Shabbat in India

“Was your trip to India a spiritual one?” was the most common question put to us after we returned from our two-and-a-half-month honeymoon. A bit of a trick question. As we trekked around Northern India, we didn’t stay in ashrams or follow any gurus; we stayed in on Shabbat and rested. And along the way, we learned a few things:

The sacred becomes so through preparation
As is bound to happen, some weeks we had time to prepare and some weeks we were rushed. The deepest experiences—when we really were able to sink into the Shabbos energy—came when we had all day Friday to run the little errands to make the day special. Candles, spices, fresh fruit and other non-cook items were a pleasure to shop for in the markets. We also made sure we had good books to read and chose comfortable accommodations. Spending a day getting ready made the day itself feel all the more special.

Shabbat is about community!
We had the Beyt Tikkun Shabbat booklet, we sang the songs, but we missed the people. Even when we are into our own prayers or meditation, there is comfort in knowing that there are others doing the same thing. When we observe Shabbat at home, we enjoy having a “drop-in” for our friends to stop by unannounced, but on our trip, we were fairly isolated —if isolated is a word you can really use in a country of 1 billion people! The time we found a fellow traveler to join us (and even the instances when we invited someone but the timing didn’t work out) gave us a great sense of connection and comfort.

We really need Shabbat
When you’re just wandering around the world for months on end, you wouldn’t think you’d need a break. After all, you’re not working! Perhaps BECAUSE it was a foreign place, however, our need to have programmed downtime was even more evident. We looked forward to Shabbat and the centering effect of consciously not doing.

Shabbat helps us experience the world more deeply
Along with the restful, calming effect of taking a break from the hustle of travel, observing Shabbat helped us reconnect with our spiritual selves and affirm the divine in ourselves and in others. And on Sunday when we rejoined the delicious chaos that is India, we were open to all the colors, sounds, smells, and smiling faces, and ready to experience another week of living in a foreign (but maybe not so foreign) country.

Co-written with Amberly