{"id":553,"date":"2019-08-29T19:46:20","date_gmt":"2019-08-29T17:46:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/?p=553"},"modified":"2025-08-17T23:41:18","modified_gmt":"2025-08-17T21:41:18","slug":"tibet-spectacolul-calugarilor-partea-3-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.danamladin.com\/en\/2019\/08\/tibet-spectacolul-calugarilor-partea-3-5\/","title":{"rendered":"TIBET (3\/5) \u2013 the spectacle of the monks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I know about Buddhism<\/strong> as much as any normal person who has not studied the history of religions… So I go full of enthusiasm towards two of the most important monasteries in Tibet, Drepung and Sera, willing to find out more! On the way there, I ask the guide if he has seen the movie “Seven Years in Tibet”<\/strong>. He had, years ago, while he was a bit on the run in Nepal\u2026 There he got the chance. The movie is forbidden in Tibet!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And speaking about forbidden\nthings: when the season ends, in October or November, all the guides have some\nsort of compulsory courses where they are told what they are allowed to say and\nwhat not during the next touristic season. Hoping this is a more open season, I\nstart asking many questions about the places we are about to visit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SERA MONASTERY<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

AS IF LHASA WAS NOT HIGH ENOUGH\u2026<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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After a few minutes in a car, going up (Up again??? God, I am in panic!), I get to the Sera Monastery<\/strong>. We are at 3,700 meters altitude. Thank God I am so busy taking pictures and asking about things, that I forget about the lack of oxygen\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first info I get\nhere is that they study esoteric tantra, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Big, on an entire wall,\nI see the Wheel of Life that can be seen in any Tibet temples. It is the one\nthat shows the cycle of suffering and rebirth. The wheel is held by the mouth\nof the lord of death, who oversees this circuit. In the centre of the wheel, there\nis an image of three animals: the pig, the snake and the bird. The three\n“evils” in us, as the guide tells me. The snake symbolizes the fury,\nthe pig \u2013 ignorance and the bird \u2013 jealousy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

On the other side of the\nmultiple tourists’ and local families’ legs, at 3 PM sharp, some kind of a show\nbegins, one that I have heard about, but which I cannot imagine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The yard I entered is\nfull of monks, divided into small groups. We, the public, are kept around, on\nthe margins. We are not allowed to use the cameras to film or take photos. Only\nthe phones are allowed. So, I take out mine and\u2026 I wait.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I find out we are in the Debate Yard<\/strong>. The monks came here for courses and they open the debate session. They gather in pairs, one sitting and one standing, facing each other and\u2026 the show begins. My eyes almost pop out with excitement, as I try to see and understand it all\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Let me explain: the one standing brings a subject for discussion. The one sitting tries to give an answer, to explain to him and then the debate starts, the two discuss. The one standing has some sort of a ritual, a \u201cdance\u201d as you’ll see in the video. He puts a leg forward, he claps his hands and moves the rosaries in a certain way. This is the “rhythm” of the discussion and this way he keeps the attention of the one sitting. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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