New Delhi - a Memoir - 2003

 I was reading an article online the other day about the growing poverty in India and why the government of that country seems to be ignoring this growing crisis. It left me thinking about my first trip to India back in 2003.

I had been interested in Indian culture, history and religion all my life it would seem and one of my ambitions in life was to go there and explore this wonderful country. One of my goals was to go up north and see the mighty Himalayas. And it was in the summer of 2003 that I eventually set off for India, to stay in New Delhi for a couple of days, and then fly up north. One of my motives was to travel to Dharamsala, where the Tibetan Government in Exile is located and then move up to McLeod Gang, the seat of His Holiness, the Dalai Lama.

Arriving in New Delhi around midday in August 2003, I must admit I was not prepared for what I was about to experience. My senses were attacked by a miasma of noise, hellish stinking pungency, swarms of sweating humanity, acrid pollution that stung one’s eyes, and swarms and swarms of mosquitos and flies . . . all of this and I was nowhere near my hotel from the airport. As it happened, my hotel was located just a 10-minute walk to what is regarded as the centre of the city: Connaught Place.

In this ultra-congested city of around 19,000,000 souls, I would characterise Delhi as a rotting pile of garbage that won’t go away. Of those millions of inhabitants, a staggering two million live on or below the poverty line, living in squalor - many are of the ‘Untouchable’ class of the Hindu faith, the lowest of the low! The city generates an incredible 10,000 to 14,000 tons of garbage daily. At best, perhaps 8,000 tons of that is disposed of properly. The rest has to go somewhere - and alleyways, streets, parks and even ancient monuments are common dumping grounds. Everywhere you look there are piles upon piles of fetid, rotting trash.

It's not just trash. Human waste is a big problem in a city where millions of people have no access to toilets. In the poorest slums, streets serve as open-air toilets, and even in the nicest neighborhoods some street corners, long used as public urinals, can choke passers-by with a fog of urine stench. I personally witnessed many men just pissing on the pavements - there’s cow, dog, cat and goat shit everywhere. In fact in the narrow street where my hotel was located, I literally had to side-step the piles of shit - it was scattered all along the street and you can imagine the stink - it was overpowering, resulting in my uncontrollable retching!

I have seen dead cats and dogs, their bodies decomposing on the sidewalks and nobody takes a blind bit of notice; and this in45oC of unrelenting heat. The stench was overwhelming.

But I guess it was the getting around in Delhi that became insufferable. I set off one day for a local bar/restaurant that had been recommended by the hotel duty manager. It would be just off of Connaught Place; a ten-minute walk. It would have been late morning and the heat and humidity were horrendous. I was working in the Middle East at the time and I was used to the heat, but not this kind of heat. It was a humid heat but mixed with dust and pollution. I swear I only got about 50 yards and I was already sweating like a pig. I had to duck around throngs of humanity, rabid dogs, rats, old, rickety bicycles, taxis, mangled rickshaws, the odd ‘sacred’ cow, and all the time trying to evade the shit! It was so crowded that if I rubbed shoulders with 50 people, I must have bumped into two hundred before I reached my destination. Just walking along that street was mentally draining.

Then there were the beggars - legions of them - many of whom were kids, emaciated women, skeletal, famished old men, teeth missing, and then as I turned the corner that day - a leper. I was not prepared for that. I never even knew lepers existed anymore but this was one - I knew it and it was shocking. He must have been in his 40s, a gaunt-looking character wearing only a loin cloth. Both hands and feet were twisted and had lesions that looked like open wounds. All of the right side of his face was a mass of lesions and he had only one eye. It was the most horrific image I have ever personally witnessed. I bent down and put 10 rupees in his begging bowl. He nodded and smiled.

By the time I reached my destination, you would have thought I had just had a shower with all my clothes on. I was stinking with sweat, uncomfortable, and the overarching thing on my mind? I have got to negotiate the return journey! Could I walk back to my hotel through all that Pandemonium? I glanced down at my sandals. They were caked with shit!!

The waiter came over to my table and I ordered an orange juice but you know what? I could not get that poor leper out of my mind. What is it you read and see on the TV these days - the great economic phenomenon that is India? Who are they kidding?

Scientists and Orgasms - Neither the Twain Shall Meet?

At first, I didn't believe what I was reading the other day and had to read the news headline twice. It was stated in the article that one, Meg Ryan, started 'moaning and groaning' in a diner in the movie When Harry Met Sally'. Seemingly, Ms. Ryan was faking the orgasm or something like that. Hang on, how do you fake an orgasm? Do you need to be inebriated, stoned, speeding, tripping on acid? What?

The 'scientists' from the University of Ottawa, who are not on alcohol or drugs, went on to conjecture that orgasms should be redefined as 'pleasurable satisfaction.' Oh, really? Well, that's news to me or is it fake news? When it comes to sex, and whether you're a horny man or an orgiastic woman, isn't it all about getting one's rocks off, pure and simple? Or am I missing something? No, not according to these 'scientists'. They mention the ORS - the Orgasm Rating Scale and the BSOS - the Bodily Sensations of Orgasm Scale! I knew a gay chap a couple of years ago who went through a terrible love affair that left him, in his words, 'terribly distraught'. He went on to explain that this was his 'anus horribilis!'

So, this seemingly is all about genital sensations and spasms, and more or less everything in between. And as I continued to read the article I was waiting on one particular word and up it came (pardon the pun): moaning. Yes, moaning and groaning until the cows come home. It was stated that the timing of women experiencing an orgasm and 'vocalisations' such as grunting and grousing, may be 'under women's conscious control.' There was a mention of facial tingling although I must confess, after 22 years of marriage to my current wife, I have never seen her face tingle. Maybe it was due to my having other things on my mind and elsewhere!

So I can also mimic the 'scientists' - like although the orgasm has been studied and scrutinised in the ever-growing field of orgasmic research, is it that the female orgasm remains a mysterious, sparkling unicorn to many? An American professor-cum-researcher called it an 'evolutionary vestige like the appendix.'

And lastly, and getting back to those University of Ottawa's ‘scientists’, I wonder if they are aware of the following:

1. Babies masturbate in the uterus.

2. To have an orgasm, stimulation of the sexual organs is not necessary.

3. You can have orgasms when you’re dead.

4. An orgasm can cause bad breath.

5. And lastly, an orgasm can cure hiccups.

"Now, darling, are you ready for some face tingling and orgasmic climaxes?”

 

North Korea, Kim Jong-un and the Coronavirus

 

This repugnant rat came to power in 2011 - no, he wasn't elected - he took over from his hedonistic father, Kim Jong-il, and has ruled the totalitarian dictatorship ever since. I shall refrain from covering the countless ballistic missile tests and his pursuit of nuclear weapons. No, this article is all about Covid-19. As I understand it, North Korea is the only country in the world NOT to have rolled out an anti-vaccine programme. I mean, is this for real, and is it true? Yes, unfortunately, it is. This deathly virus has been with us from around the beginning of 2020 and many countries in the world have basically got it under control. However, as of today, there have been around 6.2 million deaths from the virus. As for North Korea, it leader hasn’t any vaccines and it was only on Friday it declared another death from Covid-19.

A report from State media has said “ . . . that a fever of unknown origin had been spreading ‘explosively’ across the nation since late April, infecting about 350,000 people.” This secretive state previously claimed to have completely wiped out the virus by sealing its borders. Oh really? And then I read that so-called ‘experts’ had warned of an impending Covid catastrophe fuelled by its failure to vaccinate, ailing the disastrous public health system and widespread malnutrition that has weakened much of its 25-million-strong population. I mean the majority of North Koreans have been living on peanuts and rice for years whilst its leader has been spending something in the region of 310 billion a year on bombs and nuclear creation. I mean this tells you everything you need to know about this rat who doesn’t give a monkey’s f*ck about his people!

Another statement I read, again issuing from the country’s State media said that on May 12th some 18,000 people with a ‘fever’ occurred nationwide and that around 187,800 people were being isolated and treated. Just 187,800? Knowing this country’s habit of lying about almost anything, I would assume that figure would be closer to 500,000! In what may have been a show of strength to distract from the Covid-19 crisis, Jong-un launched three short-range ballistic missiles toward the sea a couple of days ago which became the country’s 16th round of missile launches this year alone. My question is, how much is this costing the dictator’s economy, one that hasn’t grown in about ten years mostly due to Western sanctions.

And here is my last point. The narcissistic anarchist called on all provinces, cities and counties to lock down their areas to prevent the further spread of the ‘malicious virus’. No, he didn’t say it was Covid-19. What a prick - of course it’s Covid-19! He urged the public health authorities to monitor all patients with ‘fever symptoms’ and bolster medical supplies. Seemingly- and I didn’t know this until the other day - but he has not responded to the offers but in recent months from both China and the United Nations to help vaccinate his population. This tells you everything about this scumbag. And I shall repeat it again: he doesn’t give a shit about his people! But as I keep saying in this blog and elsewhere, karma always wins in the end!

Buddhism and Me - a Memoir

 

I have been meaning to write this piece for many years now but for some reason never got around to doing it. But in recent times, and maybe it’s to do with my age, I have finally taken up the challenge.

To get into this true story, I have to go all the way back to 1971. Back then I was serving a Mechanical Engineering apprenticeship in an iron foundry in the small village of Larbert, Stirlingshire, in central Scotland. I was also a drummer in a rock band where we played great songs of the day from the likes of the Rolling Stones, The Who, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, etc. And of course, with the crazy world of rock music that I found myself in, came the drugs scene. Yes, we were all smoking dope and popping pills – hey, it was 1971 after all :-)!!

But it was this same year that one of our roadies approached me with a particular book. He just sort of turned up and asked if I’d ever heard of one, Paramahansa Yogananda. Then he handed me the book: Autobiography of a Yogi. He said it was one of the most inspirational books he had ever read. I flicked through the pages and was immediately drawn to this Indian yogi. I borrowed the book that day and started to read it that night. I couldn’t put it down. I ended up going through to Edinburgh and bought my own copy. And as I write these words, I have just brought my copy next to me at the computer and I see my copy is the second impression dated 1969. And another lasting memory of discovering this great man is that he died on the 7^th March 1952 exactly nine days after I was born (February 26).

That day in Edinburgh, when in the bookshop, I came across another book that grabbed my attention. Don’t ask me why but I picked up the small paperback and bought it. It was The Light of Asia by the late British poet and journalist, Sir Edwin Arnold. The book is in the form of a narrative poem, which endeavours to describe the life and time of Prince Gautama Siddhartha, who, after attaining enlightenment, became the Buddha, the Awakened One. Looking back all those years I now know that it was this book that introduced me to Buddhism, 51 years ago!

For the next couple of years I began to buy and read all sorts of books on Buddhism: the Theravada traditions of S.E. Asia, the Mahayana tradition encompassing Chinese and Japanese Zen and, of course, Tibetan Buddhism. I began to discover small Buddhist groups throughout the UK and came upon the Buddhist Society founded in 1924 by the late Christmas Humphreys. Little did I know then but I would meet this great Buddhist pioneer about four years later. So I wanted to know more about how Buddhism arrived in Britain and where it was flourishing. Well, apart from the Buddhist Society we had Samye Ling Tibetan Centre located in the beautiful landscape of Eskdalemuir in southern Scotland, the first Tibetan centre in Europe, Amaravati Buddhist Monastery in Hertfordshire, Jamyang Buddhist Centre in London, Wat Buddhapadipa also in London and then Throssel Hole Buddhist Abbey in Northumberland founded by the late Jiyu-Kennett Roshi. It was here that I formally became a Buddhist from Jiyu after taking the Five Precepts.

And so my journey continued. Throughout all these years I bought something in the region of 220 books covering all schools of Buddhism, biographies, teachings - you name it! And of course, I travelled overseas to visit places of interest. These included Thailand which has more Buddhist temples than any other country on the planet, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and my favourite places of all, Dharamshala and McLeod Ganj in Himachal Pradesh in the foothills of the Himalayas in India. My two visits there in 2003 and 2004 I shall never forget. To be in the presence of thousands of exiled Tibetans, caused by the earlier invasion and occupation of Chairman Mao’s China, changed my mind about that country. The Tibetans were/are some of the nicest, most compassionate people I have ever met.

I’ll finish this memoir by describing briefly what is for me the Buddha’s most poignant teaching. It is that of the Three Poisons: greed (raga, also translated as lust), hatred (dvesha, or anger), and delusion (moha, or ignorance). Anyone who grasps these three mental conditions will no doubt look back on their lives and see how these three poisons have played a huge part in their thinking, their mental maturity, and their lifestyles. I could write a book about how three poisons have enlightened my thinking and how I have dealt with them by following the Buddha’s teachings. To finish I would just state that when it comes to greed, combat this with giving; with hatred, defeat this with love and compassion and with delusion, create and develop wisdom. You will become a better person not just in yourself but to all those around you!

Has Russia Become a Pariah State?

 

I’ll be upfront and honest, I’ve never been a great lover of the ex-communist state of Russia even though my wife was born and brought up in that country before moving to Estonia in her teens. So, today we have Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine that has basically upended his country’s international and domestic affairs. In recent days we’ve heard of concerns about the invasion that are growing within the Kremlin. One Kremlin insider this week stated, "It's suicidal what Putin is doing to his country and our standing in the world."

The tyrant, Putin, is facing increasing animosity both abroad and at home as his war in Ukraine, which he reckoned would be over in a matter of days, approaches two full months. Experts cite strategy failures, mounting military losses, and the dire economic consequences of Western sanctions blamed almost entirely on Putin as evidence of painting a bleak picture of Russia's future. The ex-KGB’s decisions on the Ukraine invasion face rising scrutiny as a small but growing number of Kremlin insiders have started to express doubts about the war.

Ten Kremlin sources (who wished to remain nameless - for obvious reasons) who have direct knowledge of the conflict, conveyed their concerns to the American finance company, Bloomberg last week, saying they regarded the invasion as a catastrophic mistake that had set the country back decades. The report described the critics as spread across senior positions in government and state-run businesses.

As far as I am concerned, Putin's crazy foray into Ukraine had already proved more costly for Russia than the Soviet Union's nearly 10-year war in Afghanistan in the 1980s. Back then the USSR lost around 15,000-plus soldiers in Afghanistan in a decade of fighting." Now, 40 years later, Putin has lost close to that amount in one month! Putin’s regime acknowledged in late March that 1,351 of its troops had been killed and 3,825 others wounded in the invasion. NATO estimates put the likely death toll closer to 15,000, while Ukraine says it has killed nearly 20,000 Russian troops.

So, we now know that ordinary Russians are beginning to feel the economic pinch of tough Western sanctions. Putin has conceded that sanctions have started to upset the country's energy industry but has publicly maintained that Russia's economy has not been undermined as a result. What a liar! This dictator just doesn’t give a damn about his people, the economy or the future financial status of his country. The head of Russia's central bank, however, warned that the full impact of sanctions had not yet been felt, and that Moscow's mayor said this week that around 200,000 residents could lose their jobs with Western companies pulling out of the country en masse. By the end of this week, I would suggest that Russia has lost closer to one million jobs since the beginning of Putin’s genocidal invasion of Ukraine.

I would end this piece by simply stating that Russia will be a pariah state in the eyes of many countries and people possibly for the next 50 years. Until Putin goes, Russia will continue to be a pariah state. When he eventually goes six feet under this will be the legacy he takes to Hell!!

Is Reincarnation Real or an Illusion?

 

I would have been about six or seven years old when, one beautiful sunny Sunday many years ago, my mum and dad took me and my brother on a trip to the Trossachs. The Trossachs is an area of wooded glens, braes, and lochs lying to the east of Ben Lomond in Stirlingshire, Central Scotland. At that time I lived in the small village of Larbert where the late great James Finlayson (Oliver and Hardie 'third man') was born and brought up. I actually didn't know this fact until about six months ago!

Anyway, the drive on this blisteringly hot summer's day took about an hour. The scenery as we approached the Trossachs I always recall as being absolutely dazzling, that took my breath away. The narrow road twisted and turned and I noticed the woods, a river and a mix of mature deciduous trees, rich in wildlife: all sorts of birds, the odd deer, and rabbit. At that point, I never knew for one minute that these memories would last but somewhere away deep down inside they did. Even at that young age, something happened inside. Then we all got out of the car which we parked next to Loch Lomond . . . and then the sweet aroma of the scenery - awesome - just gorgeous. But still, something resonated inside.

So I aged, matured, and by 1972 I was playing in a rock band - I was the drummer - and don't ask me why, but back then I discovered Buddhism. Of course one of the most important teachings is that of reincarnation or rebirth. Of all the teachings of the Buddha, this was the one that absorbed my consciousness. Was I/had I been here before?

Anyway, in 2003 I went off to India. After 1972 I became interested in everything Indian; the people, the great cities and rivers, the culture, the food (curries of course) and religion and so I made my first visit. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. So I returned the following year. So, I flew out to this 'sub-continent' and spent a couple of days in New Delhi. My plan was to eventually go up to Himachal Pradesh and visit McLeod Ganj (home of the Dalai Lama) and Dharamsala where the exiled Tibetan government is located. That day I got a hotel driver to take me to the Indira Gandhi Airport which is about a half-hour's drive from the capital. From there I caught an early morning flight to Pathankot Airport in Punjab Province and I must admit I was excited, over the moon even, that I would be visiting one of the most famous places in India that housed the vast majority of Tibetans who fled their country after the invasion and takeover of their country by China in the 50s.

The flight landed on time at Pathankot Airport and I jumped into a taxi and within 45 minutes, was on my way to Dharamsala. I recall the sometimes perilous journey getting close to taking three hours. However, my mind was still calm although the road was as bumpy and pothole-ridden as I had never previously experienced. And then . . . I was staring out the side window at the incredible scenery; yes these were the foothills of the Himalayas . . . the rolling hills, the river, the woods and shrubs. There were several deer and macaque monkeys by the side of the road, so many birds of whose nature I didn't know . . . and then . . . I asked the driver to stop. I got out of the car and breathed in. Suddenly I was taken back about 45 years; the little boy who thought he'd seen this all before. I stood there for about five minutes, eyes closed, in meditation, recalling that day in the Trossachs. My mind kept asking itself, where's the connection? And then it suddenly sprung to mind. Little Ian Oliver, on observing the beauty of the Scottish woodland and Loch Lomond was, in fact, seeing something in a previous life: the foothills of the Himalayas!

On getting back into the taxi, I closed the door, and smiled and it was then that I knew that reincarnation or, as we call it in Buddhism, rebirth, was a reality! I’d been there, done it, seen it, and experienced it! What was the Trossachs, were the foothills of the Himalayas, and vice versa. Looking back at my life I have experienced and seen many other scenarios that could only be explained by only one thing: reincarnation.

Russian Orthodox Leader Kirill - the Devil in Disguise

 

When I saw this disgusting figure on the news the other day I couldn’t believe this was a religious leader. I mean he came across more like a clown all dressed up like a jester as if he was just about to take part in a comedy movie. But after pronouncing his support for Putin and the war in Ukraine, maybe it should have been a horror movie!

This buffoon, Patriarch Kirill, is the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church in Russia and a fervent supporter of that other devilish clown, Vladimir Putin, that goes back many years. But his vociferous support of the invasion of Ukraine has drawn strong rebukes from religious leaders inside Russia who say he has forsaken Christian teachings by Jesus supporting the Kremlin’s destructive campaign. As I’ve said on many occasions, you just couldn’t make it up!

I’m a Buddhist and have great respect for all world religions: Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and everything else in between. But the rumblings and rants from this guy, as far as I am concerned, are anything but religious. In a speech last week he stated: "If humanity accepts that sin is not a violation of God's law, if humanity accepts that sin is a variation of human behaviour, the human civilisation will end there." What? He also said that: "We have entered into a struggle that has not a physical, but a metaphysical significance," And lastly, "If we see violations of God's law, we will never put up with those who destroy this law, blurring the line between holiness and sin, and even more so with those who promote sin as an example or as one of the models of human behaviour." 

So these are the words of a man who was a member of the KGB spy agency who now supports everything Putin is doing in Ukraine - basically war crimes. By giving support to the evil tyrant, Putin, he is misrepresenting his words mentioned above. Or am I seeing it wrong? So IT IS NOT a sin to send tanks into Ukrainian towns and cities and destroy them? It’s not a sin to target innocent men, women and children and kill them indiscriminately? It’s not a sin to blow up hospitals? It is not a sin to rape women and mothers in front of their children? And yet, this evil wretch thinks it’s okay? He seems to look at Adolf Putin with huge respect and blesses him in a church - of God? 

As those who know a thing or two about Buddhism, you will know there is no God. The Buddha is not a Jesus figure but a normal human being who became enlightened and discovered the hidden truths about life, humanity and the Universe. He wished peace and happiness to all peoples and regarded war as part of human suffering. I can only guess what the Buddha would think, if he was alive today, not so much about the war but about the devilish and destructive mentality of Adolf Putin and this pseudo-religious maniac, Kirill. 

Karma will eventually come back to haunt both of these vermin!