D’SHALA DIARY: In the Master’s Footsteps Up in the Himalayas

Friday, 22 June 2007, 3:29 p.m.

By Thubten Samphel

Tenzin Labsum (Photo Sangay Kep)

TENZIN LABSUM IS 34 years old. He joined the College for Higher Tibetan Studies, Sarah, more than three years ago. His demeanour exudes the quiet confidence of a Buddhist monk. The measured way he speaks reflects an individual who has arrived at some inner resolution.

Before his monk’s life, Tenzin Labsum went by the name of Stalin D’souza. He was the chief engineer at Glam Slam Recording Studio in Mumbai and earned about Rs. 20,000 a month.

“I used to work at the studio for three or four days at a stretch,” Tenzin Labsum said. “While working at the advertising agency, I realized that advertisement is always about manipulating the mind. And being in a big city, there were lots of distractions. Though materially, I was stable, spiritually I was in chaos. I started reading basic books on Buddhism. Although the effect wasn’t great, it was there. This was around 1997-1998. Despite this, I wasn’t stable because of the tremendous workload. But I continued to read and what the Buddha said made sense to me, especially that of the Four Noble Truths.”

In 2001 Stalin D’souza went to work in Bahrain as a sound engineer. The wheeling and dealing of the corporate world and the poor attitude of the people of Bahrain to foreigners did not leave a good impression on him. He returned to Mumbai and spent about four or five months at home. During this time he told his parents about his plans to step into monkhood. They advised him to rest. He spent those months thinking about being ordained. Stalin D’souza then joined Famous Studios. “Whatever peace of mind and stability I had acquired was lost. I felt a drastic step was required. In 2004 I made up my mind. I spoke to my parents again. They again said what I needed was rest.”

Stalin D’souza wanted to leave the whole thing and just go and figure out things for himself. Before he did that, Stalin D’souza travelled to Goa to speak to his cousin brother. His cousin directed Stalin D’souza to Dharamsala. He said it was “a very nice place.”

He arrived in Dharamsala in April 2004 and immediately approached Namgyal Monastery with the request that he wanted to be a monk. The monks who met Stalin D’souza looked at him quizzically and on the spot threw a challenge at him. They said he needed to learn Tibetan before they could accept him in their ranks.

“This was a surprise to me,” Tenzin Labsum said. “I didn’t expect the language problem to creep in.”

“But I realized that learning Tibetan was essential to leading a monastic life. I joined the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives for about four months to study Tibetan. During this period I also met some hermits on the hill above the Tibetan Children’s Village. I felt that they were real practitioners. They made a world of difference. I wanted to be like them.”

In July 2004 Stalin D’souza joined the College of Higher Tibetan Studies, Sarah. In February 2006 he was ordained. “Two years ago, doubts used to creep in. That phase is over. Mindfulness for me is very important and I am very happy with my decision,” Tenzin Labsum said.

Geshe Jampel Drakpa, the Principal of the College of Higher Tibetan Studies, is pleased with his Indian student. “He studies very hard. He learned Tibetan from scratch – from the alphabet. He can read and understand all the texts and he has just started his debating lessons,” Geshe Jampel Drakpa said with a headmaster’s pride.

When asked what he wants to do with his new life, Tenzin Labsum said, “To be there for others, to be a real practitioner and work for others who don’t have the same capacities.”