My Kailās Yatra: A Journey Beyond Faith, Into Discovery
Mount Kailas has captivated pilgrims, travellers and spiritual seekers for centuries. Revered in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and the Bonpo tradition, this remote and majestic mountain is much more than a geographical landmark. For many, it represents the very centre of spiritual existence.
In My Kailās Yatra: The Diary of an Irreverent Pilgrim, author Kiran Reddy recounts his 30-day pilgrimage to Kailas-Mansarovar in 2009. Based on the diary he maintained during the journey, the book offers an intimate account of the physical challenges, emotional uncertainties, cultural encounters and personal reflections that shaped his experience.
Approaching the pilgrimage with curiosity rather than conventional religious devotion, Reddy takes readers through a landscape of breathtaking beauty and formidable challenges. Difficult terrain, unpredictable weather and physical exhaustion become part of a journey marked by doubt, hope and the anticipation of experiencing the sacred mountain.
The result is a personal travelogue that brings together adventure, history, spirituality and cultural exploration, inviting readers to experience the journey through the author’s eyes.
1. Can you provide an overview of your book and how it addresses key challenges in the world today?
My Kailās Yatra: The Diary of an Irreverent Pilgrim is a travelogue documenting my journey to one of the most revered and remote pilgrimage destinations on earth—Mount Kailas.
The book chronicles approximately 30 days of travel through terrain that was beautiful yet challenging, with testing weather, physical exhaustion and moments when both the body and mind were pushed to their limits. Throughout the journey, I experienced a mixture of doubt and hope, wondering whether I would be blessed with a darshan of the holy mountain and the opportunity to undertake its parikrama.
I undertook the pilgrimage out of inquisitiveness rather than conventional religious faith. The book captures my thoughts, feelings and experiences as I travelled, culminating in the profound impression that the holy mountain left on me.
While the book is not intended to offer solutions to the world’s problems, I believe its themes of perseverance, curiosity, cultural understanding and personal discovery remain relevant in a world that often moves too quickly for reflection. It encourages readers to step outside their familiar surroundings and remain open to experiences that may challenge their assumptions.
2. What inspired you to write this book, and what specific expertise or experiences do you bring to the subject?
The inspiration came from the diary I maintained during the pilgrimage. It became a space where I could record my deepest feelings, observations and uncertainties as they arose.
When I revisited those notes, I felt there was an opportunity to expand them into a fuller narrative—not merely about the journey itself, but also about the history, traditions and places associated with Kailas and the wider Tibetan region.
The book includes observations about Buddhism and the Bonpo tradition, along with accounts of places such as Khojareshwar and the mausoleum of Zorawar Singh, the Sikh general associated with the Dogra campaigns in Tibet. I have also included experiences connected with Patal Bhuvaneshwar and Jageshwar in Uttarakhand, as well as descriptions of the villages and landscapes encountered along the way.
My approach draws primarily on firsthand experience, supported by reading books about Tibet and the historical and cultural significance of Kailas-Mansarovar pilgrimages.
3. What valuable insights or takeaways can readers expect from your book?
One of the most gratifying responses I have received from readers is that they feel as though they are travelling alongside me.
Many people dream of undertaking the Kailas-Mansarovar pilgrimage but cannot do so for various personal, physical or practical reasons. I hope the book offers them a meaningful glimpse of the journey—the landscapes, hardships, encounters and emotions that make it so distinctive.
For those who hope to undertake the pilgrimage themselves, the narrative may also inspire them to pursue that aspiration when circumstances permit.
Beyond the destination, readers may discover that a journey can be valuable even when it begins without a clearly defined spiritual purpose. Sometimes, the experience itself changes the traveller in ways that cannot be anticipated beforehand.
4. Can you share any real-world examples from your book that illustrate its central themes?
The book is a personal travel journal, so its central themes emerge through lived experiences rather than formal case studies.
One of the defining aspects of the journey was the demanding terrain between Dharchula and Lipulekh. We travelled through hills and valleys along the Kali River, experiencing a landscape that was magnificent but physically challenging.
The contrast between the beauty of the surroundings and the exhaustion of the body became an integral part of the experience. There were moments of uncertainty, yet the desire to continue remained.
Another important dimension was the opportunity to encounter the cultural and historical traditions associated with the region. My observations of Buddhism and the Bonpo tradition, alongside the historical places discussed in the book, helped broaden my understanding of the many layers of significance attached to this part of the world.
These experiences are presented as I encountered and interpreted them during the journey, allowing readers to form their own impressions.
5. What challenges did you encounter while writing the book, and how did you overcome them?
Interestingly, writing the book did not feel like a particularly difficult undertaking. Much of the narrative emerged spontaneously from the diary I maintained during the journey.
The diary had already captured the immediacy of my thoughts and feelings. Developing it into a book involved expanding those observations, adding relevant historical and cultural context, and incorporating perspectives gathered from books about Tibet and the Kailas-Mansarovar pilgrimage.
The process allowed me to preserve the personal character of the original experience while providing readers with a broader understanding of the places, traditions and history associated with the journey.
6. What do you hope readers will gain from reading your book?
I hope readers feel transported into the journey.
Several readers have told me that the book made them feel as though they were travelling alongside me. That response is particularly meaningful because one of my aims was to convey not only what I saw, but also what I felt as I moved through this remarkable landscape.
For readers who have long wished to visit Kailas but have been unable to undertake the pilgrimage, the book offers an opportunity to experience the journey vicariously.
For others, I hope it encourages curiosity about unfamiliar cultures, an appreciation of the natural world and an openness to experiences that may lead to unexpected personal insights.
Above all, I would like readers to come away with a sense of the extraordinary combination of beauty, hardship, history and spiritual significance that makes Kailas such a compelling destination.
7. In a rapidly changing world, how does your book remain relevant to readers over time?
One of the most striking changes since my pilgrimage in 2009 concerns the journey itself.
During our expedition, the road from Delhi to Dharchula was motorable. Beyond Dharchula, the route towards Lipulekh involved trekking through hills and valleys alongside the Kali River. It was a beautiful and demanding experience that made the landscape an inseparable part of the pilgrimage.
Today, road connectivity has extended considerably along this route, changing how travellers can experience parts of the journey. The physical experience described in my book therefore also serves as a record of a particular period in the history of travel to the region.
I believe this gives the book an additional dimension. It preserves the memories of a journey undertaken under different circumstances and allows readers to appreciate the terrain, the challenges and the experiences that shaped that pilgrimage.
Although routes and travel conditions evolve, the human elements of the story—curiosity, endurance, uncertainty, hope and the search for meaning—remain relevant across generations.
Buy your copy of My Kailās Yatra: The Diary of an Irreverent Pilgrim by Kiran Reddy on Amazon today and experience the journey through the eyes of an inquisitive pilgrim.
