Dharamsala; Triund, June 6

Triund. I first heard of Triund from the Ghosh’s in Delhi, when we spoke about Dharamsala. It’s the most popular one or two day walk from the area, and I headed that way with Krishnan on Sunday. We had hearty breakfasts at the Green Hotel, and off we went, spinach quiches packed up with us.

Uphill. Lots of it. Like 3 hours of it. But breathtaking views, along with confirming inspirational conversation, made it fly by. I am so grateful for Krishnan’s presence in my life. I really didn’t expect when we first met at Amma’s ashram in January that we would end up seeing a lot more of each other. What really sticks with me from the walk that day is how much I didn’t realize that what I said to him was really how I think, feel, know, right now. I found so many stories and quotes from Sadhguru coming out. Forced to speak about my past, highs and lows, amongst many other things made me really see things clearly. And I am so grateful to be exactly where I am right now in my life, in every way – physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually. I am totally lost in a lot of ways, having just left career, the concept of home, and relationships – but I am having that settled feeling of knowing that I am exactly where I need to be. Thank you.

To be able to have the financial freedom, and not have responsibilities that bind me to a place, people, and things, is of indescribable blessing.

What also strikes me is how really, truly difficult it is to embody and practice the simplest concepts of spirituality. I really appreciate His Holiness the Dalai Lama for this, because the majority of his teachings are so simple they can be understood by a kindergartener. But the reality is that love and compassion really are that simple; it is hard to wake up every day joyfully, to pay more attention to the love and compassion within us than the incessant noise and negativity that the mind creates; if we can treat each sentient being as such and acknowledge the fundamental desire for happiness, and the end of suffering, that every being in this world has, we can grow exponentially. But it is oh-so-hard.

Sadhguru says so many things that drove me crazy the first time I heard them, more likely than not because I recognized the incontrovertible truth of them but didn’t want to admit them – if we really want to live, why do we say we only want to live to be 80, rather than 160 like the actual maximum lifespan of human beings? How can we claim to love God, some unknown being above, if we can’t love the person next to us? Would God make you/me/one perfect, and mess up on the rest? We see ourselves as perfect so all of creation must be so…there is so much more. I have not delved into Sadhguru’s works so much, perhaps because I recognize that the little I have been exposed to is more than enough to digest and try to have reflect in my life.

Anyway – we made it to Triund, rolling green meadows framed by snow-capped peaks behind - had amazing spinach quiche, and came right back. And then I got so sick.
I really don’t think I ate or drank anything my body couldn’t handle, so it was either sun poisoning or some sort of internal cleansing (Kali/Durga) for the next 24 hours – that horrible simultaneous vomiting and diarrhea…