by Smith, Skye
"Where did she learn to do that?" Will asked Marique, with a quick look over his shoulder to make sure no one had changed their minds. "Didn't I see that in a Star Wars movie?"
"She has been practicing on you," Marique replied. "Trying to stop your nightmares. Have you had any nightmares lately?"
"My nightmares," he went thoughtfully quiet. "Come to speak of it, no. Just happy dreams."
They were some distance from the gate now, and no one was following, except for the grey nun who was speaking with Maya. They had both now stopped to talk. "I am a pilgrim seeking knowledge about auras. Do you know what an aura is?"
The bikkhuni looked into her eyes and concentrated on being very calm. "I know of them, though I have never experienced them." She watched as the ferengi woman began to pray, and then moved her praying hands towards her chin and then opened her fingers like a flower opening. She felt a gentle wave of goodness pass through her neck and then tingle up and down her spine and along the bristle of her hairline between her ears at the back of her head.
Her ears heard someone moaning, a sexual moan, and then she realized it was herself and she tried to clamp her mouth shut but instead she felt herself floating into a dream. Words came to her in this dream and in the woman’s gentle soothing voice. "Take me to see someone who knows about auras."
The gentle wave lessened and lessened. She didn't want it to leave her. She tried to hold it inside her, but it was no use. And then it was gone, but she could still feel where it had been. She sighed and opened her eyes. The western woman was watching her. Her face was flushed and angelic. She could refuse her nothing. "I will take you to the abbot who leads the Japanese embassy. He will know."
They expected to be led by the Japanese nun into the meeting place within the stupa, but instead she led them to the right and towards a gracious and huge peepal tree. Under the tree there were bikkhus sat in a semi circle facing a man clothed in elegant deep red robes, who was seated with his back almost touching the massive trunk of the tree.
The four of them sat in polite silence on the outer perimeter while the man finished speaking. After he finished speaking, everyone meditated on his words and then, almost as one, stood and bowed to him. The audience gathered up their things and started walking away in many directions.
Maya stood and started to walk towards the elegant man still sitting by the tree, but the nun touched her hand and directed her towards another man who was still seated. A man dressed in a robe that seemed to have been put together from many scraps. A man who looked to be the poorest man under the tree. Of course. An important man from the same culture where the biggest boss had the smallest desk.
The nun approached no closer than ten feet and bowed to her knees to the sitting man and spoke to him without looking up at him. Afterwards he put his hand out with a blessing for her, and then she backed away from him and sat beside the western couple. The Abbot looked at the western woman in the widow's cloak and waved to her to approach him.
He turned his head and bowed to the elegant man sitting beside the tree and in English invited him to join them. Ah English, the language of communication between Asians. The three of them, the Japanese abbot, a Tibetan abbot, and the ferengi woman in white sat in a triangle.
"It would speed things to a conclusion if you could give us a demonstration," said the Tibetan abbot with the well-spoken voice of an educated Brit. She nodded to him, closed her eyes and prayed. After a few moments she opened her eyes and then leaned forward with her clasped hands as if to touch the abbot."
There were hisses and tut tut's from the half dozen monks who were now also seated and watching. "They are warning you away, madam. A woman must not touch our persons," said the Tibetan.
"But with us all wearing so much clothing, you will not feel my aura unless I bring my hand close to you," she explained.
"This is not to be permitted. Is there some other way?"
Maya thought and shrugged. "You must both bare your chests. Is that permitted?" They nodded. She ensured that her cloak was clasped closed, and then raised her hood and pulled her hands inside and wriggled out of her travel shirt. She then put the hood down again and twisted sideways within the cloak so that she could put both her arms through one of the wide arm holes in the draped sides.
It took her a while to get the cloak untwisted and her settled comfortably in lotus position. The two abbots had dropped their robes from their shoulders and sat bare-chested facing her. She clasped her palms in prayer. Now that the skin of her inner arms could push against the skin of her breasts, the aura came on quickly and strong.
She went into the pushing pizza position with her right arm across her nipples, and then extended her left palm out towards the Tibetan and focused her aura on his bare chest. She closed her eyes and distracted her conscious self away from her aura. When she heard the Tibetan's breathing change, she move her left palm so that she could push her aura into the Japanese man.
She went back and forth like this a few times. It was so frustrating to have to do this with clothes on. And no wonder. From everything she had learned about auras, they were from a time before clothes. An aura was a sense that reached out beyond the skin, like an ethereal skin that could feel things before they got close to the physical skin.
She opened her eyes and looked at the two abbots. They were both in a trance. She looked across at the monks that had hissed at her. They had bared their chests also, perhaps out of respect for the abbots. She gathered her strength and her balance, and stood up and then walked along the line of sitting monks pushing her aura into each of their chests.
Though they were of different peoples and cultures and races, even of different forms of Buddhism, they all smiled the same pleasant, peaceful smile when they felt her aura. She walked back around and sat beside Marique and withdrew into her cloak and attempted to wriggle back into her shirt. It was much harder to put back on than it had been to take off.
The two abbots opened their eyes and began to talk to each other as they pulled their robes back up. Each of them pulled pens and cards out of their robes and wrote something. The Tibetan was finished first and he signaled Maya to approach him. She went forward and kneeled in front of him as she had seen the nun do.
"My child, it is most unfortunate that you are a woman, for I could otherwise spend more time with you. Take this card. On it is the name and address of a woman in Dharamsala who perhaps can answer your questions about your aura."
Maya took his card. He had written it in both English and in a strange script that must have been Tibetan. "Is there no one here at this conference?" she asked. "You felt but a touch of my aura. Sometimes it is very powerful, frighteningly powerful. I was hoping for guidance."
"And you will have it, in Dharamsala." the man said and rose and bowed to the Japanese fellow and walked hurriedly away.
"That was strange," she said half under her breath and half to the Japanese abbot. "why did he not want to talk more. What was his hurry?"
"Perhaps he has another speaking engagement," said the abbot softly. "I fear I also must give you just a name and address." He handed her another card. "This is the address of an ascetic's retreat in the mountains above Kyoto. Please visit there and present this card. Do not let airfare embarrass you. If you phone the number on the front of the card, they will arrange transport for you."
"Thank you. Isn't Kyoto in Japan? That is a long way from here."
"I must apologize that the person has not come with us. He rarely travels, not even to Kyoto, and he refuses to pass through airports. Do you understand why?"
"Oh yes. I hate airports and train stations. We are traveling to Dharamsala in a van."
"Ah, then this stop was fortunate, for now you have the name of the person you must see there." He motioned the grey nun forward, and also to a grey monk. He pulled another of his cards from his robe and wrote on the back of it, and then handed it to the monk. He raise his voice so that all could hear, "Please arrange for accommodati
on for these three, close by, perhaps in the dormitories."
"Uh, thanks," said Will, "but we have a van filled with luggage. I will sleep in it tonight and guard it. All I need is a place to get clean, and perhaps a meal."
The abbot waved the problem away. His monk would deal with the details. "My child, I also regret that we are not of the same sex. I hope that you will allow the nuns to enjoy your aura while you are in residence."
"Oh, sure thing, no problem," Maya replied. It was obvious that the audience was over. The ragged man stood and strolled away from them followed by some other monks. Meanwhile, the remaining monk and the nun were talking to each other rapidly in Japanese.
* * * * *
Maya and Marique were led by the nun to the nuns' dormitory and ate with them there. Will and the monk re-parked the van inside the front gate where it would be safe all night, and where he would have access to washrooms and meals.
Maya had great expectations about the chance of meditating with the nuns of many cultures, but those hopes were crushed almost immediately. Nuns wore a lot of clothing, even amongst other women. With so much clothing, her aura would not broadcast widely, and they would not readily receive it.
Marique of course, was totally disinterested and went to bed early to read Maya's Gandhi book. Maya sat in a common room watching the nuns. She was so glad she wasn't one. It seemed like a very boring existence. She wondered to herself, since they spurned attachments to the physical world, and since they swore to a long code of morals, were they also supposed to spurn boredom?
The reason she herself meditated was because with her aura it was exciting, breathtaking, orgasmic. She wondered if all these asexual women meditated only because they were so bored. She wondered if they were really meditating, or were they really off in daydreams about Dior gowns and French perfume and sashaying their tight buns down fashionable streets in high heels.
* * * * *
She was woken out of her wonderings by a touch of a hand. A nun she did not know was motioning her to follow. Why not? She followed the old but handsome woman out of the women’s area and into another building, where they climbed to the third floor and went through a carved wooden door.
Inside, cross legged on small ornate carpets arranged in a circle, sat eight old men. She was led into the center and pushed down to sit on the small carpet there. The nun then deserted her, and left the room.
"You will demonstrate your aura to us." demanded one of the men in English with a heavy Chinese accent.
Maya did not like being ordered about. What ever happened to common courtesy? "Why should I?" she asked pouting.
"For the good of all," was the clipped response. "That is all that you need to know."
She had a bad feeling about this. Why now, why not in the daytime? Why had the nun left? Why these eight men of different nationalities, all in different robes and wearing different insignias? None of them were dressed in a patchwork cloak like the Japanese abbot. They were all dressed in costly fabrics.
Moreover, she was not wearing her cloak over her clothes. To allow them to feel her aura in force would require her strip to the waist. In front of old guys on a nude beach was one thing, but here in a temple, in front of monks or abbots? Like hell. She had a very bad feeling about this. Why shouldn't she just get up and walk out? She looked towards the door. There were two very large monks leaning against it.
She stalled them by sitting in the lotus position to meditate. There was a commotion at the door and angry voices, but she did not understand any of the words. Then there was just the lightest touch on her shoulder and a familiar voice with a Japanese accent was saying. "We have come to rescue you. Come with me. The abbots are arguing. It is no place for we mere women."
Maya stood and was led out of the room by the grey nun. "They ordered me to demonstrate my aura. I didn't want to so I was stalling." She pulled back on the nun's arm. "Why did you use the word 'rescue'?"
"I followed you. This is a conference of many interests. Some have come to discuss spirituality, some to discuss the missionary work of spreading the faith, but these men came to discuss cash flows and real estate. In the eyes of these men you are a valuable asset. They wanted to evaluate your gift for their own purposes."
The nun motioned her to follow, "Please to accompany me back to the women’s quarters."
"But I was hoping to find someone who had a strong aura, or at least knew about strong auras."
"My child, those with strong auras do not travel long distances to attend crowded functions. They hide away or attach themselves to clinics or schools or libraries. They would especially not come here. This is not a place of spirituality, but of politics. You should not be here. You should leave this place as soon as possible." The grey nun led her back to the women's quarters.
"I don't understand," said Maya. "Surely there is someone here that I could talk to about auras."
"This is a conference," replied the grey nun. "These people are not here for a spiritual pilgrimage, but to forge alliances and plan for a reversal of the effects of the twentieth century on our religion." She saw Maya shrug, so she explained further.
"Throughout the twentieth century, Buddhist pacifists fell victim to the two great war-mongering religions of the twentieth century, Communism and Capitalism. In just one century, so many Buddhists ugh, disappeared, that Buddhism went from being the largest of the main religions to the smallest."
"But that would mean millions of..." Maya began to ask.
"Yes, over two hundred million Buddhists were murdered during the twentieth century. Hundreds of millions of others were forced to give up their faith. It was an apocalypse that dwarfs all other religious genocides and yet nations pretend that it did not happen. Only the Tibetans have publicized it, but even they focus just on their own tragedy."
"And you said that the conference is to reverse that? But how? The numbers are huge."
"The populations of India and China are huge. Both nations are becoming industrial giants and yet under both Capitalism and Communism, the poorest are being left behind. Buddhism has always appealed to the poor. One of its basic teachings is that all people are equal. The poor of India and China are ready for a new religion, one that they can partake in as equals. This conference is to discuss how to make sure that they choose Buddhism."
"And yet you say I should leave this place?" Maya wondered aloud.
"For your own safety. You have a gift that can be demonstrated convincingly. For a missionary it would win converts. For a pilgrimage temple it would win donations. What you search for is not here. Others with your gift live in nature, away from crowds, away from modern ways, and surrounded by ancient things like books. Go away from here."
The truth of the nun's words now seemed obvious. Maya's mother lived in the Pacific cloud forest in a miner's cabin in Mendocino county, while her great grandmother lived in a cottage on an island in Massechussets bay. Humans had lost the use of their auras because of the clothing and the crowding of civilization. Why was she searching for answers in a temple in a city from people dressed in heavy robes from head to foot? She was a fool.
She flopped onto her bed and fell asleep cursing her foolishness.
* * * * *
* * * * *
MAYA'S AURA - Goa to Nepal by Skye Smith
Chapter 10 - Geeks Bearing Gifts
Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. - Mahatma Gandhi.
Will used the early daylight to defrost the van, which meant have a good root around and cleanup. In this compound he felt their stuff was safe enough to pile on the ground so he could search for a loose wire that was causing the backup lights to flicker. When he had begun, less than ten minutes ago, the compound had been calm, but suddenly an old bus pulled in beside the van and about fifty nuns disembarked and crowded all around the van chattering to each other.
He did find the loose connection. It was close to the fixture, so he cursed himself for taking everything o
ut of the van before doing a simple check. Of course he couldn't hear himself curse because the nuns were making such a racket. Everyone was speaking at once. They were excited about something.
Maya and Marique wandered up carrying the few belongings they had taken with them into the dormitory. Maya stopped mid stride and looked at all of their things piled up on the grass and surrounded by nuns. "Will!" she yelled to be heard over the din, "stop fooling around. I want to get out of here."
"Out of here? It was you who decided we should stay a few days. I was going to work on the van."
Maya couldn't hear him over the excited nuns. "What's going on here?" she yelled but he just cupped his hand behind his ear and shook his head. Marique, on the other hand, waded into the nuns looking for someone who spoke English. She was quickly engulfed by the nuns. Five minutes later she emerged carrying a pamphlet and came close enough to Maya so that she didn't have to yell.
"Apparently there is a shipment of birth control pills passing through this town on the way to Tamilnadu. That is a state in the deep south. It's a new kind of pill, unproven, and the company plans to use the poor untouchable Tamil women as guinea pigs by handing them out for free."
"That may not be a bad thing." replied Maya. "Unwanted pregnancies are a big problem for poor women."
One of the nuns heard what she'd said and came at her, wagging her finger and saying, "Shame, shame."
Marique grabbed the nun by the arm before she got too close to Maya, and calmed her by saying, "She hasn't read the pamphlet yet. Why don't you explain it?"
The nun visibly collected her English words before she spoke. "The pill is dangerous because if you take too many you become sterile. Some foundation of an American billionaire is paying for it and we think they are purposefully giving it away to the poorest women to 'accidentally' sterilize them."