Jai
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Often mistaken for a young Deltan boy, Jai was a 400 year old humanoid oft described by those around him as an "old soul." Known as the Gyalwa Lama, he was seen as the living reincarnation of a Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader, much like the Dalai Lama of Earth. As such, Jai bore a somewhat unique burden in being the living manifestation of the only religion or religious leader to have survived the holocaust on Earth 2.
Contents
Childhood
Jai's origins were rough from the start. At an early age, he was left in the care of a Buddhist monastery in the area that would have been called Tibet on Earth. The reasons why are unknown. Maybe he was an orphan. Maybe his parents simply couldn't afford him. Whatever the case may have been, at the age of six, Jai was identified by the monks as the 13th reincarnation of the leader of the Gyalwa Lama school of Buddhism that had developed on that world. Dubbed Jay Prakas Gyatso, his life in the temple became even more ordered and structured for him. He was expected to be quiet and contemplative, to say the least for deeply spiritual, as he was introduced to a series of rituals and habits that was part of their religion. The religion that he was destined to head.
Jai wasn't formally recognized as the 13th Lamapa guru until he completed the ritual of the marking, in which the prospective Lamapa guru meditates on their past lives while receiving the mandala tattoo worn by all Lamapa gurus since Obaydullah Tenzin Gyalwa Lamapa, the first Lamapa guru. Jai's ceremony, like much of his life, had less to do with when he was ready and was instead selected for him to be the celebration of his tenth birthday.
In a way, the holocaust of Earth Two was both a blessing and a curse. Jai found his life and destiny returned to him, as his survival - and, more importantly, what he did with his life - now depended on him and him alone. Once the terror and anxiety had subsided, he was happy at first. One of a handful of rag-tag orphans who struggled to survive in the frozen winters of the temples in which they had once meditated. As the struggle to survive took its toll on the children, Jai increasingly turned to meditation to try and set aside all fears, and instead try to find the answers to the many problems that the Onlies in Tibet faced.
In the aftermath of the arrival of the Enterprise, Jai found his freedom once again. This time in an unfamiliar place, an unfamiliar time. It was the 23rd Century and Jai saw nothing in it to which he could relate, so he again retreated back into the familiar meditation. Only this time it was different, as he discovered he could debate philosophy and meditation with people of entirely different worlds - Vulcans and Andorians.
He traveled to Vulcan and studied the Kholinar. He traveled to Andoria, and to Earth where he debated the 49th Dalai Lama in a discussion about the mayahana sutras, life, and everything after. At a certain point, Jai had stopped trying to be what people wanted him to be and somehow still wound up at the same result: Three hundred years after the death of their world, their religion and traditions continued on in him. But rather than finding answers, Jai found that he more often found questions. And the pursuit of those questions led him to seek knowledge beyond the walls of a temple or an archaic text. He caught up on all the education he had missed, and all the time between the 20th and 23rd Century, and was accepted to the Trill Science Academy. There, he found himself in the study of life. In a way, it made sense. His faith and belief gave him answers to what was beyond life, but told very little about life itself.
After a lifetime of 300 years of meditation, a decade went by in the blink of an eye and saw Jai become a veterinary doctor, who studied and advocated for ecosystems and animals throughout this vastness of space that he had learned was known as the Federation. It was the Dominion War that convinced him that veterinary medicine might not be knowledge enough. Even still, no matter what it's exploration charter, Jai wasn't at all comfortable with the thought of a Lama guru being in the uniform.
The events of the Dominion War caused him to re-examine his priorities and his purpose. He competed for admittance to Starfleet Academy in 2382 and was successful in securing a spot in the freshman class of the following year.
Starfleet Career
Enrolled in Starfleet Academy's pre-medical program as a path to entry into Starfleet Medical Academy, most of Jai's time in uniform has been spent studying. Already a doctor of veterinary medicine at the time that he entered the Academy, Jai studied organic chemistry and earned an advanced degree in pharmacology at the time that he was commissioned as an Ensign in Starfleet's Life Science Division.
But, commissioning as an ensign after four years at Starfleet Academy only guaranteed him three more years of learning. The first two to be spent as a medical student at Starfleet Medical Academy and the third year to be spent as a medical student resident at Starfleet Medical. Jai applied, and was selected, for a residency in pediatric medicine and surgery.
Jai completed his student residency in the latter part of 2388 and applied for certification from the Board of Starfleet Medical Examiners. In 2389, Jai was board certified as a licensed medical doctor in his own right and was promoted to the grade of Lieutenant Junior Grade.
Life in the ER
In lieu of an initial assignment, Jai requested to complete a second residency program in emergency medicine. Assigned as the main hospital on Earth, Jai served as an attending resident in the Emergency Room and in several other trauma centers throughout the Sol System over the course of his program. At one point, he responded via ambulance shuttle to a plasma fire that had crippled a freighter as it attempted to depart Titan. He initially discovered two patients who were alive at the time he found them, but Jai was ultimately unsuccessful in efforts to save either man -- a failing for which he struggles to recover.
USS Vesta
Personal Life
As expected of him, Jai had a patience that is comparable to that of the Biblical Job, along with a deep-seated belief in non-violence and a compassion that is matched only by his intellect. Those who first meet him understand why a people might believe him to be the reincarnation of a Buddha. At the same time, Jai is as flawed as the next person, which means he is fully capable of making mistakes. And in his profession, mistakes cost human lives. Those teaching moments come at a high cost and haunt him with the memory of failing. Jai still struggles with the dichotomy of who he thinks he is supposed to be and is still discovering who he really is. Outwardly he is quiet, contemplative, and selfless. The truth is he has the wide-eyed wonder for the universe and the enthusiastic energy appropriate to his true age, to include a streak of mischievousness. Balance and harmony between those two sides of himself, the real and the spiritual is the daily war that he wages, and one in which his only enemy has forever only been himself.
Chronology
| Year | Placement | Rank | Assignment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2383 | Starfleet Academy | Officer Candidate (Pre-Medical) | |
| 2386 | Starfleet Medical Academy | Medical Student | |
| 2389 | Starfleet Medical | Medical Residency | |
| 2391 | USS Vesta | Assistant Chief Medical Officer |
| Preceded by: Angela Ziegler |
Assistant Chief Medical Officer of USS Vesta 2391 – Present |
Succeeded by: Incumbent |