Buddha boy from Nepal part 2

After fifteen minutes of driving through the jungle we came to a small makeshift bazzar and parking area overlooking what in the monsoon would be a huge river but what was now a small stream. We were advised to park there and walk about two kilometers through the jungle to see the boy. There were a few dozen makeshift stalls just being setup. They were mostly for tea and snacks but a few were selling rosaries and other trinkets. We walked on into the jungle on the same sort of dirt road we had driven in on. There were a few other people about and the odd bicycle passed us occasionally but mostly we were alone in a beautiful stretch of jungle. There were a few more stalls spaced out at random but the general feeling was of a peaceful stretch of jungle.
We then arrived at another red cloth gate with a likeness of the Buddha boy hand painted on it. People were removing their shoes and leaving them in a large shoe corral. No one told us what to do; we just did what others were doing, there was really no one in charge. After taking off our shoes we proceeded down a dirt foot path flattened by the soles of the many that had come before us. The path lead us through the middle of a large tree with a hole in the trunk large enough to walk through. This was the tree where Ram Bahadur Bomjan the Buddha boy had started his meditation. What we heard was, that in the beginning of his meditation, curious villagers came and some poked him with sticks to see what he was doing and if he was dead. He subsequently moved to a nearby tree that provided better protection, which is where he is now. After passing through the tree we moved another 100 yard or so down the path until we came to the site. Ram Bahadur is sitting in the folds of a large Pipal tree, around him are two large concentric circular makeshift fences. The outer one is about 75 feet away from where he sits. Just inside the outer fence was Ram Bahadur’s brother with a few other boys from the village. They were there keeping people quiet and making sure no one disturbed the Buddha boy.
We managed to convince his brother to let us inside the first fence so that we were able to get to about 30 feet from where Ram Bahadur is sitting. To me he looked almost like a statue. He is sitting very still and wearing a grey cloth that looks like it has been outside with him for six months. The whole atmosphere around him is very peaceful and the site itself is very beautiful. Flowers are strewn along the ground and everywhere are Tibetan prayer flags. There are a few spots to light butter lamp offerings and one small wooded box to make donations.
Seeing Ram Bahadur sitting there was enough to convince me that something real and big was happening here. That combined with the fact that not once were we asked for money. Not for parking our large bus, not for the watching of our fancy imported shoes, not for taking pictures or video. Never was it even suggested that we make a donation. We spoke to the Buddha boy’s brother for a while. At one point we asked if they needed anything for their work here. He said they needed nothing just for their brother to succeed in his meditation.
We also spoke to the Buddha boy’s mother whose name is apparently the same as the historical Buddha, Maya Devi. She told us that she usually comes about once a week to see her son. We asked her why she does not come more often to which she replied that someone had to do the work around the house. She was quite shy and clearly preferred to blend in with the crowd and not be noticed. It was clear to me that neither the Buddha boy or his family were profiting from this whole thing at this point. Maya Devi (the Buddha boy’s mother) was in some simple clothes and looked rather tired and worried we did manage to take this one picture of her smiling. She did say she had been worried about her son but she was no longer and said that everything was good.