We started our walk early in the morning after saying goodbye to the cook who had warmly welcomed us the night before at Kuberbhandari. We got the opportunity to sleep in Annapurna (the temple's kitchen), where, with a sweet smile, he serves hundreds of people every day.
We had two options this morning: either take the highway or the muddy way. We chose the latter. The morning was cold and silent. And the rising sun was spreading its hue gently in the sky.
After walking for about 10 km, we came to Moraya village, where we met Batuk Maharaj, the monk, who welcomed us for lunch. While chatting with him, we found out that he was from Madhya Pradesh. I asked him what brought him here, and he shared that while he was doing his parikram, he saw that in this particular 20-km stretch, there was no one serving the pilgrims. So, after he finished his parikrama, he came here and started serving pilgrims.
We asked him if the villagers were supportive, and he said not really, but with the grace of the mother (referring to the river), things keep flowing. And he has been serving with the same faith for the last 10 years. He cooks, cleans, and hosts every single day.
Today, we took the opportunity to serve the server by making not-so-perfect rotis (flat wheat bread) for the pilgrims who were to walk in. While we were rolling out rotis, we felt a whole lot of emotions, like a little irritation when the dough was a little too soft, some tiredness from the walk, and some discomfort from the different kitchen setting.
But what shifted our minds was thinking about these hosts who keep serving anyone who walks in with such ease. We were even reminded of what Ganga Ma (an elder at Brahma Vidya Mandir) had shared: she said that anything done with unconditional love and without expectations will touch the other person's heart.
Just a couple of minutes later, we were walking through his home as if it were ours, and the kitchen felt like ours. When a few other pilgrims joined us for lunch, the joy of sharing those rotis was so satisfying. This space gave us a little glimpse of how serving others just multiplies joy and divides pain.
After taking our afternoon nap, we started walking towards our next destination. Narmade har.
Day 8: Kuberbhandari to Tilakwada (Mani Nageshwar)
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