My split with the university was over the fact that I had become involved with helping Tibetans in India.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
I had a real yearning to make use of the opportunities I had at school. When I heard about the gap year of teaching English at a Tibetan monastery, I knew I had to do something about it really quickly, otherwise it was going to get allocated.
Tibetan Buddhism had an enormous impact on me.
I came from a Hindi medium school... the principal felt that I would not fit into an English medium college. Though I was top in my class in school, and I got admission in other colleges, but I really wanted to study in St. Xavier's.
And I managed to arrange to get some research support and to stay in Hong Kong for another year and a half, interviewing people coming out of China, both Westerners and Chinese. And that was my first real research study on thought reform or so-called brainwashing.
As long as I am alive, I am fully committed to amity between Tibetans and Chinese. Otherwise there's no use.
I went to Kerala in India, to learn Ayurveda, which was fantastic.
I went to a very elitist, snobbish, expensive education in India, and it almost killed me. I was all set to be a diplomat, teacher, doctor - all laid out.
The reasons why I left were to do with my interest in Buddhism. There were experiences over a period of about six months which caused me to decide to give up music, so one morning I felt I had to go to E.G. Management and tell them.
I returned to India after long years of international service, because I had always cherished the desire to make a difference in my own country.
I went to India, lived, and studied.