Why I Left Everything to Become A Buddhist Monk
Or view the video on the server at:
https://video.tsemtulku.com/videos/WhyILeftEverythingToBecomeABuddhistMonk.mp4
Transcript: Why I Left Everything to Become A Buddhist Monk
What’s up Youtubers? It’s Nick here and I’m alive.
It’s been a very long time since I last posted, and as you can tell the setting is a little bit different now. I’m bald, so I look completely different. I’m bald, my eyebrows are gone, and it’s because I just got done ordaining as a Buddhist monk here in Thailand at Wat Phra Dhammakaya.
Why did you leave to become a Buddhist monk?
And people have been asking me, “Why did you leave everything behind in California, your life behind, to become a Buddhist monk?” And for me, the answer is fairly simple.
In my world, I feel like I have everything in the physical world. I have everything, and according to the western standards, I’m educated, I have a Master’s degree, I have my own business called True Nature Counselling Center, I work for an agency where I’m the lead therapist, I’m a trained therapist, I travel around to do speaking gigs, I work as a professional dancer, a modern dancer, I do hip hop, I also do ballet, I have my own car, I own my own home, I have a lot of friends, and I have good health, I’m in shape. So again, according to western standards, I made it. I have everything. But for me, it’s so what?
The question that keeps me going is, if you were to die tomorrow, so what? What impact did you have on this world? What impact are you making on this world? And everything that I worked so hard for I can’t take — the money, the car, the fame, the anything, I can’t take that.
So for me, I wanted to get quiet. I wanted to detach from the physical world and develop my inner world. To me, that’s more important. Before, I used to be guided by the outside world — what people thought of me, my career, my identity, my labels, who I was, how I was perceived. And for me that’s gone. That’s absolutely gone and it’s time to mature where I wanted to be guided by something more genuine, something more real. And for me that is the soul, that is the spirit, that is the inner world that guides me.
And I wanted to come to Thailand to detach, also to self-reflect, to determine who am I? What do I stand for? What are my values? What guides me? And also to just simply become a better human being in order to be of service to this world. Where to decrease my ego a little bit and also to genuinely learn wisdom. I want to guide people.
And if you guys have been watching my Youtube, you understand that as a marriage and family therapist my goal really is to target two audiences. One, I want to work with celebrities and entertainers in Hollywood, so the arts, professional athletes in the Hollywood world. And secondly, I want to target the sciences, which is the CEOs, the executives in Silicon Valley, the tech world.
So those are my two main ones and I feel like you can have everything. You can have big goals. You can have big dreams. But at the end of the day, are you a good person? Do you have good habits? Are you kind? Are you compassionate? And do you have a sense of self and identity, where you have a spiritual foundation, you’re grounded in spirituality. You’re grounded in yourself. So that’s kind of what I’s going for and again, in order for me to do this kind of work and to help people heal, I needed to do my own work. And this is why I’m here, to self-reflect and again, to become a better person.
What is it like to be a Buddhist monk?
Well, first off let me start by saying where I am. This is called Wat Phra Dhammakaya. It’s the world’s largest temple, and I’m telling you, it’s humungous. It’s shaped, the main meditation centre, it’s shaped as a square. Each side of the square is one kilometre so that’s about two thirds of a mile, and it’s two thirds of a mile each way, so it’s humungous.
This place is designed to fit one million people. So one million meditators. One million monks. And it’s just huge! Also behind me the gold Cetiya; there are one million Buddha statues on top of it. So this place is simply sacred. This place is holy. And you can just feel the energy around here, and it’s absolutely beautiful.
The schedule of a monk is insane. I thought coming here to become a monk would be the easiest thing, where life is just simple. But no, that’s not how it worked. And I have a new found respect for Buddhist monks out there.
Nick Keomahavong as a Buddhist monk
When I arrived at the airport, I drove an hour here to the temple. And right away, I checked in. They took all my belongings. So no phones, no computers, no laptop, nothing. They took all my luggage, my wallet, my keys. Everything was gone. And they shaved my head, and they gave me a white shirt, and they gave me white pants and there you go. Your identity is gone, and it’s time to learn how to become a Buddhist monk.
Our schedule every morning starts at 4 a.m. So we wake up super early. The ground that we sleep on, it’s insane. We’re simply sleeping on a yoga mat. It’s this thin, and what do we have? We have a blanket, then we have another blanket that we use as a pillow and that’s it.
So I’m used to the comforts of my home, where my bed is nice, it’s big, it’s comfortable. But this? Nope. What they’re teaching you is how to detach from worldly things and just really getting back to the basics. Sleeping, or sleep, or sleeping is for sleep, so that’s the intention of that.
But again, we wake up every morning at 4 a.m. We have to get ready, and then we start morning chanting at 5 a.m. We do morning chanting for about maybe half an hour, and then we meditate for another half an hour, and then after that at six o’clock, we do our chores. That includes cleaning the toilet, being on the laundry team so you’re doing laundry for everyone. You can be on the food team where you help get breakfast and lunch ready, and also cleaning the meditation hall. So those are some of the chores that we do. By 7 a.m., we have breakfast so that’s super early.
After that, we have then our second evening, I mean, second morning chanting. Sorry. After that we have our second morning meditation so we’re meditating each time about an hour, forty-five minutes to an hour. After that we have lunch and then we have a little bit of time off and then at two o’clock we have meditation again with a Dharma talk. So the teaching monk would teach us just education about Buddhism, about the world, about spirituality.
And then we have a little bit of free time, and then at night at 7 p.m., then we have evening chanting, and then a Dharma talk and then meditation again.
The schedule has been super difficult because all you’re doing is you’re eating breakfast and lunch by noon, and after that you’re done. The reason for that is as a Buddhist monk, you’re not using so much energy. Most of the time is through meditation, being mindful, doing your chores, and so you don’t need to consume that much.
But overall, my experience is amazing. Amazing.
Each day, 24 hours felt like a week, at times a month. It’s strange because time just completely stopped without your phone, without your keys, without your wallet. It’s, it’s just gone.
And I remember for the first time standing up wearing my robes and I’m like, “Holy crap! I’m not looking for my keys, I’m not looking for my wallet, I’m not looking for my phone.” And it just felt so free.
One of the differences of being in a monastery, being in a temple, is the conversation is different. It’s weird how in the western world when we meet someone, the first thing we always ask is, “Who are you? What do you do? Where do you live?” Those kinds of questions.
But in the temple, the questions were different. The questions were “How’s your meditation? What good did you do today? What’s your plan for the future?” But they really asked questions that had more depth to it and it’s not surface-y.
Your identity, what you do in the physical world, kind of… it really doesn’t matter. How much money do you have, who cares? Who gives a damn? They’re not interested in that. But what they really want to know is, how are you going to improve yourself. How do you want to become a better man? What’s the good that you did today? So again these are really different questions.
So why is meditation important?
In the monastery, we meditate a lot. It’s funny, in the western world we would do, you know, five minute meditation. But no, when you come here, each session is about an hour, sometimes an hour and twenty minutes, and they do not sugar coat it.
If you have never meditated, if you’re an experienced meditator, no, it doesn’t matter. We are meditating for long sessions and you’re going to get used to it. But each day, we would meditate around three to maybe five to six hours, so it was a lot of time.
Meditation is probably the most important thing ever. The analogy that they taught us is just like showering. For the physical body, we know how to clean the physical body, and that’s through showering. And we do that on a daily basis, without people even telling us. It’s been a habit of ours where we can’t even sleep because it feels so dirty, and you just need a chance to shower.
So that’s how we take care of the physical body. But for the mind, we never shower that and we never clean that. Our day is filled with emotions and different events where we have anger and jealousy and greed and delusion, and we never clean it. And the only way to clean it is through meditation. Meditation is showering of the mind.
They also teach us that in the physical world, if you don’t shower for a day, it’s okay, whatever. If you don’t shower for a couple of days then you start to notice it and it bothers you. If you don’t shower for a week or so, other people notice it because you start smelling, so it will bother other people. And then if you don’t shower for a very long time then it’s just a big issue.
But same thing with the mind. When we don’t meditate for a day, okay, whatever. If we don’t meditate for a week, Ah! Your mind starts getting clouded. It starts building up stress, anxiety, worries, depression. If you don’t shower for a month, again, your mind is clouded.
And it’s interesting because there are people out there who have never showered their minds, it’s been two decades. It’s been 30 years that you’ve never showered your mind and you’re thinking the same thoughts. So just imagine how clouded your mind is. And this is why mediation is so important. Again, it’s just simply showering the mind and clearing the mind. Meditation is important because it gives you an opportunity for clarity. That simple.
When you can get your mind to still, let all the emotions, let all the thoughts, just calm down, then you can make clear choices. A lot of times people say, “Well, I don’t have enough time.” Well, the fact that you’re going through life and making sloppy decisions because your mind is not clear, you’re actually wasting time. If you actually took time each day to shower the mind, get quiet, get still, you would save so much time. You would develop inner joy, inner happiness, a peace of mind, and also again, clarity. That’s when wisdom just comes up. And then you can make decisions for yourself, your company, your family. That is more effective, and you can save more time. So try it out, it’s very important.
What’s a tip that I can give people in the Western world?
The tip, really, would be to develop a spiritual practice. You need to get grounded. You need time each day to detach from the physical world, to detach from your labels, your identity, who you think you are, this notion of feeling special. Detach from all that and get connected to the source of who you are. And again, that’s through meditation.
And the biggest misconception people have about Buddhism is that you need to be poor, you need to be a minimalist, and you need to not pursue anything in the physical world. And that’s not true. You can be a billionaire and still be a Buddhist. You can have big dreams and big goals and big visions, that’s not the issue. You can have a mansion, that’s not the issue. You can have private planes and private jets and again, that’s not the issue. But the issue is, are you a good person? And are you contributing to make this world a better place?
You can be a billionaire but be an asshole, versus be a billionaire and be kind and compassionate and help those around you. For people that have everything, that have all the material items necessary in the physical world, my question for you is, “How much is enough?” When you have a million dollars, do you need ten million dollars? Do you need a hundred million dollars? Now do you need a billion dollars? Do you need more clothes? Do you need more friends? Do you need more likes and followers? And like, when is enough, enough? And again, at the end of the day, when you die, you can’t take any of that. So my question to you would be to, or my challenge to you is really to see what do you want to leave behind? And also what are your values? And what guides you? I don’t know. These are questions that you might want to explore.
So again, I just want to say thank you to everyone for following me on my journey. Again, I’m an introvert. I’m very private. But doing this Youtube series, sharing my life, sharing my journey, has been amazing. I really do want to do more meditation videos. And again, I just came here to Thailand to develop myself, to be authentic, to have substance, and the rest of the time now is I want to give back to you guys.
Traveling around the world to do meditation videos, teaching you guys of… pursue you, dream big, but at the same time be grounded, and the way to do that is through meditation, and I’m going to guide you guys through every step of the way.
If you have a suggestion of where you want me to travel to, to meditate, feel free to comment below. Send me your ideas, topics that you guys have. Again, this channel is for you guys and I want to learn and grow with you guys, and let’s do this together. But happy meditating and let’s do this. It’s going to be a fun and exciting journey and continue to subscribe and follow me and share this with your friends. So, thank you.
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJXRcoM4TTw
About Nick Keomahavong
Nick Keomahavong
In 2017, Nick Keomahavong, a successful marriage and family therapist and a professional dancer, left his comfortable home in California and boarded a plane to Thailand. He had signed up for the International Dhammadayada Ordination Program (IDOP).
By western standards, Nick is living a successful and comfortable life. He has a Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) degree specialising in Communications from San Diego State University, and a Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Counselling from the University of Phoenix. In addition, Nick has completed a Gestalt Therapy training program at the Pacific Gestalt Institute of Los Angeles and is now a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. He specialises in anxiety, depression, grief and loss, self-esteem, mood, life transitions, mental health and related matters.
Nick is the founder and CEO of the True Nature Counseling Centre, an organisation that aims to help its clients find stability by reconnecting with their inner self to become balanced and whole. In addition to running a successful counselling practice, Nick is a professional dancer and the host of ‘Real Talk with Nick‘, a YouTube channel that provides psychological education and entertainment to its viewers.
Despite his achievements, Nick realised that he would not be able to take his reputation and material possessions with him when he passes on from this world and so, after contemplating upon impermanence, he decided to develop his spiritual side and joined the IDOP. Through this program, Nick came to appreciate a simpler way of life and learned proper meditation techniques to clear his mind.
I wanted to share this story on Nick Keomahavong because this man faces the truth of life and life’s results. He pondered, he thought deeper and embraced the truth of life. Which is all things are transient, impermanent and does not give true happiness. Anything based on transient phenomena within the material world and projected world of our mind will not last. He does not hide or avoid the truths of life behind materialism, technology, pop culture and so on. But he faces it head on. Despite what the materialistic world might think of his decision to give up the ‘pleasures’ for a life of an abstinent monk, this man has his own mind, will and logic and he follows it through. He is indeed not only brave but determined and inspirational. For many living behind the illusions of the materialistic world and it’s false promises is nearly impossible to do what Nick is doing. Never mind leaving behind the materialistic world, but even hearing the truth about it is rare already. So I find Nick’s sharing in the video and his thoughts powerful. Also very logical. I especially like the analogy he gives of why we should do meditation and how it helps us in daily life. I am sharing about this person to inspire more people to delve deeper in life and it’s true meaning as well as it’s purpose. We can be here for higher purposes and thereby not wasting our human potentials.
I wish the best of luck to Nick Keomahavong and his spiritual journey.
Tsem Rinpoche
For more interesting information:
- Vows: The Roots of All Attainments
- Community Vows
- Integrity – a talk at the Floating Market in Thailand
- The Practice of Sangha
- Bangkok monks and why make offerings
- For those who hold vows
- Meditation
- 15 Reasons Why Meditation Will Make You Successful
- Wonderful Thailand
- 30,000 ordained as monks in one go!
- I’m Requesting Ordination in 1987
- Mother Tara spotted in Bangkok!
- I visited the largest Buddha statue in Thailand!!!
- Incredible White Temple in Thailand
- Why We Become Sangha: A Reply to an Online Friend
- The Practice of Sangha
- Support the Kechara Pastors
- Sacred & attained Nuns of Gebchak Nunnery
- 5 Unexpected Women Who Became Buddhist Nuns
Please support us so that we can continue to bring you more Dharma:
If you are in the United States, please note that your offerings and contributions are tax deductible. ~ the tsemrinpoche.com blog team
Inspiring aticle of Nick Keomahavong, a Youtuber , previously a practicing psychotherapist, professional dancer, businessman, has been ordained as a Theravada Buddhist monk in Thailand . At the pinnacle of his professional success he left everything, his comfortable life in San Diego ,California travelling to Thailand to be a monk. Years of self-improvement and understanding of human sufferings has led him to completely transform his life to be a Buddhist. Interesting read .
Thank you Rinpoche for this sharing.
Through this video and transcript, Nick has actually shown and described to us that actually it is not that impossible for anyone of us to become an ordained monk or nun in the monastery.
This is a very inspiring story. Money and material possession don’t give us the real happiness, like Nick said, when we have a million, we want 10 million. When we have 10 million, we want 100 million.Thank you very much for the article.
Thank you, Rinpoche and blog team for sharing this inspiring young man’s video with us here. It is enlightening to hear the inner thoughts of someone that actually went into the spiritual path to Buddhahood first hand.
Nick is a man which the society will be labeled as “successful” because he owns all the things that the society perceive as “basic needs” for everyone. Everyone needs to get a car, a good job, a good partner, a good house and a healthy body. Once that person has achieved it, they will be labelled as successful.
However, being labelled successful by the society does not bring true happiness. It is a world of dissatisfaction where we will be soon dissatisfied with some part of our lives and we will need to constantly improve our life to feed this growing dissatisfaction. I guess this feeling of dissatisfaction drove Nick to seek for higher purpose in life outside of the mundane lifestyle.
All enlightened beings are worthy of homage and worship. They are the best beings to take refuge in and we should offer them our prayers as we can put our full confidence in them. Of all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, I personally find that Manjushri is extremely important. This is because what keeps us in samsara (cyclic rebirth) is our total ignorance and misunderstanding of the reality of existence. What is necessary to penetrate this deep ignorance that keeps us bound in a perpetual state of reincarnation is wisdom. We need many types of wisdom which can be acquired by relying on Manjushri as our yidam (meditational deity). By focusing on his meditation, practice, mantra and path we can gain wisdom in order to have the tool to penetrate the reality of existence. Therefore, Manjushri is an extremely important Buddha for us to focus on and take refuge in.
Tsem Rinpoche
(Photograph: this is the beautiful outdoor Manjushri statue who is in a teaching pose. He is floating above a koi fish pond nestled among lush greenery in Kechara Forest Retreat, Malaysia)
每一位觉者都能成为我们朝拜、膜拜的对象。他们是我们至高、至好的皈依，我们应该向他们做祈请，并且对他们生起全然的信念。在众佛菩萨之中，我个人认为文殊菩萨极为重要。这是因为使我们身陷娑婆（轮回）的是我们自身的无明，以及对实相的曲解。智慧是一种必要，它能穿透我们深不见底的无明，那个使我们受困于无止境投生的无明。我们需要多种智慧，而依止文殊菩萨作为我们的本尊，即能使我们成就多种智慧。透过文殊菩萨的观想、修持法门、心咒及修行道路，我们能成就智慧，拥有了知实相的“器具”。故此，专注于文殊菩萨的修持法门、皈依他，对我们而言都极为重要。
詹杜固仁波切
（相片：这尊户外文殊菩萨像呈转法轮姿。他被茂密的草木环绕，安坐在马来西亚克切拉禅修林的鱼池之上。）
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this inspiring story.
I totally agree with what Nick said. Those who have an insight into what a monk’s schedule will be inspired and amazed at how different it is than what most people will expect. There is a common thinking of many people going to be ordained as a monk because they cannot handle the real life and they are escaping by becoming ordained. However, that is not the case.
From Nick’s sharing, I know that a monk has to be disciplined in their mind and actions. It is actually harder to go through what a monk goes through because it requires discipline, perseverance, and tenacity. Meditation alone takes up 6 hours of the schedule and it is not easy for us to face our inner voice and try to be still focusing on the meditation for 6 hours. Our mind is so jumpy and restless and it will not be easy for us to go through what a monk goes through daily. It actually requires more inner strength in order to face our inner self than chasing our desires and letting our mind wander aimlessly.
Medicine Buddha puja encourages healing of all levels – physical, mental and emotional healing for those in need.
High resolution file of this thangka is available for download for all dharma practitioners around the world and for those who just want sacred images in their environment. Enjoy, be blessed and share this with others.
Here is the link to free download of this image and many other images: https://www.tsemrinpoche.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/downloads/buddha-images.html?nggpage=7
Nick has everything a normal person dream of, money, career, car, house, and friends. He is a very qualified person in his own field. It is unusual for a person who is so successful like Nick to give up all the material things he has and became an ordained monk.
Nick can think very far and he is someone who focuses out. The questions he asked himself is ‘what impact I have made in this world if I die today’, not the usual ‘what have I not done or enjoy if I die today’. With this question in mind, he found the answer in a Thai temple. He knows how important it is to be kind and compassionate and these are the keys to happiness.
He did not complain about the hardship he experienced in the temple, he explained this was a training of detachment. He also mentioned in the temple, you can be your true self, what or who you are before doesn’t make a difference here. Without the identity and phone actually, give Nick more time to contemplate and focus on the training. He feels freer than before.
Money and material possession don’t give us the real happiness, like Nick said, when we have a million, we want 10 million. When we have 10 million, we want 100 million. It is never enough and we put so much effort and time to work for something we can’t bring when we die.
Listening to the chanting of sacred words, melodies, mantras, sutras and prayers has a very powerful healing effect on our outer and inner environments. It clears the chakras, spiritual toxins, the paths where our ‘chi’ travels within our bodies for health as well as for clearing the mind. It is soothing and relaxing but at the same time invigorates us with positive energy. The sacred sounds invite positive beings to inhabit our environment, expels negative beings and brings the sound of growth to the land, animals, water and plants. Sacred chants bless all living beings on our land as well as inanimate objects. Do download and play while in traffic to relax, when you are about to sleep, during meditation, during stress or just anytime. Great to play for animals and children. Share with friends the blessing of a full Dorje Shugden puja performed at Kechara Forest Retreat by our puja department for the benefit of others. Tsem Rinpoche
Listen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbzgskLKxT8&t=5821s
I am thankful to Nick for sharing his insights about his time as a monk and also the insight he had gotten meditating at Wat Phra Dhammakaya. I liked that he equated meditation as showering the mind. I have never heard such an analogy before but it seems like quite a precise analogy for meditation. Everyday our minds are exposed to all manner of ideas and concepts and some of things we encounter could be like a contaminant and hinders us from seeing things as it really is. So taking a shower of the mind makes a lot of sense.
This is a very inspiring story. Nick had everything in his life but he intend to think deeply what is life about. Nowadays, many people keep attaching to physical things which can’t bring any ultimate happiness in future. People always keep loooking for more especially in money.
Money itself is nothing if we can’t spend it to benefit more people. We must always remind ourself that everything that we owned( physical things) is temporary and we can’t bring it when we die.
This YouTube really inspired me to practice Dharma to benefit myself and others as well.
Jason
Thanks Rinpoche and the blog team for this inspiring article.
Like Rinpoche says, Nick’s journey is enlightening as not many people can realise impermanence living in a materialism world. The human life is about developing a higher state of mind where closer to Buddha’s, where suffering ceased.
I think Nick made a good choice to use the platform of Youtube and social medias to talk about his learning. Unlike counselings and theraphies they work like professional services to others, spiritual practice on the other hand is something invoking for people to have inner peace and strength. Happiness is free and the method to find the meaning of life should be accessed easily by the public, Nick does this even he is an introvert and private person for a great motivation to benefit others.
Thank you RInpoche and Nick to show us a better we can take for our life.
I rejoice to Nick who has found spiritual happiness! I truly respect his courage to leave everything behind to live a simple life as a monk in Thailand. Nick’s sharing about himself and spiritual journey is really inspirational .Thank you Rinpoche and blog team for this inspiring post and video ??
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing.
Inspiring. It is true as what he say when we have everything and what’s next.
To be grounded in spiritual world.???
Helping people and going back to the basic and meditation and developing boddhisatva.
Life should be just as simple as that.
???
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing the video and transcript of Nick Keomahavong’s sharing about his points of view and reasons for him to leave all his worldly possessions and looking forward to learn of how to become an ordained, Buddhist monk. According to Nick, all the achievements and possessions which he currently owns will not be taken along at the time of his death and hence, Nick has started to begin his spiritual path heading towards the realization of emptiness and a sense of compassion where he wants to contribute his skill, knowledge and wisdom to help others in this world.
Upon listening to Nick in his video, I understand that the healing of one’s inner problem such as anger, laziness, self-cherishing mind, ego, greed, attachment and ignorance (which can lead us to negative results in life with unhappiness and suffering), cannot be found from the worldly achievement, wealth and other possessions but more from our spiritual practice that can dig out the problems rooted deep in our minds and eradicate our inner problems by cultivating and developing more compassion and good habits within ourselves.
Through this video and transcript, Nick has actually shown and described to us that actually it is not that impossible for anyone of us to become an ordained monk or nun in the monastery. Most importantly is we have to let go of all our worries, attachments, comfort zone, self-centered mind and fully trust in the Buddha that all the Buddha’s teachings including Dharma practice, meditation and mind training can lead us towards finding our real purpose in life, which are free from our self-created problems and leading our lives with compassion and motivation of benefiting others by saving animals and all living beings, feeding the homeless people, sponsoring for spiritual institutions and stop creating any harmful actions that can give sufferings and pain to others.
Nick has given us a convincing testimonial that by practicing meditation daily, we can remove our accumulated stress, anxiety, worries and depression that can prevent us from moving forward in our lives positively. May our world become a better place to live that can be filled up with compassion and peace.
Thank you with folded hands,
kin hoe
Last Saturday, at an event marking 60 years of Tibetans being recipients of Indian kindness, Lobsang Sangay mentioned that the exiled Tibetans should strengthen their efforts to make the Dalai Lama’s return to his Potala Palace a reality.
Representing the Indian government, Ram Madhav, a leader in the governing Bharatiya Janata party, echoed Sangay’s statement with hope that the Dalai Lama will be able to “return to your homeland” through peaceful and democratic means.
This event was originally planned to be held in Delhi but it was cancelled and relocated to Dharamsala. At the same time, Indian officials were directed by their Foreign Secretary to avoid events hosted by the Tibetan leadership, since they coincided with a “sensitive time” for Delhi’s relations with Beijing. India’s volte-face approach in shunning the Tibetans, with the unprecedented cancellation of many key Tibetan events, is now being viewed as a clear sign that India is no longer willing to be collateral damage in the Tibetan quest to agitate China over the so-called Tibetan cause.
With mounting pressure from India to not hurt their relations with China, the tone of the message this time around seems to be that of a plea with only one goal in mind: for the Dalai Lama to return to Tibet and reunite with Tibetans inside Tibet. Could it be that after 60 years, the Tibetan leadership has finally realised their fight against China is a futile one, and they should start looking at more achievable goals? May the aspirations of millions of Tibetans to see the Dalai Lama’s return to Tibet be fulfilled and in the words of Madhav, that ” it will not take that long for you (Tibetans) to be back home.”
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/apr/01/pm-in-exile-urges-tibetans-to-make-dalai-lamas-return-a-reality
Very inspiring …. giving up his promising career as a therapist, a professional dancer,CEO, family, Nick Keomahavong travelled to Thailand to be a monk. A place totally new to him, leaving all what he have to become a monk. He has everything in life but he has a deep thought what if he were to die tomorrow ,nothing he can take along. All he wanted is to detach from the physical world and develop his inner world. His thoughts, discussion and what he said truly powerful enough to inspired more people . Going through the same routine daily seem to Nick is a amazing experience of a life time. He explained in a simple way the importance of meditation how it helps us in daily life. Wonderful sharing of his spiritual journey through the youTube.
Thank you Rinpoche for this sharing .
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this with us. From the story, I can see that Nick is a person who has it all and nonetheless he still feel that finding himself is more important than all the material pursuits. In fact, by being a monk he has everything to gain. It’s the best when we can shower or declutter our mind from time to time or at least daily. I find it true as well. The best period that I love is when I’m having retreat. I don’t have to answer call or reply any messages and in fact, it didn’t really matter if I were to reply it later. After all, it’s very meaningless but in order to keep business going, I have to. Actually it disturbs the mind a lot with all those petty stuffs, I must say. It’s kind of stick/dirty your mind. I wish him all the best and looks like he is coming out to help and benefiting others again.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this account of Nick Keomahavong ,of why he gave up everything – a flourishing business and great career as well as the comfort of a home and worldly possessions – to become a monk, with nothing to his name.It is amazing and wonderful that at the height of his career and when literally the world was at his feet, he could have such a powerful insight into what happens when he dies.Amazing that he can think of how he would have to leave everything behind as well as have the conviction that carrying on with his current way of life, he would not have left much of a positive impact on the world.
Thus he wants to be a monk to develop his inner self and shape the values and cultivate the qualities that would make him a better kinder person, to be of greater benefit and service to others. In order to help others heal and to guide others in the conduct of their lives, he has to heal himself and find his true inner self first. He will be immersed in meditation and for him this is most wonderful. He believes in the power of meditation to help one achieve purification, clarity and wisdom. One would develop inner joy, inner happiness and a peace of mind in the process.
Wonderful that at such a relatively young age, he is able to sieve out the distractions and the transitory of this life and separate himself from them. Nick is truly inspiring and he makes you want to really get at the true meaning and purpose of life.