Kinda rushing here. But, I've thought about this. People ask me, when I tell them that I spent time in Europe, about whether I saw the sights, and I have to explain somewhat awkwardly, that I did not, at least for the most part.
But the funny thing is, that we weren't completely isolated, and the interactions we did have with the local communities were of a non touristy type, and so I have to say that the memories I have of visiting those locales where the courses were held, stand out among the best memories of travel that I have. Thinking particularly of Courcheval, France, and Zinal and Arosa Switzerland. To a lessor extent, Biarritz, France. ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <turquoiseb@...> wrote : As a followup to the question of why so many TMers believe so thoroughly that enlightenment is not only "special," it's the "most special" thing one can possibly aspire to in life, consider this scenario: You've just arrived -- tired and jetlagged after a long flight to Europe -- and have landed in a quaint hotel overlooking spectacular sights that tourists pay big bucks to wander among. Instead of visiting them, however, you are ushered to a tiny hotel room, where you are told to practice certain mental and physical activities 6-8 hours a day. Your handlers tell you that these activities are considered so disorienting and so liable to impair your ability to handle yourself on the streets that you're not allowed to leave the hotel to go into town or see any of the sights. Pretty much the only time you are *allowed* to leave the hotel, in fact, are on the scheduled short "walk and talks" you have to take, and then only in the company of your "buddy." In the time between your practice of these mind-bending practices, pretty much the only things you get to do are eat and sit in rooms full of people as spaced out as you are, watching hour after hour after hour of videotapes. On the tapes, the talking head (usually the same one) goes on and on and on and on about enlightenment, and how it's the most wonderful thing since sliced Wonderbread. He talks about all the spectacular and powerful things that the enlightened can do that lesser mortals cannot. He presents a series of role models from Indian tradition, *all* of whose stories seem to revolve around making enlightenment The Most Important Thing In Their Lives. Occasionally he'll tell cautionary tales of the Bad Things that happen to people who start on this awesome quest for enlightenment and fall Off The Path, and the horrible karmic things that happen to them as a result. After several weeks or months of this, you go home. And somehow the things you felt were important before as worthy goals to pursue in your life don't seem so important. The ONLY thing that inspires you and gets your yang up is attaining enlightenment. Go figure.
