Sadhanapada - Month One
My first attempt to leave for my great adventure in India wasn't meant to be, but as I left the airport at 11 p.m. after eight hours of delays, then cancellation, followed by re-booking, I was grinning ear to ear and full of energy. I had been anticipating this trip for months - what was one more day? The following day, after a couple more delays for good measure, we were off.
I landed in Coimbatore on time, but my checked bag did not. When I arrived at the Ashram, I learned that orientation would begin the following day. We were to stay in a meditation hall with our luggage for one week, with scant opportunity to leave the area. With only a few electronics and the clothes on my back, I rushed to the shops to see what essentials I could cobble together. I bought a few pieces of clothing and necessary toiletries, which would end up serving me for the rest of the month. Luxuries like bedding would have to wait; I felt the absence of my watch most of all as the Ashram runs on a tight schedule.
There was more to adapt to than missing luggage, though. Orientation was intense: information, new processes, and Yoga practice instruction came in a rush. Sitting cross-legged for hours was a painful adjustment. Sleeping on a thin mat on the floor was fitful, so I was often fighting exhaustion. Illness was common during orientation, with hundreds of people from around the world in close quarters. Despite these challenges, I only recall a couple moments of frustration or doubt within me and they passed quickly; this place has a way of melting away resistance.
Volunteering In The Dining Hall #
Following orientation, I was assigned to temporary duty in Biksha Hall, the dining hall where Ashramites eat two delicious and nutritious meals per day. Duties included: rolling out the straw mats we sit on, place-setting, cleaning surfaces, washing hundreds of metal serving buckets, greeting guests, and resetting between batches. (Bucket rinsing was my favorite activity as it allowed me to splash in the water and stay cool on hot days. I developed a very efficient process!) Meals are taken in silence and gratitude. We were told, "We are serving life itself," and the task is undertaken with a commiserate level of discipline, care, and compassion. (I will write more about dining in the future.)
I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Biksha Hall. I found serving people deeply rewarding and tried to make every spoon of food and each step I took into a conscious offering. Precision and speed were necessary in equal measure. A few people remarked on my ability to remain calm in the chaos that swirled around us, which I found gratifying. The schedule was such that other program participants were busy with their activity during my "downtime", which made for a splendid sense of isolation and easy access to common areas for laundry, ironing, etc.
Challenged And Grateful #
This first month, I often felt I was barely keeping my head above water. I was sick, tired, sore, and confused by foreign customs and rituals. My lifelong habit of procrastination as a form of control exacerbated the intense schedule. My tendency to compare myself to the imagined superiority of others made me feel insecure about these challenges.
Excluding the lost luggage, none of this was unexpected. Isha is all about intensity and keeping you guessing as to what will happen next. I expected internal resistance whatever my intentions, and my habits are well known to me - I'm here to eliminate them, after all! One day while walking between activities I suddenly thought, with tears in my eyes, "I am where I need to be, doing what I need to do," which is an exceedingly rare sentiment in my life. Whatever difficulty I endured was more than offset by the overwhelming gratitude I have for this place, the volunteers who run it with joy and intensity, and my Guru who has made this incredible privilege possible. 🙏
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