Temple and me..

 My childhood has always been around temples.. Every ‘happy’ occasion we visited the temple. It was nice.. the fact that you think of someone else before oneself. Our birthday, anniversary, Diwali, Dusshera.. everything began with the visit to the temple. It was like there was someone else to thank for all that is happening in our lives.

 

There were people who believed, Gods preferred some days .. the temples used to be choked with devotees on these days.. For eg: Visiting the Hanuman temple on a Saturday gave you extra power.. The temple ran empty on other days.

 

Was this only a family affair or did I get conditioned enough to continue it on my own too? Well yes.. I did visit temples, sometimes to find answers, peace and most of time when I had no where else to go.

During college one visit to the church on a random afternoon has etched a beautiful and soothing memory in me… Yet to visit a mosque and map my feelings 😊

 

When I started living alone, and there were times when I was lonely… and as a patten of thought and action, I have visited temples around. But these visits were with no connection whatsoever, and mostly was a space to socially network with other people.

 

So what is a temple for me?

-        It’s a place where there is usually a big crowd.

-        It’s a place where sometimes I feel good.. not always..

-        It’s a place where you are supposed to behave in a particular way

-        It’s a place where there is a shared happiness

-        It’s supposedly a ‘good’ place ….in my mind and you get yummy prasad!

-        It’s a place where I have been physically assaulted a number of times !!!

Today this structural space is fading away from me.. I feel it has done what it was supposed to do for me.. and now I have moved on 😊 I have found and connected with so many more landscapes devoid of human beings, which constantly gives me the feeling of positivity, inclusiveness, opportunity to observe, learn and also connect at different levels.  

There are no rules there, there is an energy of acceptance and calm which can be experienced and shared. Such spaces attract humans beings without being told so.. And all these feelings are way beyond the limiting space built with walls.

There is no fear of missing out .. there is no rush to complete ‘so-called’ rituals and there is no greed for extra power ….

I do visit temples still to see how I feel…

but I visit other spaces to exactly feel the way I want to feel, and thank myself for this journey I have been on .…😊