Monday, January 11, 2016

Curiosity Driven Life

On my first night here at Amritapuri, not even yet checked-in, the most curious thing happened.

I was standing in front of the main temple chatting with a woman from Australia who had also just arrived when a small, strange, elderly Indian woman walked up behind me and latched onto my arm and began pulling me. And when I say strange I mean strange in the sense she had one lazy eye and a spark of insanity in the other. I could have easily been sketched out by the whole scene, but I chose not to be. I didn't resist. I let curiosity take over. I let her pull me up the stairs and into the temple. We didn't stop there.

She kept going up and up and up--five flights of stairs and down a couple winding hallways before she let go of me and disappeared behind a door. On the way up, I noticed the temple was much more than a temple. It was full of shops, a library, and offices for anything you could possibly need including astrology, massage, and Ayurvedic counseling. I probably would have eventually found these places on my own over time, but it was kind of magical to be swept away and inadvertently shown by a woman who possibly may have been a character in the Dark Crystal.


Curiosity has led me to lots of fascinating (and not so fascinating) places in my life. It's opened me up to possibilities I would have never known existed if I hadn't kept following. It's also led me to some really dark places where I learned some of life's toughest lessons. Curiosity can bend us and break us open. It can heal us and liberate us. Without curiosity, how would we learn and grow? How could life possibly enchant us if we don't let curiosity in?

I have always led a curiosity driven life, and I've let curiosity lead me here. Where has curiosity led you? Where would you like it to lead you?

12 comments:

  1. Love this! But what happened to the old lady?
    ~jen

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    1. It says in the 2nd paragraph--she disappeared behind a door. After that...I have no clue!

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  2. Great post! Great writing! Miss you, Sarah, but will definitely enjoy following your adventure! Love from Robin ("Miss Hollywood" on blogspot)

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  3. What a perfect, swift characterization ("she had one lazy eye and a spark of insanity in the other") ... Curiosity is the cousin to wonder, and without them, I wouldn't be alive (in both senses of the word).

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  4. Can you post some pictures of the temple and shops? Love reading your adventures! Miss you already.

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    1. Thank you! Technically photography isn't allowed here at the ashram so every picture I've taken has been from the roof of the building I'm staying in. And I had to be super sneaky when I took the beach picture! The temple I can get from the roof so that'll be up soon :)

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  5. Great first day in India! I look forward to reading more of your travels!!! I am not going lie you are making want to get back out there and explore again. Curiosity has also lead me to a lot of places and I don't think I will ever stop opening the doors it offers.

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    1. Thank you :D Letting you know I'll be on Bali in May and June if you guys are going back that way :)

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