“A spiritual journey to India is inevitably a swan dive into the unknown. It is not, primarily, about information. It's about initiation. And a Westerner who decides to go to the source of these spiritual traditions is entering a surreal world that's as bewildering today as it was in the time of Alexander. It's a land where wandering sadhus light ritual fires near nuclear power plants; where corporate meetings are scheduled based on Vedic astrology; where satellite dishes beam MTV into remote mountain villages, and temple loudspeakers blare 4,000-year-old chants over gridlocked city streets. Untreated sewage and industrial waste pour into a river still worshipped daily as a goddess. A major political party offers, as part of its platform, to adopt all of Britain's "mad cows" to keep them from being slaughtered. India is profoundly spiritual and fantastically corrupt, famous for its swindlers as well as its sages. It's a modern industrialized democracy with social norms governed by texts already ancient at the time of the Trojan War.”

“India will bend your mind, assault your body, flood your senses, and shred your nerves, from the moment you step off the plane into its smoky, unforgettable perfume of burning cow dung, diesel fumes, and a few thousand years of accumulated human sweat. And ultimately, if you're lucky, your old identity will break down like one of the decrepit, smog-belching autorickshaws that clog the Indian streets - and you'll have to walk on without it, through the twisting alleys of an unknown city, with cows eating empty juice cartons from streetside garbage dumps and ash-daubed mystics chanting mantras in the gutters. It's this breakdown and the attendant possibilities for transformation — more than a specific teacher or spiritual site — that's the real blessing India has to offer.”

“On paper, there are plenty of reasonable reasons for a spiritual seeker to go to India. You can go because it's the birthplace of four of the world's great spiritual traditions - Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Sikh - and the home to a profusion of others. You can go because you want to experience the teachings of yoga and meditation in their original cultural context. You can go because it's the land of the Upanishads, the Bhagavad Gita, the Mahabarata; the place where the Buddha proclaimed the Four Noble Truths to a band of ascetics in a deer park, where Krishna taught dharma to Arjuna as he prepared to drive his chariot into battle, where Shiva gave the first hatha yoga teachings to the king of the fishes. You can go there because for thousands of years, its rishis and sages have devoted themselves to the pursuit of the question: Who Am I? - and because, in snowbound mountain caves and smoggy city ashrams, that question is still being asked.”

“But ultimately, the reasonable reasons are not why you will go. You will go for unreasonable reasons - a picture of Kali in a library book that tumbles off the shelf as you're reaching for something else, a pair of luminous eyes in a dream, a longing that quivers at the edge of your consciousness like an unscratchable itch. The real reasons will probably not be the ones you tell your mother. They may not even be the ones you tell yourself. And you may not know what they are until long after your trip is over. In the end, each story is different. You will write your own.”

“Around the middle of this century Arnold Toynbee predicted that at its close the world would still be dominated by the West, but that in the twenty-first century “India will conquer her conquerors” (culturally, not politically). Preempting the place that is now held by technology, religion will be restored to its earlier importance and the center of world happenings will wander back from the shores of the Atlantic to the East where civilization originated five or six thousand years ago.”

“The spiritual heritage of India is one of the world's standing miracles. It would rank among the greatest human achievements were it not that “achievement” isn't really the right word. It is more like a reception - the opening of a people to receive, through inspiration, The Breath of the Eternal. For the outbreathing of the eternal is what India has taken truth to be.”

Why Tibet?

(Reprinted with permission from “Briefing Paper for Travelers to Tibet,” published by the Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy, February 1999).

• Interest in Tibetan Buddhism


• Spiritual Sense


• Religion


• Holiday


• Curiosity


• Trekking


• To witness the changes under Chinese Rule

A holiday with a purpose. By visiting Tibet, you will of course, experience a unique culture and landscape. But you will also have the opportunity to be a witness to what is happening to the Tibetans in their homeland under Chinese occupation.

Many people have misgivings about visitng occupied Tibet as tourism obviously benefits the Chinese government. However, The Tibtean Center for Human Rights and democracy encourages people to visit, especially as the country rapidly changes under Chinese rule.

We feel it is important to keep pressure on the Chinese gvernment and eyewitness accounts of the true situation in Tibet are one of the most effective means to do this. It is true that the Chinese Government benefits from tourism in Tibet. Yet the Chinese have an increasingly difficult time misleading the international community about incidents like the Drapchi Prison demonstartions in May 1998 if there are visitors in the area whose accounts contradict official reports. A traveler who is knowledgable before traveling to Tibet is a great asset to the Tibean people and the rest of the world as independent information on the situation is difficult to access. Therefore, your visit to Tibet can make a difference.
Many travelers, especially those on official delegations, report that the Chinese authorities impose heavy restrictions on their movements in Tibet. The report of the EU Troika Human Rights Mission to Tibet (May 1998) stated that all programme items were closely supervised and all formal interviews were condusted in the company of Chinese and Tibetan officials. The delegation stated that it felt that it was being closely watched throughout the mission.

Independent tourism is the most effective challenge to the Chinese monopoly on objective information. Any increase in the number of individual tourists entering Tibet makes it more difficult for the Chinese to restrict their movements and inhibit their contact with the local Tibetans. The uninformed tourist can be decieved into believing that the Chinese have only done positive things in the region since their occupation. The prepared and inquisitive traveller can gather valuable information about the present situation in Tibet, even while part of a tour group. For many travelers, contact with a Tibetan can provide a powerful insight into the Tibetan world beyond the Chinese façade.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama now travels around the world appealing for international assistance and is supported by numerous Tibet support groups, politicians, Buddhist centers and an increasing number of individuals concerned by the ongoing human rights violations in Tibet. However, the international policy on Tibet remains heavily guarded so your support and the information you acquire as a traveler in Tibet is invaluable.

Why Bhutan?

Many eastern classics and books of wisdom have referred to the Himalayas as the abode of the gods and home to the immortals. So since time immemorial, ascetics, scholars, philosophers and pilgrims have been drawn irresistibly to the remote Himalayan mountain kingdoms in their personal search for wisdom, inspiration, solitude and happiness. With the vanishing of the once-legendary kingdoms of Tibet, Sikkim and Ladakh, Bhutan remains the last independent Mahayana Buddhist country in the world. Buddhism has been the predominant religion since the 7th century and has played and continues to play a fundamental role in the cultural, ethical and sociological development of Bhutan and its people. Bhutan has also become widely admired for its pristine ecology and wildlife, and the unparalleled scenic beauty of its majestic peaks and lush valleys. Travel Magazine called it “The Last Best Place on Earth”, and the Hemisphere Magazine called Bhutan “The Hidden Treasure of the Himalayas.” During Spirit Travel's pilgrimage tours to Buddhist India and Bhutan, we will visit Buddhist and Hindu pilgrimage sites in both Bhutan and Northern India, experiencing firsthand some of the oldest cultures and religious traditions in the world. If you are interested in the authentic practices of Buddhism, please join us!

Why Nepal?

Quite simply, Nepal is a traveler's paradise. Incredible mountain scenery, wonderfully friendly people, outstanding food and accommodations, and a rich spiritual heritage all make it one of my favorite countries in Asia to visit. Due to the vast numbers of trekkers and travelers who have frequented Nepal since the 60's and earlier, Nepal is an incredibly easy country in which to travel. The infrastructure for tourism is well-developed, and one can easily travel between the two major cities, Kathmandu and Pokhara by express air-conditioned minivan. Travel throughout the rest of the country is becoming facilitated more and more each year.

Spirit Travel regularly offers extension tours of 3-5 days through the Kathmandu Valley of Nepal, for it is often interesting to visit this nearby country when one is traveling in India, Tibet or Bhutan. However, we do not directly offer trekking journeys or extended spiritual pilgrimages in Nepal, for the simple reasons that many companies already offer these services and it is quite easy to arrange such excursions independently as well. If you would like to spend additional time in Nepal beyond our 3-5 day extension programs, then please contact us. We would be happy to refer you to some of our favorite agents in Nepal, who will do an excellent job in taking care of your needs. Namaste!