Bir part 2: Conference and Beyond

*(pictures to follow shortly)

With all the preparations in place, including ear plugs with instructions, Deer Park Institute sat ready to host some of the biggest names in Buddhist translation. The purpose of the conference was to initiate a group dialog that would address the most pressing issues surrounding the preservation of the Tibetan Buddhist cannon. Such topics included the waning interest among the younger generation of Tibetans in their own language and culture, as well as the loss of many old masters and the dwindling number of people who can read and understand the classical Tibetan which much of the scripture is written in. Other topics included obstacles to translation such as funding, issues of working together and much much more. Corey and I were poised to document the goings on, and there was certainly a feeling of historical importance that was swelling in atmosphere.

The event was catapulted into action by an extremely well worded and inspiring opening address from Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche. Following his lead, all the participants really launched into the discussions, and by the end of the first day they had set the lofty goal of having the entirety of what exists as the Tibetan Buddhist cannon translated in 100yrs. Corey and I were on from morning till late at night juggling still/video cameras, various audio equipment and whatever technical needs that arouse. It was definitely a lot of work, especially after traveling for three months where our only job was to look at things, but after it was over we felt very glad to have had the opportunity to contribute in some way.

One of the most enjoyable elements of the conference was that DKR (Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche) and the Khyentse Foundation had brought in a professional "facilitator" named Ivy.
She ran the event in a strict and somewhat corporate way and it was very humorous to see high level Buddhist teachers, and translators of greater and lesser celebrity all have to wait their turn to speak with hands raised similar to the way school children do. They were an extremely lively and opinionated bunch to say the least, and their discussions spilled out of the meeting room and dominated their meal and free time.

The conference ended on a high note as the participants were granted an audience with His Holiness the Dali Lama. They were quickly bussed off to Dharamsala, while back in Bir there was still work to be done. Both Corey's and my services were solicited( Corey's photography and my DJ skills) for the wedding of a young Bhutanese man named Pawo and a young Taiwanese lady named Stephanie. Both of them and their families have been long time students of DKR, and Rinpoche orchestrated the entire day and night down to the last detail as well as hosting it at his house. The wedding was light hearted, kind and outrageously photogenic. Here I will let Corey's pictures tell the rest.

As the king of non-stop activity, DKR began a Vajrayogini Drupcho (approx. eight day long Tibetan Buddhist puja) the following day. Corey and I were very lucky to be on the list of allowed persons so for the next week we spent our mornings at Deer Park in the computer room editing the footage from the conference into a four minute piece for the Khyentse Foundation, and our afternoons were spent in the depths of ritualistic Buddhism in a small room full of curious and beautiful people.

After two weeks of non-stop activity we bid farewell to the sweet and peculiar town of Bir, and to some new and old friends. Persisting in his kindness, DKR sent us packing with his expressed appreciation and some gifts of incense, malas, and small porcelain animal figurines (a cat for me and a frog for Corey). We drove out of town with Emily Crow on board for a couple of nights at a highly recommended home-stay near the Kullu Valley. I felt fairly tired but also blessed, and I was full of appreciation for the connections I had made.