Thich Nhat Han in NYC – dan
On Friday, after a half-day of sorting and loading gear onto Gypsy we took the train to New York to see Thich Nhat Han. It was hard to pull ourselves from our task but it proved a worthy diversion. Thich’s dharma talk was inspiring and the trip, like all trips to NYC was exciting. A couple blocks from Grand Central station we walked by this beautiful park on 42nd street.
Further uptown we skirted Central park.
At Columbus Circle we walked under a giant globe which made me think about our upcoming journey; doesn’t look that big”. It’s all in the perspective I suppose; you just have to zoom out a bit to make those big things look not so overwhelming.
The whole day turned out to be an inspiring and surreal experience. The juxtaposition of the peaceful Buddhist monk in the rancorous city was quite thought provoking. It was also quite fitting given Thich’s message that “We are all one, leaves from the same tree, waves in the same ocean”. After the dharma talk one of the nuns traveling with Thich mentioned that he’s 83 years old. You could have fooled me; he seemed much younger in appearance and energy. I wondered where the next generation of Buddhist world leaders will come from given that the Dalai Lama is approaching 75. Who will match these great spiritual leaders in strength of character and possess such fierce conviction in the propagation of peace?
On our walk back to the train station Susan suggested that we swing through Times Square and the place was hopping even after ten o’clock at night. It wasn’t until 2:30am that we were finally home again, snug in our bunk, making for a long and exciting day.
