Leh valley offers spectacular views of the Zanskar and Karakoram ranges while the sound of cymbals and deep chanting of the mantras wrapped in juniper incense travel through the air makes way for an ethereal state of being of a monastic world. Welcome to the monasteries in Leh. From Thikse Monastery, Shanti Stupa, Stakna Monastery to Diksit Monastery, every corner of these monasteries, you feel one with Nature, listening to the fluttering prayer flags wielded in the wind. Encounter with the Buddhist life – white-washed chortens, mud-brick homes strewn across barley fields, all about good-will and peace. You see a burst of vibrant colors – people are tied together with values. At night, witness the spectacular Milky Way that contains hundreds of billions of stars like our sun and realize we are just on its minor spurs. There is so much more to it than just us.

Varanasi is the oldest inhabited place in the world. A walk through the city, the Ganga Ghats takes you on an oscillating trip up and down between the oldest intimate rituals of life and death. The whole energy of the place makes you shift your focus to embracing things around you. It makes you realise that life is a long journey till eternity. All you do is spend your time doing yoga and explore the place. You meet people who have either come to come to wash away their sins or to attain Moksha in their last years of life. You also meet the mystics and maybe gain a perspective on a spiritual life. In short, while you watch the sunrise aboard a boat under the enigmatic and archaic sky of the holiest city, you might discover yourself.

Mirza Ghalib was raised in the chaotic lanes of Old Delhi. There is the soul. There is spirituality. Jama Masjid, one of the largest mosques in India, as you climb up the stairs, you enter through the huge gates that make you feel such a small part of its massive universe. You open your eyes to the intricately detailed work displayed everywhere that you remain in awe. You are surrounded by open arched rows of columns that you feel your home and yet so free. The amalgamation of Islamic, Hindu and Jain architecture makes your feel one even when there is so much disparity. Just sit there for a while and you will know what you came seeking for. Rewind and Rejuvenate.

You need to visit a few places in India to listen and experience to the mystic fables. Padmanabhaswamy temple in the South is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu. It is one of the 108 Divya Desams (Holy Abodes of Vishnu). The temple is run by the royal family of Travancore. The stories have it that it houses one of the 7 secret vaults (Vault B) that no human can ever open. It is believed that the sages had locked the portals with Naga Paasam mantras during the King Marthanda Varma’s reign and till date guarded by huge serpents, fiery supernatural entities and one female vampire. Many have tried opening including a team of scientists but they never succeeded. It There are many stories that you must hear that makes you wonder if we even really know the world we are living in. Another one great example is Haji Ali Dargah in Mumbai that is situated in the middle of the ocean and has miraculously never ever been harmed by any of the natural destruction around, be it the fury of the sea and the monsoon or the storm.

Every time, we speak of spirituality, Rajasthan becomes the destination to be. “What makes the desert beautiful is that somewhere it hides a well.” It hides the key to knowledge; something you lose touch within your regular life. It gives you a moment to be alone. You have massive forts and palaces that have withstood the test of time, standing tall and hearty in the middle of the empty desert, and then you have the thriving vibe of the vibrant people – it catches your immediate attention that life could be so much more beautiful. Time takes a step back and you feel one with yourself. Once someone said, “You should not see the desert simply as some faraway place of little rain. There are many forms of thirst.” There is room enough and time enough. May be time you get some answers.