Kalachakra Mandala in Dharamsala: lesson of impermanence.

Dear Readers: Today I share with you a very interesting experience happened to me in Dharamsala.

Dharamsala is a city in northern India, in the Himalayas. Dharamsala means shelter, and home to Tibetan exiles from their country because of the Chinese Communist repression. In Dharamsala exudes a special atmosphere: are common Tibetan prayer flags, the Asian features and groups of wandering monks with cherry habits. If the atmosphere is quite Dharamsala Tibetan in Tibet breathes Gangj McLeod on all four sides.

McLeod Gangj is indeed a small Tibet in exile. It is the seat of residence of the Dalai Lama. It is in the main temple of Mc Leod Gangj where I could see the creation of a Mandala by a group of monks, were carefully dropping strokes fine colored sand.

The mandala represents Kalachakra teaching, one of the highest teachings of Tibetan Buddhism and esoteric revolves around the concept of time and successive cycles, in short is about the Buddhist concept of impermanence of all phenomena: the lives, the sorrows, the joys, all passes, nothing is permanent. There were several days that I sat down to meditate watching the monks perform their path, which seemed to emanate true knowledge of sacred geometry.

 One day, repeating the routine access to the temple and found mandala meditate next to the empty room. I then asked one of the monks and he replied with just two words:-mandala remove. They waste the mandala that with such wisdom and patience had built an absolute lesson of impermanence. I already knew that the mandalas were created to destroy, if only I knew intellectually, as witness the fact something as beautiful and complex could be destroyed in less than a second was a Dharma lesson live and direct.

Dear reader: I strongly advise you to generate opportunities to witness the creation-destruction of a Tibetan mandala. Although it does not compare with a direct experience, I leave a Youtube video where you can see impermanence, mindfulness of the monks and the avidity of the westerners.

Journey to Zen Buddhism, my first experience of Dharma

Rafael Téllez Romero

This happened to me many years ago, when I was a teenager. Was a real trip to the East, although not physically walked away from my city, Seville.
It was during a weekend in which a famous Zen Dojo Sevilla opened its doors for a conference Zen Buddhism Introductory Then, with a group of friends, all teenagers with their heads full of dreams and fantasies about feudal Japan Samuray and mysticism, attended these workshops.
The impact was tremendous: expected a conference or event colorful and instead we are in a minimalist room, surrounded by what we considered "elderly", some practitioners and other laymen like us. All sitting on zafus and trying meditate facing the wall. The amount of time trying to meditate is made eternal. After that we walked a bit around the room doing walking meditation and then invited us to sit in meditation for us again ... even childish minds that it was too put up with the situation as we could and we were relieved when it was over this new sitting.
That's when Zen Dojo members were invited to speak and share our impressions. Some of the assistant asked about breathing, posture, etc.. I remember I asked something about the Zen concept of winning without fighting, could not understand how to win without fighting against possible attack by a criminal ... one of my colleagues said he wanted to practice Zen archery and asked if it was possible to practice at the Dojo.
When question time ended the man who seemed to have more authority in the Dojo responded to each of your questions. In our group we looked impassive face and said: "You want to fight and win, to be champions of Karate, want to practice Zen archery ... but in this Dojo does not have any of that: there are no arcs or targets ... but if we have a toilet will you practice Zen cleaning the toilet? ... I assure you it is the same Zen "
Given this response swallow saliva and we looked at each other aghast. When the session ended and my friends and I left the Dojo, we press the fast pace and walk away muttering ...We had not understood anything and yet we received our first lesson of Zen: a priceless gift then but that which has been germinating seed with our maturation. Years pass and mature consciences. Even today, when I meet one of those friends remember this "war stories of the Dharma" and laughed out loud ... now understand that the Zen archery and cleaning the toilet are the same Zen (and practice the toilet is also available everywhere).

Megalithism in Mallorca: Talallots a trip to the Bronze Age

Talallots de Mallorca: a trip to the Bronze Age.

Dear Readers: Today we talk about a really reminiscent initiatory trip: a visit to a set of Talallots in Mallorca.

Rafael Téllez

 The Talallots, prehistoric constructions are characteristic of the Balearic Islands, also known as or talayotes Talaiots (all these names come from Arabic "talaya").It is curious that the first buildings on the islands had shelter and community functions, and with the passage of time appeared constructions strategic role and surveillance at key points, some authors suggest that this was due to pressure of other peoples who attacked from the sea.

Rafael Téllez

The Talallots are some of the first buildings constructed for the species humanaen the Balearic Islands, in the late Bronze Age known as: involves the construction of buildings with walls made of huge stone blocks. The union has made "a bone", ie without using any mortar or cement. You may assume that the builders as Cyclopean buildings had some type of expertise. A good portion of those buildings have come down to us and we can still discover secrets in them: groups of buildings orientations under astrological events how solstices and equinoxes, in places of worship or funeral rites that lived with daily. Walls and right angles (of this type only find in Mallorca), whereas others made a circular motion. The presence of adventure Talallots the appearance of what may be the birth of an ancient center of power.

Rafael Téllez

Today you can visit different talallótica enclaves of culture, emphasizing: Son Fornes, Capicorp Vell and is Xot d'Sa Clova. It is assumed that in the past there was a profusion of talallóticos villages, an estimated 250.Dear traveler, if you plan a visit to Mallorca I advise not let miss a visit to one of these unique prehistoric sites.