Journal Entry 9

September 16 Sunday

Sometimes I think that I was born at the wrong time. I should have been born when human life made little impact on the world, when we were just small communities living without so many needs. Perhaps it is my yearning to find my culture, but I feel so unhappy sometimes back at home over what I see around me every day. People are closed up, paranoid, and look at life and death from a pessimistic point of view. Life is never fully satisfying because we can’t seem to accomplish all the things that would make it perfect and death is some dark place that we must try to avoid as long as possible. Death is something to be defeated and the longer we can keep a terminally ill person alive with machines the better it is because we have conquered death and are one step closer to avoiding it. Coming to Nepal I see these small mountain villages where everyone knows everyone, life expectancy is shorter, and people live with less and yet they are happier than we could ever be. They are so much closer to death because they do not have the healthcare that we get and the environment they live in has many dangers like landslides, floods, and harsh winters. You would think that they would be miserable and terrified of death, but they are not. Why is this? Is it because they know that life is part of death and death is part of life? That there is a harmony and a code to be followed where those that pass will return to the earth to feed those that will be given life whether it is a blade of grass, a deer, or a child? Do we know this when we loose someone, or are we more concerned with the achievements this person made in life that will secure them in the rightful place in the next level of paradise. What is paradise, or heaven anyway? What is this other worldly place that this planet was not good enough for. I don’t understand it, because most religions specify this planet as a doomed place and we have to follow certain rules to get to this better place. These rules are so common sense too. Everyone knows that being a good person and treating other people like you would want to be treated yourself is the right way. Everyone knows that stealing, fighting and murdering have a negative effect because you can sense it in the pit of your own stomach. You don’t need some higher power to tell you this because you should already know this. Is it instinct? If you choose to act badly then you will be outcaste by your family, your friends, and your community. This is true for any creature on this planet. I just don’t see the point in giving up on this world because there is this other world where all is perfect. What is it in heaven that will be any different from what we have now? Does heaven grant us permission to break the rules that we are supposed to follow here?
Whether we are Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu, or another faith I think if we had some understanding of our connection with this Earth like those who actually live close to Earth we would treat the world with more care and have little concern for what each other does with their beliefs. When you survive in a small community you understand the importance of your connection with animal, plant, sky and mineral. If you try to separate yourself from it the earth will eventually fail for all living beings.



My last view of Pisang vanishes as we walk through a pine forest where each needle sparkles from the morning dew. This morning was bitterly cold when we awoke at the hotel, but now with the sun shining in the deep blue sky. I find myself shedding all the extra clothes I put on. The mountains are all around us now, and I can see Annapurna I, II, III, IV, and Pisang Peak. They are a magnificent site, massive and steep and I cannot image anyone climbing them, but people do it. Jack and Trisha the couple we met from Los Angeles are pausing here to climb Pisang peak. When we last saw them they were with their guide looking for a place to print prayer flags to hang from on top of the mountain. Hanging prayer flags in high places insures a blessing for all beings. Just like when you spin the prayer wheels on the mani wall the flags blowing in the wind spread compassion to all those in the winds path. People say the flags sound like a horse galloping when the wind races through them. There are even flags with a horse printed on them to symbolize this, calling her the wind horse carrying the three jewels (The Buddha, the Sangha, and the Dharma) on her back.

The valley gently climbs higher than the village of Pisang and walking through a lovely scented pine forest we come to yet another beautiful view. It is like standing on an overlook. The mountains welcome us by pushing to each side of the valley and leaving a flat open path all the way to Manang. All of the trekkers stop and sit for a moment mesmerized by the perfectly composed scenery. If they were going to make a brochure to lure tourists to the Annapurna Circuit, then this area would be on the front cover. Onward we walk, fully motivated to get to Manang now that we have for the first time been able to see what is ahead of us. The trail is busy with not just trekkers, but also locals loaded down with supplies. One man carries aluminum planks for a roof and another is carrying crates of soda. All of these items held securely by a single rag fastened about the head. They carry a load of about 5 of my backpacks! I see a chubby horse on the trail and I attempt to talk to him, but he is not amused and munches happily on his grass. AB and Tony approach and try to feed the horse by hand, but the horse won’t have anything to do with us. He probably thinks we are going to saddle him up and nervously gallops away to a safe distance.

Manang approaches and it feels like we are in Tibet. We pass the mountain side village of Braga where a 500 year old monastery sits at the top painted white with red trimmed windows. We walk along side two very long mani walls. One wall is lined with ornate carvings of different Buddha’s and Bodhisattva’s and the other wall has piles of stones with OM MANI PADME HUM carved into them. Manang is like a fortress. The path is lined by stone walls and then you pass through a gate that is closed each and every night. Once inside you are in an unexpected modern looking village. It isn’t modern in a sense that people are driving around in cars and enjoying McDonald’s, but for being so isolated they do have more than what some of the previous villages have. Apparently our guide book tells us that the Manang villagers have special permission the travel out of Nepal and trade goods. They were given this special treatment because they were once an independent kingdom using trade to bring in supplies that are hard to obtain in this region. Now they make frequent trips to Bangkok and Hong Kong to buy western clothing and electronic equipment to resell in Nepal. The guesthouses are large and all look neat and new. The place we are staying has a private bathroom for each room and plenty of hot water. Hot water! Oh, it has been a long time since I’ve felt hot water. I even get excited about the toilets which are western style flushing toilets. I must sound absurd, because one moment I am yearning for simplicity and now I am gleefully enjoying the comforts of modern living. I cannot win.