Saturday, August 10, 2019

Nepal Trip Post #3


I cannot seem to find the right words to start this. I know what I want to write about to envelop what can be said about this place, but something stops me from being able to untangle all the thoughts in my mind. Perhaps this inexplicable quality itself can properly represent Nepal. I have not understood much for this time, but what I do understand has made amazingly perfect sense.

                A few days ago on a home visit, a girl told me her favorite thing about living in Bhaktapur was the sense of family and unity between everyone here. If said about any other place, I would have dismissed such a common cliché. Even to someone who is slightly familiar with the city, this may have seemed crazy. Bhaktapur, like most cities, seems overcrowded, confused, and never resting. To claim that so many people, so busy, could possibly be anything like connected is a bold accusation. However, I know now that this city is the only one that deserves such an acclaim. Throughout all our time here, I have not seen an ounce of violence, conflict, or any sort of malicious happenings. Instead, everyone here greets everyone, helps everyone, and shares life with everyone. Teamwork and cooperation are not options because no alternatives even exist.

                What I have to thank for this is unclear, but I do know one thing: I have never seen a people so united by religion. At home, religion has become a topic of conflict, unease, and even hatred; no one trusts anyone if they different in beliefs. Here, this could not be more the opposite. Ironically enough, in Nepal, having a mixture of different religious thinking is not only accepted, it’s commonplace. More often than not, a person in Nepal will tell you they are Hindu, but practice Buddhism as well, or vice versa. Everyone prays together. Everyone celebrates together. Everyone is connected through common belief that whatever they believe is best for the world.

                That being said, I am still awestruck by the way that religion manifests itself here. The temples and shrines—many of which we have had the privilege of visiting recently—are so intricate and detailed and cared for; in terms of religion, I don’t even know what I don’t know, but I can tell you that the air surrounding sacred places here is enough to make me feel something. It gave me chills to admire the pristine white temple displaying the engraved story of a Hindu goddess, but it also comforted me. There is simply something that calms me about being in a place that people so deeply trust and put their faith in. Nevertheless, in Bhaktapur, this feeling is not just in the temples, it is the city itself. Walking down the streets, I feel the city itself sigh with love for its people, and I see the people care for it more than someone cares for only a home.

                Nepal has me perplexed. But, I trust that the connections I have made here need no explanation to me and are difficult for others to comprehend. The students, I care for them and wish them all the fortune in the world. I feel that I have now a greater understanding of life, as cheesy as that sounds, having met them. The people and land here will never be forgotten nor will they ever leave my heart.

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