Milarepa Music
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And Miles To Go Before I Sleep
Originally written for the VIHA Connection, December/January issue 1999
By Milarepa,

While I was thinking about what to write for this article, a poem by Robert Frost came to mind...

STOPPING BY WOODS ON A SNOWY EVENING

Whose woods these are I think I know
His house is in the village though
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake

The woods are lovely, dark and deep
But I have promises to keep
And miles to go before I sleep
And miles to go before I sleep

The Bravo America events take their name from an Osho discourse given in Uruguay. This year, the 1999 tour spanned ten weekends and about 11,000 miles of highway. I am continually amazed how vast the United States is! All of the organizers certainly deserve credit for choosing beautiful - sometimes magical - locations for their events. Many of them happened in the countryside, so it was interesting to see how an aesthetic, natural environment can be a support to meditation: Whether high up in the Berkshires and pumping a lot of clean mountain air through one's lungs in Dynamic Meditation, or simply having a quiet walk among the great redwoods of California - meditating in Nature can be a powerful and transforming experience.

One of the most rewarding things about what I do is seeing changes that happen in the participants in such a short space of time. Some of them have never heard about Osho before, some have never meditated. Yet watching their faces - how they soften and begin to glow, reflecting the miracle of self-discovery - touches me, making all the work and long miles worth the effort.

Just as the participants are diving deep into their inner world, so are we the musicians. The energy on a Bravo weekend typically moves in circles: sometimes with the musicians giving and the participants receiving, sometimes with the participants giving and the musicians receiving. Often the line separating the meditators and musicians blurs - even disappears - and a tremendous melting happens, invariably followed by the deepest, most relaxing silence you can imagine. No Bravo event ever ends on a somber note: The shouts of Osho! Osho! Osho! linger long after all good-byes are said.

This year we meditated a lot as a band. Dynamic Meditation helped keep relating within the group clean and fresh. Living so intensely on the road together and traveling long distances in a confined space... well, let's just say touring can be a big mirror for everyone. This year was no exception: The band being was one of the most juicy, on-going, existential groups anyone could wish for.

And - a lot of fun! For instance, we visited some amazing places like Yosemite National Park where we celebrated Sureel's birthday and listened to every little sound in the night thinking it might be a hungry bear. We spent a night in Las Vegas and had a great Italian dinner in Caesar's Palace.

The Florida event happened in a place called Spirit Springs - a tropical paradise with three freshwater springs on the property, all inter-connected by underground caves one could swim through. It was amazing to jump in those ice-cold springs after working up a hot sweat in the Nataraj dance meditation.

Inspired by the U.S. Open Tennis, which was happening simultaneously to the tour, we had our own ongoing tournament on the road. The wine always flowed afterwards if someone won a set off me. Yes, it does happen sometimes! Even Yoko, Vatayana, and Shanta (my girlfriend) got into the swing of things.

Then there was the long, night-drive drive through the desert on our way to Cleveland from Sedona, when a spaced-out driver came speeding down the wrong lane of the freeway - directly at us! It is an easy thing to do on those endless stretches of desert highway, especially at night when you're tired. People exit off the road to get gas and take the wrong ramp getting back on. The truckers call them ghost riders. I just managed to get out of the way but Mohan, who was following in the second car, had to swerve off the road to avoid a head-on collision. I followed the whole scenario in my rear-view mirror as he struggled to control his car and get back onto the highway. Yoko and I pulled off and waited until a pale Mohan and the others caught up. We all had a good laugh, thanked our lucky stars, opened some cold bottles of Starbuck's coffee and a bag of Lay's Classic chips, and were off again -for we had many more miles to go that night before we'd finally sleep

The organizers did a tremendous job handling the risks and responsibilities associated with the events. Their care and loving efforts made it possible for so many people to come together in meditation and celebration. Thank you all!

What more to say? For me, Bravo America is about connecting with yourself and others through Osho's meditations and music. Not a bad way to spend a weekend, don't you think?

Milarepa