TRAVELMAN NEPAL: the Monkey Temple Finale (Part 3). The Stupa!

I promised I would talk about stupas in this post- the big finale of the Monkey Temple trilogy!

These posts are actually Episodes IV, V, VI of The Monkey Temple Saga. I plan to post depressingly disappointing prequels twenty-six years from now. I’ll be six years-old in those episodes, the most interesting characters will be killed off early in the first post, and I’ll have an entirely CGI companion who speaks in a racistly derived Hispanic accent. Then I’ll hand the saga over to someone else for the last three episodes so that they can further disappoint you...So, don’t say I never gave you anything.

A Stupa? Everyone here knows what a stupa is. What are you stupa’ or something? (No, I am not above that level of humor.) A stupa is a dome shaped structure erected as a Buddhist shrine. Sometimes they house remains of monks, or religious relics, others are symbolic. They often mark a sacred spot and are used as a place of meditation and selfie taking.

Here’s another view of the stupa. The white dome represents the earth, the sqiggly nose is the Nepali symbol for the number one to represent the unity of all things, the third eye represents Buddha seeing all, he’s got no ears because he doesn’t need to be bothered hearing your prayers, and the 13 gold plated tiers on the cone represent the thirteen steps to nirvana... but never mind.

Notice the monk getting taped by a camera crew at the bottom of this shot. I think he’s one of the stars of Goodmorning Kathmandu with Monk Regis and Sister Kelly. He’s probably at the stupa for a light hearted remote segment they call Where in the Wheel of Life is Monk Regis!.

I hope you’re now imagining a monk saying monk-type things but acting like Regis Philbun because it will brighten your day. ...”You must reach enlightenment!? Enlightment? I can’t even get this robe wrapped properly! Look at this thing! I’m a mess, Sister Kelly! I’m a mess! Letterman’s over there floating on the lotus! I’m down on the second tier with my kashaya where my antaravasaka should be and my antaravasaka where my sanghati should be! My yin’s in my yang, I’m a mess! I’m in the muck, Sister Kelly! I’m in the muck! Letterman’s hovering and looking over at Paul, I’m lookin’ up from a mass of rumpled robe! Aw, but what are you gonna do? We got a great show today for you folks. Tony Danza will be here with his fantastic Momo recipe...” -That’s how Monk Regis talks. He’s a very charismatic and down to earth monk.

This is not a PhotoMat, so do not try and drop off your film here. They don’t think it’s funny...

Cool looking carving...

These are prayer wheels. They encircle the base of the stupa. As you walk clockwise around the stupa, you spin them. Similar to what I reported about the prayer flags in my last post, according to Matrika, the spinning movement carries the prayers off the wheel and into existence, Lonely Planet says that the wind horse carries the prayers up to heaven, and I think they’re fun to spin. These wheels are embossed with “Hail to the jewel in the lotus.”

These people were selling trinkets to leave as offerings. Matrika saw a Chinese woman stick a five dollar bill through a locked iron gate covering a window sized shrine. He got a big kick out of that, he said it would be a little bonus for the monk that cleans up the area...

A couple scenic views of Kathmandu from the front of the stupa. Matrika was disappointed for me that it was such a hazy day. He said you can see the Himalayas on a clear day...

This is the Great Thunderbolt. It’s placed directly in front of the stupa. It’s a tantric symbol of the power of enlightenment that destroys ignorance. It’s supposed to be indestructible. I kicked it to test this assertion. Yeah, it’s solid. The animals around the base are not from animal crackers, they are from the Tibetan calendar...

Below are a few of the 365 stairs we walked down to leave. I waited for what seemed like forever for this old woman to walk out of my shot, but she was soooooo slow, so now she’s in my picture on the internet (and probably still on the stairs).

The stairs are where the monkeys pull their heists. As we started our descent, Matrika noticed a Chinese man carrying a plastic bag with food in it. Monkeys nearby were casing him. Matrika did his best to warn the man with words and gestures that the monkeys will grab his food, but he and his wife did not pick up on it. Within seconds, a monkey grabbed his bag and tore it open. While the Chinese couple stood there watching the monkeys, the idiot Chines woman opened a bottle of Coke. Matrika tried to warn her. Again, stupid doesn’t go away. A monkey jumped up and knocked the coke to the ground. The woman started crying. Matrika and I shook our heads.

A few more steps and I saw a monkey eyeing someone behind me. He looked ready to sprint for the goods. He did. He went after a bag a young German girl had. There was no food, only a singing ball. The monkey left it behind.

We reached the bottom. A woman was eating a piece of fruit. Matrika and I warned her. The monkey ran up to her and tugged at her shirt, then climbed up her clothes until the woman handed over the goods. Another successful mugging.

As we approached the street, Matrika told me a story of a time when he was eight years old and he visited here. A monkey sat on his dad’s head, reached down, and snatched an orange from his hand. Matrika has been on full monkey alert ever since.

When we reached the sidewalk he said that he read a recent study about the monkeys at the temple. Researchers found that many of the monkeys carried AIDS.

Yep.

I’m glad he waited to drop that tidbit on me until after we left.

It’s gonna be a lonely Pharping, Nepal Christmas for Travelman, I hope yours is MERRY AND BRIGHT with lots of LOVE!

!steemitworldmap 27.7149 lat 85.2904 long Swayambhunath, the Monkey Temple Part three, in Kathmandu-Nepal, d3scr