In the Company of Tibetan Monks
Opening Our Home, Hearts and Minds to the Wonderfully Unexpected
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When seven Tibetan Buddhist monks were guests in our Ohio home, we gradually and effortlessly slid into a gentle rhythm Nothing had prepared me for this experience. I knew these were important visitors, but I had no ‘file’ in my brain to consult for a reference. Why was I not uptight? Instead, I was very comfortable in their presence, sharing our house: doing ordinary things with extraordinary people. Something unexplainable was happening here and I loved it! There was a happy, blissful energy in our home.
When I arrived at Merging Hearts Holistic Center around 10:30 a.m., one monk was working on the sand mandala, another monk was at the retail table, and the remaining monks had gone with their driver Jeff Beach to conduct a House Blessing.
I had a medical consultation appointment with head monk Geshe at 11:00 a.m. Geshe is a Doctor of Tibetan Medicine and Director of the Gajang Tibetan Herbal Medical Centre at the Gaden Jangtse Monastery in India, which he co-founded in 2004. He has treated thousands of patients and gives medical consultations at the monastery and while traveling abroad. The Medical Centre serves the monastic and lay communities in Tibetan settlement camps and Indian villages near the monastery and depends on donations from around the world for support. It provides traditional herbal medicines and acupuncture at greatly reduced costs, or free of charge for those who cannot afford to pay.
I was his very first patient and had some anxieties. Even though I didn’t have any medical issues, doctors have a way of finding things. Plus, I knew I would be asked by others to describe the consultation.
Geshe used a sophisticated diagnostic method called pulse reading, a technique that takes years to learn and master. With his eyes closed, Geshe held one of my hands and very lightly compressed each finger, then pressed the center of my palm, and then lightly compressed my wrist and forearm with his fingers. He did the same with my other hand. Nothing was rushed. He was relaxed, calm, and steady. He asked me a few general questions such as how did I feel and how did I sleep. Then without hesitation, he said: “Your shoulders are tight (correct) and your cholesterol is OK but borderline (again correct).”
Geshe prescribed two herbal remedies: one in the morning for my cholesterol and one in the evening for my shoulders. They are blends of herbs compressed into small spheres. I was instructed to crush them, put them into a cup of hot water, and drink like tea. He said I could chew them, but they didn’t taste very good. Some of the herbs included in the spheres were sesame seeds, pomegranate seeds, several other familiar herbs and some that only grow high in the Himalayas.
Geshe asked me about exercise. I told him I take a mile and a half walk every morning. He said: “You don’t need to do any more than this.” This was welcome news because I am not crazy about exercise. I neglected to mention that I didn’t always take my walk every single day. At the end of the consultation, I was instructed that I could communicate with him via e-mail to report changes and to order more herbs. Note to self: Take the daily walk.
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About the Book
Suzanne agreed to host a few of the seven Tibetan monks when they visited Ohio on their 2012 World Peace Cultural Tour. Due to a last minute change of plans, she and her husband John hosted all of the monks and their driver for nine days in their home. Although Suzanne and John are world travelers, they knew little about Tibet and Buddhism. Hosting the monks became an incredible adventure as Suzanne and John maneuvered through unchartered waters. Their friends said this was an opportunity for them to step out of their comfort zone. Upon reflection, it was more accurate to say they stepped into a comfort zone. When the monks entered their home, they also stepped into their hearts. Being in the company of these Tibetan monks was a life-changing experience. Suzanne and John were – and continue to be – overwhelmed with gratitude for having been placed in a circumstance where this experience literally came through their front door.
Many color photographs help to tell the story of this wonderfully unexpected cultural experience.
All proceeds from the sale of this book are donated to the work of the Gaden Jangtse Monastery in India, where the monks reside, and Merging Hearts Holistic Center, the organization that sponsored the monks during their stay in Canton, Ohio.
About the Author
Suzanne is a wife, mother, and grandmother. Suzanne was born and raised in Lima, Ohio, attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, graduated from Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio with a BSN degree and the University of Akron with a MSED degree. Suzanne worked at University Hospitals in Cleveland and Akron City Hospital, and was the Education Consultant for a pediatric evaluating team in Canton, Ohio.
When her husband John accepted a job transfer in 1981, Suzanne and her family moved to Luxembourg where they lived for ten years. As a member of the American Women’s Club of Luxembourg, Suzanne greatly expanded an existing pamphlet, Living in Luxembourg, and published it as a book designed to assist English-speaking expatriates living in the multinational Luxembourg community. In appreciation of this effort, Suzanne and her committee were invited to the Grand Ducal Palace for an audience with Crown Prince Henri in 1991. The book is still being sold today and is in its sixteenth edition.
Suzanne loves to cook and studied French cooking in Paris and Luxembourg. She and John are world travelers and have recently traveled to Antarctica, high Arctic regions in Norway and Russia, Vietnam and Cambodia. Suzanne has retired from her interior decorating and real estate home staging consulting business, has studied faux painting and wood graining, and enjoys creating interesting finishes. Above all, Suzanne loves spending time with her family. Suzanne and John live near Canton, Ohio. They have three children and three grandchildren.