Nov 21, 2013 Visit to Maha Bodhi Society, Bangalore mahabodhi.info
I booked a ticket to Bangalore by the Tuticorin-Mysore Express train that leaves Erode Junction (in Tamil Nadu) at 00.10 AM. I did not want to disturb my family by leaving very late and so I came to Erode railway station by 10pm. It was a busy place. Trains were coming and going every few minutes. A lot of interesting incidents as well. I will describe one such incident.
It all happened within seconds. A train was about to leave when a handicapped person with a clear limp came rushing to the compartment 3rd from the engine which was partly reserved for people with disabilities. He tried to open the door but it was locked from the inside. The train began to move. The man was desperate and just when it looked like he would miss the train a railway employee standing nearby came to help. He asked the people inside to open the door but they would not budge. They did not want to let another person in even though there was plenty of room. The employee started banging the door and ordered them to open the door. One of the men inside came to the door. Hope arose that the door would be opened after all. But he merely made sure the door was locked and went back to his seat. Both the handicapped man and the railway employee (and those watching the unfolding drama) were stunned. The employee shouted at the people inside to open the door, he reminded them the man wanting to get in was clearly handicapped and deserved to get in, but to no avail. The engine and the first two compartments had already left the platform. The door had to be opened now or it would be too late. But it was obvious the door would not be opened from the inside. Acting fast the employee managed to pry open the emergency window (a frame with some metal bars designed to be opened easily). The handicapped man showing extreme agility, threw the big duffel bag he was carrying inside the open window and dived in head first and with a lift and push from the railway employee got in safely.
The employee then ran along the train cursing the people who had refused to open the door for a fellow handicapped person, questioning their humanity and lack of compassion (but did not use foul language). The train left and some people milled around the employee to analyze the incident. So what looked like a likely tragedy (a disabled person missing a train) turned into heroism (helpful employee) and finally had a proper even if slightly comic ending.
My train arrived at Erode on time and reached Bangalore City Junction (281km from Erode) 20m late at 7am. I walked through the subway under the platforms and exited the station through the main entrance adjacent to platform #1. A young woman speaking fluent English tried to sell me some books (looked like encyclopedias), but I thanked her and moved on to a walkway that goes over the extremely busy Kempe Gowda Bus Station. I learned later that the bus stand is situated on what was once a beautiful lake. I left the walkway and found myself crossing Danvanthri Road that mostly had bus traffic. I found my way to Seshadri Road and after about a 15m walk came to the Kalidas Marg intersection. The walk was not pedestrian friendly. The sidewalk was full of obstructions and even had some dangerous gaping holes. Exercise extreme alertness when walking on the sidewalks and be prepared to dodge, weave and jump. Mindfulness required every step of the way.
I found the Maha Bodhi Society and walked through the partially open gates. I stood looking around for a few minutes. Some novice monks arrived to do errands and an older monk (in his 20s) was supervising them. I ended up having a conversation with him. He was very friendly and took me around the grounds. I told him about my plans to spend the day at the monastery. I learned that he was from Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh and of Tibetan origin. He not only said I could come for lunch after the monks were done with their meals but also invited me to visit the Mahabodhi branch monastery in Tawang. I had some more questions which he said could be answered by the abbot whom I could meet in the office at 10am. I thanked him and he returned to his duties. The day being a Thursday there was only one public gathering left at 6pm. I had missed the very early morning puja.
I spent about 30m meditating in the beautiful meditation hall and left when a couple of novice monks came to sweep the place and put away the cushions that were on the floor. I spend another hour walking the grounds. There is a beautiful old Bodhi tree and a nice area around it suitable for walking meditation. I saw a young woman doing sitting and walking meditation around the Bodhi tree. She was there many times through the day. At 10am I went to the office and had a brief chat with the abbot (official title is General Secretary). He gave me a brief Dhamma talk and introduced me to another monk. I asked the abbot if they could send monks to groups in Tamil Nadu who are interested in the Dhamma. He said they have limited resources (including trained monks) but that since it was one of their duties they have a monk specially to take care of such requests (referred to as the Dhammaduta program). The groups requesting Dhamma talks should correspond with the monastery and make arrangements. The venerable abbot also talked about the last days of Bada Bhante (Venerable Acharya Buddharakkhita, founder of the society) who had passed away a few months back. He quoted some of Bada Bhante's words in his final days as he was being treated in hospital. "You can do whatever with this body. All I see is the arising and passing away of phenomena." Before we parted I told the abbot that the society website was woefully outdated. He agreed and said another monk was going to take over the website content. As I thanked the abbot for his time he blessed me saying 'sukhi hotu' (may you be well).
The young monk from Tawang had also told me that Bada Bhante knew he was going to pass away soon and that he was good mind reader. He said Bada Bhante's discipline was an inspiration to all. I spend the rest of the day walking the beautiful peaceful grounds and in the main hall, doing some sitting meditation, walking meditation, listening to dhamma talks on my mp3 player, reading from a Ajahn Thanissaro book I had been presented etc. I did not have lunch in the monastery since I was not clear about the location or the time and I did not want to ask. I bought some biscuit packets in a nearby shop which was my only outing and all of my lunch. I had brought my own water. There are clean washrooms in the society for public use and potable water at the watchman's desk. At 6pm I was at the meditation hall for the evening puja. About 45 novice monks and 5 monks came to the hall. The novice monks were very organized. Most of them appear to be from the northeast part of India . There were also about 10 lay people. 30m of Pali chanting and 30m of Ana Pana Sati meditation followed. One of the monks gave clear instructions in English during the meditation. At 7pm my day at the society was over.
It was already dark and I walked back to the railway station though some extremely busy side streets. A number of police officers wearing distinct hats were patrolling the streets. I bought a coffee for 10 Rs at the Railway station. A little bit of strong black coffee poured into a small paper cup and topped up with hot milk. Good stuff. I spend the rest of the evening trainspotting at the very busy station. There is always a lot to see. I went to platform #8 where I saw the luggage car of the Delhi bound Rajdhani Express being packed with hundreds of boxes containing grapes. Surprisingly this prestigious train had a powerful and distinct looking diesel engine. I was expecting to see an electric engine. Part of the Bangalore-Delhi route must not yet be electrified.
My return train was the Kurla-Coimbatore Express due to arrive at 950pm and depart at 1015pm. The monitor displayed its expected arrival at platform #2. I headed to platform #2. It was only 9pm and there was plenty of time for my train.
On the mostly deserted platform I saw two street dogs fighting. At least it initially looked like they were fighting. One was a big dog holding on tightly to a plastic bag in its mouth. The other dog was much smaller and it looked like it was trying to snatch the bag from the other dog. The smaller dog would rush and grab the plastic bag in its mouth. The bigger dog would yank hard and send the smaller dog sliding on the smooth surface of the platform. The smaller dog would then loose its grip on the bag and come back running to grab it again. It occurred to me that maybe they were not fighting but playing since the dogs never attacked each other. The process kept repeating. The smaller dog would be sent sliding on all four of its legs and come back bounding. Finally the bag ripped apart. There was food inside which spilled all over the platform. The dogs lapped up the food and went their own ways no longer interested in the plastic bag. Smart dogs! All they wanted to do was to use each other to rip the bag and get to the food.
At 945pm platform #2 was now crowded and the trilingual announcement (in Kannadam, Hindi and English) over the PA system said that the Kurla-Coimbatore Express was expected to arrive at platform #2 shortly. At precisely 950pm a train rolled in to platform #2. People on the platform got up from their seats grabbed their bags ready to board. But alas, it was not our train. It was the Lalbagh Express from Chennai bound for Bangalore. While some people looked stymied the seasoned travelers merely rolled their eyes. There were no more announcements about our train misleading or otherwise. Moreover the train that had moved in was not going anywhere either. Some cleaners arrived and started getting its exterior cleaned with soap and hosing it down with water sending some people on the crowded platform scattering.
After a long delay and around 1130pm it was announced that the Kurla-Coimbatore Express would arrive at platform #1 shortly. Everyone rushed to platform #1. People with a lot of luggage and older people struggled to scramble up the steps over the pedestrian bridge and down the steps again. The train did arrive shortly as announced and I got on to my compartment S5 and found my way to my berth #28. There was another man already sleeping in my berth. How that problem got resolved is another story. The train eventually left at 1145pm, 90m late. But by the time I got off at Erode early next morning it had made up for much of the delay and was only 45m behind schedule.