It’s a cold and incessant drizzle. The sky is laden with clouds with thin streaks of sunlight trying to sneak through them intermittently. The cold wind shivers through my ears. In this weather I take the fifteen minute walk from my hostel in Upper Dharamkot to Lower Dharamkot on the rocky, uneven path wet with pools of water. A girl not more than eight, walks to her school under an umbrella, expertly manoeuvring the wet and rocky path. I fall behind her as she looks back at me once in a while maybe wondering why I am so slow. I stop by at the Himalayan Tea Shop for a cup of ginger tea and later walk to the Tushita Meditation Centre for their daily drop-in meditation session. The centre is renowned internationally as a leading centre for teaching Tibetan Buddhism. Set amidst verdant deodar trees, away from the noises of Mcleodganj, the centre has received students of more than a hundred nationalities as of 2019 for their residential retreats. Maintaining silence inside the compound is expected from all visitors. One doesn’t really need to make an effort for that. Just being there brings an immediate sense of tranquillity to the mind and body. Every morning (except Sunday) from 9 to 10 am, they hold a guided meditation session which can be joined by anyone. The one-hour session comprises of teaching two main meditation practices in Tibetan Buddhism – Stabilization Meditation and Analytical or Contemplative Meditation. At a time when our mind drifts between regrets of the past, distractions of the present and fears of the future, the stabilization practice intends to keep us in the stillness of the moment by focusing on our breath. That we train our mind to focus on only where we are in that particular moment and cut out all distractions.

The analytical practice has different goals such as finding love and happiness within ourselves, or to realize the impermanence of our reality, that nothing stays forever. That we constantly seek pleasures that are not meant to last forever and that is the cause of most of our suffering. That we need to train ourselves to modify our expectations and view our reality differently.

After the session, some of us volunteered to setup the gompa for the fresh batch of incoming students of the introductory ten-day residential course on Tibetan Buddhism. We removed all the big cushions from the gompa (more than a hundred along with smaller ones (another hundred or more) and then dusted each one of them. The gompa floor was swept and the cushions were arranged again along with small wooden study tables. It was a calm and peaceful morning amidst the serenity of nature, where after experiencing our inner self through meditation, we participated in a small community service. Nobody said much and just smiled at each other, dusted cushions, placed them back in the gompa and then left. On a cold and grey morning with chirping amongst the deodar branches, one could not expect a better way to start the day.