First Call of Gurudev: Tests at every step 2

Cold season and walking on foot, both these were difficult tests. Residents of these places used to shift in his season to the lower regions for their livelihood and for grazing their cattle. Similarly, sadhus and hermits also shifted to lower regions to escape the unbearable intensity of cold, icy weather. There used to be utter silence in cottages in the villages. I had to undertake my pilgrimage under such difficult conditions from Uttrarkoshi to  Nandanvan.

There was loneliness throughout with no proper arrangement for boarding and lodging. Wild animals used to roam about freely. Cold icy winds kept blowing all the time. The sun used to remain hidden for long hours behind high hilltops. It was visible at about 10 am, and disappeared behind the mountain peaks at about 2 pm. Even though there was sunshine on the peaks, there used to be dim darkness at the foothills. Hardly some stray person was met on the trail. People stirred out only when there was some inescapable work like death of someone. For me the entire region wore a deserted look. My only inseparable companions were my palpitating heart and thinking mind. I was being put to a test whether or not I could undertake a long journey under such difficult conditions. My faith rooted in the heart told me that so long as providence wills me to live, no one can kill me. My mind contemplated that there was life in trees, in flora all around. Birds live on them. Fish live in water. Wild animals wander in the forest. They remain alone and quite unclad. I told myself, "When there is profuse and riotous play of life in the forms of flora and fauna, all around, how could this region be called deserted. It is unbecoming of you while professing the maxim vasudhaiv kutumbakam to feel yourself cut off from the flow and manifestation of universal Life in myriad forms, of which you are an indivisible portion. Is it not a fallacy to consider human beings alone as living entities?"

My pilgrimage went on and with it continued my thinking. As man is in the habit of living in a community he is afraid of loneliness. Darkness is another big cause of fear. Throughout the day man lives in the light. In the night lamps are lighted to dispel darkness. But darkness in wilderness is much more frightening. A yogi has to get rid of this fear. Fearlessness has been regarded as an important quality of spirituality. In its absence, mind remains unsteady.

Another danger in this awe-inspiring silence of the wilderness of the Himalayan region was the fear of wild and ferocious animals who stalk freely in the darkness of the night in search of their prey. Any encounter with such animals in the night amounted to direct confrontation with death. In the all-pervasive silence of the wilderness such animals came out even in day time in search of their prey and water. I had to face all these hazards during this journey.