Letter to the Sangha

Dear Ravi and the One Bodhi Tree Sangha,

Greetings from Nalanda, India.

I have been warmly welcomed here in India. My stay in Nalanda has been wonderful so far. Everyone has been very appreciative of my being here to teach English. Although my days are quite full, they are very enjoyable and I am happy to be of service to the monk-students and other students here at Nava Nalanda Deemed University.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to view many the statues of the Buddha at the Nalanda Museum with Mr. Deepak Anand. Some are exquisitely carved out of sandstone with very fine detail and quite old. Others are from bronze or stucco reliefs. I also had a chance to imagine myself back in old Nalanda University as I walked around the ruins of the many brick chambers from the old monasteries to the impressive brick temple where the Buddha taught to the many temples and stupas. We will be very fortunate to have Deepak as our guide during our pilgrimage.

I was also very honored to have received a private tour of Xuan Zang Memorial Hall by Dr. Panth. He explained to me the history behind the Memorial Hall project between India and China and the history of Xuan Zang and his translating the Heart Suttra.

There is a grand bell to the right of the Memorial Hall which has the Heart Suttra inscribed in Chinese and Sanskrit/Devngari script. Those of you taking Ravi's Sanskrit class will be able to read this inscription. Dr. Panth invited me to strike the three times for Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. In so doing, I invited the bell to ring and experienced the bell's vibration. Surrounding the bell are beautiful lotus flowers. Dr. Panth explained that “nala” means a stem of a lotus flower, a symbol of generating wisdom or knowledge, and “da” means to give, so Nalanda is a place of giving knowledge or wisdom, and thus the University.

If you have any questions or comments about my stay here or my blogs, you may email me directly, if you wish. I look forward to traveling with all of you in January.

Peace,

Monica