“Lotus Love” Chapter 9- Nepal: Road Trip to Katmandu

Chapter 9- Nepal: Road Trip to Katmandu

When Jennifer returned back to the monastery in Sarnath she was happy to see the monks again.  She and Kate spent a few more days together before Kate left for Nepal.  As they said their goodbyes Kate said to Jennifer, “I know you are disappointed that Rinpoches said you were not ready to take nun’s vows.  I just want you to know that I know how serious you are about it.  I’ve lived with you this past month and watched the sincerity and devotion you have to your practice.  You wake up at 4AM to meditate and say prayers.  It’s inspiring.  You have such determination.  I envy your discipline.  Don’t give up on your dream of taking vows.  It will happen when the time is right.  Trust that the Rinpoches know what is best for you.  Oh, and promise me that you’ll wait to take your vows until you’re back in America and I can be there at the ceremony!”

Jennifer was deeply moved by her friend’s heartfelt compliments and advice.  “Thank you, Kate,” she said, taking the small gold hoops ornamented with small fire opals out of her ears.  “I want you to have these, as a token of our friendship and a pledge of commitment to my vows when I won’t be needing jewelry any longer.  I promise to wait to take my vows back at Padma Samye Ling with you as witness,” she finished, placing the earrings in the palm of Kate’s hand.  The women hugged and Jennifer helped Kate carry her bags downstairs to the gate.

Jennifer found plenty of projects to work on at the monastery to fill her days.  She started to teach an English class to the younger monks with the help of Tsering.  She started with the basics like the alphabet, counting, and simple conversation.  It was very challenging to keep their attention and manage them, especially the five year olds, so Tsering helped out by staying present during her lessons.  Jennifer also started work on a tangkha under Tsering’s guidance.  She chose to paint the Goddess Green Tara.  Tsering gave Jennifer a color print that was hanging in his in room to copy and a book of traditional thiksa drawings, or proportional guides.  The line drawing was easy for her to complete independently because she was quite skilled at drawing from her art and costume design classes taken throughout her academic career.  However, when it came time to paint she was not so sure of the color mixing and shading.  Tsering patiently coached her and demonstrated technique.  Progress was slow as Tsering told her that the painting must be perfect, any mistakes were not good karma for the artist.  The two were learning quite a bit of each other’s languages through all the time spent together.  Jennifer started to tutor Tsering daily in English and he continued to teach her Tibetan.

Tsering and another senior monk, Sonam, let Jennifer know that they would soon be leaving for Nepal.  They had been invited to participate in a ten-day Drupchen, or great accumulation retreat, by a Tulku, or reincarnate Lama, from their home monastery in Riwoche.  The young Rinpoche had just completed the construction of a small monastery outside of Katmandu and wanted all of the monks and lamas from Riwoche living in exile to join together in the ceremony.  Tsering and Sonam invited Jennifer to join them.  She had declined the offer to visit Nepal with Kate and the other American students but this offer tempted her.  She was intrigued by the opportunity to participate in a Drupchen and when the monks told her that the Drupchen was to be performed in worship of the Protector Deity Vajrakilaya, she knew she wanted to attend.  She had received Vajrakilaya empowerments several times from her teachers and it had become part of her daily sadhana practice.  When she accepted the monks’ offer they told her that they would be leaving as soon as two other monks from South India had arrived.  They would all then travel to Nepal together.

Two days later the friends from Penor Rinpoche’s monastery in South India arrived.  They were on holiday from their studies in shedra.  The train ride from South India had taken several days and they wanted to rest for a couple of days in Sarnath before continuing to travel to Nepal.  Jennifer enjoyed watching the friends spend time together.  They were all from Riwoche and spoke the same regional dialect from Kham.  She observed that they treated each other with great affection, as if they were brothers.  One of the monks from South India, Samphel, spoke quite good English and Jennifer was relieved to know that she would have someone to communicate with during the trip to Nepal.  The other monks were amused to hear their friend Samphel speak English with Jennifer.

The day before the group was ready to leave Jennifer fell sick again.  The sickness she experienced in Shravasti returned, only it was even more intense this time.  She had a very high fever and could not get out of bed.  Tsering checked in on her and served her hot salted water, telling her that would clean out her system.  He also told her that the sickness and fever were cleaning away her negative karma and that she should pray to Vajrasattva and recite the purification mantra.  She felt as though she was visiting the hell realms– her body was so hot and she experienced such pain.  Twelve hours later she was better and ready to travel.  She was amazed at how quickly her body had recovered.

The group left the monastery and boarded a bus in Varanasi en route to the Indian/Nepalese border town called Sonali.  Jennifer spent the majority of the ride in mantra recitation, admiring the Indian countryside from her window seat.  When they neared the border she noticed that Sonam, one of the monks in their party, was changing out of his robes and into lay clothes that he had borrowed from a friend in Sarnath.  Jennifer asked him why and he explained that he did not have any identification documents with which to cross the border.  He would be crossing the border illegally and feared that his monk’s robes would attract attention.  Jennifer grew nervous for him and consulted the other monks, asking if this was the best plan for him.  They told her that none of them had the required paperwork to cross the border- they were all refugees and as such were not free to travel outside of India.  They had each decided to cross the border in their own individual ways, hoping to attract less attention from the authorities.  As she had an American passport and an Indian visa, she would be able to pass through uneventfully.  The Nepalese border control would simply issue her a Nepalese visa for a small fee.  The others would have to sneak through, under the radar of the police.  They asked Jennifer to carry their money across the border for them as well for fear of it being stolen by crooked officials.  The monks told Jennifer to go ahead of them and to meet them back at the bus on the other side.  She was nervous for them and also nervous to pass through the chaotic border all by herself.  As she left the bus and headed toward the border she looked back and saw Tsering riding in a rickshaw alone.  He passed by and continued through the border without a single question from the authorities.  “Had they not seen him?” Jennifer wondered to herself.  It was if he had been cloaked in an invisible shroud for that moment in time.  Jennifer was then called over by the authorities who asked to see her travel documents.  The usual questions were asked and without much ado she bought a visa and her passport was stamped.  She continued on past the armed police and arrived at the bus station.

The parking lot was so busy and crowded.  The sun was setting as Jennifer nervously looked for her friends but did not see them anywhere.  She knew that Tsering had made it across safely but did not yet know about the others.  She worried that they had been arrested.  The bus station was so dirty and noisy and this was the first time she had been alone since her trip to India began.  All this while she had been so well taken care of by the Khenpos.  Now she suddenly found herself alone and scared in Nepal.  “What if she didn’t find the monks?  What if they all were arrested?” she started to panic.  “Calm down,” she said to herself. “Don’t freak out.  I’m sure they’re all right.  Just find the bus and wait there patiently.”  She started to look for their bus, stepping up onto each one, looking for familiar faces.  Eventually she found it, recognizing some of the other passengers that had been travelling form Varanasi with them.  But none of the Riwoche monks were there.  She asked some of the other passengers if they had seen the monks yet.  They just wobbled their heads from side to side.  Jennifer wasn’t sure if that meant “no” or that they just didn’t understand English.  She grew increasingly anxious.  Finally one of the monks boarded the bus.  He had passed safely and, unlike Jennifer, calmly took a seat to wait for the others.  He didn’t speak English so Jennifer tried to use what little Tibetan she knew to get information about the others.  She explained that she had seen Tsering cross the border but wondered where he was now.  The monk reassured her that Tsering was fine and that he had gone to look for the others.  More time passed and the bus prepared to leave for its final destination in Katmandu.  Jennifer ran to the front of the bus and asked the driver to wait, explaining that her friends had not yet boarded.  The driver told her that he could wait just a few more minutes and that they had to keep their schedule.  All of the other busses started to pull out of the lot and amongst the black clouds of exhaust Jennifer saw Tsering and the other monks emerge.  “Thank God,” she thought. “They made it!”  The driver had started to pull out of the station and turn onto the road just as the monks caught his attention.  He stopped and allowed them to board.  They joined Jennifer in the back of the bus and they all shared their border stories with each other with great amusement.  Sonam, the monk who had changed into jeans and a plaid shirt for the crossing, looked like he had been beaten up.  Jennifer felt sorry for him and asked if he was alright.  He told her not to worry, he had expected as much and was just happy that he had made it across at all.  He laughed, saying that he did not have good karma like Tsering.

The drive to Katmandu would take all night.  The bus was scheduled to make one stop only for dinner at the half-way point.  Several hours into the journey Jennifer had an overwhelming need to urinate.  She asked the driver to stop but he told her they did not have time.  She tried her best to think of something else while she sat but there was no waiting, she was ready to explode.  She was shy to explain her situation to any of the monks but Tsering.  She trusted him and felt comfortable with him.  She walked back to his seat and explained that she needed his help to stop the bus.  He was busy watching a Bollywood film on the overhead screens of the bus with the other monks, a rare treat for monastics who live without the distraction of television or film.  Once he understood what she was trying to communicate to him he walked to the front of the bus to talk to the driver.  This time the bus stopped.  She was so grateful to Tsering for getting the bus to stop and apparently the rest of the passengers were as well.  The women all went to one side of the road while the men to the other.  The bright headlights from the passing busses made it difficult for Jennifer to find privacy.  She noticed that the other women, all Indian or Nepalese, were wearing the usual native attire, skirts or dresses.  She had thought it would be more comfortable to travel in pants but now realized her grave error.  There would be no way of relieving herself in public like this without exposing herself.  She would not make this mistake again.

The bus continued on for several more hours while the passengers slept.  They were all awakened in the middle of the night for the scheduled meal stop.  There were many roadside restaurants lined up along the way and drivers parked their busses outside their favorite ones.  These restaurants were well prepared for the large crowds of hungry passengers.  Everyone went to the pump and washed their hands before finding a seat at a table.  They were served fresh hot food on metal plates and cold water in metal cups.  Jennifer noticed that she had not been given a fork or a spoon with which to eat.  She then noticed that everyone was using their hands.  “Welcome to Nepal, Jenni,” said Samphel, noticing her confusion.  “Don’t bother looking for a fork or a spoon here.  The Nepalese eat with their hands!”  She was used to eating sandwiches and “finger food” with her hands back home in America, but had never tried eating rice and daal like that before.  She struggled with eating, making quite a mess, and once again felt embarrassed.

Once the driver had finished his meal he started up the bus and everyone quickly reboarded.  Jennifer did not have time to finish her meal and she quickly washed herself at the pump, boarding the bus just before it pulled out.  The bus did not stop again until they arrived at their destination at daybreak.  Jennifer had fallen into a deep sleep and was awakened by Samphel, “We’re here. Time to get off the bus. Don’t forget your things.”  Jennifer rubbed her eyes and cleared her throat as she struggled to get herself together.  She stepped off the bus and found the monks waiting for her.  They found a cab and took it to Boudhanath, the Tibetan colony in the heart of Katmandu.  During the cab ride Jennifer immediately noticed the pollution in the air.  She held a scarf to cover her nose and mouth to prevent inhalation of the black smog that hung over the city.

They got out of the cab in front of the gate to Boudanath.  Immediately upon entering the giant white stupa towered above them, the Buddha eyes gazing down upon them.  They entered the kora path and made circumambulation, spinning the prayer wheels that lined the base of the stupa.  After three rotations the monks led Jennifer down one of the roads away from the market and into a residential area.  They told her they were going to drop her off at a friend’s house where she could stay for a few days before the Drupchen ceremonies began.  The friend was a Riwoche ngakpa lama, a religious man who was also a householder.  He had a daughter who was the same age as Jennifer and knew how to speak English.  Tsering and Sonam brought her to Lama Tenby Gyaltsen’s home where they were all received with great hospitality.  Jennifer was introduced to Lhamo, the lama’s daughter.  Lhamo was very excited to meet Jennifer and the two young women felt an instant bond.  Tsering and Sonam left to join the other monks, feeling confident that Jennifer was in good hands.  Tsering assured her that they would return in a few days to bring her to the monastery when the ceremony was ready to begin.

Lhamo and Jennifer enjoyed their time together sharing each other’s cultures.  Lhamo was fascinated with western pop culture and fashion.  She took Jennifer to a dance club in the day time as it was not appropriate for single women to go out alone at night in this culture.  Lhamo was a pretty girl with a round face shaped like a full moon.  She always ornamented her forehead with a bindi as is the custom in Nepal.  She put one on Jennifer’s forehead, too, and had fun dressing up to go out with her new American friend.  Although Jennifer appreciated this time spent with Lhamo, she felt it a distraction from her true purpose.  She had come to Nepal to practice the Dharma and attend a retreat at the monastery, not to go clubbing.  She counted down the days and when the third arrived Tsering did not come for her as he had promised.  She asked Lhamo if she had any way of contacting the monks.  Lhamo told her that the monks had left the city already and were busy making preparations for the ceremonies.  Lhamo wondered why Jennifer would want to spend ten days on retreat in the monastery, the only American.  Jennifer explained to Lhamo that she was very interested in the Dharma and that she was considering taking nun’s vows.  Lhamo was so moved by Jennifer’s devotion that she agreed to help her get to the monastery.  She found a group of women that were traveling to Champa Gao, the village where the Riwoche monastery was, and asked if Jennifer could ride with them.  They agreed and thankful for Lhamo’s help and friendship, the two said goodbye.

The ride out of the city took about forty minutes.  The taxi dropped the women off in front of the monastery gates and as soon as Jennifer got out of the cab she saw Tsering.  He had just given his head a fresh shave and was looking bright as ever.  He smiled at her and was happy to see that she had found her way.  She wanted to ask him why he did not come back for her as promised but decided that it didn’t matter, she was here now.

The ceremonies would begin early the next morning.  Tsering and the rest of the monks were in full gear finishing the final preparations.  There were over fifty monks who had assembled for the Drupchen and several nuns as well.  They had traveled from all over India and Nepal to join together in honor of the opening of the monastery.  They were all originally from Riwoche and shared the same Tak-lung Kagyu lineage.  The young Pakchok Rinpoche arrived later that day, received with much fanfare and ceremony.  He was fourteen years of age and was on summer vacation from his monastic university in India where he was receiving a traditional Tibetan Buddhist education.  Although young in years he was already quite big, over six feet tall and very broad in stature.  Jennifer noticed that she was the only westerner in attendance and that her presence aroused curiosity amongst everyone there.  At the dinner mealtime she felt everyone staring at her, sticking their tongues out to her when she made eye contact with them.  She was self-conscious and tried to stick close to Tsering and the monks with whom she had traveled.  In the evening she was shown a room upstairs above the temple where she could sleep.  She had brought a sleeping bag with her and was grateful for the pleasant accommodations.  The ceremonies were scheduled to begin at five o’clock the next morning so she tried to fall asleep.

Everyone was awakened by the sound of a blown conch shell.  After a quick wash-up everyone quickly entered the temple and took their seats.  Jennifer was ushered to a seat on the right hand wall of the temple next to the few nuns and one other female lay practitioner, a young Tibetan woman who was nine months pregnant.  The Rinpoche entered and everyone rose in respect.  After making three prostrations to the shrine he took his seat on the throne and everyone else prostrated to him before taking their seats.  The interior of the temple was painted with beautiful frescoes of the lineage masters and the altar housed large gold statues of the Buddhas.  Opening prayers were chanted, led by the Omze or chant master.  Hot Tibetan tea was served as the chants went on and several hours later there was a short break for sweet rice and more tea.  Everyone ate in silence during the ten minute break and then the chants started up again.  The only time they would break was for meals at lunch and dinner and then for six hours at night for sleep.  Even then, the chanting and mantra recitations were continued by small groups.  The ritual had to be continuous throughout the ten days without a single break.  Jennifer volunteered to join Tsering and friends for the night shift one evening.  It was quite a challenge to stay awake all night in mantra recitation, especially after having prayed on the previous and following days, but Jennifer found it exhilarating to have the privilege to participate in this kind of ceremony.  She was empowered by her devotion and commitment and felt incredible waves of force through the visualization and sacred mantra recitation.  She felt her body become light and experienced a spiritual high.  She counted her mantras on her prayer beads and by the end of the ten days she had accumulated over 100,000.  By the last day she had even lost her voice from the constant chanting.

While staying in retreat Jennifer had been unable to wash or brush her hair for lack of access to a shower.  On the final day when it was permissible to leave the monastery grounds, she walked in to the village and found a barbershop.  She asked the barber to cut off all of her hair.  He looked at her in amazement and she nodded in confirmation, explaining that she wanted to leave just an inch or two.  She watched her hair fall to the ground and felt free.  Her long red curls lay on the floor, in great contrast to the straight black hair of the previous clients that lay beneath hers.  She walked back to the monastery feeling like her short hair was a symbol of her renunciation of worldly concerns.  Tsering and the other monks were surprised when they saw her.  They all smiled and said it was good.

The ceremony was over and it was time to return back to Katmandu.  Jennifer was invited to stay at the home of one of the families who had sponsored the Drupchen along with Tserign and Sonam.  She was given a bed in the family’s shrine room.  The Riwoche monks wanted to spend another few days together in leisure before all returning back to their home monasteries.  Jennifer joined Tsering and Sonam for shopping trips around the stupa marketplace.  She asked for their help to purchase a twelve inch statue of Guru Rinpoche.  The quality of craftsmanship was the best in Nepal so Jennifer had many choices to choose from.  The monks helped her to get the best price when she finally found the one she wanted.  She also wanted to buy a small Tibetan rug to bring home to America with her.  Once again, the quality and quantities of choices made her head spin, but with the help of her friends she ended up getting two for the price of one.  Tsering and Sonam encouraged Jennifer to purchase a set of robes at the market as well to bring back to America with her for when she would take her vows.  She had already cut off her hair– she would need the robes to match.  She sensed they were so proud of her commitment to the Dharma and liked showing off the American girl who wanted to become a Tibetan Buddhist nun.

She asked the monks to take her to Yangleshou, also known as Pharping in Nepali, a special pilgrimage and retreat spot for Tibetan Buddhists that is the place where Guru Rinpoche meditated in caves and realized Vajrakiliya.  It was a short day trip out of the city and as soon as Jennifer got off the bus she felt like she had been there before.  She noticed that many of the Tibetans that were wearing robes also had long hair.  Sonam explained to her that many of them had been in three year retreat.  They visited the holy caves and visited friends that lived on the hill.

Once back in Katmandu it was time to start getting ready for the trip home to Sarnath.  The Riwoche monks spent one final day together relaxing and then said their goodbyes before parting ways.  Jennifer and the monks from India boarded the bus back to Sonali.  Jennifer was not looking forward to this part of the trip after the experience they had on the way up.  However, the trip was made more enjoyable when they were joined by a young Tibetan woman named Kila who was on her way to South India to take nun’s vows with Penor Rinpoche.  When they arrived at the border this time, the monks decided to cross together as a group.  Jennifer stayed close to see if she could help them in anyway.  When the border officers saw that she was travelling with the group of monks who were undocumented they decided to take advantage of the situation.  They held her passport and refused to give it back, explaining to her that she was assisting the illegal traffic of the monks.  They told her they were going to put them in jail.  She grew frightened for her friends’ safety and asked the monk Samten what she could do.  He explained to her that they were just trying to scare her and get some “baksheesh.”  She took out two hundred rupees and handed it to the officer.  He just stared at her.  She took out two hundred more and satisfied, he handed her back her passport and allowed them to pass.  As they crossed back into the safety of India Jennifer vowed never to go back to the evil town on Sonali ever again.

The ride back to Varanasi was uneventful except for one incident when the bus was stopped by the police.  The officers wanted to search everyone’s bags for contraband.  When they found Jennifer’s Guru Rinpoche statue they asked for customs papers.  Luckily the shop keeper who sold the statue to Jennifer had attached all the necessary documents to the base with a wax seal to verify its legitimacy.  Jennifer was glad to be let back on the bus with her precious Guru Rinpoche statue resting safely in her belongings.

Once back at the monastery, everyone was surprised to see that Jennifer had cut off her hair.  Pema Gyaltso asked to speak with her.  “I’m very impressed with your commitment, Jennifer.  It seems you had quite an experience in Nepal.  But you must know that people will be confused by your short hair.  In the Tibetan culture, only the nuns cut off their hair.  If we see a woman with short hair in lay people’s clothing, we think that she is an ex-nun who has lost her vows.  This is very bad.  Now that you have cut your hair, you should wear robes, too,” he explained.

“But the Khenpos told me that I was not ready to take vows now.  They told me to wait,” she replied.

“Ah, yes, I see.  Well, you should wait to take vows with them, of course.  But in the meantime I think it would benefit you to take instruction from Acharya Govinda-la.  He can instruct you on the vinaya, or precepts,” he offered.

“Thank you,” said Jennifer with sincerity.  She was so happy that someone had recognized her strong desire to join the ordained sangha.

The next day Jennifer found Acharya Govinda and started her study of the vinaya under him.  She learned that nuns take over two hundred vows, and interestingly, several more than monks.  Govinda outlined them all in detail over the course of the next week, emphasizing how difficult it is to be a nun.  “You may never go anywhere alone.  You must always be in the company of another nun,” he explained.  “It is much easier to be a monk.  Perhaps you should pray to be reborn next lifetime as a man so you can become a monk. Much easier!” he laughed.  Although Jennifer understood the need for the many precepts to maintain monastic discipline, she sensed cultural, historical and gender biases influenced their interpretation.  She wondered how western nuns may interpret them differently than Acharya Govida.  Govinda had learned that Jennifer had been studying the Chod practice with Sonam and offered to instruct her on the life and sadhana of Machig Lapron, one of Tibet’s most revered female yogis.  She accepted his offer and continued to study under him for another week.

Meanwhile, Jennifer felt a strong desire to start wearing her robes.  She decided to phone the Khenpos back in America and ask their permission.  She explained that she was studying with Acharya Govinda and that she had bought a set of robes in Nepal.  She wanted so much for her teacher’s acknowledgement of her devotion to the Dharma.  Her teachers were surprised to hear that she had been to Nepal with the Riwoche monks and that she had also cut her hair.  They stood by their original advice and instructed her to wait to wear the robes until she had returned home.  Jennifer was dismayed to hear their response.  Her expectations were not fulfilled and she was now confused about her motivation.  She felt such conviction about her desire to take vows, why didn’t her teachers acknowledge it, she wondered.  Now she started to doubt herself.

Jennifer was sharing her room at the monastery with the Kila, the young Tibetan woman who was travelling South to take vows.  Kila and Jennifer enjoyed talking about their future lives as nuns together, meditating and practicing together in their room.  One day, Kila pulled out her new set of robes that she was travelling with in anticipation of her ordination.  She asked Jennifer if she, too, had a set of robes yet.  Jennifer pulled hers out of a bag and making sure that the windows and doors were locked they excitedly tried them on.  It felt so wonderful to be robed in the beautiful maroon and saffron cloth.  The women felt so blessed and noble.  Kila asked Jennifer if she had a camera.  She wanted to send a picture back home to her family.  Just then Sonam knocked on their door.  Kila opened the door and Sonam smiled with great joy at the sight of the two women clothed in red and gold.  Kila asked him if he could take a picture of the two of them together in their robes.  He insisted that they go into the courtyard for the most beautiful shot.  The other Riwoche monks gathered around as they all posed with Jennifer and Kila proudly.

The next day the Riwoche monks from South India and Kila said their goodbyes to their friends in Sarnath and everyone returned to their usual routines of study and teaching.  Jennifer continued her painting of the Tara tangkha with Tsering.  She had grown very comfortable with Tsering and the two started to spend several hours a day together painting, praying, meditating, and taking walks in the Deer Park together.  They had learned to communicate very well in their own pigeon Tibetan/English inventive dialect.  When they didn’t speak they had grown to be very comfortable in their shared silence.

Once again Pema Gyaltso requested to speak with Jennifer.  “I have noticed that you and Tsering have been spending a lot of time together.  You know from your study of the vinaya with Acharya Govinda that a monk and a woman are not to spend time alone with one another.  You have been seen walking in the Deer Park with Tsering, just you and he.  Gossip is starting to spread in the village.  It does not look good for the monastery,” he sternly lectured Jennifer.  She was filled with shame and regret.  “Aren’t you uncomfortable here in Sarnath?  The summer season is upon us and the weather is too hot.  You may get sick if you stay much longer.  What are your plans?”  Jennifer had no plans.  Up until this moment she had so enjoyed living in the present moment with no thought of plans for the future.  It was the first time in her life that she had felt completely free of worldly concerns.  Pema Gyaltso’s lecture brought her crashing back to earth.

“I had no plans but I will make some now.  I am sorry if I have overstayed my welcome,” she replied.  She just wanted to get out of there as quickly as possible.

“You should know that the Khenpos are hoping to make Tsering the Abbot of our monastery when he is fully trained.  You may interrupt these plans if you stay much longer,” said Pema Gyatso as she got up to leave.

Jennifer returned to her room quite emotional and started to pack her bags.  Tsering came in and asked what she was doing.  Jennifer shared with him the conversation she just had with Pema Gyatso and Tsering looked troubled.  He knew that he had a karmic connection with this woman and felt a sudden ache in his heart that he had never experienced before when he thought about her leaving to go back to her home in America.  He went to his room and composed a poem.  Later that night he brought it into her room and asked if they could translate it together so she might understand his heart.  When Jennifer read the poem and comprehended its meaning, she realized that Tsering and she had crossed over the fine line between friendship and love.  Over the course of the two months they had spent together they had gone from complete strangers, unable to speak each other’s languages, to close friends sharing a deep karmic connection.  She looked up from the poem and when her gaze met Tsering’s tear-filled eyes she knew that everything had changed.  Now the question was what to do about it.  Because Tsering held monk’s vows, it was a huge decision to proceed with their friendship or not.  But it was never a question for either of them.  They were deeply bonded and the only right thing to do in that moment was to honor the truth in their hearts.  Without further hesitation, Tsering prostrated to the statue of the Buddha and gave back his vows with Jennifer as his witness.  They would leave the monastery the next morning.  They did not have any idea where they would go or how to proceed, but they knew it would be together.