# Chapter 16: Bhikku Bodhi Young and I arrived in Berkeley just in time for the ceremonial lunch in honor of Bhikku Bodhi's presence. The monastery was small with a cozy little chapel area that was made more radiant by purple stained glass windows. The dining room was large enough to hold up to fifty people. Connected to the room was a moderate-sized kitchen with beautiful blue tiles and modern appliances. The Berkeley monks wore the same colored robes as those at CTTB—brown with white sashes. At the lunch were a few other, more foreign-looking monks with maroon robes and dark Sri-Lankan skin. Then there were white Western monks who seemed even more ascetic, with bare-skinned shoulders protruding from white sheets tied around their bodies. I later learned they were the forest monks who lived in the Californian woods in a small monastery removed from society. > [!note] Two Traditions > The mix of different Buddhist lineages had all come together in reverence for Bhikku Bodhi, a leader of the Theravadan Buddhist tradition. > > Interesting, since Hsuan Hua, CTTB, and Berkeley Buddhist Monastery were all rooted in the Mahayana Tradition—the other long-lasting division of ancient Buddhism. --- ## Theravada vs. Mahayana One difference between the two is that the Theravadans believe that enlightenment can only occur to those who eventually go on to become monastics, and then after many lifetimes of study, practice, and devotion can one become enlightened and cease the continuous wheel of birth and death. They take the Buddha's words as bible. Mahayana, on the other hand, believes even lay persons can become enlightened and all can enter into Bodhisattva-hood in this lifetime. And once one becomes a Bodhisattva, they stay in cyclic existence until all other beings are enlightened, then we all transcend suffering together. --- ## The Feast As the Bhikku entered the room, the Sri-Lankan monks bowed to their knees, as did some others including the Indian lay people who were in attendance. I felt awkward not wanting to bow for the Bhikku, but others remained standing so I felt assured. All eyes were on Bhikku Bodhi, as he was the first to walk up to the voluptuous buffet of food. It was late October and the harvest from the local farm was rich and bountiful. > [!magic] The Display > The display of food included pumpkins, squashes, salads, root vegetables, Brussels sprouts, grains, and plenty of pie and fruity desserts. It was the most magnificent array of food I've ever seen, only comparable to the countless pages of cooking magazines I've seen on my grandmother's kitchen counter. Each dish was plated with love and diligence. I gazed at the steam rising up from the plates toward the ceiling, wondering if any of it was even edible, or just made perfect to look at. Bhikku Bodhi was the first to serve himself as we all watched and waited for him. One scoop at a time, he made a heaping mountain of food on his plate, and just when we thought he was finished, he took another plate and started piling on dessert. After watching him serve himself so generously, I felt less bashful about my own insatiable appetites. --- ## Mindful Eating We all ate in silence, mindfully eating our food. The aromas were sweet and earthy, the steam warm and moist, and the colors a mix of orange, purple, and green. We ate, and then ate some more, until finally the Bhikku was finished with his share and ready to give a dharma talk. --- ## The Dharma Talk A dharma talk is a lecture about some aspect of the Buddha's teaching. Most successful Dharma Talks relate to modern society and leave the listener with a new sense of enlightenment and how to better navigate the difficulties of life in the present age. The more highly-esteemed monks were noted to give powerful dharma talks that could be life-changing for the audience. So we all eagerly listened to the Bhikku as he delivered his speech. His bald head was covered with wrinkles and moles. He spoke with a slow raspy voice; each word determined to go un-rushed. "What an abundant amount of food we have here today... Let us thank all who gave part in the preparation and the clean up of our meal today." He went on to discuss the virtue of service and playing an active role in community. --- ## On Service and Giving > [!wisdom] Bhikku Bodhi's Teaching > To paraphrase his talk: > > "The heart fills with love when one serves, and by giving the giver automatically receives back in that instance of giving. There is nothing one wants in return when one gives—there is no desire for reciprocation because the giving itself is a gift. > > "When one is compassionate, they do not long for compassion in return. Their compassion serves others as well as themselves. There is never a need to look outside oneself for wants and needs. One has all they need inside them already. There is never a lack and there is always abundance of what truly matters—love & wisdom." --- ## Transformation I sat wide-eyed and open-eared listening to the Bhikku speak such soft words from his heart. My mind was dreaming of being back home in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, considering a new sense of duty to serve those in need. > [!transformation] Fullness > I felt I had a power that I didn't have when I left. This power made me want to be of service because I no longer had the burden of wanting to serve myself. I had been served, I had been nourished, I had all I needed within me already. There was no scarcity, there was no missing link. > > For the first time in my life, I felt full and whole and now I could be of service to others. The Bhikku went on for a few minutes longer. Then he walked out of the room alone as we waited for him to leave before moving again. Everyone played a part in the clean up. I helped to take garbage bags to the dumpster, while others cleaned the kitchen and moved the tables and chairs back to storage. --- ## Parting Ways I parted with Young. We wished each other well on our journey. It was just past 3pm and I had nowhere to go again. I had the next two days to wander around before meeting Spike and Angela in San Francisco. Berkeley was my playground again, but the person seeing out my eyes had changed. I wanted to give somebody something. --- ## The Gift As I started walking, I passed by a used bookshop. A sweet overweight girl was working behind the desk, skimming through a book of poems. Her blonde hair had streaks of pink in it, while her glasses seemed too small for her face. She smiled at me and asked if she could help me. "Oh, no thanks. Hey, do you like poetry?" "I love poetry. I try and write some whenever I can, especially here being surrounded by so many books. When no one is around for a while I read or write poems and it helps to pass the time." "I see," nodding my head I continued. "Hey, do you know any hostels around here that are cheap and I can spend the night in? I'm from NYC and I'm just traveling around." "That's cool," she said in a high-pitched voice. "There's actually one just a few blocks up called 'The Piedmont House.' I think you'll like it." "That sounds good. I think I'll go check it out." I dropped my backpack to the floor and started digging through it for a book of poetry that I brought with me by my favorite poet, Anis Mojgani. It was a unique publication called *Over the Anvil We Stretched*, and I loved that book dearly. And because I loved it so much, I knew it would be a proper gift. > [!heart] The Act of Giving > "Here, I want to give this book to you. It's filled with magic words. I know you'll love it." She rose from her seat with a child-like glee. "Thank you so much!" Her face grew big and bright. I smiled at her and without saying a word more, I turned and exited. I was off to my next destination—The Piedmont House—hoping to secure a room for the night. --- *Next: [[Ch 17 - The Piedmont House]]