A life turns inward. A journey begins.
I have lived both sides. My path into spirituality began more than a decade ago when my father passed away. Standing before the pyre, watching the flames rise into the night sky, I asked myself: Is this it? Is life only birth, struggle, and an end?
The question did not leave. It moved with me into every quiet moment and every breath. In time, it led me to Sanatana Dharma, to the Vedas and the Upanishads, and to the discipline of yoga.
It was not a clean arc. I did not have a great childhood, and after 2014 I slipped into the downside of life. Smoking, drinking, parties, obsession. I know the ache of numbing out, the chase for the next high, the performance of being fine when you are not. Living that spectrum taught me compassion for anyone who thinks they are too far gone.
Walking the path of Shakti, I came to know the Divine Mother as a living presence. The Lalita Sahasranama points to how we meet Her:
अन्तर्मुखसमाराध्या बहिर्मुखसुदुर्लभा
Antarmukha‑samārādhyā, bahirmukha‑sudurlabhā
“She is worshipped by those who turn within; for the outward‑turned, She is hard to reach.”
Through breathwork I learned in the body what the texts had been saying all along. Each inhale is prāṇa, life entering. Each exhale is surrender. In that rhythm, waves rise and fall, and something deeper remains still and clear. You are not just a wave in the ocean. You are the ocean.
Since 2014 this has been my way to live: study, practice, and a sincere attempt to be useful. If you have seen the downside, you are not disqualified. Anyone can begin. It is not about being perfect. It is about turning within and letting that quiet recognition rearrange your life.