Culture Shock

After completely falling in love with Dharmansala and the beauty I have found there, we were really apprehensive to leave our mountain paradise. Nichole and I had made a friend named Yad on our train ride who lives in Armistar, and many people told us that was an extremely amazing place to visit... so on Monday morning we packed up our bags and made the 5 hour journey back down the mountain. I have to say this developing city was not at all what I expected; but then again I guess I really didn't have any expectations!

Armistar is in the northern district of Panjabi, and is mainly populated by people of the Sikh religion, which makes up 3% of of the all the wealthiest people in India. Yad took us around to visit two Sikh temples, one being the famous Golden Temple (yes it is completely made of gold), which is built in the middle of a moat with a beautiful marble walkway surrounding the crystal clear water. Here we learned about the customs and traditions of Sikh's, who are most commonly identified by tall colorful turbans and a single silver band on their wrists. Yad also showed us the city's university which was originally a Brithish king's palace around 300 years ago. Touring this beautiful college raised mixed emotions in my heart... although I am extremely happy that young people from wealthy families get the chance to receive a higher education, I can't help but think back to my dear friend and Hindu teacher Kamna, who will have to stop studying next year because there are no classes offered to Hindu's past the 8th grade. Seeing this city of Armistar and the large amount of wealth that is concentrated in such a small place, has really opened my eyes to the inequality that exists in this country. It's something that I was completely unaware of in Rishekesh because everyone there lives in poverty... but experiencing this stark contrast within the same underdeveloped nation just broke my heart.

We only stayed in Armistar for 3 days, and our last night Yad took us to the Pakistan border to watch the flag ceremony, which is a very popular daily event for the people here. Nichole and I had no idea what we were getting ourselves into! We arrived to what appeared to be a sporting event - concession stands selling soda and chips, TV's portraying the crowd and military men preparing for the event, young boys selling pop corn and bottled water, and around a thousand people pushing their way through security to find a good seat in the stands. When we first sat down in the bleachers we were really amused watching the excited crowd and comically dressed army men... but then it started to sink in what exactly was taking place. We had heard that the Muslims in Pakistan and the Hindu/Sikh population in India do not get along, but never really found out where the tension started from. This daily flag ceremony is a way for these two countries to meet in celebration of the deep conflict that exists between them. We sat on one side of the border in stadium steating, listening to Indian music as people cheered and danced in the crowd, while the Pakistanis sat on the other side of a steal gated fence listening to their own music and chanting their own cheers. I truly felt like I was in a football game and we were each cheering for our teams - only this was not a game! This is a real life rivalry between human beings. As the flag procession took place and the army men from both sides dramatically marched around, I began to feel truly sick. I realized that we were in the middle of a celebration of conflict and that these two countries put so much energy everyday towards strengthening the separation that they perceive exists between them. I looked around the crowd to see families with young children and groups of school kids on class field trips, and the pain in my stomach got worse. These two countries are teaching their children that it is ok to hate and to separate yourself from other human beings. If we teach this to our children then there truly is no hope for peace in the future. When we finally left, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with pain and compassion for both of these people. As upset as I felt, I am grateful that I experienced this event because I'm sure that this sort of perpetuation of separation happens all over the world, and it's something that I need to be aware of. On our car ride home we listened to Michael Franti's song "Everyone Deserves Music" where he sings about no matter where we come from, what we believe in, or what we look like, we are all human beings and we all deserve the beauty of music in our lives. I think sometimes we forget that with all the perceived differences, we are all just human beings, and it's this forgetfulness that somehow makes it ok to treat one another without love or compassion. This makes me remember the Dalia Lama's teachings of interdependency and how we really are all so deeply connected - what hurts one person, hurts us all.

We flew back into Delhi late last night and I will leave tonight at midnight for Thailand, while Nichole will get on a plane tomorrow to head back home. We were going to take a 3 1/2 hour taxi ride to see the Taj Mahal but both Nichole and I woke up this morning feeling very physically sick, which I'm grateful that it only came to us at the end of our trip... so many people get sick from the food and water the entire time they are in India. I think this may be our bodies way of telling us to slow down and take some time to process everything that we have just experienced. The past three weeks have been so powerful, and I feel sad to leave Nichole and to leave India. Rishekesh, Dharmansala, and Armistar were very distinctively different places, that it truly felt like we were in three different countries. I learned so much from each place, from each person I have met, from the beautiful surroundings and especially from my own heart. It makes me think of a line in one of Michael Franti's songs: "The more I see, the less I know." India was amazing, and now I am truly looking forward to seeing my new home in Thailand, and I will promise to write again when I get settled.
Sending love!
April