What I Learned About Spirituality in India

When we think of spirituality, we often imagine quiet ashrams, sacred temples, and time set aside from the world. But my experience in India gently shifted that idea.

On my trip to India, I spent three nights in Sathya Sai Baba’s ashram — a spiritual community and retreat space — in Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh. This was one of the main reasons I went. Although I felt a sense of sadness that I hadn’t visited while Swami was alive, the stay turned out to be a deeply meaningful and life-changing experience.

I met long-term devotees who had spent time with Swami during his lifetime. Just listening to their stories and speaking with them felt special — like being connected to something much bigger than myself.

The ashram itself was vast, filled with people from all over the world, alongside many from India. When I arrived, I was asked more than once, “Why only three days?”

The ashram allows stays of up to three months, and I quickly realised that many people do stay for the full duration — some returning year after year. I wondered if they saw me as not fully committed.

As my departure drew closer, those thoughts began to grow. Should I stay longer? Was I less devoted because I was only there for a short time?

Then, on my final day at the puja - ceremony, a quiet thought arose — something I now like to think of as a message from Sai Baba:

“Leave tomorrow and visit the other ashrams and temples as you planned. You must see and learn more, because we have much work to do.”

In that moment, I felt a deep sense of clarity. Almost as if Baba was gently sending me onwards, with his blessing.

It reminded me that spirituality is not confined to ashrams or temples. For some, it lives in stepping out into the world — in connecting with others, in learning, and in offering something meaningful to society.

I left feeling that I was being guided not to stay, but to go — to do my best among people, rather than apart from them.

Of course, that “message” could have simply been my own mind — a form of wishful thinking. But throughout the rest of my journey, I carried a quiet sense that Baba was with me. And somehow, everything flowed. The full seven weeks unfolded with ease.

So I choose to believe it was his blessing.

And perhaps spirituality isn’t always about staying in sacred spaces — sometimes, it’s about what we carry from them into the world.