Trip preparations

My departure date is arriving soon and I'm really excited about this year's trip to southern India. Two years ago in the spring I did a kind of pilgrimage trip to spiritual locations in northern India:

Northern India Blog

This trip was life-changing.

In my view, India is really more like the center of the world: a kind of nucleus of cultural, spiritual, and philosophical development. The density of attractions and cultural interest is incredibly high as well as the diversity. I see it as a kind of amazingly varied poly-culture where there are consistent themes throughout with a myriad of variations. The magic Sanskrit language, haunting melodies, and brilliant rhythms spelling out philosophy and stories are a mystical origin and foundation. For years I've been a practicing Buddhist and more recently have become quite interested in connecting with the mother culture that Buddhism arose from.

On this trip I'll be focusing on the renowned temples of South India. I'm a tourist but this is also a religious immersion for me. My current practice here in the San Francisco Bay area is to attend a temple on Saturdays, I alternate between a Sikh temple in the northeast Bay and a Hindu temple in the far east Bay. This is in addition to attending Episcopal Church services on Sundays. It has become a great way to start the weekend. I steadily listen to devotional music from a collection on YouTube. Although I can't understand the lyrics, this wonderful music is providing a soundtrack.

Lots of trip preparations- I'm trying to improve on my set up for the northern India trip. More humid conditions, more insect preparation. Today I got a bunch of small items delivered, things like new bungee laces for my old sandals. I'm thinking that sandals could be a good option for easy on and off while visiting many temples.



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