Hello everyone, It’s been an exciting week. Lama D came back to Bhutan. I’m very happy to see him. We’re are deciding what to do next. I’ve been working on making videos to introduce the books, finishing proposals, and creating digital images for the Buddha quotes. Paro is still very cold in the wintertime, so we’re planning to spend some time in Bali, to check out possible places to stay and locations for retreats.
The first two videos will be made in the Rinpung Dzong, the biggest monastery in Paro. This week I made the video below to introduce my new book “Heal Your Past Lives”.
The Paro Rinpung Dzong is home to several hundred monks who live in rustic rooms around the perimeter. Up on the hill you can see the amazing National Museum, which houses treasures of thousands of years of Buddhist traditions.
Introducing my new book “Heal Your Past Lives, How to Dissolve Past Trauma that Conditions your Life and Causes Unhappiness”. It’s a terrible tongue twister, and took me a whole week to memorize this text. After five trials, we got a complete video.
Whoops! Update Friday morning. My agent just made a slight change in the video text and the book subtitle. So I have to remake the video. Stay tuned.
This is my favorite video background. I missed one word, so I had to discard that video.
We did several videos in front of this cloud demon. I wore a pin to commemorate the day, today is His Majesty the Fifth King’s 40th Birthday! On my left shoulder is a Rachu, a formal sash required to enter a sacred temple. As a Bhutanese resident, I must follow these traditions. However, tourists are free to wear anything they want.
This is one of the Wheel of Life paintings in the Paro Dzong. It is ruled by Yama, the Lord of Death. This Buddhist pictorial diagram shows the six possible afterlife destinations. The choices are: Human Realm, Realm of the Gods, Realm of Demigods, Animal Realm, Hell, or the Realm of the Hungry Ghosts. You get to choose.
Chickens and roosters were hanging out in the monastery when we took the video.
The daily napkin folding game continues at the beautiful Spirit of Bhutan resort where I am staying.
Today’s lunch was yellow dal and mixed vegetables. I never know exactly what it will be. If it’s organic veggies, made without sugar or GMO soybean oil, I’m delighted.
I’m staying at Spirit of Bhutan Resort. Every wall is hand-painted with traditional designs. This painting is of the Four Harmonious Animals. An elephant stands under a fruit tree carrying a monkey, a hare and a bird all on top of each other. It is said to be a story told by the Buddha to show respect for seniority and the elders.
This traditional Bhutanese folktale tells of a contest between four animals to find out who was the oldest (i.e wisest and most worthy of respect). The elephant said that the tree was already fully grown when he was young. The monkey said that the tree was small when he was young. The hare said that he saw the tree as a tiny sapling when he was young and the bird claimed that he had excreted the seed from which the tree grew.
Therefore the animals all recognized the bird as the oldest and wisest. After that the four animals lived together in harmony, helping each other to enjoy the fruits of the tree.
Everywhere I walk in Bhutan there are photo opportunities. All homes are painted beautifully.
This storefront window in downtown Paro offers wooden dildos for sale, a popular Bhutanese symbol of vitality, health, and spiritual strength. Also the window frame is painted all around, so I used this photo in the card design below.
Below are some recent images for my Buddha quotes. They’re digital collages using layering, designed to highlight the quote on a card or calendar planner. They feature mountains, nature, monks, Buddha statues, paintings, rocks, birds, and bugs.
The CoronaVirus has taken a toll that is impossible to measure. On my end, four boxes of clothes that I shipped to Bhutan via International Express Mail in December have been declared lost and unclaimable. I’m guessing they’re sitting in a warehouse in Hong Kong, and will never see the light of day. Flights to and from China have been cancelled, and the international freight systems are totally messed up. Also guessing the USPS has so many thousands of lost international packages through no fault of their own, that they refuse to pay. It’s a huge loss to me, but a pittance compared to what many others have incurred, especially loss of life. Take care!
Thanks for stopping by. I wish you a wonderful week!
Srijana