirituality, undressing, sleeping. Get up, get dressed, spirituality, washing, eating, day trip, eating, back to the monastery, undressing, sleeping, Get up, get dressed, spirituality, washing, eating, training, eating, washing, spirituality, undressing, sleeping.
The habits were simple, it was a very meditative life, with no real goals, the path was the goal! Today it is completely different, too many habits spoil the character!
Weeks turned into months, always on the days off we were in the provincial capital of Henan Province, Zhengzhou, which is considered by most Chinese to be the region of origin of Chinese culture and nation; Lao Tzu, for example, comes from there. There we usually ate delicious food, I was also able to get hold of European provisions (quite exhausting at that time), finally reached my parents by phone (in a time without cell phones).
We got used to more ambitious destinations for our days off, no longer just the big city, but nature and temples, history and spirituality. For example, we were in Kaifeng, one of the ancient capitals in the history of China, we visited other temples, met different monks and friends.
I was not aware of the time, already too long I was here, more than half a year, it was getting cold in the mountains. Without heating I had never spent a single day, what consequences of this one can not imagine, what tracks to follow, what concessions it requires, such a life, in Europe we like it just cozy warm. The sanitary conditions were thus very limited, who likes to take off all clothes in the cold. Mainly we washed at the stream, the toilets were full of tourists, dirty and without privacy, there was the nature better.
I had followed a myth here to China, the details were not important, but with time I began to miss the HOUSING from the affluent society. My desires began to bother me again, the ego demanded changes in habits, variety, partying and diversion.
I persuaded my master Yan Zi to rent a small hotel room in the small town of Deng Feng. Finally a shower of our own, even if there was rarely hot water, mixed in a vat with hot tea water but still feasible. Here there were also better restaurants, we had always eaten only in the temple or in the stalls around. Unfortunately, I have from this time only a few photos, too many moves, too much ballast, because the way is the goal!
Were the fruits bigger at that time?
- Buddha - honorary name of Siddharta Gautama - 560 to 480 before the year zero
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