From Brahma to Buddha, Spring 2008

Mika showing Jain Nun video of Harrison teaching kids to dance.

MIKA DAY=ELEPHANT RIDES. Brightly colored, vibrant, vivacious elephants to ride on and pet...that's what it was supposed to be like. But having ridden on an elephant I now know that the glamour of the idea of elephant rides is far from the reality of it. In truth riding elephants is kind of depressing. The beauty of the intricate patterns and brilliant colors that decorate the elephants body is greatly diminished by the haggard condition of their bodies, and the dullness of the paints as a result of the dust the elephants stir as they truck tourists up and down the trail one after the other makes it seem gaudy. Worse yet the elephants are abused by handlers who beat them with sticks, or hooked spears, at times without reason. Elephant rides are not fun for anyone. To see what were once magnificent creatures so worn by the blatant cruelty that is forced upon them in their captivity is depressing. If anyone wants to become an activist now would be the time to advocate for the elephants who are trapped in the elephant slave trade in India. Or if you want to be an activist for something more closer to home, we also visited the Jaipur foot factory in India. That field trip was a happier one. At the Jaipur Foot factory physically handicapped peoples from around the world come to receive free prosthetic legs, and or bicycle chairs. The service they offer is an amazing one, sustained completely by aid from charitable organizations and the governement of India. They use the newest technology to provide their patients with the most comfortable prostetic leg possible, and are able to produce them at a price of 35 dollars per leg. Only four percent of their total budget is spent on administrative things, and the rest is concentrated on producing as many legs as possible. Such revolutionary programs should be implemented in the US, so any activists seeking things to advocate should consider starting one up....Al this sounds like something you might be interested in, so if you do start advocationg for any of these tell me about it so I can see how I can help..in the meantime I'll stick to reading Dali Lama books in India, and see what I can do when I return to the states... As they say in Rajhastan...TATA :D for now