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Chapter 4

DIFFICULT AT THE START

万事开头难

“All things are difficult at the start.” — Chinese Proverb

Shenzhen

The demons in Xiao Ming’s mind were still to subside.

“Why me? What wrong did I do? Why was the app snatched away
from me? And why did Xiōngdì Technology have to be wound up?” These thoughts continuously tormented her febrile mind.

She had by now learnt a considerable amount about Xuan Zang and his adventures and forays in Buddhism. His unprecedented and remarkable journey of seventeen years, travelling to India in search of peace, Buddhism and the sacred texts were certainly atypical in nature. And this expedition impacted the mind of Xiao Ming.

As seeds of amorphous religiosity were seeping into her mind, on her return to Shenzhen she decided to visit the Fu Yong Temple or Phoenix Mountain Temple in the Bao’an District of Shenzhen.

“Xuan Zang travelled to India over 17 years in his quest. I fervently hope my 21-day peregrination to the Phoenix Temple in search of some tranquillity and purpose will be fruitful,” she was to tell Lu Yao who reluctantly agreed to the proposal. He too was after all a non-believer. His mind gravitated to the near calamitous incident when the car he was driving careened downhill.

So, was there a superior authority or a supernatural force which governed lives of people? The People Republic of China had variants and strains of Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Christianity, Islam, Daoism and native religions which people followed. However, the atheist in Lu Yao had inspirational leaders in Sun Tzu and Xi Jin Ping. To him, Xi Jin Ping was the charismatic and supreme chief, transforming the lives of millions of Chinese as they were on the cusp of a tectonic change by 2022.

The Phoenix Mountain Temple in Shenzhen is perched on a mountainous terrain overlooking a turtle pond. Visitors flock to the temple and make offerings of incense to their ancestors and grab a snack from one of the vendors nearby.

The temple is dedicated to Guanyin, the Goddess of Mercy. The deiform was originally a Taoist deity but later adopted by the Buddhists when they spread their message to China during the fourth and fifth centuries.

Xiao Ming had over the years had become an avid traveller, be it for work or for leisure. She had always been enthralled at the scenic beauty, and the verdant and unpolluted atmosphere at the temple complex. Little children running around, people feeding the turtles, an occasional turtle in agony when the amphibian swallowed coins, people of all age
groups practising Tai Chi. It had always seemed more like a picnic to her.

On occasion, she did peep in to have a glimpse of the deity, the other celestial figurines and the statue of Buddha. But she could only marvel at the architecture of the ancient temple and the beauty and majesty of the statues. Most of the time she enjoyed walking along the Glass Tunnel, taking in the breathtaking view. It had never been a battle of attrition between science and religion or logic and spirituality as it was increasingly becoming in her mind as she planned her visit. This time she promised herself that she would keep the aperture of her mind open to receive ideas.

The first few days of the voyage were spent more in exploration of the temples, sprinting, climbing and performing Tai Chi. The activities served the purpose of releasing positive endorphins and she felt a lot calmer and energetic. Her first foray into religiosity was when she lit incense in remembrance of her ancestors, perhaps on the fifth day.

It was probably the eighth day, when she noticed a group of monks who were being addressed by a senior monk. Soon after the address ended, the monks began chanting.

Brain Failure, Car Sick Cars, Chocolate Tigers, Cui Jian and Mountain People were among her favourite rock bands. She enjoyed listening to rock music which alleviated the accumulated stress in her body and mind. She listened to this brand of music especially on a walk or on the treadmill.

Now that Lu Yao had unexpectedly entered her life, quite like the shooting star or the comet with a trailing tail of hope, the two danced to this music at Pepper Club, Bang Club and Mr. Wong in particular as they savoured the moments.

But today the young Chinese woman sat observing the group of monks, and realised that she appreciated the chanting. The notes resonated in her mind and from a distance she listened intently.

That night as she slept, the chanting resonated in her brain and kept playing in the chambers of her mind. Xiao Ming unexpectedly felt uncomfortable and uneasy and began to sweat profusely. Her palms became sweaty and so was her forehead, as she felt feverish. She could not fathom as to what was happening with her and why her energy levels were depleting.

She did not feel well the next morning and almost decided to call off the trip but something compelled her to continue with the challenge. As she was not feeling too well, she decided not to undertake any outdoor activity like climbing, sprinting or Tai Chi. She was desirous of seeking solitude to overcome her mental agony and gravitated towards the group of young Buddhist monks. The monks were again chanting under the supervision of a senior monk.

Taking care not to intrude upon them, she chose a spot nearby and sat down to absorb the cadence of the chanting.

“Never did I think or believe that listening to the chanting could be so comforting”, Xiao Ming told Lu Yao later. “It was so comforting and soothing to the mind. The repetitive syntax, the flat sonorous tones seem to seep into the very core of my brain.”

From that day onwards, the daily visit to the temple was something she started looking forward to. She spent quality time looking at the architecture, occasionally peeping in to see the deities, observing tourists and the devout offering prayers. But what fascinated her endlessly was the rendition of the chanting.

From what she read, she learnt that Buddhism had appealed to the Chinese intellectuals and elite, since Buddhism’s emphasis on morality and ritual appealed to the Confucianists and the desire to cultivate inner wisdom appealed to the Daoists.

Soon, Xiao Ming found that she was trying to co-relate her app with the teachings of Buddhism. The techie in her equated Buddhism to a sum of Compassion, Virtuousness and Love implying caring.

Buddhism = ∑ [Compassion + Virtuousness + Love] => Caring, which was what her app had been about.

As she settled down to listening to the chanting, her thoughts inadvertently turned to her childhood. She remembered that all through her childhood she had suffered not only from an omnipresent lack of material prosperity but also a severe shortage of emotional bonding. Though her parents were well-intentioned, loving and caring, they were just so caught up in the day-to-day existential circus, they simply did not have the emotional wherewithal to support her. As a consequence, she had come to lean a great deal on her Bao and Bai. They had provided her emotional succour, been her confidantes in every crisis, and had shared her small joys and big victories. She even realised the special bond she was developing with Lu Yao, a caring friend and maybe their relationship would grow into something stronger and more meaningful.

As she sat in the temple and the chanting washed over her, she realised that her app had been everything anyone would want in a sibling or friend. That was what made it one of the most downloaded apps, an app so popular that in the end it had been too good to survive.

As she mentally cruised back to the early months of the creation of the app, she realised that she had poured all her interactions with Bao and Bai into its creation. Now she was on the first step towards rationalising and processing all that she had been feeling ever since the sale of Xiōngdì Technologies.

“Twenty days have elapsed since I have undertaken this journey, attempting to analyse my life, the feeling of emptiness and lack, seemingly at odds with the financial abundance. I wonder whether following this path would answer my question,” she pondered and soon after, hit the bed.

There was an inverse parallel between Xiao Ming’s life and her app, and the life of Buddha. King Suddhodana saw to it his son Siddhartha never witnessed old age, sickness, poverty or a corpse. When Siddhartha eventually, and inevitably, witnessed these visuals, that night was the tipping point.

It led him to leave the kingdom in search of the quintessential truth, attaining enlightenment and delivering the first sermon. It culminated in Mahaparinirvana. Xiao Ming juxtaposed these events to her life. She had had no luxuries or siblings, until she finally discovered, or rather created them in the inanimate Bao and Bai. The sigma of her life was
the creation of the Virtual Buddy app, an emotive app. Bao and Bai were buried in the dustbins of history and the Virtual Buddy app and Xiōngdì Technologies taken over by the Party. She was like a comet which flashed briefly and evanesced from public memory. Xiao Ming compared her intense restiveness to the encounters that Prince Siddhartha had encountered. She realised that Buddha never caved in and through various techniques emerged the suzerain of his mind. Xiao Ming rationalised in her thought process that Buddha developed a spiritual app long ago, as Sun Tzu had created a strategic app.

It was a restless night as the fleeting images of Buddha and the other deities at the Phoenix Temple appeared in her mind over and over again. She also dreamt of Xuan Zang and his travel westward towards Yindu or India. Xiao Ming kept waking up repeatedly and had to drink several glasses of water.

On the final day, she went straight to the temple of Buddha and settled down in front of the figurine. For once, she felt blest.

“Oh Buddha, I do not believe in any form of religiosity. For me scientific and logical solutions have always played a predominant role in life while religious practices have always been akin to voodoo,” she spoke to herself.

“Why do I suffer this way? Why am I unable to enjoy the wealth at my disposal? I still wonder why my app was seized. Even though I was recompensed by our outstanding and sovereign leader, despite everything, I feel absolutely empty,” she mused further. She closed her eyes and the sound of the chanting at some distance filtered into her
mind.

After a considerable amount of time, she opened her eyes and saw a Buddhist monk. He smiled at her. His demeanour radiated peace and calm. Deep inside she too desired to wear such a beatific and peaceful smile. For now, she was attempting to slay the demons confronting her.

He spoke little. “Do you know that you have been sitting with your eyes closed for nearly two hours?”

Seeing the surprised look on her face, he added mysteriously, “You are on the path.”

The monk then gave her an apple. She closed her eyes and bent to offer him thanks. When she opened her eyes, he had disappeared. As she closed her eyes again, Xiao Ming thought she saw an apparition. The monk who spoke with her compassionately morphed into the figure of Buddha. As she was still processing this, the Buddha disappeared and in her mind’s eye, as clear as crystal, the Buddha transformed into a silhouette and there appeared a gentle smiling face, bearded, with long hair and wearing flowing white robes.

She experienced blazing radiance all over and for a split second felt she had answers to several of her questions.

As she opened her eyes, she’d made up her mind. Like Xuan Zang she decided to travel westwards ... in search of answers to her questions and the quintessential truth.

Little did she know that the trip to the Phoenix Temple and Dragon Temple, and the life-transforming experience at the feet of Buddha, were milestones in her chequered life.

The images were implanted, still coming up in front of her eyes; the monk changing into Buddha and then into the form of a bearded man in white robes. When she tried to analyse the event in a scientific and logical sequence, she found the brain debunking the whole episode. But then she knew it did happen.

“It is my conjecture that your frayed mind requires a break. You have faced a lot in a short span of time, Xiao Ming. I can understand how testy you would be feeling,” Lu Yao spoke in a calm manner and wiped the trickle of tears which were cascading on her glistening cheeks.

“Should I travel India? To find my answers? What do think?” the vivacious lady asked her friend.

“I am not too sure. But a trip outside the country would do you a world of good,” replied her friend. The two were presently involved in an animated conversation about her travel plans.

“A solo vacay to India perhaps would not be a prudent decision. I have read and heard about women being molested, robbed and assaulted. Though the country is peppered with a long, ancient history, culture and traditions and has several striking historical locales especially of Buddhism, I am wary of the tourist infrastructure. Like I
said, it isn’t reputed to be the best,” an apprehensive Lu Yao said.

“Then why don’t you come along with me? Do you not care for me, love me or understand me?” bawled Xiao Ming.

“What rubbish is this?” confronted the strapping youngster, whose credentials were being questioned.

They were driving back from Phoenix Temple as the arguments reached a crescendo.

“Ok! Please stop the car. Let me walk back!” an angry and agitated Xiao Ming retorted in a raised voice.

The car came to a grinding halt as Lu Yao was affrighted by the incident at Guilin. He was unsure regarding his aunt from Shanghai reappearing to extricate them from another mishap.

Xiao Ming started to walk down the misty road, when she heard a pleasant voice.

“Xiao Ming let us take a trip to Thailand and Malaysia. Apart from the exotic spots, you can even visit some Buddhist shrines. Then you can take a call on whether you are really cut out to be a Xuan Zang.” Lu Yao added laughingly, much to the delight of Xiao Ming.

Chapter 5

LOSE SIGHT OF THE SHORE

ไมมทางจะขามมหาสมทรไดหากยงไมกลาพอจะออกไปไกลจนไมเหนฝง

“You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage

to lose sight of the shore.” — Thai Proverb

Amazing Thailand

A few days later, Xiao Ming and Lu Yao boarded China Southern, for an eight-hour fifty-minute flight from Shenzhen to Bangkok. As the aircraft zoomed in to the stratosphere, Xiao Ming recalled her turbulent recent past and was happy that she had decided to embark on the journey westwards with Lu Yao. She had many expectations from this journey.

Earlier, life was only practicality and logic. Emotions had recently secured a major presence in her life.

“Passenger’s may now unfasten the seat belts as we have safely negotiated the turbulent weather,” the captain announced. In a while, the flight taxied down at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Upon emerging from the airport building a little later, they got into the waiting cab and then checked-in at the estimable Bangkok Marriott Hotel: The Surawongse.

Both Xiao Ming and Lu Yao were primarily outdoors kind of people. Though this was their first trip together, when in Thailand on earlier occasions they would visit the tropical beaches of Railay, Koh Phi Phi, Pai or go hiking at Tonsai Beach or enjoy the cascading waterfalls at Erawan National Park in addition savouring the local cuisine or visiting the night market.

Of course, no trip was complete unless they reserved a day to relax their body and brain at the dextrous fingers of a masseur.

Xiao Ming enjoyed walking around the bustling markets of Bangkok and the highly acclaimed Chiang Mai. Never had the idea of visiting the opulent royal palaces, the ancient ruins or the ornate temples displaying images of Buddha appealed to her.

But this time it was going to be different.

Meanwhile the sun was descending in the thickly populated city of Bangkok. She was basking in the glow as the pretty woman decided to have a swim after the long journey to shake-off the ennui. Her body glistened in the pool as the last rays of the sun gleamed on the pool.

“Should we head to Pattaya? Or maybe we’ll just head to Asiatique. It’s too much of a drive to Pattaya,” Xiao Ming debated with her
boyfriend.

“No way Xiao Ming, you have charted a new path. You are not going to Pattaya or the night market. Take rest and tomorrow the two of us will visit the Wat Pho as planned earlier,” he answered.

She was cheerfulness personified and regretted her stringent aspersions against Lu Yao. He was genuinely concerned about her welfare and physical and mental safety. A tear dropped from her eyes. A perturbed Lu Yao looked at Xiao Ming. She shook her head and caressed his hair affectionately.

***************

The grandiose Wat Pho is located on Rattanakosin Island, which is south of the Grand Palace. The temple stuns any individual be it a seeker, a backpacker, a stock individual or a follower of Buddhism, with the astonishing presence of the forty-six-metre-long reclining Buddha. It almost appears as though Buddha comes alive in the
reclining position.

“Wat Pho is one of the oldest and largest wats in Bangkok which spreads over 80,000 square metres. The temple is home to more than one thousand Buddha images,” a guide told Xiao Ming and Lu Yao.

The guide further added, “Wat Pho complex consisted of two walled compounds which is bisected by Chetuphon Road running in the east-west direction. The larger northern walled compound, the phutthawat, is open to visitors which contains the finest buildings dedicated to the Buddha, including the Bot with its four directional viharn, and the temple housing the reclining Buddha,” The duo of Xiao Ming and Lu Yao watched the complex in amazement. Only she could feel the presence of the reclining Buddha.

“The southern compound, the sankhawat, contains the residential quarters of the monks and a school. The perimeter wall of the main temple complex has sixteen gates, two of which serve as gateways to public,” the accomplished guide weaved the story of the celebrated temple.

The guide was keen on narrating additional details about the temple complex and the architecture, but Xiao Ming drifted away to the statute of reclining Buddha, a gargantuan edifice.

She entered the sanctum sanctorum and saw the reclining Buddha from close quarters and was left stupefied. She had read that the reclining Buddha is an image that represents the Enlightened One lying down and is a major iconographic theme in Buddhist art. It represents the historical Buddha during his final days when he was
plagued by a pestilence and just about to enter Mahaparinirvana.

Xiao Ming sat at the feet of the reclining Sakyamuni and closed her eyes. Her brain was cannonaded with past events, her rise from penury and then creation of the app by Xiōngdì Technologies and how the Party took over the app.

She thought of the Chinese scholar Xuan Zang and the landmark event in her life at the Phoenix Temple after the twenty-one-day grapple where she had the phenomenal apparition. She also dreamed of Mara trying to disrupt Buddha’s meditation.

But suddenly a fleeting glimpse of a variant of her app snooping on the records of people arose in her mind. So, was she absolved? And the Party? All these years of her life the path she followed? Several questions arose: suppose the Party had entered into a contract with her and she had to just abandon the project? What would have been her reaction? After all the head of the Party was the supreme leader whom she held in reverence despite everything.

When she opened her eyes, Xiao Ming fervently hoped for a replay of the event at Phoenix Temple. And then taxed and tormented her brain in an excruciating manner. As if on cue, Lu Yao jostled for attention and nudged Xiao Ming.

“This kind of imagery happens seldom. In my heyday of power and pelf I would have referred to it as nothing more than sorcery,” she thought to herself.

When she focussed only on science and logic her brain had no space for religion.

Both headed back to the hotel. They spent a few more days at Bangkok and visited Pattaya beach only once for a swim. She stayed away from liquor and was continuing her dalliance with a vegetarian diet which Lu Yao couldn’t even think of attempting.

She made it a point to visit Wat Pho alone a couple of times in search of Buddha but her brain continued to be in a traffic jam as she was seeking answers to several of her queries.

They spent close to two weeks in Thailand, visiting Buddhist temples, the opulent palaces, some scenic spots and a few ruins attempting to trace history. Xiao Ming had of late turned vegetarian.

Xiao Ming and her boyfriend boarded a Thai airways flight to take them to Kuala Lumpur where they had planned to drop their next anchorage.

Chapter 6

PADDLE IS IN YOUR HAND

Dayung sudah di tangan, perahu sudah di air.

“The paddle is in your hand, the canoe is in the water.” — Malay Proverb

Malaysia, A True Asian Experience

As their Thai airways flight was landing, Xiao Ming was in admiration of the 451 m tall Petronas Twin Towers, a pair of glass-and-steel-clad skyscrapers with Islamic motifs. She attempted to focus on the public sky bridge and observation deck.

“This is indeed a marvellous structure,” Lu Yao remarked.

They were booked at the one of the picks of Kuala Lumpur, the RuMa Hotel and Residences, located in the city-Centre district. “I’ll head to the pool now to refresh myself,” Xiao Ming called out to Lu Yao as she walked out of the room. They had finished settling into their accommodation.

She purveyed the place as she reached the outdoor area and noticed a hustle in an adjoining garden. Something pulled her like a magnet towards the garden. Xiao Ming found a group of Buddhists seated on neatly laid out carpets with a low seat placed on a platform. Though dressed in ochre robes and seated on the ground, they all looked affluent. As she stood riveted to the spot, a senior Japanese monk arrived and began addressing the group.

The monk spoke in clear, warm voice which carried all the way to where Xiao Ming stood. By now she had inadvertently moved a few steps closer to the gathering. “Prior to attaining enlightenment, the Sakyamuni eschewed austere penances and his friends, the Pañcavaggiya monks. Seven weeks after attaining enlightenment under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, Buddha left Uruvela and travelled to Isipatana, near present day Sarnath, just outside Varanasi in India, to rejoin them. The Enlightened One used his spiritual powers; he had seen that his five former companions would be able to understand Dharma quickly. While travelling to Sarnath, Gautama Buddha had no money to pay the ferryman to cross the Ganges, so he crossed it through the air. Later when King Bimbisāra heard about this, he abolished the toll for ascetics. Gautama Buddha found his former companions and enlightened them with the teachings of the Dharma. It was at that time that the Sangha or the community of the enlightened ones, was founded. The sermon that Buddha gave to the five monks was his first sermon, called the Dhammacakkappavattana sutta or the Spinning the Wheel. Interestingly the sermon was delivered on a full-moon day of
Asalha Puja. Buddha, subsequently also spent his first rainy season at Sarnath, at the Mulagandha Kuti. All the milestones in the life of Buddha occurred on full moon days - his birth, enlightenment, his first sermon and Mahaparinirvana. So, friends there is a deep connect between the moon and mind,” the monk concluded.

“This is quite incredible! I was born on a full moon day and the full moon seems to have a remarkable connection with Buddha’s life,” Xiao Ming thought to herself, wondering if there was any greater significance to what she had just heard.

“We will all recite the Dhammacakkappavattana sutta now, about the first Dharma Deshana. With utmost humility, invoke the spirit of the Sakyamuni, pray and meditate with all earnestness,” a postulant announced at a signal from the senior monk.

Xiao Ming was immensely grateful that she had been just in time to hear the sermon. She closed her eyes and listened to the sonorous sutras and mapped in her brain the momentous events of Buddha’s life. This was another attempt that she was making to relate the concepts of brain and mind. She opened her eyes and saw in disbelief the same monk who had spoken to her at the Phoenix Temple. Stunned, but immensely at peace within herself, Xiao Ming closed her eyes and continued soaking in the chanting.

After the session was over, she walked up to the radiant senior monk, paid obeisance and narrated her story in brief to him.

The perspicacious one sporting a deiform smile, nodded his head and blessed Xiao Ming. He asked her to visit the Buddhist temples in Malaysia and travel further westwards to India.

“Be careful and be on guard against all desires, as Buddha said desire is the root cause of all miseries.” Saying so, he turned around and meandered among the other followers seeking his blessings.

“He looks so angelic and if there is such a thing as God, he would be like this monk. Is this how Buddha looked?”

That night, Xiao Ming was ecstatic, for she felt she had reached a milestone. Certainly, she had received a pointer to the right direction. She was determined to celebrate this small victory.

“Well, I am human not God. I’m going to have a blast today,” she told Lu Yao. “After all, do not the Gods have their ambrosia!”

Much to the chagrin of Lu Yao, she headed to the club, a reluctant and confused Lu Yao following her. After jiving for a while, they settled down at the luxurious restaurant. Without any hesitation she ordered a lavish meal and washed it down with a decent amount of wine.

Heading back to their room, Xiao Ming had an excruciating time trying to sleep. She ended up tossing around for quite some time, before eventually falling off to sleep. The next morning Xiao Ming woke up with a splitting headache and galling nausea. Looking and feeling rather sheepish, she gracefully accepted the black coffee and a couple of aspirin tablets that Lu Yao offered.

“Look at you! You look awful. Let’s get some exercise and fresh air!” Lu Yao remonstrated. The pair headed to the pool and Xiao Ming made valiant attempts to do a few laps. But there was hardly any hand, body and brain co-ordination. She finally gave up and flopped down on a lounger. This had never happened to her before. Xiao Ming would always gloat about her health. But today she felt enfeebled. She recollected the sagacious words of the Japanese monk, “… as Buddha said desire is the root cause of all miseries.” This misery though, was certainly self-inflicted Xiao Ming thought wryly.

Determined not to allow her weakness to get the better of her, she got ready and headed out along with Lu Yao to the Thean Hou Temple or God of Mercy. Just as well, she told her boyfriend, she could seek clemency for her past indiscretions and for the previous night too.

The guide at the Thean Hou Temple explained the architectural features and the beauty and intricacies of the holy six-tiered temple of the Chinese Sea Goddess, Mazu. The construction of the edifice was apparently completed in 1987 and it was declared open in the year 1989. The temple was built by the Hainanese community inhabiting
Malaysia.

Xiao Ming was primarily an explorer and had always experimented with life and its various facets, contours and nuances. As she was exploring the temple, she was exploring her brain, her thoughts and thought she detected a shift in her thought process.

Of course, she swayed from euphoric and ecstatic moments to feelings of inadequacy and guilt. But like the adventurer who traversed westwards fourteen hundred years back, she was glad she too had embarked upon the journey though in a more ostentatious manner.

At the Guan Yin temple, she decided to dump the guide and discover the place along with her boyfriend. The place of worship was first provided the appellation of Goddess of Mercy or the Mercy Goddess by Jesuit missionaries or The Society of Jesus in China. She was to learn that subsequently Buddhism embraced it in their fold.

“Was this act necessary?” She was nagged by this thought as she wandered across the sprawling temple complex.

“Did it not amount to proselytization?” she asked Lu Yao who didn’t have much to add.

They then forayed into the grandiose syncretic temple which was an admixture of Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism representing an admirable combination of modern architectural techniques and authentic traditional design featuring imposing pillars, spectacular roofs, ornate carvings and intricate embellishments.

Xiao Ming travelled through the temple in a valorous attempt to establish a connect with some unknown superior power that could answer her questions on living in abundance yet feeling an enormous sense of lack. Indulgences were only temporary solutions. She had had glimpses of something unknown, something that she could not
process or explain with the science and logic at her disposal. Were these experiences manifestations of a superior person akin to Buddha? However, all of these were ephemeral. She was still far, far away from experiencing peace and or finding the quintessential truth.

At the Goddess of Mercy Temple, she did not find anything which could challenge her brain or stimulate or excite her. She felt disappointed.

Malaysia is populated with variegated, beautiful tourist spots, diversity, and plenty of adventure on offer, which is showcased smartly. Xiao Ming decided to take a break from her “spiritual sojourn” as she was aware that Lu Yao needed a break too. They spent two days visiting iconic sights like the Petronas Towers. The breath-taking sunset was quite in variance with what she used to witness from Shanghai Towers which stood at 612metres and Pin An Finance Centre in Shenzhen at 599metres. These gargantuan structures dwarfed the majestic Petronas Towers which stood at a height of 451metres. But sunset was magical and mystical in terms of quality.

“You are now able to grasp pristine beauty in creation to which you never paid attention before,” Lu Yao said to Xiao Ming.

On an impulse, they made a detour to the west coast to visit the colonial city of Georgetown which had made it to the UNESCO World Heritage Site. They took in the museums, seaside fort and historic homes with avid interest. Most importantly Xiao Ming and Lu Yao visited a temple of standing Buddha.

From the reclining Buddha posture, she was to see the standing Buddha. Her brain tried to analyse the postures of Buddha. “Why is there a reclining Buddha, a standing Buddha and a Buddha sitting in what they refer to as the lotus posture? Is there any difference to his chi levels or the wisdom he imparted? Or are these merely an artist’s imagination, I wonder!” she thought to herself.

Xiao Ming had visited Malaysia in her business pursuits and had luxuriated seeing the entire country but was rarely disappointed by the old town in Malacca. If nothing else, the relaxed vibe was alluring enough to keep her around for a few days. The proximity to Kuala Lumpur was another added attraction.

***************

After a few days of lazing around and visiting various touristy sites with Lu Yao, Xiao Ming embarked on a solo journey to the Chan See Shu Yuen Temple, one of the oldest and largest surviving Buddhist temples in Malaysia. The temple is characterized by a typical open courtyard and symmetrical pavilions, and decorated with colourful paintings, woodcarvings and ceramic fixtures.

“The structure was constructed between 1897 and 1906,” said the guide. “It is an elaborate temple with intricately carved kwang-tung roof, gables and specially-crafted terracotta friezes with monumental Chinese history peppered with mythological scenes,” he added. The backpacker from Shenzhen was amazed witnessing mythical tapestry of her motherland. The atheist had never paid any attention to these aspects of the rich Chinese culture. But these images did not trigger any release of endorphins in her brain. Only the couple of unusual apparitions and the Buddha had struck a chord in her brain.

Meanwhile she saw that decorating the edges of the Chan See Shu Yuen Temple were blue ceramic vases and small statues of peasants who were the guardians of the temple, armed with poles crowned with lanterns; on either side of the entrance gate are shrines to the male and female guardians.

“This is interesting, deities need to be guarded and protected too! I thought they are supposed to defend us,” Xiao Ming said to the nonplussed guide.

“The temple served a dual function as both a shrine and a community centre. It was originally built as a kongsi or clan house for families with the surnames Chan, Chen or Tan,” the guide finished his description. In all his years of escorting tourists to familiar and unfamiliar places, he never came across a person like Xiao Ming who was virtually dissecting every statement or description he made.

Xiao Ming got back to the RuMa Hotel. The break from the spiritual sojourns had given Lu Yao a much-needed break and he seemed the happier for it. Taking an extra day off to spend with him, Xiao Ming announced that she intended to visit the Batu Caves Temple in the coming days.

***************

Rising almost hundred metres above the ground, the Batu Caves temple complex consists of three main caves and a few smaller ones. The biggest, referred to as Cathedral Cave or Temple Cave, has a very high ceiling and features ornate Hindu shrines. To reach it, visitors must climb up a steep flight of 272 steps. She was quite impressed with
the climb. She always enjoyed climbing to remain fit as she did at her place of work.

“Are all temples in India perched on hills? Does it involve physical exercise to reach your deities each time?” she was to ask a group of Indians climbing along with her. She of course walked up twenty floors every day.

Xiao Ming learnt that the Batu Caves Temples are singular as a focal point of the significant contribution made by the Indian settlers in the development of Malaya and then Malaysia. The 113-year-old main temple is dedicated to Lord Subramaniar, son of Lord Shiva, also known as the destructor in the Hindu pantheon of Gods.

“Your deities annihilate?” she asked a group of faithful Hindus.

Xiao Ming learnt that the main cave, the Temple Cave, in a hilly massif was also known as Bukit Batu or Rocky Hill. The name was derived from a nearby river, known as Sungai Batu or Rocky River.

Xiao Ming had mixed feelings and emotions and had had vastly different experiences during her unusual anchorage in her journey westwards. These countries were rich and abundant, the people were not impoverished, and they appeared contented. China, she could not but think, though through market communism had acquired enormous wealth, perhaps did not possess such contentment.

Her country had acquired military and economic power and assumed
a hegemonic status. Xiao Ming too faced penury and rose to enjoy power and wealth. The wealth remained but she had lost out on power, she remembered.

“Xiao Ming if you were still in possession of the app, would you have still embarked on this voyage of self-discovery?” Lu Yao asked her one evening as they sat by the pool.

“Honestly, I don’t think I would have come anywhere near all of this,” Xiao Ming waved her hand. “But I still miss having my company and the app.”

“Believe me, the Party could use the humongous amount of information better. Data could be mined for greater good,” Lu Yao replied. Shrugging her shoulders, Xiao Ming answered, somewhat sadly “I no longer know what I believe. I have no answers and certainly I have yet to discover peace.”

“Well, I’ll admit it is not a piece of Chinese egg cake,” he answered.

Shortly afterwards they headed to the reception. As Lu Yao attended to some business, Xiao Ming sat in the lobby where some travel magazines from India caught her eye. Her sharp eyes were fixated at an advertisement featuring an organisation called Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation or IRCTC for short. The corporation, she
learnt, operated tours to prominent Buddhist shrines in India.

Xiao Ming was immensely pleased at this providential discovery. She couldn’t wait to share with Lu Yao the plans bubbling in her mind. She felt she had received a blessing, a magical opening, pointing a direction for her quest.

“My destiny lies there,” she was firmly convinced.

“Look at this! I think it would be a great idea to visit the Buddhist sites in India,” Xiao Ming informed the Lu Yao the minute he joined her in the lobby. “It would help me to understand the philosophy of Buddhism and the Buddha himself. In fact, Xuan Zang himself had visited these spots. There are a large number of places for a person to visit and soak in the tenets of Buddhism,” she continued excitedly as Lu Yao looked at her, puzzled.

Once she had blurted out everything that was on her mind, Xiao Ming realised that she would not have been too intelligible to Lu Yao. Slowly and with greater clarity, she explained to Lu Yao that she intended to travel to India.

Predictably, Lu Yao was predictably not in favour of this new plan formulated by her. He reminded her about the lack of safety of solo female travellers in India, not to mention the violence against women.

However, his misgivings about India were dispelled by Xiao Ming as she displayed a humungous number of reviews online from solo female travellers from other countries.

“Well, if the Irish, French, American and Vietnamese women can travel solo in India, why not a Chinese woman?” Xiao Ming asked Lu Yao.

The duo continued the discussion in their hotel room. Finally, Lu Yao acquiesced to Xiao Ming’s decision, observing the self-belief and credence in the woman who was slowly but surely becoming an integral part of his life. He was happy to assist her and did not wish to place any road blocks on her voyage of self-discovery. Lu Yao was a successful in his own right and his mind and heart were fired with patriotic fervour. He held the women of his motherland to be in no way inferior to anyone.

Meanwhile, Xiao Ming had soon booked herself on IRCTC’s Buddha Express Special Tourist Train and applied for a visa online.

As things fell into place, Xiao Ming was saddened by the fact that Lu Yao would not be able to join her on the trip. He would travel back to China as per their initial plan.

“Well, I have to pick up the threads and travel solo on this voyage just like Buddha and Xuan Zang,” Xiao Ming said to Lu Yao, as her luggage was loaded into the waiting cab.

Lu Yao had a flight back to Shenzhen later in the day. Xiao Ming promised and assured her boyfriend that they would stay in touch on a regular basis, in fact on a daily basis.

“I’ll text and of course we can call each other. Don’t worry, I’ll be
fine,” Xiao Ming said as she planted a kiss on his cheek.

The different statues of Buddha, the unusual experience in the gardens of an upmarket hotel of Kuala Lumpur, the Batu Caves, all these were ingrained in her brain as she drove to the airport to catch the flight to New Delhi a few days later.

Chapter 7

INDIA BECKONS XIAO MING

“To other countries I may go as a tourist, but to India

I come as a pilgrim.” — Martin Luther King, Jr.

As was her wont, Xiao Ming reached the airport well in time. The international airport at Kuala Lumpur housed luxury lounges, a wide variety of restaurants, children’s play areas and duty-free stores. But Ming was interested in moving around and pacing the airport. The athlete in her craved continuous movement, just as her brain that could never be still and calm.

Having completed the formalities, she walked up to a book store and purchased two books by the prominent new-age alternative medicine advocate, Deepak Chopra. The first one, Buddha A Story of Enlightenment was a work of fiction and the second one, a book called Ageless Body and Timeless Mind. After some shopping she began poring through the novel. Her hedonistic self-pined for an ageless body and she reserved that book for a more thorough read at a later time.

Once boarding was announced, Xiao Ming headed towards departures. Soon she was aboard, sandwiched between two passengers, carrying the books, her carry-on luggage and was beginning to feel cloistered. The young woman’s usual preference was either an aisle seat or a window seat. The person occupying the window seat already had his ears plugged with earphones and eyes closed.

Xiao Ming was a headstrong woman who seldom asked for assistance, but on this occasion, she was wondering whether she should seek a favour and request the passenger to trade seats, but wisely refrained from doing so.

The pilot made the routine welcome and pre-departure address and then the flight took off smoothly. Xiao Ming was still struggling to settle down peacefully. She tried to continue reading, but her vision kept moving towards the ceiling of the aircraft.

Suddenly, Xiao Ming’s gaze noticed the serene and contended look on the face of the person, who appeared to be Indian; “window-seat-man”, as she was labelling him in her mind.

To her other side was a Malay who appeared to be playing games on his smart phone and after sometime switched to his laptop. He appeared to be making calculations on a spreadsheet and was constantly fretting and fuming. She herself was grappling to discover
some physical and mental space. Ming was discomposed observing the tranquillity of the person seated next to her. They all appeared to be in the same age-group and she was trying to figure the personalities of the co-passengers. The person seated left to her seat looked wealthy but seemed extremely contented and composed while the one seated to her right was juggling with numbers and fretting, fuming and sweating even in an air-conditioned environment as the flight was gaining ascendancy.

“Good afternoon, sir, what will you have?” a petite airhostess woke up “window-seat-man” from his sleep. He slowly opened his eyes and ordered a vegetarian meal. Xiao Ming too ordered vegetarian fare, while the Malay was happy to devour pork sandwiches.

Xiao Ming sported a weak smile.

“Indian?” she ventured hesitatingly. The gentleman to her left took a moment to second to realise that she was addressing him. “Oh, yes! Anav Athreya, Indian,” he finally spoke. The prepossessing Chinese blessed with wonderful assets, an athletic and well-toned body normally drew attention wherever she travelled. But her Indian co-passenger seemed different. The Malay did admire her physical presence and briefly spoke to her but could not engage her attention.

“Well, presently I am travelling home to India from London on a holiday. I’ll be travelling on to Chennai to visit my parents. I work in Shenzhen,” he spoke gently, with a few pauses here and there, as though wanting to make sure she understood what he was speaking.

“Oh, what a coincidence! I am from Shenzhen too. I’m Xiao Ming,” she said with a broad smile. “I’m a computer engineer and well, I am travelling to India too.”

“Yes, this flight goes to India!” Anav remarked.

“I have booked myself on the Buddhist Circuit trail and intend to visit various Buddhist shrines and try to discover Buddha. Of late I have been visiting several Buddhist shrines and locales based in China, Malaysia and Thailand,” Xiao Ming spoke with purpose.

After this short, initial burst of conversation, an uneasy silence took over. Xiao Ming broke the silence by asking, “Incidentally were you meditating or listening to some music which was so spellbinding and riveting? Close to forty minutes since the flight took off and you sat motionless without uttering a word. To me it looked as if I was sitting next to a meditating monk!”

Anav burst out laughing. “Me and a monk … not happening, ever! On the contrary, I am more of an agnostic, a non-believer. At best you can call a me God-fearing kind of a person. My mother is highly religious and performs various rituals and propitiates all the deities in our neighbourhood. My dad is a retired civil servant. He is an agnostic and enjoys reading.”

After a pause he added, “Though when in India, I do accompany my parents to temples and reluctantly participate in the rituals of Hindu religion. We belong to the Brahmin community, where the Gods are worshipped and deified meticulously, with all devotion and sincerity,” the Tam-Brahm informed the winsome Chinese lady.

“And for the record,” he continued with a smile, “I do not practice any meditation. I enjoy running, ten kilometres every day is par for the course. But when running, I am in the zone. However, a mentor, introduced me to Zen Buddhism and I was listening to a podcast about various concepts. Actually, I was trying to follow the tenet of, ‘When you walk. When you eat, you eat. When you talk, you talk’,” Anav clarified to Xiao Ming.

“Lately I have been listening to some podcasts, watching You Tube videos and trying to read some literature on Buddha. Strange as it may sound, I come from the land of Buddhism but was introduced to Buddha only in China,” remarked Anav.

“But I thought Buddha was born in Lumbini which is Nepal,” Xiao Ming spoke up.

“Yes, during those ancient times Nepal was a part of India. Nepal was also the only Hindu kingdom in the world until some years ago. And if we dabble into geopolitics, Nepal is of immense strategic interest to your country,” Anav replied.

The word strategy took her mind to Sun Tzu and Xi Jinping. “Yes, what you say is correct. It is of immense strategic importance,” Xiao Ming admitted. “Have you heard about Sun Tzu?” she inquired.

“The Art of War! Yes. We had a parallel in Chanakya who wrote Arthashastra, a political and economic treatise. He chaperoned Chandragupta Maurya, who was one of the most powerful suzerains of ancient India.”

They looked at each other and neither of them had any answers and once again looked at each other intently.

Ironically, both the young travellers had amassed vast fortunes, but on account of the vicissitudes of life were splashing into Buddhism.

Was it on account of a certain lack in life, anxiety, insecurities, fears or something else?

The flight to Delhi was a unique place for the inhabitants of the two Asian giants to meet and interact…

As he was conversing with Xiao Ming, Anav discerned the copy of Deepak Chopra’s novel lying on her lap. “Looks like you have made some advancement to appreciate Buddhism, as I see you seem to be reading about the Buddha.”

Xiao Ming paused and thought before replying. She remembered the images of the monk who transfigured into Buddha and the Buddha which metamorphosed into a bearded man. “This Indian is good at reading as what is going on in my brain.”

“Should I be candid and tell him about Xuan Zang and his voyage westwards and the way I was inspired by the ancient traveller to charter a similar path, in search of peace and the quintessential truth?” she contemplated.

“Hey!” Anav called out smiling and shaking her out of the reverie. “In case you do not wish to talk about it, heavens will not fall. It was an innocent query,” the Tamilian addressed young woman who had suddenly fallen silent.

Xiao Ming who seemed to have had a brain freeze, spoke up startled, “Sorry…er Mr. Anav. I was processing all that had been going through my brain, trying to formulate a cogent reply,” she was to say.

“Well very briefly, my family rose from abject poverty to scale the summit. I studied computer science and went on to found a start-up which did exceedingly well.”

Anav nodded his head, waiting for her to continue. “The app that was my creation was taken over and my start-up disappeared … puff, just like that into thin air,” Xiao Ming dramatically imitated a magician. “For sure, I was financially compensated. All of a sudden, I had everything that I could have wished for, but very swiftly that was accompanied by an enormous void in my life. In midst of abundance, I was caught in the vortex of undersupply and scarceness.”

Xiao Ming continued narrating her story. The Malay sitting to her right seemed to eavesdrop on the conversation and received a glare from her. He hurried back to playing the numbers game.

“Go on, it is quite an interesting story. But how do Buddha and Deepak Chopra make way into the picture?” Anav queried.

“You know Xiao Ming during my ten-year stay in China, I have read Confucius and Sun Tzu. I have noted down several of their quotations. I will find one to unravel the present state of your mind,” Anav said as he quickly scrolled down his tablet and exclaimed, “Aha! This one would be apt.”

“… ‘Therefore, when capable, feign incapacity; when active, inactivity. When near, make it appear that you are far away; when far away, that you are to lure him; feign disorder and strike him. When he concentrates, prepare against him; where he is strong, avoid him’. This is what your very own Sun Tzu said.”

“I look up to him. All corporate honchos, techs, military strategists and political leaders should read The Art of War,” Xiao Ming reverted back.

Xiao Ming added further, “While it is true my brain was distraught and nerves were frayed because of my past, but I rallied around and then made name and fortune with my invention, which at the cost of repetition I surrendered at the altar of power, yes, I did capitulate. In the meantime, I had some surrealistic experiences and then embarked upon this journey. As far as this novel is concerned, I saw the image of Buddha and picked it up and so far, have found it interesting to read.”

“But what is your sudden interest in Buddhism. You mentioned you are a Hindu?” she questioned him.

“Well, to be honest, I am looking for a deeper meaning to life. Amidst the oasis of wealth, I find that my mind is stuck in a swampy mass,” replied the Indian.

“There is a feeling of inadequacy. I am trying to figure it out. All the rituals in our temples back home have not quite triggered any peace and tranquillity within me,” added Anav.

Drinks were being served on the aircraft. The Malay had one. Anav ordered a soft drink and so did Xiao Ming.

“You stay away from liquor?” Anav asked her.

“I used to consume wine quite a bit. But of late I’ve drastically reduced it,” she answered.

After a little while, Anav shut his eyes and Xiao Ming went back to her book. In the amphitheatre of her brain, she was drawing parallels between the pangs in her life, the suffering of Buddha and the obstacles faced by Xuan Zang.

Her knowledge of religiosity and spiritualism was limited. Some unknown forces like the shooting stars that her mother prayed to whilst facing a misadventure and Buddha and his various figurines, but very little otherwise. Her logical brain always wondered as to why the Buddha was either seated in the Lotus pose, standing or assumed a reclining position.

She wondered what was in store at her next stop.

Xiao Ming was not quite sure about concepts such as attainment of enlightenment. She had read about the meditative experiences, but had no practical experience in the matter.

Xiao Ming heaved a sigh. The Malay after a few drinks and a heavy lunch was snoring with his eyes covered. Anav opened his eyes, apparently having caught a few winks of sleep.

Anav and Xiao Ming looked at each other and exchanged a smile. “I was listening to a podcast on Siddhartha attaining enlightenment.

“Does it mean mindfulness?” Xiao Ming countered.

“I am afraid, I have no clue. But in our interaction so far, I have come to realise that the trajectory of our lives may have been at variance but have a commonality in experiencing scantiness in the oasis of abundance. It is somewhat ironical that we are discussing Buddha, his travails in life and subsequent enlightenment. However, I do not wish to bandy this word in a casual manner.”

“Hmmm,” responded Xiao Ming thoughtfully.

“When Buddha attained enlightenment, it happened to be a full moon night in the scorching weather of May. It is strange that, Buddha was born on a full moon day, attained enlightenment on a full moon day and attained Mahaparinirvana, again on a full moon day. That is the day he cast his mortal self,” Anav was to tell Xiao Ming, as she recollected these facts.

“Well coming back to his story, upon attaining enlightenment, whatever it means, he maintained silence for an entire week. He did not utter a single word much to the chagrin of the angels. As per myth, the angels were petrified as they realised that only once in a millennium does a person blossom like Buddha and then, he was silent,” Anav continued.

“Fascinating, please continue and I too would like to listen to these podcasts,’ Xiao Ming interrupted.

The Malay’s snoring added to the white noise in the background.

“The angels beseeched Buddha to narrate his experience. He was to say, ‘Those who know, they would know even without my uttering a word and those who do not know the quintessential truth would not appreciate it even if I say something. Any description of luminosity to a person who cannot see is of no use. This is my ukase. It is pointless
in conveying something so sublime and pristine to a person who has not tasted the ambrosia of life, and therefore I maintain silence. How can one convey something so intimate and personal? Scriptures in the past have recorded that where the cacophony of words terminates, symphony of truth flowers’,” Anav narrated the interaction between
Buddha and the angels.

“This is indeed stellar,” Xiao Ming reacted. “Tell me more Anav, this is so fascinating.” The Chinese literally exclaimed like a child, which not only woke up the Malay but disturbed several other passengers too.

Drinks and lunch were served and the passengers seemed to be satiated. Several of them slipped into a slumber, some played with gizmos, while others watched movies or started reading and some were completing the targeted work.

Suddenly, there was an unexpected announcement by the captain, “Passengers are requested to fasten their seat belts as we are running into turbulent weather.” The aircraft was rocking and swaying, panic spread through the passengers. Frenetic airhostesses were trying to assuage frayed nerves.

The air craft began to descend with ferocity and the sense of panic spread further. “We are around hour an hour away from New Delhi, passengers are requested not to panic,” a reassuring announcement was made by the captain. After negotiating the troubled atmosphere, the airplane rose again.

“Oh gosh! That was close,” Anav said to Xiao Ming and she nodded in agreement.

“If Buddha was caught in this turbulence, what would he have done?” Xiao Ming enquired from Anav.

“Well from my very limited knowledge of Buddha and his tenets, I reckon he would have delineated it in four ways: One, there is dukkha or misery in the world. Two, there is always a cause of misery and three there is always an end to misery and finally there is path out of misery,” the Indian answered in a very concise manner. “He gained this wisdom through enormous amount of what we call tapas in India, basically severe spiritual austerities and practises.”

“However, let me tell you, during the turbulence I was equally petrified as all of us were. I have been exposed to Buddha and his techniques very recently. Perhaps, I would give credit to my education at the Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai, and my DNA, that is
the Brahminical mind. Well, the last one is what we twice born, that is those who wear the sacred threat are inculcated with,” he said in half-mocking tones.

“It is said that Hindus are extremely liberal in their thinking and thus grasp a variety of issues quiet seamlessly. Let me narrate a very fascinating story, a conversation between a Hindu gentleman and a Christian girl who were travelling from the US to India. So, the story goes like this,” Anav began.

“What's your Holy Book?” asked the prepossessing American girl.

“We don't have one Holy Book, we have hundreds and thousands of philosophical and sacred scriptures,” the gentleman replied.

“Oh, come on … at least tell me who is your God?” “What do you mean by that?”

“Like we have Jesus and Muslims have Allah - don't you have a God?”

He thought for a moment. Muslims and Christians believe in one God (male God) who created the world and takes an interest in the humans who inhabit it. Her mind is conditioned with that kind of belief.

According to her (or anybody who doesn't know about Hinduism), a religion needs to have one Prophet, one Holy book and one God. The mind is so conditioned and rigidly narrowed down to such a notion that anything else is not acceptable. He understood her perception and concept about faith, but realised that you can't compare Hinduism with any of the present leading religions where you have to believe in one concept of God.

He tried to explain to her, “You can believe in one God and you can be a Hindu. You may believe in multiple deities and still you can be a Hindu. What's more - you may not believe in God at all, still you can be a Hindu. An atheist can also be a Hindu.”

This sounded very crazy to her. She couldn't imagine a religion so unorganized, still surviving.

“I don't understand but it seems very interesting. Are you religious?”

What could he tell this American girl?

He said, “I do not go to a temple regularly. I do not make any regular rituals. I have learned some of the rituals in my younger days. I still enjoy doing it sometimes.”

“Enjoy?? Are you not afraid of God?”

“No - we are not afraid of God. Nobody has made any such compulsions to perform these rituals regularly.”

She thought for a while and then asked: “Have you ever thought of converting to any other
religion?”

“Why should I? Even if I challenge some of the rituals and faith in Hinduism, nobody can convert me from Hinduism. Because, being a Hindu allows me to think independently and objectively, without conditioning. I remain as a Hindu never by force, but by choice.”

He told her that Hinduism is not a religion, but a set of beliefs and practises. It is not a religion like Christianity or Islam because it is not founded by any one person or does not have an organized controlling body like the Church or the Order, he added, there is no institution or authority.

“So, you don't believe in God?” She wanted everything in black and white.

“I didn't say that. I do not discard the divine reality. Our scriptures, or Sruthis or Smrithis - Vedas and Upanishads or the Gita - say God might be there or he might not be there. But we pray to that supreme abstract authority (Para Brahman) that is the creator of this universe.”

“Why can't you believe in one personal God?”

“We have a concept - ABSTRACT - not a personal god.”

“The concept or notion of a personal God, hiding behind the clouds of secrecy, telling us irrational stories through few men, whom, he sends as messengers, demanding us to worship him or punish us, does not make sense. I don't think that God is as silly as an autocratic emperor, who wants others to respect him or fear him.”

He told her that such notions are just fancies of less educated human imagination and fallacies, adding that generally ethnic religious practitioners in Hinduism believe in personal Gods. The entry level Hinduism has over-whelming superstitions too. The philosophical side of Hinduism negates all superstitions.

“Good that you agree God might exist. You said that you pray. What is your prayer then?”

“Lokaah Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu. Om Shanti, Shanti, Shantihi,”
She laughed, “What does it mean?”

“May all the beings in all the worlds be happy. Let there be Peace, Peace, and Peace everywhere.”

“Hmm. Very interesting. I want to learn more about this religion. It is so democratic, broad-minded and free!” she exclaimed.

“The fact is, HINDUISM is a religion of the individual, for the individual and by the individual with its roots in the Vedas and the Bhagavad-Gita.”

“It is all about an individual approaching a personal God in an individual way according to his temperament and inner evolution - it is as simple as that.”

“How does anybody convert to Hinduism?”

“Nobody can convert you to Hinduism, because it is not a religion, but it is a culture, a way of living life, a set of beliefs and practises. Everything is acceptable in Hinduism because there is no single Authority or Organization either to accept you or to reject you or to oppose you on behalf of Hinduism.”

He continued, “If you look for meaning in life, don't look for it in religions; don't go from one cult to another or from one guru to the next.”

“For a real seeker, the Bible itself gives guidelines when it says ‘Kingdom of God is within you’. He reminded her of Christ’s teaching about the love that we have for each other. That is where you can find the meaning of life. Loving each and every creation of the God is absolute and real.”

“Isavasyam idam sarvam Isam (the God) is present (inhabits) here everywhere - nothing exists separate from the God, because God is present everywhere. Respect every living being and non-living thing as God. That’s what Hinduism teaches you.”

“Hinduism is referred to as Sanatana Dharma, the eternal faith. It is based on the practice of Dharma, the code of life. The most important aspect of Hinduism is being truthful to oneself. Hinduism has no monopoly on ideas. It is open to all. Hindus believe in one God (not a personal one) expressed in different forms. For them, God is a timeless and formless entity.”

“The ancestors of today’s Hindus believed in eternal truths and cosmic laws and these truths are opened to anyone who seeks them. The British coined the word “Hindu” and considered it as a religion,” the gentleman continued.

He said, “Religions have become a multi-level-marketing industry that has been trying to expand the market share by conversion. The biggest business in today’s world is spirituality. I am a Hindu because it doesn’t pre-condition my mind with any faith system. In Hinduism we don’t have any managers of God. Some say, ‘Be Muslim’. Some say, ‘Be Christian’. The Vedas say ‘Be Human’. Some say, ‘Follow Prophet’. Some say, ‘Follow Jesus’. Vedas say, ‘Follow your conscience’.”

“You would have heard some say that God is over seventh sky. Some say that God is over fourth sky. Vedas say that God is with me, within me.”

“Some say that God tests, others that God punishes. Yet others that God forgives. But the Vedas say that God supports. Hinduism is the original, rather a natural yet logical and satisfying spiritual, personal and a scientific way of living a life. Hinduism is not a religion, it’s a culture, a way of life,” the gentleman concluded.

Xiao Ming sat quietly, absorbing all that Anav had narrated, even as he continued by way of explanation, “Now, neither am I a rabid or a practising Hindu, I am an agnostic, but this conversation appealed to me a lot and sums up my own beliefs.”

As the conversation rolled-on, another set of secrets tumbled from the shelves of Xiao Ming’s and Anav’s lives. Apart from the privation they faced in their lives, the two suffered physically as well.

Xiao Ming had always been an affectionate person but over the years had turned into a haughty, impatient and moody person. However, combined with her sometimes-hedonistic and reckless lifestyle it took a toll on her internal system. While she maintained a strict physical fitness regime, her stomach revolted regularly perhaps due frequent consumption of liquor, not that she was addicted to it. As she was fixated in creating the Virtual Buddy app, she had to perforce travel and eat outside which affected her digestive system. She was in search of a cure as the frequent bouts of abdominal pain and irritable bowel syndrome resulted in frequent mood changes and loss of concentration. Additionally, she suffered from severe cramps during her menstrual cycles and found no succour to overcome this ailment.

The ten-kilometre-runner who was otherwise extremely fit, had begun to suffer from acute spondylitis and bouts of arthritis. The nagging pain in his neck, knees and shoulder made him temperamental and at times had a debilitating affect during his work schedule and daily chores.

This was of perhaps on account of long hours at the desk, working on the computer and dependency on gizmos and smart phones. He had read somewhere that on an average humans use a smartphone a minimum of 80 to 180 times a day and this plays havoc on the tissues in the neck, shoulders and back which often got knotted up, leading to excruciating pain.

So, both had issues with their bodies and minds and were keen to find resolution.

Behind the veneer of athleticism and seemingly fit bodies both the alluring Chinese woman and the smart Indian were looking for help.

Shortly thereafter the captain of the aircraft announced that they would begin their descent at the Indira Gandhi International airport.

“It has been a very interesting conversation with you Anav. You are exceedingly well-informed and knowledgeable,” Xiao Ming mentioned with a glowing face.

“That’s nice of you. In midst of Buddha getting caught in the turbulence and the meandering foray about Hinduism, I clean forgot to mention another podcast, which could pave the way for your future plans,” Anav added.

As the flight descended and taxied on the tarmac, Xiao Ming asked Anav about his plans. “So, you head to your parents’ place at Chennai?”

“Not right away. I would be spending some days with my friend at Delhi. He is a dramatist, writes and above all is a meditation teacher.”

Xiao Ming’s jaws fell. “What … and I thought you were the repository of all this wisdom,” she said with consternation.

“Well, he is my Virtual Buddy app, my mentor. We all have one in our lives. All the podcasts were those of my friend.”

“My goodness you concealed a secret,” Xiao Ming protested.

“‘Conceal your dispositions, and your condition will remain secret, which leads to victory; show your dispositions, and your condition will become patent, which leads to defeat,’ said Sun Tzu,” Anav signed-off.