Sapna’s Poetic Pilgrimage: God, Life, and Love

2 weeks ago

In today’s world, many of us feel weighed down by expectations, material distractions, and inner struggles. We search for meaning, for peace, and for love that lasts — yet often feel lost, disconnected, or overwhelmed. How do we rise above life’s challenges and rediscover our purpose?

This is the question that inspired me, Sapna Shastri, to take my own pilgrimage; a journey guided by God, life’s lessons, and love. Along the way, I discovered that faith, family, and spiritual practices like dance, meditation, and yoga could transform my pain into poetry.

That journey gave birth to my first book, Rise Above, Find the Sunshine: God, Life, Love: Poetry — a collection written to help readers find hope, healing, and connection in their own lives.

I’ve walked along long, dusty roads.

Spiritual teachers and Indian gurus taught me invaluable lessons about life’s connections, self-love, and self-discovery. For much of my life, I was immersed in the material world, but my family encouraged me to explore something deeper: spirituality and devotion. Their guidance led me to a new transformation, one that gave birth to my poetry.

Through poetry, I learned to express my emotions, feelings, and experiences in my own words and style. I became a seeker — a pilgrim — always moving forward on a sacred path. In my book Rise Above, Find the Sunshine, I share expressions that emphasize God’s existence in all of us. God surrounds us, transforms us, makes miracles possible, and fills our lives with love.

This book helps readers see that life is eternal and beautiful, that every perspective brings wisdom, and that love binds us all. Even when love falters, we can never truly fail love itself. These poems trace a pilgrimage of faith, hope, and trust, guiding us toward new spiritual conquests.

One of my most meaningful reflections comes from Kathak dance, an art form rooted in Indian tradition. During performances, we journeyed through stories of the Mahabharata and Ramayana. We learned about mythology, symbolism, and God’s love stories through gestures, rituals, and expressions. Kathak taught me that life, like dance, is filled with joy, grace, playfulness, and even anger. It also showed me that we can rise above challenges with strength, calmness, and surrender.

My pilgrimage extended far beyond the graceful rhythms of Kathak dance. It led me into the quiet sanctuaries of prayer, the stillness of meditation halls, the serenity of yoga practices, and the sacred guidance of spiritual retreats with wise Gurus. In these spaces, I discovered not only physical and emotional healing but also a profound godly connection and a reservoir of inner strength I never knew existed. Life, with all its tests and trials, especially through my personal health challenges, demanded surrender. When I finally released my fears and offered myself completely to God, I experienced renewal — a rebirth of spirit and a deeper trust in divine grace. This part of my journey revealed to me that we have never truly walked alone; from the very beginning, we have always been cradled in God’s hands, where faith makes the impossible possible.

Writing emerged as the culminating step of this sacred journey — the channel through which I could weave together all my discoveries, struggles, and blessings. Each poem became a sacred offering, a celebration of Hindu gods and goddesses, of the divine spark that lives within us all, and of the unconditional love that sustains and nurtures the soul. Through poetry, I found a way to honor the meaning of life, to embrace both joy and sorrow, to recognize beauty in the ordinary, and to inspire others to embark on their own spiritual quests. It became not just an art form but a devotion, a way of bowing to the divine in words, rhythm, and truth.

Now, as I prepare to step into the next chapter of my life, my path leads me to teaching and coaching — roles through which I hope to guide others in their search for peace, clarity, and transformation. My mission is to help people cultivate inner stillness, shift limiting mindsets, and unlock the immense potential that resides within them. At the heart of this calling lies a simple yet powerful intention: to serve with humility, to share light with those in darkness, and to live each day in devotion to God and to love. This next phase is not a departure from my pilgrimage but rather its continuation — a journey of giving, of guiding, and of walking alongside others as they rise above, find their own sunshine, and embrace the divine within.

We love because God loves us first. We journey through life because God walked the path before us.