… Uma and I arrived at Kathmandu by air on Aug 7th which was one day prior to the arrival of the entire batch. we were going to be 70 people on this journey. The pick up person from the hotel had come to get us and told us that someone else from South of India is arriving in 45 minutes so we will wait for him and go back to the hotel together. Uma and I quickly started taking photos at the airport of mesmerising mountains on that sunny afternoon. We then left for the hotel with the third person with us who introduced himself as our team doctor, Dr. Vishnu Ram. Uma was rather happy to meet him and quickly started asking him for some tips! Dr. Vishnu told us this is his third consecutive year to Kailash and second one as team doctor. He asked us if we would like to volunteer in medical team for the rest of the journey and we readily agreed.

By next afternoon, 8th August, people started coming in large numbers and we could see the lobby fill with 70 odd participants. Uma and I were doing the medical screening for participants as they were arriving and that was the first time we met rest of the participants. Some people thought I was the doctor and most people were confused how was I the doctor? I immediately told them all that I am volunteering in medical and Dr. Vishnu is the real doctor. No one was satisfied to see such a young looking girl as the team doctor. And truth be told, I wasn’t prepared too.

We were to depart Kathmandu on Aug 9th but we got to know that the flight has been cancelled for Lhasa due to bad weather conditions there. So we went sight seeing in Kathmandu that day. On 10th August we were again ready to depart at 8am and we were once again informed that we cannot leave for Lhasa yet because the airline cannot accommodate our batch since they have only one flight that operates in the entire day and in all just 2 airlines that fly from Kathmandu to Lhasa. So by evening plans were being made to take us to China by road and I wasn’t really happy because I get travel sickness easily on roads with many bends and specially if I see a valley then nothing can stop it. The entire batch was extremely sad and our moral was really down and I almost thought that on next day we will be told to get back to our cities and the Yatra has been cancelled.

So that evening, to calm us down, his grace Sadhguru came to Kathmandu to address our group and assured that the Yatra will happen, just put your heart in Kailash and we will go to bring it back. Being in his presence was no less than a dream come true. Our spirits were lifted and the next morning came with the fantastic news of us flying to Lhasa and taking this journey ahead.

For the entire time, since the day we met and to the day our pilgrimage ended our routine was set like this. Wake up call at 4:30am. Packed duffle bags to be kept outside the room at 5am. Meditation from 5:15 to 6:15 am. Breakfast from 6:30 to 7:30am and 8am departure for next destination. We followed it in union and the energy that was created was beyond imagination.

We reached the beautiful city of Lhasa on Aug 11th. Lhasa is now part of China. We stayed the night at the hotel which was very big and comfortable. The food provided to us from that day onwards was made to support us physically through out the journey. The next day started at 4:30am and the temperature in Lhasa was round 15 degrees C. That day we visited a temple and saw the birth place of Dalai Lama. By now I knew I was on a journey of my life. I knew something was going to change. I knew I was going to become from Simran 2.0 to Simran 2.1. One can feel it as soon as they put both their feet on that soil. Its magic. Pure magic.

On 13th August we were to move ahead in our journey to Xigaze. Xigaze was at a higher altitude than Lhasa and we had to stop at these places for 2 nights to acclimatise. We were to take this travel by bus but due shortage of time, since we lost 2 days in Kathmandu, our group was directed to take this travel by train. We reached the railway station in Lhasa after lunch and left for Xigaze and reached in 4 hours with a view to remember. We stayed in Xigaze only for a night and set out for Saga the next day. That was the first day we travelled by road. The scenery on both sides of the bus was breathtaking. I could see snow peaks in the front and sides, sand dunes in closer distance and sun brightly shining. The wind was cold. It was a perfect sunny day in winter. The roads are beautifully made and nature has everything just perfect for eyes to see. We reached Saga that evening at 7pm and headed straight to get our hot drinks.

We were warned, before leaving our bus, to be careful of not removing our phones out to take pictures on streets because Saga is governed by the military. We will not only lose our cellphones but also might not be allowed to travel further. And the most important announcement followed with it, which was, that we take baby steps here to walk to our rooms and even later as the altitude is higher than our next stop which was going to be Lake Mansarovar. So no running and no climbing the stairs fast. But by then many people had already started to complain of headaches and dizziness.

The next day we set out our journey for Lake Mansarovar. Lake Mansarovar is place of pilgrimage and holds importance in many cultures . Bathing in Manasarovar and drinking its water is believed by Hindus to cleanse all sins. Even in Buddhist literature it is associated with many teachings and stories. Buddha, it is reported, stayed and meditated near this lake on several occasions. Lake Manasarovar is also the subject of the meditative Tibetan tradition, “The Jewel of Tibet”. As per Jain scriptures, the first Tirthankar, Bhagwan Rushabhdev, had attained nirvana on the Ashtapad Mountain. Lake Mansarovar lies at 15,000 ft from sea level and is largest fresh water lake. It is also the source of some lakes that flow in India.

When I first saw the lake, I couldn’t believe my eyes. We were told to not touch the water or go near the lake. The lake has a heart to hold billions of births. I felt as tiny as a grain of sand and insignificant. I was just sitting there, looking the at the vastness of the lake and I couldn’t even look at it continuously. I felt like the lake was talking to me. It was telling me to look within and see how I’ve been. I felt like I was not ready to touch the water of lake Mansarovar.

That night we stayed at the a dorm which was little away from lake Mansarovar. That day also I realised that something has touched me in a different way. When you don’t know people around you, you tend to know yourself so much better and at places like these. I now understand why. The soil, the wind, the sun light and the very existence of oneself at these places bring a considerable amount of consciousness within. You look at yourself deeper, naturally. I could feel skin deep and the blood running in my body at times. It was this time that I literally started to shut my mouth and just feel what was going on. I wish and pray that everyone gets a chance to go there and feel something like this, better and beyond.

That night I slept with 5 people in my room and I slept like I belonged there. I don’t remember if I have sleep so well in any luxurious hotel room. I remember closing my eyes and feeling love at the drop my eye lashes and in the union of my eye lids. Mansarovar is that place. It will put you in place and if you are a conscious human being, it will come talk to you, unfold many things and lift a veil from whats going to happen.

The next day we went to this place called Darchen. Darchen is the starting point valley. It is the very base of the trek to mount Kailash…

to be continued…