Everest Base Camp Trek Dispatch

October 17, 2012 – Visit with Lama Geshe and Pangboche Monastery: Part I

For those of you may be wondering, Lama Geshe, of Pangboche is alive and well – looking better than he has in years in fact.

We awoke to a beautiful clear morning at Temba and Yangzing’s lodge in Pangboche, at 13,000 feet, with views of Everest, Lhotse and Ama Dablam out the window.

Several of our team members went to upper Pangboche to spend time with Lama Geshe at his home near the monastery. Geshe came to Nepal from Tibet in 1956, right after the Chinese occupation. Already an accomplished academic who had spent years studying Tibetan literature and scriptures, Geshe brought his knowledge to the Khumbu. For many years now he has been known in the international mountaineering world because of the blessings that he does for Sherpa climbers before their expeditions as well as the words of wisdom and blessings that he offers foreign climbers who are on their way to climb big peaks.

Lama Geshe has been a special friend of Berg Adventures for a long time. We love spending some time with him, drinking tea, listening to him chant from his books and watching with wonder at his amazing sense of humor. Lama Geshe is a joyous man who cracks himself up sometimes with the thoughts that pass through his mind. With Temba rapidly and skillfully translating from Tibetan, we were all able to hear some of this wise man’s thoughts on life at the top of the world in Tibet, where he is from, and in the white snowcapped peaks of the Himalaya. He spoke about how much he enjoyed using Skype and seeing people from around the word in an instant, but he asked us when we might find the technology to see into a person’s soul and know his heart.

We each received a blessing from Lama Geshe and left with a brighter and clearer view of the spectacular world around us. He implored us to look for kindness and know that all living beings have the same desire for peace, security and well-being.