My Journey to Mount Kailash!

Hello my dear friends! I sincerely apologize for the months of silence on my part, you see with the construction of the printing press and the library at the nunnery things were extremely without a doubt HECTIC. It is for this sole reason, not that I did not enjoy my time with my fellow nuns and the bonds we created by attempting to negotiate and decipher what we essentially needed in the nunnery, it’s just that I have decided that I needed some time to re-collect my thoughts. As many of you know I left my family, and decided to come to the village to start a new life for myself, but ever since my time here there has always been some type of major event occurring one after the other, and I feel like I have not really had the time/ opportunity to fully comprehend the fact that I am now a single woman who has joined a nunnery and has abandoned her family. Not that I am regretting a single decision, however I do just want to take a moment to fully decipher through all my thoughts and feelings. I apologize for the babbling…were was I? Oh yes, so it is for this sole reason that I have decided to become gnas skor ba.

Let me begin by explaining what the term gnas skor ba comes to mean. ‘Gnas’ is the Tibetan Buddhist word for sacred place, and a gnas skor ba is literally someone who decides to circle around this sacred place. In simpler terms I am a “pilgrim.” Interestingly the idea of a pilgrimage is quite popular here in Tibet. Although as seen in the Western world it involves a visit to a sacred location, it is not strictly centered on that in Tibetan Buddhism. Some individuals decide to become a pilgrim and then undertake a pilgrimage to pray for a specific outcome, others to gain holy energy, or to erase negative karma. Regardless of your main concern as a Tibetan pilgrim, there is always some type of connection that is involved with the deities, who govern the gnas.

Initially I began my journey outside of the village by foot, with a few heart-felt goodbyes from the nuns I had become quite close too. As harsh as it may sound, I now see the nuns as my family, and the nunnery as my home, compared to the one I left behind initially to make my way to this village. I believe this is because I never really felt any type of immediate connection with my family, but the nuns and I here developed a special bond, by discovering similar interests. Though I still do not regret making my way as a pilgrim, as I did need that type of solitude for a couple of weeks at least. Just so I can get my head sorted you know? Anyways back to were I was, as I began to make my way by foot, I noticed a man who was selling horses. Although I knew that I could never afford one, he became quite interested in a shawl I was wearing that had been presented to me by the Lama when he visited our village. Although I was hesitant at first I knew the Lama would be proud of the journey I had decided to take on as a pilgrim, and the horse was the most effective way to complete my journey. So I traded in my shawl, and was on my way. To say my journey was a “hard” would be a huge understatement. I won’t get into too much detail about how many long and tiresome weeks it took me to cross a great proportion of our country, to reach my destination Mount Kailash. I chose Mount Kailash, as it is known as the most sacred regions in Tibet. Just to go into minor detail of my journey though, I initially walked, then was given my horse, who had made the journey less time consuming, and while travelling we also stopped for a few days in neighbouring regions such as Lhasa. I was lucky enough to meet many accommodating individuals on my journey, and I bless the Great Buddha for this, as I was able to trade many of my scholarly advice as a nun for supplies, food, and accommodation. I began to picture myself as an early Tibetan, whom I had read about, through their pilgrimage activities. With their pilgrimage activities they were able to spread cultural practices, and create wide spread Tibetan identity on their journeys as pilgrims. At times although I was exhausted and wanted to give up all hope of ever reaching my destination, I worked to keep my inner spirits up and my intentions pure, as this was what a true Tibetan pilgrim should strive to achieve on their pilgrimage.

Finally I was dropped at a trailhead by a local woman, who had decided to keep my horse with her while I made the last leg of my journey. In return she only asked if I bring her some type of blessing from my pilgrimage. Whole-heartedly I agreed, and began my hike into the center of the Himalaya. While on my hike I was faced with open, dry, and uneven land, and cold, clear springs. It is said that Tibetan pilgrims sometimes walked for months, even years to reach the most precious glacial peak (Gangs ri rin po che) of Mount Kailash. I am lucky enough that we are in an era, wherein horses are readily available, along with automobiles. Though, by reading about these pilgrims I became even more determined and inspired to complete my journey. Mount Kailash is thought to be the center of a sacred mandala, around which, throughout an area extending for over hundreds of miles, all-important geographical characteristics were outlined in a well-ordered and significant form of fashion. Therefore, the great Manosarovar and Rakshatal lakes, and the four rivers that are thought to have their sources near Kailash, all represented the symmetry and perfection of the natural mandala of the landscape. Most commonly in Tibetan Buddhism, the mandala is seen representing the symbolic map of the Tibetan cosmos. The main points concerning the mandala are that virtually every grain of sand in the mandala comes to mean something significant, and also that the mandala is seen an inner and outer representation of the world.

Luckily enough on the final stage of my pilgrimage I also encountered a nun from Lhasa, who had decided to take the journey of a pilgrim herself, and had stopped for a drink near one of the rivers. We began talking immediately and to my utter shock I discovered she was merely 16 years of age, but what a determined one she was! Her name was Pema, and I smiled indicating that I actually had a friend named Pema back home in my village. With an instant connection she agreed to accompany and instruct me on my last leg of my journey, as she had also mentioned that she had joined her fellow nuns on a pilgrimage, such as this only a few years back. Feeling confident with my companion Pema, I began noticing Mount Kailash or in Tibetan Buddhism “Ti-se” coming closer and closer in view. Soon Pema began to tell me about how the mandala could essentially teach me about this holy site we were about to encounter. Interestingly, the area surrounding Ti-se is essentially a rather large mandala, and Ti-se, lying at its center, is Mount Meru itself! It is according to Pema, and what I also learnt as a local scholar in my village, the axis mundi of the world. Each rock and landscape we passed also had its own significance, as I had learnt through my pilgrimage guide. Although the journey towards Ti-se is quite fascinating, and even more so with great company, when approaching the sacred unit Tibetan Buddhist pilgrims must devout their entire attitude with the purest of hearts, and so soon my travel buddy and I fell silent.

Before I had decided to make my journey over to Mount Kailash I had gone over to the library that was underway at the nunnery to see if I could retrieve any books that I been written about famous pilgrimage sites. Luckily I had come across one written about Mount Kailash, and its famous legends. While coming closer to Mount Kailash I began recalling these legends. It is said that Mount Kailash was the site of a great battle that occurred between Milarepa (who represented Buddhist tradition) and Naro-Bunchung (who represented Bon), for a Tibetan religious allegiance. It is said that while Naro-Bunchung began to descend on a magic drum to the summit, Milarepa being the cunning saint sat in silent meditative practice. It was when Naro reached the top of the summit that Milarepa came through on a ray of sunlit, and claimed victory. It is not surprising then to imagine that a single journey of Ti-se can erase all forms of negative karma and promote positive karma, especially if we have the great Milarepa to look up to for inspiration, who with his pure intentions and key meditative practices was able to beat a man, that seemed to have already claimed victory.

To point out a few things I attempted to do while on my circumambulation with Pema, was to provide an offering to the Buddha Demchog, who is said to inhabit Ti-Se. After our first few steps we continued in a clockwise direction, as Pema pointed out proper observances to me. We also came in view of Lake Manasaraovar, while heading south, which is the female representative of the male mountain. In order to honour Manasarowar I was instructed to pour water towards her. As we continued to progress, each of Ti-se’s four faces came into view, and these were the representations of the four Noble Kings: Dhrtarastra, who is the ruler of the east, Virudhaka, of the south; Virupaksa, of the west; and Vaisravana, of the north. It seemed that with every step towards a new direction Pema and I encountered the feeling that we were surrounded by various deities and protectors, and I felt completely and utterly at peace. Despite all the outside beauty that Mount Kailash did indeed have to offer, I couldn’t forget the sanctity of the inner space that was of the utmost importance to me as a Tibetan pilgrim.

I had read that the circumambulation would take around three days and Pema had confirmed this, but to be completely honest with you my fellow readers, I did not feel like I had even been in Mount Kailash that long. Surrounded by beauty, peace, and tranquility I believe I have finally found some solitude. I don’t know how I came to this conclusion, but my path as a nun and my life in the nunnery is one I have discovered I am very content with. Although escaping the village for a while was quite nice, just to get away from the hustle and bustle, I am ready to go back. If anything this pilgrimage has taught me that I am a strong woman, who can conquer the most difficult of paths, with positive actions and a strong attitude. And so I thank all my protectors and deities who I encountered on my journey as a pilgrim. You have truly taught me where I belong!