Well,
I can't believe that after being here for 6 months that there are still surprises and "firsts". Today I smelled bleach fo the very first time in India. bleach!! and it was at my ayurvedic doctor's clinic, so that's a good sign, right? I have not smelled bleach anywhere, nary a bathroom or doctor's office up until today, no smell of cleaners..... none. I never knew they had bleach in india until today. they don't use it on their clothes either. toxic cleaners are something I just havent' seen here.
I also had lunch today in a truly Indian restaurant on my way back from the doctor (he is giving me herbs for my sluggish digestion, which, by the way, work like a charm). The restaurant is called "Rajisthani Sweets" and they have the best sweets in town, i can't go by there without buying a box to spoil people at the ashram with. Plus it is a full scale restaurant as well. By far the best food I've had yet in India, what I had today..... after 6 months, I had the best food I've had in india!
Ashram food is good, great, but healthy, never swimming in cream or butter or spiced quite enough (spicey food fires you up and makes it harder to settle into meditation). Then the restaurant got really busy and a young Indian married couple were seated with me at my table. I was the only foreigner in the place (my stomach of steel has made me bold in my choice of restaurants..... some places that foreigners would be leary of..... and still I have yet to experience what they call "Delhi belly". Am I jinxing myself by saying that? (I am knocking on my wooden head right now).
It was kind of a funny scene when the couple's food arrived. Both had ordered Masala Dosa which is like a big thin crepe or skinny pancake stuffed with vegetables or potatos, served with sauces and chutneys and soup. It's a very yummy dish from south india. So while I was digging into my own cornucopia of curries and tasties with my right hand (no utensils, Indian style), they were delicately devouring their dosas in a "civilized" way with knife and fork. A picture would have been worth a thousand words. I laughed so hard inside myself at the three of us. It would have been even funnier if they had ordered pasta or something and were eating it with a knife and fork whilst I ate curry and rice with my hands. aaaaaaah.
I am really amazed at myself right now because I'm sitting on an old bench at the market of Rishikesh, hectic, bustling downtown. A place that used to make my nervous system cringe and crawl after only 10 minutes. I was always in a mad dash to get in and get out before I lost my mind. The onslaught of honking, cars, cows, fumes, activity, people, noises, smells, general pandemonium..... You know it, I've spoken of it many times. But suddenly I feel so completely at ease and at home here amongst it. I couldn't feel calmer or more peaceful if I was laying in a meadow of purple flowers somewhere, staring up at a blue sky. How has this happened? How did I get to this place?
Even as i stood shoulder to shoulder with 20 people waiting to buy a box of sweets and people are budging and squeezing around me in true Indian style, it felt as comfortable to me and natural as swimming in a summer lake. All the chaos and cacophany just looks and feels normal and comforting. What is going on? What IS this transformation?
The people of India are so accepting and non-judgemental (or at least their judgements are in their head but on the outside they just let you be). Its as if they are my brothers and sisters. And my nervous system has changed. Really changed. If I can feel calm and relaxed under these conditions, there is no place I can't feel at ease. Its like that expression "if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere".
The people here seem to live life with such style and grace. Even the man making chai in the street pours milk and tosses spices and sugar in the pot like he is conducting an orchestra. Its as if they've made the living of life an artform.
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