Greetings from Galen Murton, Program Co-Director
Namaste, Jullay, and Tashi Delek-
That’s ‘Hello’ in just three of the languages (Hindi, Ladakhi, and Tibetan) which we will soon to be using on a daily basis (though maybe not all at once) upon our arrival in India. What they also mean is ‘welcome,’ and that’s what I’d like to extend to each one of you as we prepare for this fall’s exciting semester program in the subcontinent.
I imagine how eager you must be to set off on a journey of discovery to this ancient and diverse land, and I anticipate great things for us. And while I don’t yet know you, I am incredibly impressed by your interest, courage, and resolve to join Global LAB in exploring the sacred Hindu, Buddhist, Muslim, and Sikh traditions of northern India, and can only begin to suggest how positively this experience will affect you.
India is a land of extremes, and by experiencing what is present at the different ends we will come to understand how to exist somewhere in the middle. We will be traveling to the most densely populated country on the planet. But soon after arrival we’ll journey up to one of the least populated regions of the world, Ladakh, an ancient Buddhist kingdom on the edge of the high Tibetan plateau. From there we’ll move on to Dharamsala, and live amongst the Tibetan refugee community who have made this old British hill station the new cultural and political center of the Tibetan diaspora. And then we’ll continue on down into the heat of the burning ghats of Varanasi, perhaps the most mystifying and intense city in all of Asia (maybe the world), a place of unimaginable commotion and limitless energy. In spending time in these places (and many more), we will experience the many stark contrasts and transitions this country makes, and see how India cannot be defined in less than a thousand words.
As you venture into this personal unknown, you will have the opportunity to visit monasteries and talk with monks your own age, as well as live with local families and learn the simplicity of rural life. We will be the subject of earnest interest and relentless attention, and I can assure you that the people we meet will be equally (if not somehow more) curious of us than we are of them. While laughing with toothless grandmothers on long bus-rides and drinking scalding, sweet chai in cramped quarters with little children stealing stares at us, we’ll discover how quickly we are received not as strangers but as friends.
Our pilgrimage will begin as soon as we leave home, and by traveling through India we’ll come to understand how the religious traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism are not weekend faiths, but living phenomena. Visiting ancient Ladakhi monasteries and the Ganges River with local pilgrims will make us participants in their liturgy. We will learn what it means to live in Dharamsala and why Tibetans have fled Tibet and established a nation in exile near His Holiness the Dalai Lama. We will come to understand why millions of Hindus journey to Varanasi every year in order to die. And although we won’t have to walk for weeks on end to reach our sacred destinations, by traveling and hiking at high altitude as well as across the blazing plains we will come to know the commitment it takes and the ardor of the crossing, and why the journey itself is just as, if not more, important as the destination-the essence of pilgrimage.
We will also experience first hand the wonder and joy of simple living. By streamlining our material needs, we’ll carry virtually all of our possessions in a backpack (personally, my favorite way to live). We will come to know this beauty of simplicity, realizing it ourselves and seeing it everywhere around us, as we live amongst people whose spiritual richness is often in inverse relation to their worldly goods. It sometimes requires being removed from home to actually gain a perspective on how much we have, and how much of it we really don’t need, and how less truly can be more. It is inspiring to know that you all are willing to take this on, as it is a sacrifice. And it is heartening to know that you will carry this understanding back home once you return.
As international students, you have the unique opportunity not only to learn yourself, but to educate the many people with whom we interact, many who have very little understanding of our country. The experiential education of this journey will open our eyes to new lifestyles and traditions, and will reciprocally provide the wonderful people we meet a perspective into who we are as Americans, and what that means (which I believe is quite different from the popular media images that people see around the world). We are not Hollywood and we are not Washington; we are you and I and we are fascinated by the music of India and the colors of Tibet, their rivers and mountains, their wisdom and compassion.
As students we are drawn to this region of Asia for many reasons. I first learned of (and immediately wanted to visit) the Himalaya while in high school, having seen a family friend’s slide show of a climb he had guided in Nepal. As I read some books on the philosophical and religious traditions of India, Tibet, and China, my interest grew exponentially. At Middlebury College I further explored the traditions of eastern thought and read a little more about the esoteric dimensions of Tibetan Buddhism. Finally, it was during my junior year of college that I was able to go and study in Kathmandu, Nepal with the University of Wisconsin, focusing my attention on the places and practice of pilgrimage in the Tibetan tradition. And I have continued my pilgrimage just about every year since then, to walk, to sit, to learn, to teach, to work, to play, and to explore. Each time I return to the Himalaya I learn about a new valley, a distant mountain, an ancient monastery that calls for a visit, and so the cycle goes. You will soon walk into this world, and I believe that it will be but an initial step along a lifelong journey of inquiry and discovery.
And I am thrilled to be joining you. But I must say, I’m also envious of you, having this opportunity to visit India at an age when I barely knew what Hinduism was and when most young adults are focused more on consumerism than Buddhism. You will grow at a speed your parents won’t believe and gain wisdom that will affect every aspect of your life. You will change in wonderful ways, and thereby change those who know and meet you everywhere you go. Simply come with an open mind and be ready for it to expand beyond your wildest dreams.
I’m sure you have many questions about our trip; I know I do. And it can be intimidating trying to prepare for such an undertaking. I don’t know how much you’ve read about this part of the world, so we’ve prepared a reading list to provide some background on Indian traditions and Buddhist thought and what pilgrimage means and Hinduism seems. Take a look at some of these excellent books before we depart, and bring one or two along so that we can share them on the road. I know there’s a lot there, so please don’t hesitate to ask me anything, anytime. Be it a question about gear (pack super light!) or a ‘hello, how’s it going,’ you can reach me at:
galen@global-lab.org or galenbmurton@yahoo.com or 207-838-0616
I look forward to hearing from you and meeting in person soon.
Yours-
Galen