I realized that I forgot to write about my time in-between the sadhana mandir ashram and my trip down south to Kochi. To be honest… I’ve been so busy here in Kochi staying at LeLinda homestay cooking and exploring that I needed to slow down and rest the last couple days to transcribe recipes (more on that later) and write some more. I haven’t even done my meditation practice because I haven’t been feeling so great… ugh! I am on the mend though.
After staying at Sadhana Mandir Ashram I met a new friend “V” who I’ve been communicating with since about June who lives in India. We decided to meet in Rishikesh and hang out there for a day before we head into the foothills of the Himalayas of Mussoorie. We had many conversations about our work as teachers/coaches/facilitators and using that work to help others find the depths of their spirit, passions and personal growth. We really hit it off with lots in common.
One of the intentions I had for this travel was to be generous. I know I’m entering a part of the world where the US dollar will go a long way. I offered to pay for food and lodging which was graciously accepted. In turn, I received the ability to travel in their car, have someone with me that spoke Hindi, someone to cook with, and companion to share beautiful times and conversation.
V has dedicated their life to being of service to humankind through working for the United Nations and doing other human potential work. Now V runs her own training workshops around the world through “currency of trust”, “sole to soul”, and “joy of gratitude”. I got to learn a lot and was inspired to continue my own growth as a teacher as I got to participate in a “sole to soul” workshop. Truly a gift to receive.
During our time together, we got to travel up into the foothills of Himalayas into a small town called Mussoorie, India. Mussoori is about 6500ft in elevation and offers respite from the heat from the nearby low-lying areas. The end of October was at the end of the season and it wasn’t so crowded and businesses were getting ready to close down for the winter, which I liked. I found there is great diversity in terms of lodging facilities and just because it may cost more doesn’t necessarily mean that it is clean or had the modern amenities. At this point all I can hope for is clean. The place is really beautiful and full of life as people are coming on a little vacation from their lives to this place. It reminds me of Colorado a little bit. We were there for one night and that was plenty of time.
On the way down the hill we stopped to see the Shiv Temple and Sahastradhara Sulfur Springs before making our way to Dehradun, the capital of the state of Uttarakhand. The ride up the mountain is all windy and somewhat narrow roads. I haven’t seen many traffic lights here in northern India and not the rules of the road are very different than is USA. It’s not uncommon to find another vehicle heading in the opposite direction in the same lane you are in. That can be kinda scary. I was glad I didn’t have to drive and V is a great defensive driver.
The sulfur springs were really nice. Nothing like I had visioned in my mind or seen on a few pictures on the internet. I had this vision of something elegant and luxurious. That was hardly the case. There were floods in 2013 that hurt the area and it never really came back to its original state. I must say it was nice to be in the water. The locals say its medicinal qualities heal lots of skin conditions.
We also went to the largest stupa in the world in Clement Town. It is situated in a Buddhist Temple and Mindrolling monestary. We arrived at a time where the student monks were reading/chanting inside the stupa and we got to sit in there and listen to the sound vibrations. The interior of this place is magical with tons of paintings all done by hand that took 50 artists over 3 years to produce. After my 10 days vipassana course, this was fantastic.
This is close to what we were hearing
I could post my pics… but this video is pretty cool of the place.
The best part of these several days were the conversations that were had between V and myself. We covered a lot of ground from facilitation techniques to spirituality to gender issues. One of the synchronicities that showed up was around Shri Sai Satcharita (Sai Baba). I just had a conversation with the office manager at Sadhana Mandir Ashram about this man and now having one with V. I don’t even know who Sai Baba is… so I downloaded his book. His teachings concentrate on a moral code of love, forgiveness, helping others, inner peace, and devotion… And then my first day in Kochi… I come across a business owner (Aarun) and had an hour-long conversation about Sai Baba and another Guru with him. OK… I need to see what Sai Baba is all about.
I really appreciated being with V for these days. We made great traveling companions, had a similar body clock, cooked food together, share about our teaching methods, and had great conversations about spirituality and philosophy. And I genuinely appreciated the company and look forward to more time together.
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