Trekking Rejuvenates Not Just your Body but Also, Your Soul

A soul searching experience is one where you need to give time to yourself to your family and friends and re-evaluate certain priorities in your life. And trips in unfamiliar zones that test your limits and push you to overcome your fears are the ideal places where you can have a spiritual experience to challenge your mind and body and feel thankful for just being alive, there at that moment.  For me, trekking has always been that activity. Why? Because since childhood I have always been fascinated with mountains, their enigmatic stature, and vastness, soaring to the skies with their head in the clouds, has always attracted me. So whenever I got a chance to go trekking I took it to venture into the long, winding paths, challenging rocky terrains that have gifted me with certain spiritual, soul searching, memorable experiences to last for my lifetime.  

In this article, I am penning down my thoughts that I have accumulated with my private exclusive time with the mountains. Mind you, this is not my trekking diary but some of my reflections that I have gathered through my trekking experiences. I am attempting to jot down what mountain has given me throughout my past years:

Well-being

It all started when I went on a trek with my friends. There was something that we liked about the whole experience. It made us happy to the extent that most of us decided to go trekking on a regular basis.

I don’t know if it was the inner peace or the connection with the primal elements of nature, (Air, earth, water, and Fire), A sense of emotional connection to these elements in their basic forms, which we are deprived of in our hectic and repetitive lives. The trek opened up new things that could be worked upon, one of them being our strength and physical capabilities which we are unaware of.

Gratitude, Positivity and Inner Strength

A trek during the monsoon time helped me to realize just ‘how many people’ and ‘how many things’ have contributed to our well-being.

It poured continuously during the trek to Bhrigu Lake. We walked in the rain, ate in the rain, slept in the rain and rested in the rain. The area was prone to flooding. Thankfully, we had our guides and porters from Royal Thrills with us to rescue and guide us through such perils without any hassle. 

When we put on the warm clothes, after reaching the base village, we felt truly blessed. We understood the enormousness of Mother Nature and felt utter gratitude towards Mother Nature for endowing us with all its natural resources. 

Now, are we doing what we are supposed to do to co-exist in this equilibrium of nature? Do we even know what we are supposed to do? Are we at least allowing Mother Nature to do the intended good for us?

One of the trekkers in our group was completely unprepared and unfit for the trek and we had asked her to turn around because of that reason. But she got past me and reached the summit. When she reached the summit, tears started streaming down her face with her hands folded in a prayer of deep gratitude. It took a friend on the trek to embrace her in a warm hug to calm her down.

When I later brought up the topic, she said that climbing the summit had a profound effect on her.  She was always the typical image of someone who was under-confident with low self-belief. Through climbing to the summit, she discovered a new person within her. The trek filled her mind with strength and positive thoughts that no amount of pep talk or counseling could.

Upon talking, I discovered that she recently became one of the partners in her law firm. The up and coming partner did not think she was capable of being one. She was always soft-spoken, who hardly drew any attention to herself. Through the trek, she discovered an inner strength, an inner resolve which was much beyond than she had imagined. The climb showed that she can overcome obstacles much larger than herself. And that she could do it alone with anyone’s support. The climb changed her mind in irreversible ways. The positive thoughts filled her body, mind, and soul and stayed with her for long. She returned to work as a changed person.

Trekking impacts our body, soul, and mind in ways deeper than we can imagine.

 

On a trek, without the distractions of our regular world, the mind automatically starts to feel better. Even if we want to, there is nothing to distract us. It is just us and nature.

We are constantly looking at picture-perfect sceneries — mountains and hills, jungles and forests, flowers and birds, snow, clear streams, rivers and waterfalls, sunrises and sunsets, moonrises and stars. Every hour on the trek these constant positive images are around us. Over days, this constant immersion in positivity removes negative thoughts (actually any thoughts) from our minds. We even forget what day and time it is. It is almost miraculous what it does to our minds.

It has an immediate calming effect. The buzz that is in our heads begins to fade away. Our nerves start soothing. Laughter flows easily. There is a spring in our step.

There is a science behind these feelings. It is to do with hormones.

When we trek, our body releases large doses of endorphins, the hormone that makes us happy. Added to that there is a boost of serotonin that relaxes us. And there’s also a good amount of oxytocin (that gives us a sense of tranquility and love).

These hormones make us feel good, calm, connected, happy and energized.

Self-Reflection

I was on a trek in September 2017. Landslides had added extra ascents and descents to the trail. We stopped at a small house to rest. By then all our water bottles were empty. We went to a nearby village to explore it where the locals welcomed us and gave us water.  Nothing about the villagers giving us water is surprising.

But there’s a story behind it.

Every drop of that water was brought up to this small house by going down-hill close to 1800 ft, all the way to the river. We had just come up that way, finishing all our water bottles on the way.

We knew what they would have to go down to get more water for themselves. But did we have the heart to do such favors in a terrain like this? 

 

Treks, in many situations, have held a mirror in front of us and challenged us, “How good are you?” We are physically questioned, intellectually questioned and emotionally questioned.

A trek is a mirror that reveals our true capabilities. There are many situations where we feel good because we fare better than we thought we would. Then, there are equal if not more situations where we need to get better. This is how personality development begins from deep within.

Clarity

Trekking through the unknown terrains and paths improves our clarity. Clarity improves our precision, our clearness of mind with added perceptions that in turn enhances our problem-solving abilities.

Walking alone in the mountains is a great experience. Trails cut between mountains and run by the riverside. I get this opportunity mostly in my Himalayan treks. There are miles and miles of mountains in front of us and miles behind us.

I feel minuscule among the mighty mountains. It is here I start wondering about the purpose of our existence. Have we found it yet? Do we even know that we need to find it? What are our primary and secondary duties in life? What are the factors derailing us from our duties?  These questions are not tricky ones.

Sometimes on a trek, we get answers that are extraordinarily impactful on our lives. It helps the people, who are struggling, who are unable to get their self imposed boundaries. It makes us more resilient. Getting to the mountains, trekking to a high point, overcoming difficulties, achieving success, makes us more tough and determined. It is almost like if I can do this trek, I can do anything. This is extremely empowering. It helps people fight odds and difficulties of everyday life easier.

We feel more confident. We have greater self-belief. We feel at peace with the feeling of this self-achievement.

We also begin to think creatively and clearly. What was limiting earlier becomes a possibility.

Rediscover your Relationships and Forge Lifelong Friendships

Trekking impacts the spirit of a person. It helps to rediscover our relationships, and form strong friendships with not only our near and dear ones but with people with whom we work day in day out. It evolves us to become better human beings.

Around September 2018, I went on a 3 to 4-day trekking trip with a bunch of my business partners. Undertaking the trek, that pushed our bodies to its limits, and bonding within the pristine nature, away from the hustle and bustle of work, and disturbance of our electronic devices, I conversed with each and every one of them on a personal level. The kind of frank conversations and bonding that we had under the starry skies and helping each other throughout the journey would not have been possible to have in the limited time span that we have in the professional environment of our office. I experienced a different caring, vulnerable side to each and every one of them during this trekking journey that we had together. 

It is not the shared interest of trekking that brings us together. It is something else that works here.

On a trek, we talk uninterrupted with deep focus. Nothing disturbs us. There aren’t any electronic disturbances. We talk openly and frankly, because, after a while, the mask of the city wears off. Be it with your business partners, your family members or your partner, the environment, trekking improves the strength and health of your relationships. It brings people closer, improving your social status among your friends, your colleagues and your closeness with your partner.

In this modern world where acquaintances are fleeting, friendships fickle, the opportunity to bond so deeply on a trek is something that we cannot ignore.

Living together in tents, doing chores, solving problems, participating in a shared adventure only brings us closer.

We are able to reveal ourselves, we become vulnerable, the conversations are honest and frank.

In one week we talk more intimately with our trek mates than we do with friends who are with us for years.

Out of these conversations emerge a deep connection that we form with another human being. This connection stays intact and we make friendships that last for life.

Trekking is known to be one of the best forms of fitness activities. From keeping your heart agile to having stronger bones, it gives you all but it can be tiring and demanding at times. Days into the trek and you might come to a point where you just can't walk anymore. At this point fatigue gets you but when you see a fellow trekker hiking instead of resting then all it gives you is a sense of motivation. Opposite sexes not just attract but also inspire! A good female trekker can inspire many men to give it their best shot and similarly a good male trekker can make his fellow lady trekker commit for that one last extra mile. Trekking is not only about physical fitness and mental strength, but also about having inspirations that drive you in the most challenging times. Along with those mountains, trekkers are now finding more sources of inspiration in people around them these days.

 

Well, learning from treks is a completely relative and subjective experience. What have you learned from your treks so far?

And if you have not started trekking, then it is high time that you must!

If you consider yourself a trekker, then we would love to hear your thoughts, more on this topic. Do drop in your views in the comments section below.