In front of the statues, hundreds of monks sat chanting. Even though the monastery was full of tourists, who were clicking photographs and chattering loudly, the monks went about their prayers undistractedly. Every once in a while, when the cymbals clashed, bells rang and drums beat, the chanting grew louder and more powerful. The first time it happened, I and the other tourists went quiet as we watched the monks and listened to their chanting, with awe.
However, people started chattering away in a while. I was trying hard to soak in the calming effect of the chants, and I was quite annoyed by the unabashedly loud tourists. But the monks remained unperturbed; they chanted on in unison, their focus razor sharp, their pitch uniform. This moment of observation inspired me to try and focus solely on the reverberation of the monks’ chanting. I was not sure how many minutes had passed, but with deliberate concentration, I managed to tune out the noise from the crowd.
By the time I hit the road back to Coorg, something in me had changed a little. I found myself reflecting on what I had experienced at the monastery. When the mind is calm and peaceful, focus comes naturally and wisdom emerges from within. Where there is inner peace, the chaos of the outer world automatically dissipates. Perhaps, this is the secret behind the monks’ admirable way of life. Maybe, therein lies an important lesson. If each of us applied this to our own lives, we might just bring more peace to ourselves, and with persistence, perhaps even our surroundings.