My First Spiritual Awakening: The Tibetan Dogs that Changed My Life

It’s funny how life often works in unexpected ways. My first spiritual awakening, the moment that sparked a deep, lifelong connection with Tibetan culture and ancient Eastern religions, didn’t happen in a temple or a meditation hall. It didn’t come from reading a sacred text or meeting a revered monk. It began with a dog.

I was twelve years old, and like most kids, I was relentlessly trying to convince my parents to get me a dog. But we had never had a dog before, not even a small one. My dad was skeptical, predicting he’d be the one stuck walking it. Of course, as much as I begged, his “dad logic” wasn’t wrong. But that didn’t stop me from promising the moon in my persistence to prove I was up for all the dog-related responsibilities.

One day, just before Christmas, my parents finally agreed, but with one stipulation: the dog had to be small enough to take on our travels. That year, we lived in England and would be traveling through Europe on school breaks before eventually returning to the U.S., so the dog had to be portable. And so, my search for the perfect dog began.

Flipping through pages of dog breeds, I first landed on a Tibetan Terrier. Tibet? I didn’t even know where that was, let alone how to pronounce it. My parents thought the Tibetan Terrier was too big, so I kept looking. And then, I found it—a picture of a Lhasa Apso. The name caught my attention, but the story behind it captivated me. Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, is known as “The Place of Gods.” These little lion-like dogs had long been guardians of palaces and Buddhist temples, standing as silent sentinels to protect sacred spaces for over a thousand years.

That was the moment I realized that dogs could be more than pets. They could be guides on a much deeper journey. At that moment, I discovered that my search for a dog would lead me to explore a culture and a spirituality that would shape the rest of my life.

But my spiritual journey didn’t stop with finding just one Lhasa Apso. My mom, ever one to see the potential for more joy, said, “As long as we’re getting one dog, we might as well get two. That way, they can keep each other company.” I was ecstatic—two Lhasa Apsos—a sign, perhaps, that I was meant to learn more.

As we awaited the arrival of our Lhasa puppies, I delved deeper into the culture of Tibet. I began devouring books about the Himalayas, the Potala Palace, and the Dalai Lama, who had spent many incarnations in that sacred palace on the mountaintop. I was captivated by the mysticism of the land, the beauty of the mountains, and the wisdom of the Tibetan Buddhist traditions.

The more I learned, the more I felt a deep, unexplainable connection to Tibet. It was as if my soul had been drawn to the land long before I knew what it was. And it all started with those two dogs—two little Lhasa Apsos whose names would become so much more than just labels.

The first puppy we brought home was a black and silver male, gentle and sweet, and his name was Bhim—a Hindu name meaning "The Supreme Being." His name alone felt like a cosmic blessing, the perfect companion for the start of my spiritual path. The second puppy, a golden blonde female from a show-dog family, was named Psyche, the Greek word for "soul."

I could never have imagined that a search for a dog would lead to a journey of spiritual discovery. But fifty years later, I still carry the wisdom and beauty of Tibetan traditions with me, finding deep meaning and solace in the teachings of Buddhism, all sparked by the guardians of my childhood: Bhim and Psyche. The memory of those dogs and the spiritual awakening they led me to continue to guide me to this day.

It’s amazing how the smallest things—a dog, a name, a picture—can lead to the most profound discoveries. In those first moments of learning about Tibet and Buddhism, I began to uncover a path that would stay with me for a lifetime, a path that continues to inspire and enrich my life to this very day.

And to think it all began with a search for a dog.

© Excerpt from the upcoming book: THE LIGHT FROM THEIR SOUL: A Spiritual Journey of Transforming Grief into Love