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Finding nirvana may not be first on a college student’s to-do list during a study abroad term, but for Sergey Toshinskiy ’08 (Obninsk Kaluga Regio, Russia), coming as close as possible to spiritual enlightenment was as important as any class.
“I participated in the Antioch University Buddhist Studies in India program,” explains the neuroscience major. “The program was specifically designed to educate students about all kinds and practices of Buddhism by placing students in a Buddhist monastery, involving them in the practice of meditation, and educating them about the history and philosophy of the tradition.”
The tiny village where he spent most of his time, Bodh Gaya, is located in the northeast of India. According to Toshinskiy, it is home to the very tree under which the historical Buddha attained nirvana.
Among the courses Toshinskiy completed are early and contemporary Buddhist philosophy, the meditation traditions of Vipassana, Zen, and Dzogchen, and an independent study for which he spent three weeks in Burma and Myanmar. He was also ordained as a Buddhist monk for a week as part of the project and lived with other monks in the monastery.
Toshinskiy says he was prepared for the experience in India but returned to Lafayette with much more than he expected.
“The trip cleared my mind significantly. I found the courses I took were not only of academic, but also of existential importance,” he says. “The questions we pondered related to the very way I live my life.”
He immediately was struck by the hard living conditions and overcrowding in the state where he lived.
“The state of Bihar, where Bodh Gaya is located, is the poorest and the most underdeveloped state in India, so you can imagine that the conditions definitely called for a more relaxed attitude and quick adaptation,” he says. “One thing that I struggled with the most was the decrease in private space. In the overpopulated and underdeveloped village, people would not hesitate to start talking to you randomly, yell to you from across the street, or sit down at your table in a café.”
Toshinskiy is a McKelvy Scholar and peer counselor. He also is a member of International Students Association, The Lafayette, and Photography Club. He was recently invited to become a member of Phi Beta Kappa, America’s oldest and most respected honors organization.