Tholung




Shortly before my father died last December, he asked my mom to have me take his ashes to “the highest mountain”. He always wanted to visit a Buddhist monastery, and often during his 37 years as a quadriplegic he would joke that he had missed his opportunity to be a holy man on top of a far off mountain. Anyone who knew my dad must realize what a bad fit this would have been, but hey- we all have dreams. When I told my daughters that I wanted to take his ashes to the Himalayas, May asked if she could come along (Josey wants to come another time, provided May’s feedback on the trip is sufficiently positive). 

Today we left my father’s ashes in a Himalayan waterfall that passes beside Tholung, one of the most sacred Buddhist sites in Sikkim. Here amongst the craggy peaks, this monastery houses the relics of Lhatsun Chenpo, the monk credited with bringing Buddhism to India. May looked at me and said, “I don’t think you could get a better spot than this”. Indeed. My dad didn’t get to do a fraction of the things he wanted to do in life, but today May and I got to fulfill one dream for him. 

Comments

  1. ChipsterDecember 24, 2022 at 5:45 PM

    Incredible. Just flat out amazing, I want you and May to be in charge of my ashes.

    ReplyDelete

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