{"id":7483,"date":"2024-09-30T11:16:09","date_gmt":"2024-09-30T14:16:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.foradacaixacoletivo.com.br\/openzine\/?p=7483"},"modified":"2024-11-28T11:39:37","modified_gmt":"2024-11-28T14:39:37","slug":"nepal-a-place-of-peace-and-spirituality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.foradacaixacoletivo.com.br\/openzine\/nepal-a-place-of-peace-and-spirituality\/","title":{"rendered":"Nepal – A place of Peace and Spirituality"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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My trip to Nepal began with a 7- day immersion in the mountains of Nagarkot<\/strong>. An incredible selection of 56 peace educators from around the world were brought together by the International Institute on Peace Education<\/strong> to exchange experiences and disseminate practices in this field of education. There is another article where I talk about this event and what my participation experience was like, as well as the presentation of the project carried out by the Fora da Caixa cultural collective team. See link: https:\/\/www.foradacaixacoletivo.com.br\/openzine\/iipe-nepal-an-extraordinary-experience\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This narrative corresponds to the post-event period, where I had the opportunity to wander and pilgrimage in sacred places in the city, Kathmandu Valley and surrounding areas. Directions, tips for where to stay, the recommendations for guides and transport services were given to me by my long-time friend Manoel Morgado,<\/strong> experienced mountaineer and expert in taking groups to climb Everest, Kilimanjaro and many other mountains around the world. Due to his work and life choices, he has lived in Kathmandu and knows this destination as his backyard. His recommendations were truly precious and made my trip much easier and safe. Find out about the destinations of his groups and trips at Morgado Expedi\u00e7\u00f5es, see link: https:\/\/www.morgadoexpedicoes.com.br\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I love traveling solo, deciding how and where I’m going to spend my days or simply sitting in a cafe and watching life go by, feeling the atmosphere of the place without having anything planned in advance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I stayed next to the Shechen Buddhist Monastery<\/strong>, feeling the good vibes of this beautiful, sacred and inspiring place up close. There they maintain a very organized and clean guesthouse with a cafeteria that serves several delicious things at a super affordable price. In fact, traveling to Nepal is not expensive, the worst part is the flight ticket, but in terms of accommodation and food it is very affordable. Just one detail: it is super important to bring money, dollars or euros, in cash. In Nepal there are few places that accept international credit and debit cards. This made my stay a bit difficult at times, but thanks to the help of my guardian angels Gunjan Jha<\/strong> and Yoo Gesh<\/strong>, friends who became my saviors in some troubles due to my international debit card not working to withdraw money, with their help everything was fine and I was able to make the most of the days I was in the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The location of the hostel could not be better, a little away from the hustle and bustle of the center and very close to the Boudhanath stupa, one of the most popular places for pilgrims and tourists in Kathmandu. The place is truly special, full of devotees saying their prayers, prostrating and nourishing themselves with the spiritual energy that emanates from this sacred place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Leaving the guesthouse, walking through some alleys, I soon saw the stupa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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But before arriving, I had to cross the monastery courtyard, which in itself was enchanting. I felt very privileged and protected being there. One of the main reasons for my trip was to pilgrimage to Buddhist sites that have a connection with my practice and studies of Tibetan Medicine, so being there awakened in me a deep feeling of gratitude and devotion. The monastery and temple are very beautiful, full of details in their paintings, prayer wheels, auspicious symbols, colorful windows and doors, flowery gardens full of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The hostel was also welcoming, with excellent service, kind and polite people. I already mentioned the menu, right? But I’ll show you some images:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I confess that I didn’t feel the time pass during the period I was in Nepal, it felt like I was living a parallel reality, the hospitality, harmony, respect between people, education and simplicity made me feel an inner and outer peace that in a few moments or places in the world I was able to experience. When asking local residents or not, what their religion was, the answer was always the same:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cI am Buddhist and Hinduist, here everyone respects and lives in harmony with all religions\u201d. Just like that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Being far from our society that insists on preaching and condemning religions that are much older than Christianity, much more inclusive, peaceful in their practices and less prejudiced, made me reflect on the spiritual poverty that has taken hold in our country. Poverty, yes, because the teachings of all religions, originating from any country or time, preach love, compassion and kindness. But these values \u200b\u200bdon’t seem to me to be currently being cultivated. This saddens me, but at the same time being in Nepal and feeling this true, vibrant and strongly spiritual union gave me hope that one day the world can be inspired by this example and evolve to the point of achieving this excellence in terms of spiritualized human beings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Local commerce is predominantly devotional, sellers of seeds, fruits, spices mixed in the alleys with souvenirs, incense, japamalas, Tankas, images of Buddhas, Yoginis, Hinduism Deities and a wide variety of religious artifacts. There are no people insisting that you buy anything, at most they invite you into their store or show you their products and with a simple \u201cNo, thanks\u201d they leave and let you walk without being bothered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Out of pure ignorance and lack of knowledge, I imagined that people would be more insistent, like in India for example, where it is very difficult to visit tourist places without there being several sellers, children and beggars trying to attract your attention. Just as I thought the traffic would be similar, with lots of crowds, horns, animals and confusion. I was wrong again, there is heavy traffic, but there are no animals or horns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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