Dear Simone,
As much as I love to read, I think if we only had was Easwaran’s translation of the Dhammapada, Schmidt’s book on Dipa Ma, and Knaster’s book on Munindra, we’d have enough teaching, inspiration, challenge for however many hours, days, weeks, months, years we have left to us.
Here’s what I mean, almost from at random in Living This Life Fully:
“You get thirty seconds with some teachers, but you could hang out with Munindra-ji. If you only saw the personality, he was this kind of odd little gentleman who had a lot of peculiarities.” I’m a nobody who aspires to be a cross between Munindra and Sartre, when it comes to hanging out, usually in cafes. I have no professional training, no certification, no socially recognized status as “one-with-whom-you-can-hang-out.” Reading about Munindra inspires me to go further, and listen longer, and forget about time.
There were people who were concerned about leaving Munindra alone, but he’d say “Don’t worry about me. I have many companions: The ants are here, the mosquitos are here, the birds are here, the devas are here. I am never lonesome.” I laugh out loud at this! How often do we have this same outlook? But I am now aware that it’s possible to not be lonely, and I can begin cultivating this today. Dipa Ma: “The Dharma is everywhere.”
“He never said anything unkind about anyone.” Forgive me for lacerating so many people in your company. At times, I may have been ridiculously funny, but still—
Munindra said, “Whatever feelings you have, that is happening now, but it will go after some time. So you must learn to be patient.” Long live impermanence! Things arise, linger, and dissolve, over and over, a hundred trillion times a day on Planet Earth, “Gate Gate Paragate Parasamgate Bodhi Svaha!”
Perry
from work-in-progress, Our Heroic and Ceaseless 24/7 Struggle against Tsuris
