The temple in the mountains (Nepal)

 

A Brit told me this story of one of his trips to Nepal (in the 70s, I think, if not in the late 60s -- he was born in 1948, so with the hippy movement, he might've gone out to the sub-continent in the 60s).

    Let's call him Alan.

    On a solitary trek in the mountains one day, he'd got lost at some point.  While trying to find a way back to Kathmandu, he came across a temple.

    The monk there greeted him warmly, then showed him around the grounds, where he'd planted some prized chrysanthemums, of which he was very proud.

    Alan was wearing a cagoule (raincoat / wind cheater) that was in almost the same shade as the monk's saffron colour robe.

    The monk admired it, and touched it for the texture.

    Alan told him it was waterproof, which the monk found quite hard to believe (this was the late 60s or the 70s, and up in the remote Nepalese mountains), so Alan poured a drop of water onto the surface to show him.

    The monk then called for a whole bucket of water to be thrown over the cagoule and found that the water had indeed not seeped through.

    He wanted to buy it off Alan, who said that he couldn't spare it, as it was the only weather-proof top he had on that trip.

    Alan then asked to take a photo of him with the Himalayas in their snow-covered glory in the background.

    The monk felt that the Himalayas were too mundane as a backdrop, and wanted instead a photo of himself standing in front of his precious chrysanthemums, wearing Alan's saffron-colour waterproof cagoule.  It went down to his knees as he was a small chappie (even smaller than Alan) but he smiled proudly at the camera for his new discovery (a waterproof monk's robe) with his beloved chrysanthemums behind him.

    The monk then pointed Alan in the right direction for the way back to Kathmandu.

    Alan was unable to find the temple again the next time.

    Sounds a bit Shangrila, doesn't it...

(Nepal, 1970s)

The monk in this story is a good example of the condition described in 習焉不察 / 习焉不察: https://piccola-chinita.blogspot.com/2025/12/chinese-sayings-43.html