RARE, INTIMATE CEREMONY IN NEPAL
I want to share something really special and close to my heart.
But first – I want you to take a moment to reflect on these questions & see what pops in your mind:
What obstacles would you like to remove from your life, right now?
What are you struggling with?
What do you want more of?
Where do you want more clarity?
How do you want to make a bigger positive impact in your life?
Now that you’re reflecting – I want to take you into a world that has the power to shift everything.
We’re in Nepal right now – inside the Marpa Gompa, where we’ve been doing Green Tara practice every morning with the Tibetan Buddhist nuns.
It’s a tiny temple that’s over 1000 years old and holds an indescribable energy.
These are the same nuns who taught us the Green Tara practice three years ago – the very practice that made it possible for us to offer prayers during natural disasters to help people in North Carolina, Texas, California and Florida.
Green Tara practice is known to remove obstacles, provide protection and enhance health, wealth and auspicious conditions in your life.
But beyond the blessings – there is something far more moving happening here.
These female practitioners have spent between 20 to 60 years of their lives devoted to meditation, mindful-awareness and benefiting others.
It is also extremely moving.
It’s a powerful blessing, and these female practitioners have spent between 20 to 60 years of their lives devoted to meditation, mindful-awareness and benefiting others.
Hearing them make prayers is powerful.
Time and space take on another quality.
There's a deep understanding that something important is happening.
The nuns speak very little English, but our collective spiritual devotion brings us together.
This connection goes both ways. As much as these practices benefit those who receive the blessings, being seen, witnessed and supported deeply impacts the nuns too.
This past summer, we donated a percentage of our summer sale to our favorite monastery in Nepal, to drill a well and install a purification system so the monks could have clean water.
After inquiring, we realized that the nuns’ drinking water situation is also dire, and it's making them sick.
For three months during each rainy season, they collect rain water from the rooftop to fill 6 large plastic tanks.
The rain water alone is impure, in addition to the roof serving as a 'lounge' for the local monkeys on a daily basis.
This three-month collection of rain water must last the nuns for an entire year – for washing their bodies as well as for all cleaning (dishes, clothing, etc).
For drinking water, the nuns have jugs brought up the hill – but if the vendor runs out, they have no choice but to drink the stagnant rain water, making everyone sick with rashes and respiratory issues.
I looked inside one of their water tanks, and it was full of baby mosquitos. In a climate like this, mosquitos can carry various diseases.
Eight nuns living in this courtyard share one squat bathroom with no running water. After using the toilet, they pour the buckets of rain water to wash it away.
They don’t have a proper shower room, so when any of them need to bathe, they use the roof rain water – inside that same squat toilet room – on their bodies.
We have both a short-term and a long-term plan.
Long-term: Obtain nearby land, put in plumbing and get a long-term water supply. We’ve identified the land.
Short-term, while we’re here: Obtain a huge, refillable water tank and install it at the Gompa to be filled monthly.
This way, the nuns will finally have access to clean water – both for drinking and for washing.
Join us Wednesday evening for the Green Tara Puja and allow your heart to be touched.
Send in your intentions and photos of you, or your loved ones, and we will print them all out and show them to the nuns.
We will all do the practice on your behalf.
Whatever donation you make is important and creates a massive positive impact in the lives of these powerful female practitioners.
Give what you can. Your generosity goes a long way here.
We’ll see you this Wednesday evening, October 22nd on zoom: 5:15pm PT/AZ | 6:15pm MT | 7:15pm CT | 8:15pm ET
Afterword, we’ll introduce you to the nuns, give you a tour of the Marpa Gompa and show you where the nuns live (very old traditional Nepali style buildings).
Sign up here.
Everyone who makes a donation will receive the Zoom link to join the ceremony.
*This ceremony will be recorded.
This is such a special experience and I cannot wait to share it with you.
Love & Nepali flowers,
Katie
P.S. Whether or not you can attend, if you donate to this cause, it will benefit you.
