Diaries from Dharamshala – About destinations and journeys….

My solo trip to Dharamshala in March ‘08 was one of the most memorable and spiritually awakening trips ever

Those two days I spent at Upper Dharamshala were filled with experiences which taught some very important lessons about the journey called life….This one's the first in the series

Period

Dharamshala is the home of The Dalai Lama. I have always been fascinated by Buddhism and its teachings and this was one place I wanted to visit for a long time. I generally prefer to travel alone for such trips as it gives me a chance to connect with my inner self. Far from the mundane life of Mumbai, this place offered the perfect spiritual retreat.I had just two days to spend there since I had some other work. 

From a general tourist point of view frankly Dharamshala has not much to offer; The Dalai Lama temple is the main attraction. However what made me fall in love with this town was the beautiful landscape the calm suroundings. I did nothing but just went for long walks across the city. And yes I did manage to visit the Dalai Lama temple.

After visiting the temple my driver advised that I could visit the Bhagsunath temple. Now Bhagsunath is an ancient temple to the east of Mclodgenj which is the temple of Hanuman. Since i had a lot of time, decided to visit this place. After entering into the temple, i generally clicked some photos of the temple building and of people worshipping. There was a small holy lake in inside the temple where worshippers were taking holy dips. I was wandering around for the next 15 minutes, planning for the next stopover. In some time i reached the fag end of the temple. Few people told me that there is a gate at the end which is the entrance gate to visit Bhagsu waterfalls. I decided to check it out and entered the gate; what I saw there was sheer beauty. ( see the pic on the left) At quite some distance I could see the waterfalls at a considerable height which looked beautiful. I immediately fell in love with that place and had a desire to reach at the top point.

However even though there was willingness, the distance was a problem. The falls were at quite some distance and more so the road leading to the place was quite narrow with a deep valley on one side of it. However I was so struck with the beauty of that place that I decided to undertake the journey in any case. I began around 3.30 pm, assuming I would reach the end in just enough time to permit me to get back before sunset.

Since the path was narrow I was a bit careful about my journey. However after the initial hiccups I was steadier and gradually increased my pace.

Right from the start my eyes were set on the falls; I couldn’t hold my excitement to reach the top. I tried walking faster. However as time began to pass my excitement turned into worry. Nearly an hour into the expedition the end point to the top were still nowhere in sight, the distance to cover felt the same as before and this time around I had less of time. I was aware that i would require an equal amount of time to reach back. 

I started increasing my pace and hoped that I could catch up to the destination in time. However after 30 minutes of additional walking I decided to stop and head back as as otherwise it would have been too late to return  

Before beginning my  journey back, I decided to take a break generally to relax.  I found a place in the corner to sit down . I was quite disappointed for my miscalculations and for the fact that I could not reach the destination. I sprinkled some water onto my tired face and was wiping my face with the towel when i noticed something which had just struck me. I couldn’t believe what I was looking at. In front of me was the most beautiful sight. The view of the majestic himalayan mountains, its top covered with snow, the top layer covered with orange rays of sun, it simply looked magnificent.  I just stared at the place for the next one minute.  Frankly I could not explain the feeling. It was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen 

The feeling was WOW!

I just couldn’t believe that all along I was walking side by side such beautiful landscape but never had the time to admire it simply because I was too busy thinking about the falls and reaching there. Not that I was unaware of the fact that there were these beautiful majestic mountains I was walking along with but  I never appreciated the beauty of the sight like I was doing now.

That moment I had a smile on my face.  I realized something very important which since then has always been a part of my life and something which I follow religiously. And the idea of this blog originated there. I immediately wrote this down in my diary and began my journey back. Only this time there was a minor change. I was very happy, somewhat learned and more importantly was enjoying the beauty of the landscape around me. That day I never regretted the fact that I could not visit Bhagsu Falls.

Pause

 We all have destinations/goals set out. 

Some of them openly expressed, some reserved to ourselves. All of us want a good job, we want certain money in ‘x’ no. of years, want to keep our parents happy, a certain position in personal and office life. And our entire life is all about reaching those destinations.

However we all would have realized that when we reach a desired destination, the destination itself changes.  

So at the start of my corporate career I desired to have a car within three years of working. Although I could manage to do that, by the time I did that my desire had changed from car to house. So in effect the satisfaction of reaching the earlier desired destination (the car here) diminished

However what we do not realize is that to reach those destinations we have sacrificed a lot.

To become one of the most successful employees in his company and to reach to the top one gives his everything, sacrifices his family and personal health. What happens when he achieves the success? He may in the first place never achieve it (because it may be never meant to be for him) or even if he achieves it its may be at the cost of his family or health. Is it worth it at the end???

So does it mean that one should not aim for something?

Absolutely not. One should definitely have goals/destinations. I am a great believer in having clear goals/destinations set out. But at the same time one should be aware that in life one may not necessarily reach those desired destination; for things which are beyond one’s control. And one needs to be OK with it.

However one should also realize that the journey to the final destination is nothing but a collection of short journeys along the way. These short journeys have their own destinations. However we generally ignore the joy of reaching or crossing such small destinations along the way as we are too much fixated by the big destination. Beacuse of this fixation with the end we give up the small joys which life offers us along the way. 

We never know when our journey towards our final destinations may be cut short. If that indeed does happen what is left behind is plain sorrow and dejection as one is too much attached to the destination.

And hence it becomes important in our lives to enjoy these short journeys and their destinations with as much joy as one would experience reaching the final destination.

In this way the current journey is enjoyed the fullest regardless of the final outcome. Cause even if the final outcome is not reached, the fact that one has enjoyed and celebrated the short journeys along the way makes it worthwhile to have undertaken this trip.

And if one does eventually reach his final destination then the dream journey has magical ending. It just could't have been better.

So today as I dream of starting my own business and dream of the destination I make sure that I don’t let it overpower my living today. Each step or the short journies with its  destinations  is celebrated  and enjoyed to the fullest.

I am perfectly aware that that sometimes things may not work out however the fact that I  undertook the journey and enjoyed it for whatever distance I have covered makes it worthwhile for lifetime

It’s important that one keeps moving towards the destination and at the same time appreciating the goodness and the magic of the journey being undertaken

Cause life is not just about reaching those one or two landmark destinations but more about the experiences of the small journeys, some complete, some incomplete but nonetheless eventful which makes one’s life journey truly memorable

Perspectives

 (All Content including Pictures are Copyrighted 2006- 2008 © Stevan Noronha. Copying or Using the content without permission is punishable and offenders will be liable for prosecution.)