I’ve just returned from a month in India. The first thing everyone wants to know is “How was India?” And I’m honestly at a loss for how to answer. 

Sunrise visit to Kunjapuri Temple in Uttarakhand (photo by Sara Davis)

I’ve traveled a lot in my life - all over Europe, to Australia, to Mexico countless times, to Costa Rica, and beyond. I’ve never had a trip like India before. Maybe it’s because I traveled so far alone, without knowing anyone. Maybe its because India is so wildly different from anywhere that I’ve been before. Maybe it’s because I was traveling with a group of amazing yogis, meditating, practicing, and chanting together every day. Maybe it is because we went on Pilgrimage and had many deeply spiritual experiences. 

The yogi guys! (from left: Artie, Brian, Me, Dennis, Seth, and Josh)

I came to India with a lot of excitement and also a good bit of anxiety. The long flights, the vaccines, traveling on my own, the unfamiliar, the unknown. I went to a travel clinic before I left - which scared the shit out of me. I was advised to take a multitude of vaccination shots, I had to drink a cholera drink, I was warned about all the dangerous mosquito-borne illnesses, I was told not to drink the tap water or eat street food or brush my teeth with tap water or eat salad or eat fruit that I didn’t cut myself. I took malaria pills everyday that I was there. Before I left I had anxiety about the crowds and the noise and the trash and the beggars and how I could get vegan food. My mind and ego so desperately wanted to have some sort of control over the situation. I had none.

After a 2 hour flight to New York and a 15.5 hour flight to Delhi (the longest flight I’d ever taken) - I finally landed in India. I spent a night in Delhi before flying again the next morning to Rishikesh - the birthplace of yoga - in Northern India. Then I had a two hour drive through busy, dusty, narrow, windy roads through the Southern Himalayan mountains and along the banks of the sacred Ganga river. Just the drive was a shock - I saw cows in the street, goats, monkeys, wild dogs, naked babies on the side of the road, families of 6 people on scooters meant for 1, people sleeping in the dust next to heavy traffic. A literal waterfall poured over the mountain road and we just drove right through it. The potholes were more like pot craters.

A short clip of the road near RishikeshThe road outside of Rishikesh

Jet lagged and exhausted, I finally arrived to the hotel to find out that we had an asana practice an hour later. There I met for the first time the roughly 40 yogis that would be practicing together for the next 10 days. Our teacher Janet welcomed us into the space, which had massive floor-to-ceiling windows with views of the towering green mountains. Janet is strong, graceful, and wise. She has been coming to India for decades. She let us know that she would be intentionally keeping the schedule a mystery so that we didn’t have a chance to get caught up in expectations and anticipation. We were simply told to report back to the practice room the next morning at 6am.

View from outside my room, near Rishikesh

Our daily rhythm was a 30 minute meditation at 6am, followed by a 90 minute asana practice. We’d break for breakfast (curry), then come back for few more hours of chanting, lecture, and discussions. After lunch (curry), we’d usually do more chanting and asana, take a short tea break, then have another lecture/discussion or assignment before dinner (curry again). Then we’d get up the next morning and do it all over again. I’ll never forget finishing morning meditation and watching the clouds float across the mountaintops at sunrise as flocks of swallows danced outside the windows.

Setting up for morning meditation

One morning we loaded onto busses at 3:30am to take a dark and winding 2-hour ride to Kunjapuri Temple, which is a Durga temple on the top of a mountain with 360 degree views of the Himalayas, to watch the sunrise and chant sankirtana together. Another day was a silent day - no talking outside of what was necessary in our sessions. 

View from Kunjapuri temple, just before sunrise

Blissed out on top of a Himalayan Mountain

I spent nearly two full days wandering the streets of the city of Rishikesh, which is simultaneously beautiful and chaotic. Rishikesh is considered the birthplace of yoga. The sacred Ganga river flows right through the center of town. Tuk Tuks and scooters constantly move in all directions while giant bulls sleep in the middle of the chaos. It is through the chaos that I’m learning to let go of any sense of control and really trust that it’s all going to work out the way it’s supposed to. Before going into town, I had anxiety about the crowds, the noise, and the chaos. But I found myself strangely calm and centered while in the middle of it all.

A bull chilling in a market area of Rishikesh

In Rishikesh, we participated in the Ganga Aarti, which is a nightly Hindu ritual performed to honor and worship the Ganges River, involving priests offering fire from oil lamps accompanied by chants, bells, and large crowds. I visited the famous “Beatles Ashram” with a small group and explored the grounds. 

The crowd at Ganga Aarti in Rishikesh

A decaying building in the "Beatles Ashram"

We visited the Vashishtha Gufa Ashram, which is a series of sacred caves that yogis have meditated in for a very long time. We were able to sit in the caves and meditate, offer our respects, and take in the spiritually charged atmosphere. One of the yogis that I traveled with had a profound mystical experience inside one of the caves. I wandered alone until I found the furthest cave from the entrance, and sat alone and meditated there. Later my yogi friend told me that I had sat in “The Jesus Cave”. You can read further about the Vashishtha Gufa Ashram and the Jesus Cave here. 

My view from inside the "Jesus Cave"

On our final day we participated in a Puja, which is a sacred worship ritual involving hours of preparation, chanting, and meditation. For several hours we built a Sri Yantra, which is a sacred geometric diagram that we made using different colored powders. Shiva Kumar, our pujari, led the ritual with mantras, mudras, and sacred rituals involving water, flowers, fruit, and ghee. 

A view of our Pujari, Shiva Kumar, & the Sri Yantra during our Puja ceremony (photo by Sara Davis)

Through this Path of Devotion training I saw how much more I have to learn. I learned about Bhakti and devotion and history and deities and chanting and asanas and vayus and bandhas and so much more. I’m learned to notice and appreciate the subtle things. I listened inwards for my sankalpa, or my heart’s deepest longing. And I had so much fun and connected with so many amazing yogis.

Our amazing group of yogis around the Sri Yantra

The next part of my adventure involved a spiritual and historical exploration of India’s Golden Triangle, before flying to Southern India for a Sacred Pilgrimage to various ancient holy temples.

Check out part 2 here.

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