The many Forms of Spirituality

What is that attracts that many seekers from Western cultures to India? Often it is the search for meaning in life, the longing for a guru and the interest in ancient wisdom that is calling people to India.

As the famous yoga teacher Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa once said in an interview: In India the question, whether God exists or not, is not at all relevant. For Indians belief and spiritual life are so natural, that this question would not make any sense at all. The more relevant question would be:

In which FORM does one worship and honor the divine?

Spirituality any visitor would notice very soon is visible everywhere. It is probably impossible to find any room that is not located next to a temple, mosk or church. Early wake up will be guaranteed in any case! Again it is just the form that differs…

As birthplace of some of the world’s major religious traditions; namely Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, India is a place of huge diversity when it comes to spiritual life.

Whether you drive in a rickshaw or a bus, whether you go to buy your groceries or visit any official institution – you can immediately recognize which religion the owner or group follows. Hindu deities with colourful blinking lights and garlands, Jesus-figures and guru-pictures are commonly found accessories along other images of masters and teachers. You may even find a mix of various religious elements.

In India there seems to be no conflict between them. As the Sikhs would say: There is only ONE creation.Everything falls under that umbrella (if you are aware or it or believe it or not!). We are all brothers and sisters and all children of that one Creator.

That is probably the reason, why so many of us westerners experience an unseen sense of TRUST in this country. A certain doubt that we experience in our rational world simply vanishes in India. And we reach a point where instead of analyzing and thinking we can open up for the experience of being.