Hi there,
Today is an ‘autumn equinox’ when our day equals night and happy autumn equinox to all !
Later the days would get shorter and nights longer and usher in the sense of winter yet so early?
It had been a very involving times thanks to the coming of visitors to this unique destination of our country, the most isolated and seldom known regions of our country!
Here one would find the richness of Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism in its ancient monasteries and the feel of ‘Central Asia’ crossroads reminding one of the ‘Silk Route’ nostalgia; mosques with minarets and muezzins call and the sound of the Sunday’s Church bell in the vicinity; faintly sounding Sikh ‘Kirtan’ from nearby Gurdwara and ringing bells of the nearby Sri Krishna temple.
How this all happened surely it didn’t happened overnight?
Ladakh was once the most isolated and formidable regions of the world to trespass into, due to its high passes and harsh climate.
Here the elders would narrate that the airplane arrived much earlier than the motor cars, engineers and doctors came earlier than the lawyers? Similarly, tourism came earlier then formal colleges and universities; that too foreign tourism led by the Europeans and the Americans?
Our main modern industry can be truly called the ‘Tourism Industry’ Whether one likes it or not and it came and swayed away our society without anyone realizing?
Firstly, the foreign tourism arrived in the year 1974 followed by domestic tourism from the year 2004 onwards. Whosoever, came were pleasantly overwhelmed by such rugged mountains and a harsh climate and its unique culture, customs and traditions?
It’s people steeped in an other worldly way of living especially that of Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism followed by Islam, Christianity, Hinduism and Sikhism but mainly the Tibetan Mahayana Buddhism Culture at its epicenter.
In mere four decades beginning 1980s entire ‘History and Situation’ changed for the people of Ladakh? Now thanks to our army our region is safe from two most formidable neighbors Pakistan in the west and China in the east?
Ladakh is still very lucky as it came under the rule of India in the year 1947 which professed Liberty, Secularism and Democracy unlike Tibet which had to face the communist China. It is a philosophic dilemma that although Chinese believe in scientific progress and Buddha dharma being scientific in its approach its not yet understood there?
40% of the Chinese follow Buddha and the numbers are said to be rising among younger generation due to extreme material progress as it acts as an antidote to extreme progress and development.
It is also a fact that thousands of devotees all over the world have attained different degrees of enlightenments by treading the path of Buddha dharma introduced by great many Tibetan Buddhist masters during the last four decades in Europe and America.
Ours is a beautiful planet and it is the only planet with human existence so each must tread the path of life with consideration of others and not self only?
Rich nations have always stood by poor nations of the world just like a considerate rich family stands by the poor family in the neighborhood? Bye for now!