With Ama Adhe and students at Art Refuge, Dharamsala, India 2006

1. Finding myself swarmed with love by two tiny girls on my first day as a volunteer with Art Refuge in Dharamsala
2. Watching the spectacular sunrise over the Himalayas from Tiger Hill, Darjeeling, and marveling at the beauty of nature
3. Going on a camel safari to the Thar Desert outside Jaisalmer, and sleeping on the sand dunes
4. Walking with 10 million pilgrims into Haridwar for the annual Kumbh Mela ritual bath in the Ganga River – the world’s largest spiritual gathering
5. Whale watching on the Atlantic Ocean, Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia
6. Immersing myself in the hot springs on Vancouver Island, an ocean boat ride from Tofino, and noticing that the veil is very thin at this sacred place
7. Falling in love in Delhi and visiting some of the city’s most iconic sites together – Qutab Minar, Raj Ghat, Humayun’s Tomb and Lodhi Garden
8. Taking an early morning boat ride on the Chao Phraya River in Bangkok, and stopping to barter at the floating market
9. Seeing the Taj Mahal for the first time and feeling the sublime beauty of that eternal landmark
10. Standing at the tip of India, where three oceans meet – and seeing if I could discern the three different colours of the water

This post has been entered into the Grantourismo HomeAway Holiday-Rentals travel blogging competition.

Photo of James Cameron and Lakshmi Pratury courtesy of Gene Driskell for The INK Conference

First INK Conference a success, second one in the works

The first INK Conference, in association with TED, attracted 400 attendees and speakers ranging from Canadian filmmaker James Cameron to author Dr. Deepak Chopra to Simpsons cartoon creator Matt Groening to Wired Magazine founder Kevin Kelly. It took place over three days in Lavasa City, near Mumbai, in December 2010 and was organized and hosted by dynamo Lakshmi Pratury — who organized the TED conference in Mysore, India in 2009.

The purpose of INK is to be an annual conference that fuels innovation and fosters knowledge and the theme of the first INK was Untold Stories. Each speaker narrated his/her own untold story in a unique way. The line-up of speakers included well-known names and also lots of lesser known innovators, thought leaders and artists. For a complete list of speakers, click here for the INK Conference site.

But what gets me really excited is the theme for the upcoming INK Conference (December 2011): The Power of journey. (more…)

Swami Vivekananda

Swami Vivekananda’s famous speech

January 12 is Swami Vivekananda’s birthday (born 1863). In honour of his birthday, I am posting the speech he made in 1893 at the World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago. He was the first Indian swami, or guru, who really made a big impact on the west. To say he stole the show is an understatement. His speech was phenomenally well-received, and it is still resonating to this day. Watch this and marvel — he spoke extemporaneously, without notes and without preparation. His message of the inherent tolerance of Hinduism is very inspiring — but his wish that the Parliament of Religions would sound the death knell to fanaticism is bitter-sweet since we know it has only risen in the last 100 years.

You can read more about him in recent article called Three gurus who changed the face of spirituality in the west by Philip Goldberg. January 12 is also Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s birthday (he will forever be known as the Beatles guru….).

Personal note: My Mother died on January 12, 1998, a full moon night. I always knew she was a mystic.

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Yoga, meditation and spirituality: The 2010 version

Photo courtesy of Dave Bouskill, PictureThePlanet.com

One of the top 10 Google searches in India in 2010 was “how to meditate.” While the debate in the west, especially in the USA, was raging over “who owns yoga,” Indians were using high-tech solutions — computers and advanced, online search algorithms — to reconnect with their spiritual heritage. I think this is one of the top stories of 2010. We humans are all about connection — hence Facebook’s popularity — and connecting with yourself at the deepest, or highest, level is the epitome.

Connecting with myself, in retrospect, was probably the main reason I went to India in the first place, back in 2005. Before I made that first six-month trip, India seemed like such a far-away place, such a mythical land, that I did not really believe you could actually get on a plane and fly there in a matter of mere hours. But now it feels like India and Canada — the east and the west — are coming closer together in so many ways. I’m not sure how I feel about this. (more…)

Deepak Chopra at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto

Thanks to MyBindi, and about 25 Facebook friends, I won front-row tickets to see Deepak Chopra at Roy Thomson Hall in Toronto — and I also won seats from Zoomer Media, which I gave to well-deserving friends. Almost two years ago, I wrote a blog post about why I admire Deepak Chopra, and how I feel we have the same mission, which is Sharing India’s wisdom with the world.

Deepak Chopra walked very simply on an almost-empty stage wearing jeans, thick-soled boots, a black jacket and jeweled glasses. With no fanfare whatsoever, he began speaking directly to the audience in a straightforward and down-to-earth manner. He spoke extemporaneously for about 90 minutes, with ease, intelligence and an absolute grasp of his material. (more…)

The meaning of Diwali

Diwali in India is like Christmas in Canada. It’s the biggest festival of the year, celebrated all over India, with lights, firecrackers, flowers, parties and pujas. Diwali (or Deepavali) celebrates the return of Lord Rama and Sita from exile, and the triumph of light over dark. This year, 2010, it takes place on November 5, on the new moon night, so the sky is absolutely dark — the better to see the firecrackers that people set off in an absolute frenzy. If you are Canadian, you can celebrate Diwali by entering a contest to win a trip to India.

The upcoming year, 2011, is the the Year of India in Canada, and the good folks at IndiaTourism are sponsoring a WIN A TRIP TO INDIA! contest, along with Absolute Tours and my friends at Indus Travels — who are my partners for my BreatheDreamGo trips to India. By the way, the tours are closing in mid-November 2010, so if you want to go to India with me this winter, act now by filling out a booking form. (more…)

On the ghats in Varanasi, India

Capturing the concept of karma

Karm cola, karma chameleon, karma co-op, karma account, increase your good karma, it’s your karma baby … Karma has become an all-purpose word in the west that is used fairly indiscriminately without much understanding of what it really means. This is probably a pretty common phenomenon when words migrate from another language / culture. I can tell you that, as a serious student of yoga, Hinduism and Indian culture, I have been trying to wrap my mind around the word karma for years, and I have barely gleaned its meaning.

I’ve been thinking about karma for a couple of reasons lately. One, I just finished reading the book Karma Cola. (more…)

On the Ganga River in Varanasi, India

The rivers of India need help

Today is Blog Action Day and the theme for this year is clean water. This week’s Photo-of-the-Week on BreatheDreamGo is of the Ganga (Ganges) River in Varanasi. It is one of the most beautiful, sublime and sacred places you can visit on earth. Varanasi is one of the world’s oldest living cities and the pujas (religious rituals) performed there have been happening in the same way, at the same place, for thousands of years. It is also a very significant place in Hindu mythology, as both Shiva and Vishnu have left their marks on the city; and nearby, in Sarnath, Buddha gave his first talk. (more…)

Lodhi Garden, Delhi, India

Commonwealth Games at a tipping point

In the days leading up to the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Delhi has been vilified in the western media for lack of preparedness, unclean  facilities, unfinished and potentially unsafe stadiums (a bridge collapsed, injuring dozens) and security lapses. The international community called it a “fiasco” and is putting a lot of pressure on India to rectify the situation. I feel heart-broken about this because I know and love the city of Delhi; and it pains me to see that the western media seems to take particular glee in exposing the “filthy” conditions. Sports columnist Stephen Brunt in Canada’s national Globe and Mail newspaper wrote a very thoughtful column about the situation, a column that should have been in the front section of the newspaper: Huge shadow looms over New Delhi. (more…)

Today is Ganesh Chaturthi – the popular Hindu god’s birthday. This festival is celebrated with grand processions in Mumbai.