Ascetic Discipline
The Illusion of Effort: A Himalayan Lesson In the 1970s, I lived in a small stone hut beside a clear stream flowing from the Dhauladhar range in Northern India. I had chosen this particular sanctuary because the land was an abundant laboratory of sacred medicine. Doob grass ( Cynodon dactylon ), revered in Ayurveda for its medicinal properties, grew in thick carpets, and Brahmi ( Bacopa monnieri ), the creeping water hyssop, was everywhere. Brahmi is a crucial component of Medhya Rasayana - a category of brain-rejuvenating medicines used by sages and yogis to stabilize the intellect. For sustenance, I gathered wild Kilmora berries ( Berberis asiatica ) and the vitamin-rich hips of the Himalayan Musk Rose ( Rosa brunonii ). It was a place of shocking beauty, where the massive peaks of the Himalayas towered above, serving as a constant, inspiring reminder of the Absolute. Nearby...