And then something weird happened. I started crying. I am not a cryer, but so many emotions hit me at once that they started to leave my body as tears. I thought about the tough couple of years I have had with unending neck/back pain brought on by herniated discs, I thought about how beautiful this place was and how wonderful that places like this still exist in the world, and I thought about how fortunate I am in life in general, and especially how fortunate I am to come to a place like this. Plus, the sunlight was beaming on my face, and life in this moment just felt so completely perfect, and I so blessed to be there.
I also felt so powerful today. Physical fitness has always been a big part of my life, and so my neck issues have made me feel at half mast, but today my body felt like a machine again, like it used to. I got to the monastery in 50 minutes, and our guide said that most arrive in 3 hours. One doesn't have to sit still to meditate, and as i climbed the mountain, chanting to myself, my back pain at times was almost completely gone. Because I got up when I did, I had over an hour to sit and meditate and take photos before I saw Jeff, Robert, and our guide in the distance. Jim stopped at the halfway point, and enjoyed the views from there, not wishing to go on.
Sadly, photos are not allowed in Tiger's Nest, and it is just as beautifully rustic as one would imagine it to be. We visited 8 small temples within the complex, and our guide talked to us about Buddhism, its history, the practice of meditation, and how to have a strong mind. It was then that he stopped being our guide and in a way was transformed to our own guru. We hovered on every word he said, surrounded by brightly colored paintings and carvings, with the gentle scent of incense mingled with the neighboring pine trees. It is a moment that I hope I will never forget.
Less than 100 people visited the site today, so it felt like we were the only ones there. No where else on the planet does one get this feeling--only the hidden gem of Bhutan, which is still unknown to so many.