What 37 Countries Taught Me About Silence, Symbols & the Sacred
By Ankush Wadhwa
Travel has a way of stripping away what you think you know.
It interrupts comfort, dissolves mental noise, and invites you into something deeper: humility.
Over the years, I’ve traveled across 37+ countries — from the spiritual streets of Prayag to the energy vortexes of Sedona, the deserts of Namibia to the temples of Bali. What started as curiosity slowly became something else.
Not tourism.
Not escape.
But remembrance.
Because no matter where I went — east or west, rich or poor — I found the same quiet truth:
Every culture, at its core, is trying to connect with something sacred.
The Sacred Doesn’t Speak in Words
I didn’t learn the most powerful things from textbooks or tour guides.
I learned them:
Watching an old woman light incense in Kyoto without saying a word
Sitting beside a Sufi musician in Istanbul who sang straight into the void
Eating a simple meal offered by a monk in Chiang Mai
Touching the cold stones of a centuries-old church in Prague and feeling the weight of a thousand prayers
No one told me what was happening.
I just felt it.
Because the sacred doesn’t need explanation.
It needs presence.
Silence: The Original Teacher
In every country I visited, I noticed this:
The deeper the wisdom, the fewer the words.
The shamans in Peru didn’t give long lectures — they drummed.
The desert dwellers in Morocco didn’t preach — they served mint tea and let the stars do the talking.
The monks in Myanmar taught by sitting still — for hours.
This silence wasn’t empty.
It was alive.
It taught me to listen not to information, but to vibration.
Not to people’s words, but to the energy behind them.
And in that silence, something inside me softened.
Symbols: The Language Beneath Language
As an astrologer and spiritual teacher, I work with symbols daily — planets, houses, yantras, mantras.
But travel taught me to read symbols in everything:
The patterns on tribal fabrics in Kenya
The way Balinese offerings are folded — always clockwise
The hand gestures of a dancer in Kerala that told entire mythologies without a word
The repeating geometry in mosques, cathedrals, and temples
Symbols are how cultures preserve what can’t be explained — only felt.
Once you learn to see through symbolic eyes, even a street corner becomes a spiritual site.
Every Culture Has Its Version of God
It might be:
The river in India
The sky in Mongolia
The sun in Egypt
The earth in Hawaii
The ancestors in West Africa
But the intention is always the same:
To bow to something greater.
To accept that we didn’t create this world — we’re guests in it.
That universal posture of reverence?
It’s what makes a culture sacred — not just structured.
What It Did to Me
Travel broke my certainty.
And in its place, it offered:
Reverence over control
I stopped trying to “figure it all out.” I started witnessing more, grasping less.
Connection over performance
Whether in a café in Budapest or a ceremony in Java, I felt how little we need to say when we truly see each other.
Spirit over strategy
Not every trip has to be optimized. Some of the most transformative moments came when I got lost — literally and existentially.
And Yet… I Found the Vedas Everywhere
What surprised me most wasn’t the difference between places — but their shared truths.
The concept of karma? Present in African tribal justice systems.
The role of sacred geometry? Woven into Celtic stone circles.
Planetary reverence? Present in Mayan and Egyptian culture.
Energy healing? Seen in Native American rituals.
Dharma? Mirrored in the Japanese concept of Ikigai.
It was like the Vedic framework I’d studied all my life was being whispered back to me — through the voices of other lands.
Different names.
Same essence.
How Travel Shapes My Work Now
When I guide clients or create courses today, I draw not just from astrology — but from these lived moments:
I teach charts like landscapes
I explain karma with stories from Senegal or Sri Lanka
I use ritual design from Bali when crafting ceremonies for entrepreneurs
I remember what not to say — and let silence do the teaching when words fall short
Because in a globalized world, we don’t need more information.
We need more integration.
Final Word
I didn’t set out to become a global seeker.
I set out to live.
But somewhere between ancient temples and modern metros,
between prayers and passport stamps,
I realized:
Every place is sacred when your eyes are open.
Every person is a teacher when your ego is still.
And every journey — no matter how far — is just a mirror for the one unfolding within.
So if you’re feeling stuck, jaded, or unsure…
don’t just book a trip.
Book a conversation with the sacred.
It’s everywhere.
Waiting to be remembered.
Ankush Wadhwa
Ankush is an Astrology student for 25+ years and one of the most trusted astrologers online who has travelled across 37+ countries as a professional and as a junkie explorer to learn different cultures , Astrology and try local cuisine.
Ankush is Founder of www.Ankush.Coach and LinkedIn Newsletter "Astrology Intelligence Lab (AIL)", where Ankush blends Astrology with Lifestyle coaching and guidance tool. He takes 1-1 online sessions at www.ankush.coach with Individuals to help them manage complex situations and decisions making with ease in their professional and personal life. He can be reached at contact@ankush.coach
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