About two years ago, several disciples introduced Master's sample books into Turkey, but time did not allow us to distribute all of them. Thus, I decided to return to Istanbul with two other initiates from Belgium, although we were hesitant to go, because our government recommended not going there due to terrorist activities, and the start of the Kosovo war. The first 5,000 Kosovar refugees entered Turkey from Macedonia at the time of our arrival. But we thought that the most important thing was to deliver Master's Dharma, drops of love and peace in a war-torn area, and that Master would protect us.

Istanbul taxi driver reading Master's book.

People in Turkey are not used to receiving free booklets, especially in the Turkish language. We were surprised to see how these little gifts were successfully distributed. In front of ferry boats (as in Hong Kong Harbor), where many yellow taxis were waiting for clients, the drivers were reading Master's sample booklets, and some came to ask for additional copies. The Turkish police came gently to ask what we were doing, and some ferry boat passengers even spontaneously helped us to distribute the books.

A Warm Welcome from Istanbul University Students

Next, we went that day and the day after to Istanbul University, and then to the Grand Bazaar. Istanbul University is known as the starting point for the circulation of new ideas in Turkey, and there is always something happening there: Its students are particularly open minded and enjoy discussion. Some of the students agreed with the Five Precepts and found similarities with Islamic moral principles. Once again, some people began to distribute sample booklets to others. Employees of the Pandora Book Store (with four branches in Istanbul) accepted Master's sample booklets and gave them to clients at the cashier counter.

Eating Vegetarian in Turkey Is Easy

My first surprise was that in many restaurants, vegetarian meals were listed on the menu, before we asked.

Some famous vegetarian restaurants are listed in the Istanbul guide, including the following:

"Nature and Peace": Istikhal Cad., Buyukparmappi Sokak2, Beyoglu(tel. :252.86.09)

"Mediterrane": Cukurlucesme Sokak 18, Beyoglu (tel.:243.28.38).

We went to the "Nature and Peace" restaurant and met the manager, Mr. Erdogan Albas, who was happy to discuss vegetarian food with us. He kindly agreed to display sample booklets in his restaurant, as we explained to him that the books would suggest additional reasons to eat vegetarian.

Burgazada Island

We also wanted to look for new areas with potential truth seekers outside of Istanbul. After an hour and thirty minute trip by ferry boat, we reached the small island of Burgazada, one of the Adalar Islands, in the Marmara Sea. The people of this island have plenty of sympathy for cats, which await boat arrivals and walk in small groups throughout the island. They are a part of daily life; cats and human beings live in harmony. Cars are not permitted on the Island, so the streets are quiet. When the sun began to set, we found a restaurant. The manager, an old Greek man, prepared a vegetarian meal for us. We gave him one of Master's sample booklets to look at, so that he could understand why we were vegetarian. We took the ferry back at night, saying good-bye to all the Island's little cats.

We Will Come Back Again

As we worked, unexplained links began to unfold between the fellow initiates in Belgium and the nation of Turkey. We were helped in introducing sample booklets twice into this country, and had ups and downs, with especially hard times at the beginning. But now we are continuing, and are ready to go back.