I was lucky enough to spend time at the Kalachakra Ceremony at the Verizon Center in DC with the Dalai Lama last month. The Dalai Lama was in DC for 11 days in July, during which he and a group of monks created a sand mandala and a sacred space in the Verizon Center with their chanting and prayers, The Dalai Lama gave teachings about Tibetan Buddhism and in particular the Kalachakra ritual.  I had read about this a few months ago and even though I don’t like crowds, decided that I wanted to participate, to be part of a force of love and peace in the heart of power.

One thing that I love about the Dalai Lama is his constant look of being about to laugh or break out in a huge smile.  Every time I sat in my seat in the vast stadium full of people, I would look up at the jumbotron screen, see his beaming face and tension would drain out of my stomach.  It felt like I was receiving an infusion of calm confidence just from his presence.

Over and over, I heard him say in many ways “Constantly bring your mind back to contemplating things that bring you joy.”  That sense of spontaneous joy is what the Dalai Lama radiates, and it’s infectious! A theme that came up again and again was Infinite Altruism, which I understand to mean living your life in the joy of serving all sentient beings, including yourself! He called it a form of “wise selfishness”. The opposite is “foolish selfishness” where you meet your needs at the expense of other beings. The wisdom  of “wise selfishness” is that when you help others out of love, you invariably receive all sorts of unlooked-for blessings in your life.

The highlight of the week for me was waiting in line with other people for almost 4 hours to go up on the stage and view the completed Kalachakra sand mandala.  I chatted with the people around me, an Indian family from New York, mother and daughter dressed in stunning saris, and a Chinese family who spoke very little English. We joked about the security guards at the Verizon Center seeming to know even less than we did about the organizational arrangements. In fact, one security guard asked us what the line was for! As we approached the stage, voices got lower, people were focused and quiet, and the energy on the stage was like being in a sacred space.  There was something ritualistic about it, we were walking in the Dalai Lama’s footsteps, sharing some part of his journey.

At the beginning, I was very immersed in my own world. As the week went on and I got familiar with how to get in and out of the stadium, and used to the large amount of people around me, I also opened up to what the Dalai Lama was saying, the subtext behind his words. I felt a steady call to be present and shift awareness from myself as an isolated being to myself as a participant with all these other people, all with their own worlds and their own lives, not a negation of my presence but somehow a true extension of it.

On the last day, I walked through the stream of many people, and felt a part of all the lives rushing by.  I felt like I could be who I am and know where I am going without feeling overwhelmed or lost, but immersed and intrigued by the silk saris, the red and yellow robes, the accents, the flipflops, the languages, the real people with all their complaining and kindness, and mistrust and sweetness. I felt a new sense of being a vital part of humanity, of having an important and beautiful role that may be small but is significant. I am a participant among thousands, a spiritual beginner, and yet I am unique in what I have to offer. As we all are, it’s a matter of having the faith and confidence to offer it both for our own good and the good of all beings.  My interpretation of Infinite Altruism!

I felt welcomed into the human family by the Dalai Lama, and I am honored and grateful to take my place.