Swati Chopra
PALAMPUR: Tashi Jong is a vibrant Tibetan monastic community in Himachal. At its entrance, one is greeted by prayer flags and graffiti that says 'I am Tashi Jong'. Shops sell curios and handicrafts, toilet paper and mineral water to occasional tourists and foreign students of Buddhism. Young monks rehearse traditional dances in the Khampagar Monastery's courtyard, watched by old women clicking rosaries and somnolent dogs. I watch with them for a while, and then move on.
A narrow path through pine trees takes me up the mountainside, away from the bustle of the monastic community. Hostels give way to solitary dwellings used for long retreats. Some of these house 'Togdens', a rare kind of yogi in Tibetan Buddhism. While regular monks will follow the Vinaya (monastic code of conduct), study scriptures, conduct rituals and execute administrative duties at the monastery, Togdens spend their time exclusively in meditation and intense spiritual practice. They sport dreadlocks like Indian sadhus, and their extensive yogic repertoire includes tumo—the yoga of generating body heat enough to melt snow and dry wet clothes.
A small house ringed by fruit trees appears on the path. Here, the body of an 84-year-old Togden, Yogi Amtrin, is preserved since he passed away last year. One of the few Togdens to escape out of Tibet, he was spiritual guide to many around the world.
Reverence for a life spent in contemplation and stilling the mind has brought me to his doorstep. I expect to pay my respects and leave, and am pleasantly surprised when Yogi Amtrin's long-time disciple, Popa Rinpoche, invites me to meditate in his guru's room. The space feels like a mountain-cave, isolated and womb-like, though it is only a tiny room with a view of the Himalayas. The wooden box with the yogi's body is festooned with lights and surrounded by offerings. A beautiful fragrance permeates the air, from herbal incense made in a workshop at the back of the house.
I sit down on a mat, and find the yogi watching me from a photograph. This is what you look like when you have spent all your life quieting the mind—gentle, wise, still, a deep pool creased only with the ripple of a smile. I smile back, close my eyes, focus on my breath, and try to empty my mind.
Swati Chopra is the author of ‘Buddhism: On the Path to Nirvana’. Her website is www.swatichopra.com
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