Chai Pilgrimage

Namasté is the essential phrase and gesture one must learn when traveling in Nepal and India. It is used as both a greeting and a farewell, but its meaning is much deeper than a simple “hello” or “goodbye.” Namasté is a Hindi word derived from Sanskrit, the sacred language of ancient India. Sanskrit was used to write the Hindu scriptures, medical texts and classical poetry and is still used today to recite prayers and sing devotional hymns.

Namas means, “to bow, obeisance, reverent salutation or adoration.” While Té , from the root tvam, means “your or to you.” Namasté then simply means, “I bow to you.”

If you break the Sanskrit down to the root syllables, another level of meaning appears. Na means, “no, not, to negate,” while ma has many meanings including “measure, binding, time or death.” Put these together and the hidden meaning becomes that with no measure, no binding, no time and no death — or the boundless, free, eternal and immortal – Divine Consciousness. Our bow is coming from, and being offered to, that pure place of perfection that is within us all. It is the acknowledgement of our higher self – beyond the personality.

Namasté can be translated as, “The pure goodness within me honors the pure goodness within you” or “The God in me sees the God you.” This recognition of our self as not separate from the Supreme Self is a central tenant of Hinduism. The Namasté greeting, however, is nondenominational and universal. It is a greeting of souls.

Namasté is a mantra, or sacred phrase with a subtly powerful energetic effect. The energy of its meaning is created by the sound vibration of the word. It is spoken with the accompanying gesture of hands together in prayer position in front of the chest and the head slightly bowed. This hand position, called anjali mudra, signifies not only the gesture but also an attitude. The attitude is one of humility, love and compassion as well as transparent awareness. Mudra internalizes the mind unlike a handshake, which focuses energy outward. Anjali mudra balances the left and right hemispheres of the brain and our masculine and feminine aspects. It reminds us that we are not separate from one another or from the Divine Source, just as the two separate hands come together as one in front of the heart center.

Namasté is a practice of yoga, or union, of the body, mind and soul. The body performs the mudra and speaks the sacred word. The mind reflects on its meaning. The soul unites with the infinite soul of the other person and with universal awareness. When sincerely performed, there is a realization, if only for a moment, that we are surrounded by the divine presence.

Sometimes the Namasté mantra is not spoken out loud, but internally. In India, the gesture itself is understood as Namasté. It is customary for a younger person to perform Namasté to an elder first. Namaskar means “the act of performing Namasté,” but “Namaskar” is also said when addressing an elder or highly respected person, with the hands together in front of the forehead. The hands may be taken over the head when in the presence of a saint or an image of God, sometimes while falling into a full prostration.

In yogic esoteric anatomy, a chakra is an energy center where consciousness resides within the subtle body. When we Namasté with the hands over the anahata or heart chakra, in the center of the chest, we connect with the seat of divine love. With folded hands touching the forehead or third eye, the ajna chakra, we bring our vision to that which is beyond the physical form, the higher self. When placing our hands over our head on the crown or sahasrara chakra called the thousand petal lotus, we are merging our soul with the primordial vibration of OM, the awareness that created the universe.

When greeting a Muslim, the appropriate salutation is the Arabic, As-salam Alaykum, ”may the peace and blessings of God be with you,” and the response, Alaykum As-salam. Sometimes, by mistake, we offered Namasté to Muslims. While this is traditionally a Hindu greeting, it was still taken with respect. When greeting Buddhists in South Asia, one also uses the Namasté greeting.

Performing Namasté is a blissful opportunity to see the Divine in all beings. It is one of the ways that being in India almost forces you to perceive God. Namasté acts as a good starting point when meeting someone and the perfect final word. It is my favorite Indian custom and one that I try to preserve back home.

Click the arrow below to hear these women singing, or click the link to download the mp3.

Choti Maharaj’s Ashram in Vrindavan, India: Sita Ram Radhe Sham

Religion and Spirituality are the essence of Indian culture. At any time, wherever you are, there are reminders of India’s religious diversity and our relationship with the Divine.

Religious dress distinguishes Hindu women in saris, Muslims in burqas and Tibetan Buddhists with red and yellow robes. People greet one another with hands over their heart while saying the sacred salutation “Namasté” or “As-salam Alaykum.” Children are named after Hindu Gods and Goddesses or companions of the prophet Mohammed. Even restaurants and other businesses bear the name of God, like Buddha Airlines, Hanuman Tea or Ram Milk Sweets.

God’s names echo across the city, as chants from temples or the call to prayer from mosques broadcast through blaring loudspeakers. Throughout the day there are processions celebrating a marriage with drumming, dancing and flashing lights, or honoring a death by carrying the colorfully wrapped body through the streets, chanting Ram Nam Satya Hai (the name of God is Truth). Flowers, ghee lamps and incense are offered at roadside shrines. Street musicians sing devotional songs to God. Wondering monks ask for alms. Images of Hindu deities hang on the walls of chai shops while carved stone icons silently observe.

Although chai is not a doctrine of any faith, (except perhaps our own), it seemed to be the element that transcended all gender, age, caste or religion. Like God, chai was everywhere. So, as we traveled through Nepal and Northern India, we drank up not only chai, but also the rich spiritual way of life.

Click the arrow below to hear one man’s morning prayer on the Ganga in Benares, or click the link to download the mp3.

Ganga Solo

Sikkim, India: Rumtek Monastery Chanting

After several months of reorganizing our lives around the trip, preparations were finally complete. They had to be. We bought cheap, non-refundable airline tickets, told our clients that we were leaving, and our house renters were moving in the next day. We carefully packed a pile of necessities that had accumulated in the middle of the living room into our backpacks.
“Water filter.”
“Check.”
“Flip flops.”
“Check.”
“Toothbrushes.”
“Got ‘em.”
And so on.
Then, on a full-moon winter night, we took off for the other side of the world.

We set our intention to spend the next four months thoroughly steeping ourselves in chai culture. Our mission: to connect with people and document our experiences with chai drinkers (which in Nepal and Northern India is just about everyone), tea farmers, tea leaf pluckers, fellow chai wallahs (makers of chai), tea cup potters, spice merchants, dudh wallahs (milkmen) and the cows too. We realized this was much more than a creative research project. It was a personal pilgrimage to the land where chai was born and continues to flow in every home and at chai stands on every street.

Although we enjoyed one the most memorable times in our lives, it was not easy. For a foreigner, a full India experience includes a certain degree of discomfort. Inevitably, you get sick, either from amoebas in the water, a chronic cough from the thick pollution, or any number of obscure viral illnesses. Often, frustrations are brought on by cultural gaps and attachments to what we perceive as ‘normal’. Litter, noise, spicy food and extreme smells overload the senses. At the same time, the lack of a Western standard of personal space amongst a billion people, and the sometimes-frightening, heightened awareness that we are living in the mystery and anything could happen, became endearing. We oscillated between ecstasy in the present moment and longing for home and our own bed. We prayed continuously, laughed a lot and were constantly reminded of how blessed we are. This is what made our chai pilgrimage a spiritual journey.