Once again we find ourselves nestled in the warm embrace of KIBI, welcoming the fast approaching summer heat, gathered together for what has become a crowd favorite for Dharma event of the year. There is nothing quite like being in KIBI in March, Karmapa comes every single day and teaches on the Bodhicaryavatara, as well as leading a group practice of Chenrezig.
Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche and Lama Jampa Thaye, Khenpo Lobsang, it's an all star cast. The weather is warm, the sun is out, I see endless smiling faces; from friends I've known for a decade, or just meeting this morning. I always tell everyone when they ask - if you can only go to only one Dharma event a year, this is it. Karmapa is at his best here: deep teachings as he goes line by line, or ultra profound answers to a barrage of questions about practice, loss and life. There's jokes about onions, language barriers, and the inevitable Star Wars reference or two. There's also two Empowerments over the 9 days, so... yeah, it's quite something. I wish in my heart that everyone with the wish to come here gets the opportunity. And if not, I'll do my best to bring some glimpses your way for as long as I possibly can.
Right before the course I had some rather unpleasant events come to pass - dropped my laptop (which ended in a broken screen) and my big camera started having issues to which I had already fixed and taken care of. Without getting too deeply into it, my laptop made it to India, my camera did not. And so, I had to borrow something for the tour, ending up with two little fixed lens cameras for what normally requires a whole slew of lenses for me. I had to dramatically alter how I shoot overnight, which has actually been very interesting, creatively outrageous, if not a bit intense. A just rip the band-aid off kind of thing. It's been really fun, being light and nimble has its advantages, though some situations have forced some rather large departures of vantage point. Perhaps that's a good thing, this is after all my 9th March Course. As is the case with everything I do, jumping head first without looking and sorting it out afterwards is my style. Or at the very least, what I enjoy the most!
More to come my friends!
