Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Maintain Silence Please

"Maintain silence please. Beware of tigers, particularly at night. Don't kill anything. Not even the bugs; we don't believe in killing any living beings," Susma quickly added as one of my sons lined up a spider with his home made slingshot. "Please only walk," her voice trailing off as both boys shot off in the direction of our room.

Susma a lovely Nepalese girl, who has lived on the Sri Aurobindo Yoga Mandir Ashram for 17 years, greeted us upon our arrival and explained the nature and vision of the Ashram, how it started, and its plans for the future.

We are expected to contribute daily to the community by helping with an allocated job. Susma suggested that we help out with sweeping and in the kitchen. I breathed a sigh of relief as I eyed off a group of women on a roof top in the hot midday sun sorting grains and a mix of people helping with construction of the new dining and meditation hall.

As children do, the boys adapted to their new 'home' instantly.
They had a wonderful first afternoon, chasing a litter of kittens, emerging with scratches from thorny bushes and from kittens resisting a cuddle. Memories of my own childhood came flooding back, having spent days at my grandparents house chasing kittens for the exact same reason. The openness of a community with no fences, just fence lines and children laughing and seeing no boundaries becoming very apparent as neighbours open their doors to allow the chase to continue.  

It really is like turning back the hands of time. Farming the land by hand and milking the cows by hand. The food is plentiful, fresh, well cooked Nepali food, which is 'metosa!' (delicious). All of the dairy products are made fresh from the recently milked cows. There is no television, limited power; thankfully we have warm water and a bed. It is simply simple and beautiful.

As we near the end of our first day, I reflect on what my reasons are for being here. What are my goals for us? Obviously we'd like to learn yoga and meditation. To be completely honest, a bit of inner and/or outer peace won't go astray.

However, questions do present themselves:
Are the boys able to experience freedom as well as exercise caution in order to avoid wild tigers? I really hope so.
Are they able to demonstrate compassion and stop killing bugs? Yes I believe that is doable.
Are they able to learn self control and stop running? Anything is possible.
Can they learn responsibility and complete their daily jobs they have been allocated without being reminded. I'll say, maybe.
Can they demonstrate consideration for others and 'maintain silence please'?  I still laugh out loud every time I think of it. I've probably got more chance of getting them to eat dahl bhaht. But hey, I'm optimistic (or insane). Here's hoping they surprise me!

 x Lisa
The boys hunting kittens
Cody and a captured kitten
Taiga and a captured kitten

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