Mail Bag -- Updated

As you might imagine, there are pros and cons to maintaining a public presence such as this. But since I like to see the silver lining as half full, let’s look at one of the pros: cool mail.

Recently, one Jamie Hubbard, who occupies the Yehan Numata Chair in Buddhist Studies at Smith College (do click this, and run your cursor over the photo; it’s hilarious), sent an e-brick through my window saying he was in town and could he buy me lunch? He could, and did, and it was most enjoyable, not least of which for the following two reasons. The first was that he informed me a consortium of Massachusetts colleges was planning a spring 2009 conference on Buddhism in Mongolia. Very cool (especially if I can, you know, attend). And secondly, he received my recent declaration that my pals Sue and Erka were sharing the distinction of being declared my new co-Very Best Friends as a challenge. Not only did he send me three more bags of Dean’s Beans Ahab’s Revenge, but also a passel of quality t-shirts commemorating “The Many Flavors of the Dharma: Celebrating Buddhism in the Pioneer Valley.”

It’s hard to read here, but the graphic lists no fewer than 44 dharma groups. In north-central Massachusetts. Now, just let that sink in for a second. And Jamie? The theme music’s swelling; come on up and get your sash and tiara – you are, for the time being, my new Very Best Friend.

Another dispatch came from long-lost Lynne in Philly to steel me for the arrival of the near-mythic individual known to lurk around the Himalayan plateau named Jungly John. I may or may not have met him in Kathmandu in ’96. I hope Jungly jingles in so I can find out for sure. If not, who cares? I still get to say I met someone named Jungly John. The rest of the note was a bummer, though, as Lynne says she’s dropping in this summer just when I’m bailing out.

But the prize for outta the blue mind-bender clearly goes to Stevan Davies. He’s a Professor of Religious Studies at Misericordia University (Dallas, PA – I had to look it up, too) but that’s not hardly the weirdest part. He writes in to confess to me that he shares my peculiar obsession with the completely obscure Dharma Protectress Gungyi Lhamo, and to prove it, he attaches the following image of a Mongolian antique miniature he copped on Ebay (thanks, fellas, for selling off your country’s culture to the highest bidder):

 

In further correspondence, I knew we were deeply simpatico when he made me spit my Ahab’s Revenge over this line: “There is just something special about a nude bright blue wrathful goddess on a Bactrian camel. We don’t have those in Northeastern Pennsylvania .” Prof. Stevan, I know just how you feel.

I was originally going to title this post “I’m Gungyi, Dammit!” but the con part of blogging is that there are other eager correspondents who, strangely, don’t find my irreverence nearly as funny as I do.

 

Update: Christian, in the comments, asks if I've written about Gungyi Lhamo before. Yup, here.

Comments

[Janet in Seattle]

"I'm Gungyi, Dammit"

Snort.

[Aarlene]

LOL I thought that was a hoot!

[Christian]

Really fascinating painting, indeed...

Did you write about this Protectress?

[Jae-Min]

Didn't you also have a thread on E-sangha about this goddess?

[Konchog]

Why, yes, now that you mention it. It's here, but a little embarrassing because I didn't know the difference between the Tibetan "Gungyi" and the Mongolian "Gunjii". I mean, how many times have all of us made that mistake! The one guy who responded did send me a short supplication to Gungyi Lhamo, but didn't source it for me, at least that I wrote down.

[Jae-Min]

I was that guy that sent you that short prayer. It was from a Gelug Palden Lhamo kangso, the only full English translation of the text being the one our centre has. I'll try and see if I can obtain the pdf file for you.