Hello dear friends! How are you?
Today, in this post, I would like to share with you a wonderful experience I had some time ago, something truly unique and rare to do, in my opinion, in Italy. Today, I'll take you with me to Val Campola, located in the famous province of Reggio Emilia.
Here, in the enchanting setting of the Reggio Emilia hills, lies a small and ancient medieval village: Votigno di Canossa. I am just a few kilometers away from the famous Castle, of which only some parts of its walls remain today. It was the stage for the historic mediation between the Papacy and the Empire in 1077, carried out by an extraordinary woman: Countess Matilda.
The village dwellings were built adjacent to the square-shaped tower house, representing the original nucleus of the settlement, dating back to the medieval era, as deduced from the architectural style of the buildings. The entire inhabited center was restored starting from the '60s and is currently in good condition.
But there's something in this village that has nothing to do with Italian medieval times. Believe me, the contrast is truly surreal! Around me, Buddhist symbols and statues, Tibetan flags, right in the heart of the Po Valley!
But what are we talking about? What does Tibet have to do with an Italian medieval village?
I take a few steps and find myself in front of the "House of Tibet," a non-profit cultural center that houses a museum dedicated to Tibetan culture and provides space for roundtable discussions, courses, seminars, and meditation areas. There's also the option to stay here, accommodating yourself in a bed & breakfast.
However, the House of Tibet also includes a unique Buddhist temple called "gompa": this peculiar term indicates a type of temple specifically dedicated to the worship of Tibetan Buddhism. These temples are usually found in Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, and Himalayan regions.
In 1990, with the inauguration of the House of Tibet in Votigno, the dream of Stefano Dallari from Reggio Emilia, born in 1952, came true. He established the first gompa in Europe and the only one in Italy that remains to this day.
The story of this dentist from Reggio Emilia and his devotion to the culture and religion of Tibet, which led him to complete this project, now available to anyone wishing to learn more about this distant region with just a few kilometers of travel, is truly fascinating.
It was 1982, and Dr. Reggiani traveled with a colleague to Indian Tibet to conduct research for his thesis, allowing him to specialize in dentistry. His intention was to study the dental health of Buddhist monks. Upon arriving, he made discoveries that went well beyond the discipline he was studying. He was welcomed by consistently kind and supportive people, living in a fair and vibrant society. Dallari was not indifferent to an experience that enriched his medical practice and wanted to reciprocate the hospitality that had been freely offered to him through concrete commitment to the Tibetan people and the promotion of the human and spiritual values that characterize their culture. And he believed that Votigno was the perfect place to recreate that atmosphere of tranquility and spirituality conducive to meditation.
In 1999, Votigno hosted none other than the Dalai Lama himself, as recalled by this inscription. On one of his trips to Italy, he came here to visit the Casa del Tibet and inaugurate the museum, which gathers original artifacts related to the culture, religion, and daily life of Tibet.
The great photographer Fosco Maraini, father of the famous writer Dacia Maraini, donated the photos he took in Tibet during two expeditions, one in 1937 and one in 1948.
All this can be admired during the museum's opening hours on Saturdays and Sundays.
Here, one breathes an air of profound spirituality. Strolling among these ancient walls, my reflections are inspired by the words of great personalities from literature and religion such as Tagore, Mother Teresa, Gibran, and of course, Buddha.
Mother Teresa reminds us of the value of life and the importance of taking action firsthand because only in this way can we hope for a better world. If we don't get our hands dirty, if we don't get involved, if we don't act in our small way and don't contribute as she did but instead succumb to indifference, passivity, sterile controversies, and worse, despair, we cannot say that we have truly lived and honored the great gift that has been given to us.
Tagore, on the other hand, reminds us that to love means to give freedom and not to possess the other person: a truly relevant statement in these times where far too many women are killed because the idea persists that love equates to possession and total control.
I believe that the message of peace and non-violence that Tibetan culture and religion spread worldwide is truly precious. It is up to each of us to put it into practice in our daily lives and in interpersonal relationships with those around us who share our same piece of the planet and our same fragment of time. If we genuinely want to live in a different, more just, more inclusive, and happier world.
Happiness is not a destination; it is a choice we can make every day of our lives! Thank you for reading, friends. Until next time!
I'll leave you a website in case anyone is interested in the information and might want to come and visit.