Highways of Nepal

Back safe in the luxurious land of Canada and preparing for a trip to Trumpland down south, I found myself reminiscing about my recent trip to Nepal and the conditions there. I took a lot of photographs that I haven't processed yet, so I looked into them and came up with this one that illustrates the disparity in wealth between there and here. In Nepal, this stony path is considered a highway. Here you see a crowded tour bus forging along the highway. There was obviously only room enough for one vehicle. As I took the photo, the driver of the truck I was in was busy backing up to find a place to pull over so the bus could pass.

There are spiritual treasures in Nepal that rival or out-rank anything the West has coughed up yet. On this particular trip, I was able to meditate in the same cave where Milarepa, a supremely accomplished Tibetan practitioner of Buddhism, spent time and sang songs almost a thousand years ago. And then we jolted back to Kathmandu over 'highways' that buses here would never attempt to navigate.

Ours is a dreamlike world. Yet it deserves to be seen. If only to engage our sympathy for everyone in it.

OM MANI PADME HUM

27 May 2019
Texas Jim
Prospect, Nova Scotia
www.granitecoast.ca