Greetings!
Many people came to honor the teacher on his birthday. It was his 75th birthday.
The teacher sat in the front. Samuel invited people to walk to the front and share their experiences of being in the presence of the teacher. Samuel had a good sense of humor. He said he was afraid Matthew would be the first one to speak for he had heard Matthew's story too many times over the years. He was getting bored of Matthew's story for he could almost recite his story. We laughed. It was wonderful to see two friends that were close like brothers. Matthew laughed too. He began to tell us the synchronicity and miraculous happenings when he met the teacher for the first time about 19 years ago. It was truly an amazing story.
One after another, people walked forward to thank the teacher. Some cried while expressing their gratitude. At one point, Matthew remarked, "Look! He (the spiritual teacher) is in glee, yet sometimes he is shy like a child (hearing what people said of him)." A master he is, the teacher often said he was but an instrument. He served with humility. His presence had made a profound difference in many people's lives.
A brother thanked the teacher, and then recalled the events that happened on his own spiritual journey. He felt blessed to have met many wonderful people and spiritual teachers. This brother was loved and well respected by many. It was a beautiful experience to be in a gathering like this where people shared freely and truthfully.
Samuel asked the sister that emailed me about the meeting at Matthew's house to walk forth. She was a joyful, loving being. She said quite a few young people called her mother. As a mother, she said she loved to hug her children. She said, "Here in America, we can hug one another." She wished the teacher had set aside the cultural difference and allowed women to come close to him just as men did.
In my post Day 1 of the Spiritual Retreat , I wrote 'There was an old Chinese saying that we should follow other people's customs when we were in their house / community'. I thought I had shown respect to their customs. From the talks, I realized I had not! On Day 1, I saw people (men) bowed before the teacher to receive his blessings. The teacher placed his hands over their heads, and / or touched their hands as he talked to them. I thought it applied to everybody. Not knowing the social rules, I had bowed to receive his blessings, and he had kindly obliged by placing his hands on my head. This night I learned the teacher normally greeted women with folded hands, and women were supposed to keep a little distance (i.e. should not touch the teacher's hands / feet). A sister said she hugged the teacher when she met the teacher for she did not know she was not supposed to do that. There was a light mood in the gathering. The difference of cultures helped us to understand and accept one another.
Hours went by as many people walked forth to thank the teacher. I only thanked him in my heart. After people finished expressing their gratitude, the teacher gave his last discourse. He would fly back to his country in two days. Time flew as we listened to his energetic discourse. When it was over, Matthew brought out a huge chocolate birthday cake.
Later, the teacher walked forth to talk to people. Many (men) surrounded him waiting to receive his blessings. At one point, he walked to a woman (American). As they talked, he held her hands. One person explained the woman was older than the teacher, and it was their custom to treat the elders with respect.
The woman sometimes came with an elderly man. (I did not know if he was her husband). They both looked kind and gentle. I heard she (or they) had postponed going (back?) to another state because of the spiritual retreat. On the last day of the retreat, we sat around in Samuel's house waiting for the teacher to come. I happened to sit next to them. This kind woman reached out to hold one of my hands as her way of greeting. I could feel the good energy in her hand.
The teacher continued his walk among people. Someone asked the woman how old she was. She was just a year or two older than the teacher. I did not think age had much to do with how the teacher treated this kind woman. We all regarded the teacher with much esteem. Meanwhile, we might not have noticed that the teacher, in his humility, had treated everybody, young and old, with love and respect. A father told me his teenage son's behavior improved after coming to the retreat.
Before the teacher walked near where I sat, I stood up and folded my hands in a prayer position. I intended to bow to him as he walked by. Some men stood in front of me waiting to receive his blessings. The teacher came. He blessed each one of them by touching their heads and hands. Then he stood in front of me. I bowed and said "thank you". Unexpectedly, he held both of my hands. For the second time, I looked into his eyes. I saw kindness, wisdom, and bliss in his eyes. He looked into my eyes for a while. He said joyfully, "We will meet again next year." He looked around and told others, "I will come back next year." We were all very happy to hear the good news.
The next day I went out for a walk in the evening. There in the sky was a beautiful rainbow. I rushed home to get my camera. Hearing why I came back into the house, my husband said, "What is the big deal? In the village, I saw rainbows all the time." I rushed outside. I only got to take a few pictures before the rainbow disappeared. I continued my walk around the football field of the school with a sense of joy.
When I was home, my husband swayed his head saying how ridiculous it was for me to think rainbows were rare and worth taking pictures for. With his personality, he could only look at things from his practical view, and had a hard time accepting other's way of being. I had learned to let it go in situations like this because he seldom changed his view no matter what others said. However, I wanted to give it a try that evening.
I said, "I know rainbows often appear after raining. You grew up in the village and worked in the fields. Of course, you saw rainbows from time to time. We have lived in USA for decades. We only see rainbows once in a long while. It is because we stay inside most of the time. For example, when you were a cook, you stayed in the restaurants for eleven hours a day. We go to the stores every week. Sometimes it rains, but we seldom see a rainbow. Why? Because rainbows do not remain in the sky for long. Some days ago, it had rained. You did not see a rainbow when you took a walk. I came back from the healing workshop. I sat down next to you and watched TV. Suddenly, I decided to go for a walk. Did you remember I rushed back to get the camera because I saw a rainbow? That evening you made similar remarks too. Let me tell you an interesting coincidence. I told my friends about the rainbow on the second day of the workshop. Someone said they were meditating with the spiritual teacher inside a house at that time, and many saw a rainbow above the teacher's head! You often go for a walk at a fixed time, but I do not. As you know, some days I do not go for a walk. Yes, I was happy to see the rainbow. I took a few pictures before it disappeared. If I went for a walk an hour early, I might not see a rainbow. If I went outside a few minutes late, the rainbow was gone. People only get to see a rainbow at a particular moment or for the brief while it appears in the sky. I do not mean all rainbows are signs of the divine, but I do think rainbows are beautiful."
After a pause, I continued, "When I go for walks, I look at the trees and the clouds. I enjoy the sunlight. I appreciate the beauty around me. You tell me you simply walk and do not look around. It is totally fine with me however you choose to walk. Why should you feel upset or I am ridiculous because I feel happy seeing a rainbow?"
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Our group got together recently. We were happy to see each other again. Matthew called the teacher during the gathering. It was good to hear his joyful voice.
This is my last post about the healing workshop and the spiritual retreat. I hope to share with you something else in my next post.
Have a good night!
Peace,
Q of D
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