Finding Yourself Through Fakir Yatra

The trip that I embark on, I call it Fakir Yatra in Nepali. The meaning of fakir is a person who is happy even without any worldly possessions. It is an old Nepali word. For me, it has been a long time since I started working. I had taken up a professional path when I was 14, juggling work and education. In our corporate line of work, we put a lot of focus on our appearance and how we carry ourselves because a lot of our work can depend on the way we present ourselves.

The benefits of working in this field are that we are always vibrant, always going to nice, urban and well-catered places because that is where the work usually takes us. We are always in and around technology and other material possessions. 

Ever since  I began working, I have tried my best to juggle work and education. But I would indulge in social activities as well and I continue to do so. I would constantly notice, although obvious, that Nepal is a diverse country. Not just in terms of culture but also in terms of economic statuses and social struggles. There is a huge gap between the lives of people within this country. Their lifestyles, daily struggles are very different, and those differences often seem odd to people in the city areas. There is so much to learn and I’ve always had that curiosity to learn about  other people in our society. I always wanted to learn how people in different areas live, what contrasts I could find between their lives and the life I have seen. In that way, I get to learn more about other people as well as feel a sense of pride at learning more about our country. 

I feel that learning more about our country and the people--this experience--would help me professionally as well as in my daily endeavours. Honestly speaking, after living in urban areas with the facilities that we have, we tend to get addicted not only to this lifestyle but even more to material things. However, being habituated to such lifestyle it isn’t entirely a good thing. It is sometimes harmful and people become slaves to their own habits.  People need to experience things from the grounds up to retain humility and that is also the way to protect the sense of self and increase one’s strength. That was also one of the reasons why I started this journey -- to be mentally, physically, as well as spiritually strong. 

It's been 13 years since I started doing this, Some years were there two trips but usually it is just one. As I said, are used to carrying ourselves in a very modern, sophisticated way surrounded by our material possessions. Living in such a way creates a sense of monotony in life and I wanted to eliminate the possibility of that ever happening. 

I start the trip wearing the same clothes that I normally wear. I don’t carry anything with me--no bags, no phones, no money and I don’t go to places that I might know or where someone might know me. I don’t make maps or plans. I go where my feet take me. If possible I make use of public transport once I get to Point A, wherever that may be and if not then I walk. Based on that the trip goes on for as long as one is capable enough to carry on. So one trip might last between 2-3 days, but it usually lasts up to a week for me. The main thing is to interact with the locals of the area that you reach. So I talk to the people there and stay with them and eat with them. 

There are so many experiences associated with these kinds of trips. Imagine going to an alien place without any money or connections or any means of communication. It is going to be a tough thing to even imagine yourself asking people around you for help. The way people are, it is harder to ask and take than to give. I believe that this experience develops a sense of humility in people and that is important. 

This kind of trip might seem unusual today but when you think about it, before technology took over, this was the life that people lived. They still travelled and went around the world, even when they did not have planes and cars and all the means that have made our lives easier for us today. That didn’t hold them back and they still explored the world and lived their life the best way that they could. Similar to that, we can see the bhicchus even today. They go around the city, in various locations, asking people to give them money or food, and that is how they have always lived. That is the very idea that I wanted explore as well and see what kind of a person I would be or could teach me to be. 
The motivation and ideas for these trips started from the way I have always been. I have always been excited to do new things and have new and interesting experiences. I used to have a lot of work back then, and I used to be very focused on how I looked and put myself forward. My outlook changed when I read an article about perfectionism in a journal, and what it meant to follow perfectionism. I realised then that I should be relaxed, calm, adjustable, compromising and understanding, and thought that rather than trying to make myself look perfect, I would be understanding and compromise in situations that should be compromised so that I could make a better version of myself. 
Till date I have travelled to 28 districts--north, east and west. The last trip I went on was to Sher Mathang, which lies in the Langtang border--moving from Melamchi to Helambu to Sher Mathang and further on. This year I have been looking for a partner to go along with me on this trip. I don’t think it should be that hard but it isn’t something that people can understand just by hearing about it. So I want people to think of it as a challenge as well and challenge themselves with this.

If time or situation does not permit, you don’t have to force yourself to go a Fakir Yatra. But you can stillchallenge yourself in your daily life. You can challenge yourself to spend an entire day or a few days without money and your cell-phone, thing that could instill a sense of need and desperation in many people. That experience that you gain is what this trip maximizes, and I suggest that people embark on such trips at least once in their life.