The Tree

Well,

Here I am in Bodhgaya, in the state of Bihar, a state which the Buddha predicted "would continually suffer from 'feud fire and flood.'" And now, more than 2500 years later, "besides flooding, there is widespread government corruption, sporadic intercaste warfare, banditry and Naxalite violence, all of which contribute to the region being the poorest, least literate and most lawless area of India"(from my Lonely Planet guide). Despite these conditions, or perhaps because of them, this is the very spot where Siddhartha achieved enlightenment and developed his theory of reality. I sat under a descendant the bodhi tree where Buddha sat so long ago, and which is now surrounded by a fence and marble wall, which seems sadly ironic; but I guess it would be worse if it was covered in carved names and such. Then again, I don't believe this tree has any magical enlightening power - but it is certainly a beautiful, quiet place to think and reflect.

Every nation with a sizeable Buddhist population has a temple here - I meditated in the Japanese temple today. Other nations represented in temple form include Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam, China, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Tibet, and Nepal, among others. It's amazing to see all the different styles.

I leave for Mumbai tomorrow via a 2-day train ride, and then, providing my train isn't too late, home.

So, did I achieve enlightenment on this trip? Not sure... In fact, I am even more confused as to what enlightenment actually entails. Maybe we are all already buddhas. At any rate, I definitely learned a lot, and added some interesting experiences to my life. And perhaps most importantly, I had fun!

Bye for now - I'm looking forward to seeing some of you soon back in Vic!