Oh my god, I had so much fun today!!!
My groupmate Richie and I went off on an adventure bike ride, in search of the Mohanam Cultural Center. We had driven there before, but it is located deep into curves of a local village, so we actually ended up going about 30 minutes out of our way.
But it's okay! When we finally arrived, after many cows and MANY different sets of opposing directions from villagers, we were graciously and excitedly welcomed by Baloo. He ushered us in, and there was a traditional Indian dance class happening with a dozen local village girls. I instantly jumped in to join! They all looked back at me shyly yet intrigued; I was a huge, blonde foreign visitor who had no idea how to dance like they did! They laughed at my efforts and helped me to get the correct hand and feet positions. I actually followed along pretty well, but the dancing is HARD! It is very strengthening for the core. I will have to show you when I get home...
After we had danced - and I had sweated - (the little girls were very composed), we sat in a circle together. They asked my name, and then they went in a circle telling me theirs. Oh, it was hilarious- they had to repeat each one about three times, and I still didn't say it right! It was very funny. A lot of giggling ensued. I felt so yummily girly sitting with all these village girls with sparkly Indian clothes and flowers in their hair, giggling together.
I learned that thank you is "nandri", and that dance is "nadanam". Other than that, whatever I asked them, they would reply, "That is too complicated for you to say." They were so cute, and it was so fun communicating with them through the language barrier. They were all so welcoming, sweet and eager to help. They found me funny too. :)
After that, Richie came back from learning martial arts, and Baloo exclaimed to us excitedly, "You should come back here and teach the kids some modern dance and martial arts, and then we could have a performance before you leave at the visitor's center in Auroville!!" Oh what a great idea! This is exactly what I have been wanting to do!
SO we will see how this tentative plan pans out over the next weeks, but I know I will definitely return when I can to learn and teach dance with these girls. It was such a rich and heartfelt experience to communicate with these villagers. They were all so excited for us to be there, and to show us what they were up to. It was so invigorating to be with people who were so unabashedly welcoming. How often do you feel that...?
On the ecstatic bike ride back, Richie and I reflected that these people's "spirits are more intact (than westerners)." That seemed like a good way to sum up the feelings we had interacting with them.
This set up the rest of my day for good-vibes, and I have been riding that wave of appreciation and happiness ever since. This shows you- judging from my last blog to this one- how many feelings I have been roller-coastering through here! What a testament to the Buddhist philosophy that all things are impermanent, all things pass.
SPeaking of which, last night at the Tibetan Pavilion we saw a Buddhist Monk give a talk on Buddhism and Ecology. He runs about 30 social programs, from ecological awareness to education. He was the sweetest guy with a great sense of humor. He said, "Enlightenment? Oh, that is very far from me. But I love compassion.. compassion is the force that makes me do what I am doing now." He also said of the growing environmental disasters, "It is all coming from greed- our desire to constantly have more. If I am not happy with one pair of shoes, how will I be happy with many? We have to go into ourselves. We have to start from where we are. Practice contentment. Try to minimize. It begins on a small scale."
Everything he said was very inspiring and comforting. I will end this blog with one of my favorite things that he said: "If I don't lose my heart, then yes, I can overcome. Building trust with friends, this is the way to survive."
I love all of you so much! Thank you for reading!
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