As many of you know I was in India for the last month. Now that I have returned, I find myself quite drained emotionally and spiritually, as I process all the sights and sounds that I took in. It was exciting to visit the land where the wisdom of thousands of years of history has been spread over the world through holy books, gurus, great tales, poetry, art, and music. It is the land where yoga and ayurveda were born. It is a land of mystical beauty, temples, and myths. It is a land of contrasts, contradictions and paradoxes.

My first few days were spent in Delhi. Here people clammer to get ahead of each other, as exemplified by the auto-rickshaw drivers. These taxi drivers could easily given an uninitiated Westerner a heart attack! They skillfully weave in and out of traffic and pedestrians in their little three wheelers forcing the passenger to gasp and close their eyes. The streets of Delhi are congested with these taxis, as well as busses, cars, and trucks. On smaller streets pedestrians have to be very alert as it appears motorized vehicles have the right of way! You'll constantly hear the blasting horns which seem to serve as some form of Morse code.

Delhi is very loud and fast-paced - both of which I was prepared for. What I was not prepared for was the poverty and pollution. Many times I held my breath trying to avoid breathing in the smog and exhaust from the cars on the over-congested streets. While walking, I would often be approached by mothers carrying babies asking for money. But when I saw the lepers and people with severe deformities, my heart really hurt. What good was giving 100 Rupees or even 1000 Rupees to these people? I wanted to give these people hope.

After my few days in Delhi I decided to fly to Bombay (Mumbai), from there I went to Pune, to the Osho commune where I finally find a slower pace and tranquility! This commune offered many short courses on anything from meditation, tantra, archery, martial arts, and more. The people there were mostly "seekers" from countries such as Germany, Italy, Russia, etc. but there were also some Indians there too. In the evening, everyone would wear a white robe and gather in a huge pyramid that could hold 1000 plus people for the evening meditation. Walking through the ashram one gets the sense that great care went into the construction of every structure, walkway, and garden. The Osho ashram is an example of the beauty man can create when he works in harmony with nature and not against it.
http://www.osho.com/Main.cfm?Area=MedResort&Language=English

After a few days in Pune I travelled by bus to Goa, in the south. It was much slower paced and less polluted than Delhi, but less "spiritual feeling" than the Osho commune. In the late 60s and 70s, hippies came here and found a little paradise, living closer to nature, with the sea, palm trees, and the absence of large buildings. I stayed in a hut by the beach in Arambol for 250 Rupees per night (about $8). Litter was still found occasionally on the streets but nowhere near in abundance as I found in the bigger cities. The weather was perfect everyday and I easily slipped into "holiday mode" here, as I am indeed a sun-lover! The food was good and cheap (you could get a whole meal with a tea for about 150 Rupees). I met many musicians, went to several free concerts, jammed with some locals, visited some yoga camps, and met some really nice people. Almost everyday I enjoyed a dip into the Indian Sea. I found it amusing to watch cows, wild boar, and dogs run amok on the same beach as sun-tanners, kite surfers, peddlers, and fishermen.

But the day came where I had to face my fears and return to Delhi to catch my flight back to Toronto! I arrived in Delhi the day before my departure and took a taxi to a decent, but cold, hotel called Yuvraj. They definitely do things different in Delhi: while is was peeing in my hotel room I hear a knock on my hotel door. In walks the Bellboy who seems unaffected by the fact that I'm standing in front of the toilette with the door open, and asks if everything is satisfactory. I assured him everything was great. Later, with my trusty earplugs in to block out the city noises, I was trying to fall asleep at about 11:30 pm - another knock on my door! I decided to ignore it. Then my phone rings. Frustrated, I answered it. It was the Bellboy again wanting to know if I wanted to order anything room service!

The next day, my last day in India, I spent visiting various historical sites, as well as a few markets, and shops. Built by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan between 1638 and 1648, the Red Fort has walls extending up to 2 kms. in length. It must have been an incredible site in its day with the combination of fortress, palace, and mosques spread out over the vast area within the fort's walls - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Fort. The Sikh Gurdwara (temple) was vibrant with musicians singing and playing their praises from the Siri Guru Granth Sahib - the Sikh holy book. They also offer a free kitchen and all people are welcome. The Lotus Temple of the Baha'i faith was awe-inspiring. Amidst the chaos of the city, it was an oasis of serenity and beauty. Completed in 1986 and sitting on 26 acres of land, the Lotus Temple is free for all people to visit. As with virtually all temples, shoes must be removed before entering, also they request that guests remain silent once inside. Here's more info: http://www.bahaindia.org/temple/architecture.html

Finally, I had to head to the airport. My taxi driver made the mistake of asking a policeman in uniform for directions to get around the traffic. The officer, knowing that we were in a rush to get to the airport, seized the opportunity and asked the driver to follow him with his permit evidently trying to create a delay that could only be rectified one way. I waited in the rickshaw for the ordeal to conclude. Suddenly my driver rushed back and asked me for money, then hurried back to the officer who now had 3 others officers with him. A moment later he returned a few hundred rupees poorer shaking his head, and off we went.

After spending time in India I realized the importance of the concept of "Divine Earth" and I think back to everything I saw and I asked myself "Why do some places exude such beauty and other places so decrepit? Why do so many suffer such hardships? Why are some people lucky and others so unfortunate?" How many of these things are in our control?

It seems that the bounty of the earth can provide enough for all. Nature provides food, medicine, shelter, and beauty that inspires us. Nature that has been untouched by man stands as a reminder that beauty is a natural phenomenon. Mother Earth has encouraged the trees, flowers, rocks, deserts, waterfalls, oceans, and all the creatures to coexist and grow in a miraculous way. Man has taken the elements and combined them in new ways, some of which are also beautiful and breathtaking, but some in ways that have disturbed our natural surroundings, our health and our sense of inner peace.

The images we see everyday truly have an impact on our wellbeing, as I learned during my visit to India. In the city of Delhi I saw run-down buildings, abject poverty, lepers, beggars...this definitely had an impact on me physically and emotionally. Let places like the Osho ashram and the Lotus Temple be reminders that when we honour God, nature, the universe, man is indeed capable of creating beauty that also honours and uplifts us. Imagine if every building, house, and structure was created with the same consciousness and care that went into building temples. What beauty would abound! Somewhere in history we seem to have forgotten that ALL things are sacred and lost the harmony between man and nature. If we truly wish to have a Divine Earth we must remember to see the sacred in all things. Only then will our creativity be an expression of the divine and mankind can blossom to his fullest and highest potential, living as brothers and sisters, sharing the bounty of this planet.