I chose to go to India. My friend invited me to join him on an adventure as he was determined to learn paragliding in the Himalayas. It was exactly at the time my visa was running out.
For a full week I pondered. One part of me wanted deep peace, rest and stillness while another part smiled at the adventure. For hours I lay awake at night weighing the pros and cons of the decision but like so often that did not help.
The only way for me to make decisions that last is to make them from a place of clarity. That still place arises when the wave of emotions has passed. In that stillness the silent whispers of the heart can be heard. I guess it is the way of a manifestor (see human design for more information), to wait until the emotional wave has passed. In this wave I was taken through so many different emotions which made me confused. I went back and forth, back and forth, until my heart said yes.
So I jumped and here I am in India. It was an adventure from moment one. My friend had a friend that was staying in the Hilton. Walking in there I felt overwhelmed by the splendeur, the beauty. I had never seen such a fancy hotel in real life. In front of the elevator there were people waiting to click the button to go up. My mouth fell open. Useless of course, but so nice for once to experience.
In the Hilton we rested until the real journey began, a journey of 48 hours to make our way to the Himalayas. The first step was a flight to Delhi with a five hour stopover in Chennai. In Delhi we spent the entire day fixing sim-cards after which we attempted to board the night train to the North. Attempted because we had managed to get hold of one ticket only. Just before the train departed we got hold of one extra ticket but the ticket was a waiting list one and when time came, we were not able to use it. So there we were, in India, with only one ticket for a sleeping train. The Indians told us to board anyway and chip the conductor some money when needed.
I felt nervous, like we were not really able to be there. We shared a coupe with 3 other Indians. At first we wanted to share the bed but the bed was so small that that was impossible so it meant that one of us had to sleep on the ground. A worst case scenario in my mind, laying in the way of these Indians that I had never met and being a girl in the middle between two guys with the stories of India in my head. The reality turned out completely different. We started chatting to the Indians and they welcomed us with open arms, even offered to share their bed with us. I felt so blessed and also humbled by this experience.
Before we knew it we were in Pathankot, but from there it was time for the last lag of our journey. But first an amazing Indian breakfast. The sensation of flavours was incredible. Such depth of flavours. I loved it. And not as spicy as I remembered! After that we found the bus towards Bir Billing, the gateway of the Himalayas. This was the hardest part of the journey for me with the road being under construction and smog everywhere around us. After eight hours we finally caught a glimpse of the snow-peaked mountains. What a sight!
From luxury to poverty, from extreme intensity to deep stillness. So far India has been a place of extremes. At the beginning i got overwhelmed by all the sounds of honking on the streets, the gas coming out of the trucks, the dust and dirt and the rush of people. Until i was able to dissociate, to take some distance and observe it like a cacaphony of sounds. Then it became pleasurable some how. It is all a matter of perspective and i feel like in india im learning to shift my perspective wisely.
Being surrounded by the himalayas and tibetan monestries does something to my system. It brings me back in touch with my own soul, my own spirituality again. I had lost touch for two years and because i was missing it i attached to the spirituality that was offered on the streets. The hipster spirituality where it was all about showing that you are spiritual rather than embodying a true soul connection. It brought me further and further away from myself, finding myself searching and left confused.
But here suddenly i can see myself again. Feel my deeply anchored spiritual gifts, my sensitivity and honour it again. Sometimes it is strange when you take a journey you expect something but you get so much more. It makes me happy from a place that is deeper than fleeting joy. A deep joy as a consequence of understanding myself, and seeing myself.
It is time to fly high, to let god take charge of my life by whispering to his voice through my heart and to live a god fulfilled life. Sounds good, right? What that means i do not know yet but i will tell you in due time. Until then, may you be blessed
