Most people discover spirituality through a wise elder, a book, or a retreat.
Me? My first guru had four legs, a missing eye, and the kind of tail wag that carried the universe in it.
I was eight years old when my parents arguments became too loud to ignore. Their voices clashed through the walls, a battlefield disguised as a family home. One night, at 2 a.m., I walked out.
The streets were dark, but my questions were louder: Who am I? Why am I here? This constant war…is this life?
And then she appeared. A street dog with one eye gone, scars all over her body, yet radiating joy. I gave her some milk. She drank with gratitude, her tail wagging like she had just been handed the moon.
That moment changed me. She was my first guru. She taught me that even in pain, gratitude creates joy. And gratitude, I learned, is where miracles begin.
Growing Up on a Battlefield
My childhood wasn’t lullabies and bedtime stories. It was conflict, slammed doors, and a constant hum of fear. But in the middle of the noise, I began to seek.
When life doesn’t make sense, the soul starts searching for higher truths. That battlefield pushed me to ask: What is the point of this suffering? What is beyond this chaos?
That’s when my spiritual journey began.
Collecting Wisdom Like Treasures
I became a pilgrim of teachings. From one teacher to another, I gathered wisdom like pieces of a puzzle:
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Chinmaya Mission gave me discipline.
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The Art of Living revealed the medicine of breath.
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Brahma Kumaris taught purity of thought.
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Vedanta revealed the eternal Self.
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Sadhguru ignited boldness.
And beyond India, I went further: Joe Dispenza’s work showed me the science behind energy. Mindvalley events became my playground for transformation. I immersed myself in scripture, meditation, and modern tools alike.
But here’s the thing: wisdom isn’t real until you live it. My real transformation began when I stopped just studying spirituality and started practicing it in my own messy, imperfect life.
The Dark Night That Lit the Way
Every Hero’s Journey has the dark night of the soul. Mine wasn’t one night—it was many.
Depression. Relationship heartbreaks. The weight of old traumas. The invisible baggage of growing up in chaos.
Every time I thought I was finished, life whispered: Not yet. There’s more to heal.
Through yoga, sound healing, hypnotherapy, Theta Healing, and NLP, I slowly transformed pain into purpose. And I realised something powerful: my healing was never just for me.
- If I could walk myself out of the battlefield, maybe I could help someone else out too.
Becoming the Guide I Once Needed
Everything I learned became a tool for others:
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Sound Healing opened doorways where words could not reach.
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Yoga reconnected people with their bodies.
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Hypnotherapy and Theta Healing guided clients into the subconscious to release old patterns.
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NLP offered practical rewiring of thought.
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Numerology showed the divine poetry behind our human stories.
I became the guide I once longed for — not perfect, not above anyone — just willing to walk beside others as they remembered who they truly are.
The Source: A Home for Souls
This calling eventually took shape in the form of The Source — my wellness residency in Goa.
It’s not just a retreat and not just an Airbnb. It’s a sanctuary for seekers. Guests come carrying stress, heartbreak, or simply curiosity. Here, they experience yoga, sound healing, hypnotherapy, NLP, meditation, Theta Healing, numerology, and more.
Some guests have breakthroughs. Others simply plant a seed that grows later. And that’s enough. Because healing is not about fixing — it’s about remembering.
In truth, The Source is the home I longed for as a child. A home where conflict is replaced by compassion, where souls can exhale, and where walking each other home becomes real.
Manifestation: Gratitude as the Secret Sauce
Manifestation, for me, isn’t about scripting the perfect dream life or asking the Universe for shiny toys. It’s about alignment.
I’ve manifested homes, communities, clients, healing, and abundance — not by demanding, but by remembering gratitude. My one-eyed guru taught me early: gratitude turns even brokenness into beauty.
Magic is real, but it doesn’t mean effortless. It means faithful. It means trusting the Universe is conspiring even when the evidence looks messy.
Walking Each Other Home
Looking back, I see the Hero’s Journey clearly. The child who wandered the night found her light. The girl who questioned everything grew into the woman who helps others find their own answers.
And the truth? I’m still walking. We all are. Healing is not a straight line — it’s a spiral. We circle back to lessons again and again until they become embodied truth.
But this I know: we’re all souls evolving, stumbling and rising, and in the end, we’re just walking each other home.
So yes, my first guru had only one eye. But she gave me vision.
The gift of this journey is simple: the wounds that once broke me have become the medicine I now carry for others. And that, more than anything, feels like grace.
Sumedha is a holistic coach and therapist, and founder of The Source, a growth residency in Goa. With training in yoga, sound healing, hypnotherapy, NLP, Theta Healing, and numerology, she guides seekers to reconnect with their own light. For her, healing is less about fixing and more about remembering — and she believes we’re all just walking each other home.