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Today I visited the Adiyogi Temple; It's quite a monument - the kind you cannot ignore. The tour starts with a very big head: a 120 twenty-foot-high steel likeness of Lord Shiva in his Adiyogi form, which translates to first yogi. Shiva is considered to have been the creator of yoga, and the statue honors him. The statue itself is new - from 2017 and has the distinction of being the largest bust sculpture in the world. I wasn't kidding when I said it was big.

I stood in front of it gawking for several minutes, and I noticed myself drawing a crowd. The next thing I knew, I was taking selfies with all the kids under 30 there - and a fair number over 30. I have no idea why they wanted a selfie with me, but they all did. Perhaps because I'm different, perhaps because I was so enthralled, or perhaps because I am a solo traveler. 

Anyway, I leaned in, cracked a bunch of jokes that completely missed their mark, and got a few selfies in return. After about 15 minutes of photos and videos, I made my way up the walkway to the temple, stopping for a few more selfies along the way.

I was so engrossed in my amateur photography, that some bystander had to physically push me out of the way of an approaching ox, warning me to be careful of the horned animals - typical tourist behavior I suppose - or perhaps more careless than most.

When I told him I had a high tolerance for danger, he returned, “You must have a high tolerance for sunburn too,” and suggested I wear some proper protective clothing. We laughed and walked toward the front of the temple together.

Photos are forbidden inside the temple, and all backpacks and cell phones need to be checked at the door. So, I surrendered mine and entered the gates, felling vaguely spiritual for having unburdened myself from my attachment to the camera.

It wasn't long before I found myself again at the item deposit counter - this time they wanted my shoes. I happily gave them up, figuring a bit of grounding with the Earth might do me good - very yogi like.

But I hadn't gone five steps before deeply regretting having relinquished my shoes. The pavement was blisteringly hot - like glowing embers. And as if that wasn’t enough, the ground was littered with unfriendly little pebbles.

I cursed the sun under my breath and quickly ran to a sliver of shade next to a building but soon enough, that ran out. Then, I spotted a puddle of water - overflow from a potted plant and made a beeline for it. Coating my feet, I was able to make it to the next shady spot without too much discomfort. The funny thing was, I was the only one who seemed to have such tender feet. Locals were walking around barefoot without a care in the world, while I was hopping from one cool spot to another like the hot footed tourist. 

I got to that next patch of shade, surveyed the situation, and thought it best to go back and get my shoes, giving up on entering the Yogi Temple. There was no way I’d make it through that remaining stretch of pavement without protective footwear. With my feet in agony and no shade in sight, enlightenment would have to wait.

From what I saw, the temple was a beautiful, large, open structure. Its simple, yet elegant design merged right into the lush verdant environment, as if it had grown from the Earth on that very spot. The vibe of was one of peace and comfort - except, of course, for my blistered feet.

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