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Section 2: Literature (Short Stories)
The Half-Closed Eyes of the Buddha and the Slowly Sinking Sun Summary | Shankar Lamichhane
The Half-Closed Eyes of the Buddha and the Slowly Sinking Sun by Shankar Lamichanne
MAIN INTRODUCTION
GLOSSARY OF THE TEXT
adrift (adj.): a boat moving on the water uncontrolled
multifarious (adj.): many and of various types
Adinath (n.): a name of Lord Shiva
ABOUT THE WRITER
ABOUT THE STORY
This story is all about the beautiful country Nepal and its various aspects related to its history, culture, religion, people and their survival.
This story has been presented in narrative form. This story has been told in a simple form, presenting a discussion between two characters: a Nepali tour guide and a foreign tourist. This story is quite different from the conventional form of storytelling.
WRITING STYLE & SETTING
The Half-Closed Eyes of the Buddha and the Slowly Sinking Sun
What is the writing style of the author?
Write about the setting of the story "The Half-Closed Eyes of the Buddha and the Slowly Sinking Sun".
This story has been written using a stream-of-consciousness technique.
This story has presented the setting of Kathmandu Valley and its different places.
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SHORT STORIES IMPORTANT QUESTIONS' SOLUTION PACK
CHARACTERS IN THE STORY
Main characters and other characters:
1. The tourist:
The tourist is the main narrator of the story. He is a foreign guest in Nepal. He has an aesthetic vision regarding the beautiful country of Nepal based on his study of history, culture and religion.
2. The Guide:
The guide is another main narrator, a Nepalese person who works as a tourist guide. He has good knowledge of Nepalese art, culture, geography and religion.
3. The farmer's family:
The poor and simple farmer's family is living in a remote village with lots of hardships in their lives. They are quite hopeful about the doctor. They have deep faith, intimacy, kindness and gratitude in themselves.
4. A paralysed child:
He is a small boy who is affected by polio. His whole body is useless. He is unable to speak, move his hands, chew his food or even spit. Among his other body parts, his eyes are the only living parts of his body.
MAIN THEMES OF THE STORY
▪︎ Natural beauty's attraction
▪︎ Historical, cultural and religious co-existence
▪︎ Tolerance of people
▪︎ Sympathy among people
▪︎ Poverty among people
DETAILED SUMMARY
TOURIST'S HAPPINESS IN THE LAND OF KATHMANDU VALLEY
When the story begins, we find the tourist quite happy. He describes his initial impression of the Kathmandu Valley being Joyous. He describes the aesthetic beauty of the green valley with its geometric fields, the different colours of the houses, the scent of soil and mountains in the air. He feels an age-old peacefulness in the atmosphere of Kathmandu Valley. He enjoys the tranquil environment a lot.
Later, the tourist adds that the West is indebted to the East. According to him, the East has contributed many things, such as the Purans, images of brass and ornaments of ivory, palm leaf manuscripts and copperplate's inscriptions.
TOURIST'S CLAIM REGARDING HIS KNOWLEDGE
The tourist tells about his knowledge related to the history of the country Nepal. He asks his guide to assist him through his guidance. The tourist seems well-versed in Nepalese history. He tells his guide that he has spent many years reading books regarding Nepal and its history. According to him, the guide will lead him in the present situations but he will take the guide in the ancient ways.
A bit later he starts telling him the story of Manjushri and Chobhar's history. According to him, Manjushri was the person who stroked the hills of Chobhar with his sword to let the water of Kathmandu Valley out. Due to him, the settlement of the people was possible in the valley.
The tourist relates to the guide about the monks and nuns receiving alms and spreading the law in the nooks and crannies of the Kasthamandap. He even talks about the gaze of shaven-headed monks. According to him, it is called the samyak gaze, which is perception, pure and without contamination; a sight that perceives everything in its true form.
The tourist tells his guide about the creativity of Nepalese people. He starts talking about wooden images, artists, music and the different cultures of Nepal. He thinks that Nepali people are wonderful and exceptional. He finds Nepali people quite creative in their creative abilities. He sees different wooden images, ornamentation and beautiful images of deities. He even hears enchanting music from traditional musical instruments.
He even finds various cultures in the Kathmandu Valley. In Kathmandu, he finds different communities such as Aryans, non-Aryans, Hindus and Buddhists. All these people from different communities have coexisted with each other for ages in peace and harmony.
The tourist expresses his gratitude to the guide for supplying him with Nepali and Newari food items. He likes momos very much. He starts telling a story to the guide. He relates about a house during the winter to the guide. He tells about an old man in the house who tells the history of Princess Bhirkuti and King Amshuvarma to his grandson. The old woman smoking hookah is making momo. The old man burns his tongue while swallowing a piece of hot momo. The grandson laughs to find his grandfather's unclear words. The tourist admits that these scenes can't be read in the books at libraries.
Next, the tourist expresses his joy through the concept of various kinds of smiles which he receives wherever he goes. He assumes himself in various relationships as the eldest son of a farmer, landowner, husband and sister's husband's friend. He feels so happy to get these smiles everywhere in the land of Nepal. According to him, the smile is from the soul and full of wisdom. He adds one more drink in the name of a Nepalese sweet smile.
After that, their discussion moves to a new topic, eyes. They talk about different kinds of eyes, such as the eyes of the carved lattice windows, the eyes on the door panels, the eyes on the stupas, the eyes of the people, the eyes of the Himalayas and the half-closed eyes of the Lord Buddha. The tourist refers to the land of the country, Nepal, as the land of eyes, which is guarded by the half-closed eyes of the Buddha.
The tourist desires to go to lonely places to see the stupa's clear eyes, where he wants to see the pleasant light of sunset reflected in the eyes of the Buddha. He asks the guide to show him beautiful, full eyes - eyes without equals - whose memory will make his journey unforgettable.
GUIDE TAKES THE TOURIST TO CHOBHAR
The guide takes the tourist to Chobar to show him some eyes. He shows him the cleft that was made by Manjushri and the outflow of the Bagmati River.
The guide tells him about the temple of Adinath, which is located in the middle of the village. According to him, in the temple courtyard, there is a shrine to Lord Shiva, several Buddha images, and many prayer wheels. The tourist feels that the temple of Adinath is a living example of Nepalese tolerance and coexistence.
Later, the guide takes the tourist to a remote village to show him the pulse of reality. He wants to show him poverty, hard labour, a miserable lifestyle and the reality behind the eyes of the poor.
He takes the tourist to a poor farmer's house. He shows him a boy from a farmer's family who is in a miserable state. Here, the tourist discovers the pulse of reality. The small boy is affected by Polio, whose whole body is useless. He is unable to speak, move his hands, chew his food or even spit. Among his other body parts, his eyes are the only living parts of his body.
He tells the tourist about his lie. When he introduces the tourist as a doctor to the parents of the boy, the parents become very happy. Their eyes have a deep faith in the tourist. There is intimacy, kindness and gratitude on their faces towards him. He even talks about the hope of the family that will shatter along with the departure of the tourist.
The guide even shows the boy's sister to the tourist. She is a fine girl, whose body functions properly. She can speak, crawl and move her body freely.
Lastly, the guide explains a variety of things regarding feelings, desires, language etc. of eyes. He gives the example of the boy's sister and the boy. He differentiates various kinds of eyes. He explains the values and importance of those eyes along with the hidden meanings of different types of looks. For him, the natural beauty of the land, people's lives, their long-term harmonious relationships, their hardships and sorrows, religions, end of life etc. have their meanings and importance. All these aspects are as beautiful as the sinking sun's reflection in the eyes of the Buddha.
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