The Mandala of Sherlock Holmes - Jamyang Norbu [97]
'So that we can move around it in particular circles, like the instructions say?' said I puzzled. 'But ...'
'No no, my dear Hurree. Not to move around it but to move it. My cursory examination has revealed that this structure has not been hewn from the a single piece of stone but has rather been assembled — each layer of it — from separately sculpted pieces, each capable of being moved, or rather rotated, around a central axis.'
'Like the tumblers of a lock?'
'Exactly. Your choice of an analogy is a happy one, for this mandala is — if my reasoning is correct — a lock, albeit an unusual and considerable one.'
'But what about a key then, Mr Holmes. We do not have it.'
'Oh, tut, man. We need not be so literal. The verse is our key.'
'I have been very obtuse ...' said I, abashed, but Mr Holmes had no time for my self-reproaches, and was in a fever to begin testing his theory.
'Now, Hurree, if you could lend a hand here, and ... excuse me, Reverend Sir,' he turned to the Lama Yonten, 'if you could kindly read the verse to us.'
The Grand Lama had now recovered and insisted on holding the lantern, while the Lama Yonten unrolled the mandala scroll and read the lines on the back. 'Ora Svasti. Reverence to thee ...'
'We can skip the benedictory lines,' interrupted Holmes 'and proceed with the actual instructions.'
'As you wish, Mr Holmes,' replied the Lama, quickly perusing the verses, underlining the word with this bony forefinger. 'Let me see. Hmm ... ah yes ... the instructions start here. "Facing the sacred direction ..."'
'What would that be?'
'North, Mr Holmes. Shambala is properly referred to as "Shambala of the North."'
'So that would necessitate us having our backs to the entrance and facing the mandala from that direction. Let us see now ...'
'I have it, Mr Holmes,' I cried exultantly, scraping away the snow at the base of the mandala exactly across the entrance.'There is a crossed vajra1 inscribed on the floor here. This probably marks the direction from which we start.'
'That is the very place where the Grand Lama must sit when meditating on the mandala! said the Lama Yonten.
'So we can take it as our starting point,' said Holmes briskly. 'Now let us have the next line in the verse.'
'"... turning always in the path of the Dharma wheel ..." '
'Bear in mind, Hurree, that all our operations will have to be conducted clockwise. Pray continue, Sir.'
' "... Circle Thrice the Mountain of Fire."'
'That would be the base of the mandala. See the design of flames carved into the stone. Now, Hurree, let us attend to it with a will.'
It was not an easy task. Both Mr Holmes and I were grunting with the effort, but finally the giant disc moved slowly. As per the instructions we rotated that bally deadweight three times around its axis, finishing exactly where we started, by the crossed vajra mark on the floor. I collapsed with exhaustion.
'"... Twice the Adamantine Walls ..." ' the Lama droned on.
'Come on Hurree,' Mr Holmes exhorted me. 'This one will be easier. It's much smaller.'
Mr Holmes was right. The 'Adamantine wall' disc wasn't as heavy as the 'Mountain of Fire' disc, and we only had to rotate it twice. The 'Eight Cemeteries' disc was even easier, while the one after that, 'The Sacred Lotus Fence' disc, I managed by myself.
On the fifth tier the mandala changed shape; from the circular discs of the earlier mountains, walls and fences, to a square plinth with protuberances on each side — the four walls of the Sacred City and its four gates.
' " . . . Then from the Southern Gate turn to the East ..."'
Following the instructions we turned the square plinth a three quarter turn. Now came the last item in the verse. 'The Innermost Palace', which was the pagoda with the canopied roof, on the very top of the mandala. It was a tremendously exciting moment. While Mr Holmes gave the little pagoda half a turn from the South to the North — as the instructions specified, we waited with bated breath for the result.
Nothing happened.
A cold chill of disappointment coursed through