5 Big Takeaways From My Trip To India

Read time: 5 mins

QOTW

“It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.”

— Audre Lorde

In this week’s dose, I share my 5 biggest takeaways from India as a first-time visitor. 

My full experience can’t be shared in just one newsletter, so I may break it into a few articles to explore the most impactful parts of the trip. The woman who led the trip, Erica, told me I’ll be processing and integrating this journey for months to come.

This week, I want to start with the more surface-level insights—the ones that hit me in a way I think anyone can relate to. These moments put my prejudices and judgments under a spotlight and forced me to examine them.

India is so different from the West that it’s easy to dismiss its way of life as “less-than.” That we Westerners know best and look down upon how they live. That voice came up for me too, and it took conscious effort to move beyond it. But when I did, I found gold waiting for me.

1. Seeing Beyond the Trash, Pollution, & Poverty

When I arrived in Delhi, the air hit me like a wall. With an AQI of 501, it was some of the most hazardous pollution in the world. Most days, you could stare directly at the sun without it hurting your eyes, and buildings only a few hundred yards away were blurred by smog. After just four hours outside on a tour, my throat and lungs were already irritated.

And then there’s the trash—everywhere. You can’t escape it.

This was one of the hardest things for me to sit with and try to understand. One of our guides shared that politicians have tried to clean up cities, but since spirituality doesn’t prioritize cleaning up the planet, many people don’t see it as important. He said if this perspective shifted, people’s actions would too.

Even though the middle class is growing, the wealth gap remains vast. In holy cities, we saw many people with deformities or conditions like elephantiasis—who migrate from the countryside to beg in urban centers, where there’s a better chance of receiving money.

So, how do you visit a place like this and leave your worldviews behind?

How do you see things as they are, without projecting your preconceived notions of how things “should be”?

How do you not pity people, but instead have compassion for them?

How do you see they’re not “wrong” for living this way—they’re just living?

How do you open yourself to the gold hidden in their way of life?

It wasn’t easy. Early in the trip, our hosts pointed out that most Westerners arrive with a colonial mindset, believing we know best and that others need to change. But we were urged to see beyond that.

It took me three to four days to adjust—not just to the time zone, but to the honking horns, the smell of burning trash, and the sensory overload. Slowly, I began to see past it. What I found was a way of life that clearly works for the people living it.

This shift allowed me to receive India fully and “drop in” to the experience. I’m not sure I would’ve been able to do that in years past.

2. Level of Devotion

What struck me most was India’s unwavering devotion to God.

In the U.S., we plaster our cars and homes with logos of sports teams. In India, people display flags and stickers of their favorite gods and goddesses. Pilgrims travel from across the country—sometimes saving for years—to visit a single temple.

In Vrindavan (where Krishna is believed to have lived), people use God’s name in their greetings: Hare Krishna, Radhe Radhe, and Haribol replace hello, goodbye, thank you, and you’re welcome.

Even in less holy cities, the standard greeting is namaste (hands together at heart center ). It means, “The divine in me honors the divine in you.” In essence, it's a way to acknowledge another person's soul or inner essence with reverence.

And you FEEL it from people. That was very moving to me.

As someone still exploring what God means to me, I tried to simply observe and absorb what was happening around and within me. Seeing such deep devotion was powerful and humbling.

3. Order in the Chaos

At first, Indian traffic seemed like absolute chaos. Cars drive on the wrong side of the road, pedestrians scramble out of the way, and cows wander freely. I once counted 12 people crammed into a 4-person rickshaw. Horns blare constantly—not out of anger, but as a form of communication.

Despite how it looks, everything flows. Drivers aren’t worried. There’s a rhythm to it, and everyone moves while letting others move too. The only things that cause trouble are stagnation or indecision.

One of our guides, Udo, explained that in the West, we put things into rigid boxes with clear rules and systems. In India, there’s more openness—more flexibility to how things “should” be. Instead of thinking, “No, this is wrong,” they think, “Okay, this could work too.”

Traffic is a perfect example of this mindset, and it was one of my favorite lessons from the trip.

4. Kindness of the People

I’d heard about the kindness of Indian people, but nothing prepared me for how deeply I’d feel it.

One moment stands out...

At a resort in the Himalayas, I saw two men grinding Himalayan salt with dried chilies, garlic, and lemon. I stopped to ask a 100+ questions, and they happily answered every one. When I mentioned I wanted to bring some pink salt home for my mom, one of them offered to bike a few kilometers down the mountain to a shop and get it for me. He said it was the best salt you could get in the mountains. All for about $2.

And I could tell 10 more stories like this one. From tour guides hosting 11 of us for lunch at his home, hotel staff letting us use their ID to get SIM cards, strangers stopping to ask if everything was OK when we looked lost, and countless warm smiles when we entered their sacred spaces.

It made me constantly ask myself “What’s stopping me from being this kind and loving?”

5. Beauty of the Himalayas

The Himalayas were magical.

We stayed at a resort at 6,000 feet with sweeping views of the jungle-covered mountains. Driving along the steep switchbacks to Dharamshala (where the Dalai Lama lives) left me blown away. Every turn revealed something breathtaking—rugged peaks, steep drops, vibrant towns, and lush greenery.

This was also the time we got closest to blue skies and clean air.

I secretly hoped for a life-changing mystical experience on this trip. That didn’t happen. Instead, something much more practical happened to me.

I spent 15 days with 11 amazing people, immersing myself in a culture that lacks much of what we have materially but offers so much more spiritually. I learned that love and presence—not achievement—are the ultimate goals.

We don’t have to live a certain way to be happy. We don’t have to stay in jobs we hate, max out our 401(k), buy new cars, or chase external markers of success.

Maybe we just need to slow down. Be present. Reset and pursue what truly excites us—not the playbook society tells us to follow.

To let go of rigid thinking and embrace the infinite possibilities of life.