Fulbright-Nehru Blog Posts

19.10.13 Slowly, Slowly

Kalay-kalay (slowly, slowly) was one of the first phases I learned in my conversational Tibetan class at Emory last winter. At the time, it only made me think of one of my mom’s favorite sayings as I was growing up, “Slowly, carefully.”

Turns out kalay-kalay is a much more than a phrase – it is a way of life. It’s common for things to move slowly here. Processing paperwork, internet loading, getting from one place to another, etc. It feels a bit paradoxical because there often seems to be a lot of hustle-and-bustle, but overall things happen in what-feels-like slow motion. For example, cars, buses, and trains certainly do not move slowly themselves; however, tracking one down or waiting for the one you need to arrive can take quite a bit of time. Even the trickle of water to fill my *reusable water bottle seems to move slowly.

Despite having been to the monasteries for two previous summers and making personal attempts to adopt aspects of this slow approach to living over the past several years, this pace was certainly at odds with the goals, ambitions, and aims I had in mind upon my arrival.

I was focused on how quickly my 9-10 months at the monasteries were going to fly by. I was set on planning and strategizing to optimize each and every moment. I was certain that I needed to grasp and hold on to each and every experience that I possibly could, otherwise they would slip through my fingers and be forever lost.

I was missing the point.

Turns out I needed a brief bout of not feeling too well to force me to pause. To recognize that in my drive to soak up every ounce of India I possibly could in the time I have been afforded, I risked taking away only my own curated version of India, rather than India as it truly is.

There is incredible beauty in life’s rhythm here. Everyone is more likely to chat and connect, whether it’s over a meal, tea, or while waiting for a bus or train. Rest and rejuvenation are highly valued. Everyone takes an afternoon break after lunch until 2pm. So far, I have always continued my work during this time. As part of my integration into this slow living, I will – at least some days – actually take this afternoon break.

Updated general daily routine:

  • Wake Up: 5:30am
  • Exercise: 6:15am
  • Breakfast 7:30am
  • Morning Chai 10:15am
  • Lunch 11:45am
  • Afternoon Break 12-2pm
  • Afternoon Chai 3:15pm
  • Dinner 5pm
  • Bed: 10pm

Have you ever really paid attention to the bubbles that form in a glass when you are filling it with water? Instead of feeling impatient as I refill my water, this is what I do now. It’s surprisingly fascinating.

P.S. If you ever find yourself far from home without family nearby to care for you when you’re not feeling well, I highly recommend that monks check in on you and that a kind friend brings delicious meals. It works wonders.

19.10.16 One Month in India

In no particular order, here are a few moments from my first month in India —

  • Many places have paper, metal, or no straws. India has a very plastic-conscious movement going. There are signs posted everywhere!
  • On my second day here, there was a vibrant rainbow over the residence of a lama who recently moved to Drepung monastery.
  • To get to and from Mysore, we took an overnight train. There is space to lie down and sleep, so it was much more comfortable travel than in an airplane.
  • We were in Mysore during the festival of Dasara, celebrating the victory of good over evil. The lights all around the city were incredible. If you think you’ve seen holiday lights, check again.
  • We visited a gold jewelry store in Hubballi. I didn’t make any purchases, but I learned a lot. They used X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy to determine the percent gold and other metals. They also took us to a small room in the basement of the mall where they used a flame test to verify the composition ie. green flame indicates the presence of copper.
  • The process of getting my Protected Area Permit (PAP) was quite the bureaucratic adventure. At every. single. seemingly. small. step. there. was. some. kind. of. hold. up. It almost became comedic at the time because it felt as though I was part of those infomercials where nothing works, and it doesn’t seem like anyone could possibly actually go through life that way. Perhaps the best way to sum up the experience is this: On the drive from the PAP office to the monastery, which normally takes 3-4 hours, we were approximately 1km from the monastery when we found the bridge was out, forcing us to take an approximately 60km detour.
  • We visited Hubballi to visit a coffee shop, see a Hindi movie, and do lots of shopping to get me settled into my apartment.
  • One of my dreams has come true. For each of the past two summers, I have been eyeing a rooftop place in Camp 3 that I have always wanted to visit. It happened. I got fresh papaya juice. It was delicious.
  • I’ve enjoyed fresh coconut water, straight from the coconut itself, twice now. Once at Janchub Choeling nunnery and once during our Bylakuppe adventure day.
  • Watching folks try to reserve their seats on the local buses as soon as the bus gets near the station is quite the show. I never do this, which means it is more likely I will be standing. Getting a coveted seat by the open window does make for an enjoyable ride.
  • Many people go for evening walks around the main temple. It is a little cooler after dinner and the sunsets are among the most beautiful that I have seen. I am constantly reminded of Maria Popova and her sharing of the artwork “Trees at Night” by Art Young.
  • Tea is the drink of choice here. There are a few, select, locations that offer some good coffee and espresso. AND I bought coffee beans from Coorg.
  • I’ve been working on establishing morning and evening routines. Sometimes I go on foggy early morning runs around the science center as the sun rises. It’s especially nice if there are prayer sessions at the main temple. The chanting and sound of instruments flows over to my running route.
  • Tashi has taught me how to cook here and how to make Indian chai. When cooking in the US, I would follow recipes precisely, measure all ingredients carefully, and time everything exactly. That is not how cooking works here. Slowly, slowly – I am improving.
  • I finally visited Sera monastery and the science centers there. There are three main monasteries of the Tibetan Buddhist Gelug Tradition – Drepung, Gaden, and Sera. Drepung and Gaden are just down the street from one another, so I have visited these each during the summers of 2018 and 2019. I’ve been wanting to go to Sera, and it happened!
  • Tashi introduced me to the go-to momo spot in Camp 3.
  • We frequent Gomang café for tea and cake (tsampa and banana). You could say we’re regulars.
  • Most of the meals I have had are delicious. They are not all at the same level, however. I have also had instant noodles and moong dal snack bags at train stations.
  • The main dish that I prepare when I am cooking is sautéed vegetables with some spice. I get the veggies from a market stand in Camp 3. We usually add a side of bread or pasta. The diet here is most certainly NOT low-carb. It’s common for a single meal to include bread, rice, and potatoes. Most creative combo so far – French fries mixed in pasta with a bonus addition of chicken wings
  • We went to a vegetarian restaurant for lunch and met one of our future 4th year science students. We discussed the significance of alignment between our capabilities and our aims and how we can leverage this to expand our capabilities. We also talked about how all the little things in our daily lives add up to make a difference. As Annie Dillard said, “How we spend our days is how we spend our lives.”
  • There are SO MANY dragonflies here. It is peaceful to watch as they skim over the corn fields. Especially when it is getting close to sunset.
  • We compost. I have a little food waste container that I empty out into the garden area every so often. Once, I waited a little too long and had some fruit fly larvae and pupae in there. Good thing I worked with them so much in grad school, otherwise I would have been waaaay more grossed out than I was.
  • On one of my first nights here, Tashi and I had our own version of a karaoke night. She is quite the DJ. We used her microphone-shaped speaker and sang the night away. Or until 9pm.
  • We didn’t have Wifi the morning of the first day of class. This probably would have almost cancelled classes at many US universities, but it was barely a blip on the radar.

Here’s to lots more learning, loving, and living in the months to come!

19.11.10 Unknown

Does learning a language – or anything, for that matter – come primarily from an internal mind that is studying and practicing? Or is the primary influence on learning from the external environment, such as a teacher teaching the language?

These questions exemplify the teaching philosophy that I, as an instructor, don’t teach anything. The students themselves learn. My role is supportive; a facilitation role. Students will not progress if they passively listen and do not engage in their own practice. This is the core of evidence-based, active learning pedagogies.

Our conversation on learning segued into the age-old debate of Nature vs. Nurture. In nearly every case I can think of, the answer is both. The discussion arrived to this point when it began assigning percentages to each of the two options.

When students complete “cookbook” labs, where they repeat experiments for which the results are already well established, are students really learning? Conventional wisdom would say, yes, the students are learning. A contemporary response would be that they are probably not learning the best way that they could. This statement is supported by research investigating the benefits of engaging in novel research, even in the learning settings of college labs that are taken as part of science courses. The conversation was not directly intended to connect with biology education research literature. But then again, everything is interconnected.

What about language, labels, and the usage of words in different contexts. What does it mean to know something? Do we know that 8+8=16? Or might this change, and therefore we do not actually know it? For example, if we change from base 10 to base 8, 8+8=20. Is this a change in definitions and usage? Not the concept? Maybe, in this case, we can say we know.

Do we mean something less than 100% knowledge when we use the term know? In Buddhism, it seems we can only really know once we are enlightened. Otherwise, there is always the possibility (probability?) that we are missing something.

We discussed similarities and differences between the terms pressure and influence. Language is nuanced. And simultaneously incapable of portraying love, loss, and beauty in their entirety.

The 3-stage Buddhist method of learning: listen, reflect, practice.

Metacognition noun \me-tə-käg-ˈni-shən\ awareness and understanding of one’s own thought processes

Metacognition is built-in to the Buddhist method of learning. Reflection on concepts and skills learned is an essential step. And it takes time. As facilitators of learning, we need to cultivate students’ skills in metacognitive reflection and regulation. And to demonstrate this is a practice to apply in all learning situations. To practice, we must embody the knowledge – moving beyond memorization and recitation into evaluation and creation. Metacognition is one of many tools to promote equity in education (Horrell, Marcette, and Kant, 2019).

Generative knowledge. Are students truly learning if no new knowledge is added to the collective knowledge of humanity as a result of their efforts?

Now, I am thinking this extends to concepts of self and non-self. What counts as learning? There must be some way to allow for the idea that individual learning has occurred even when this has not introduced new information into the universe. Maybe there is always new collective knowledge, given that all learners offer their own, unique backgrounds and worldviews to old information.

What about all the forgotten and lost knowledge that has accumulated over time? What about the knowledge of non-human beings? Some may not consider this as knowledge per se, but it is something.

19.12.28 Nechung Tibetan Oracle

Since I cannot possibly begin to recount the experience of being in the presence of His Holiness the Dalai Lama for 8 out of 9 consecutive days, I will instead share a story from the day before the start of these life-altering events —

It was Friday the 13th. But the day started like any other. Mostly. My right eye was bothering me a bit, so I only wore one contact instead of two. I figured that for the purpose of a morning run this wouldn’t make any difference.

After only three hours of sleep that resulted from lots of late-night meetings, I awoke to go for a run with the beautiful sunrise that I have grown accustomed to. I heard some music and chanting coming from the main temple. I figured that it was probably a normal Puja with the exception that His Holiness was staying just down the street.

With about 10 minutes remaining in my run, I was told that the Nechung Tibetan Oracle was at the temple. Knowing how the timing of events go, I decided to finish my run and then walk over to the side door of the main temple to enter.

I thought about stopping by my room, but I didn’t want to miss the main event. In my running clothes, sweating, with no phone, money, or offering, and only one fully functional eye, I went to the main temple. I had no idea what to expect.

I found a spot that seemed to be out of the way on the side. There wasn’t too much activity at the beginning. It took a while, but eventually the medium for Nechung’s spirit appeared. While in a trance, the person wears a huge, apparently really heavy hat and some other special clothes.

The medium walked around a bit and gave his message that was written down by scribes who understand the secret, strange language the person uses when they are in this trance with their body being inhabited by Nechung.

Then the crowd went crazy when it was time for the blessing to start. I hung back to observe the pushing and shoving! A bit of hysteria really. Even the Abbott (leader of the monastery) himself was trying to control the crowd and that was not really working. Once the medium was going to move off of the front alter and throughout the main temple, the crowd had to clear the path.

It was somewhere on this walk-dance that the trance ended. I saw the medium close-up after they had removed the huge hat. We were all commenting on his skin color. It had gone very pale and sallow.

Afterwards, there was a lot of red, blessed rice lying around that we and others collected. I heard it prevents your things from being stolen. It also seems to serve as a general kind of blessing. There was some red rice stuck in the crack of one of the stairs. A group of young monks was working diligently to get the pieces of blessed rice out.