High Five! When I first noticed this girl, she was about to shed a number of tears; these same tears traveled down my face when we departed. This was a festival where woman fast for two days and celebrate by dressing, mostly in red, and dancing until they pass out - literally. Well, some woman passed out waiting in the long lines from dehydration. Troopers they are.
I stayed with a friend who lived in Kathmandu (below) and his neighbors invited us over to celebrate. These two girls are all festive with their many bangles coating the little ones arm and dancing and smiles all night.
Meet
Hrikesh. I stayed with him at his place for my two weeks in Kathmandu. Maybe I'll see you in Colorado,
Hrikesh.
This day was an awaking of the yin and yang, the black and white, life and death. Here you see life. All the women in red, happy and dancing until the morning breaks. What you don't see is the latter of the two. The main celebration occurred along the burning ghats. The burning ghats is where Hindu funerals take place. We sat on the other side of the river while observing the colorful women in red as well as the man draped in while robe being dipped into the river for a
pre-burning cleanse. He was then carried to the pyre where the flames were lit, and he returned to the earth. A celebration of life and a mourning of death in one sight allows for the deep investigation of purpose in life. If we simply die after life, is our purpose just to die? Is death really bad? If so, is our purpose in life bad or negative? Why is death typically associated with negativity. Can we not embrace death and allow for a positive association to manifest from our loved ones passing on? What can we truly learn from this? Life goes on, the investigation continues, then we die. Simple yet beautiful, right? Why not?
Prayer flags coating all the trees along a Buddhist shrine.
Gotta climb a tree whenever a tree is
climbable.
Buddha with the statue painted with
puja's or prayers.
I stayed with a friend who lived in Kathmandu (below) and his neighbors invited us over to celebrate. These two girls are all festive with their many bangles coating the little ones arm and dancing and smiles all night.
This day was an awaking of the yin and yang, the black and white, life and death. Here you see life. All the women in red, happy and dancing until the morning breaks. What you don't see is the latter of the two. The main celebration occurred along the burning ghats. The burning ghats is where Hindu funerals take place. We sat on the other side of the river while observing the colorful women in red as well as the man draped in while robe being dipped into the river for a pre-burning cleanse. He was then carried to the pyre where the flames were lit, and he returned to the earth. A celebration of life and a mourning of death in one sight allows for the deep investigation of purpose in life. If we simply die after life, is our purpose just to die? Is death really bad? If so, is our purpose in life bad or negative? Why is death typically associated with negativity. Can we not embrace death and allow for a positive association to manifest from our loved ones passing on? What can we truly learn from this? Life goes on, the investigation continues, then we die. Simple yet beautiful, right? Why not?
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