Haridwar and Rishikesh - A tribute to River Ganges

             

“OM Sree Gurubhyo Namaha”.

At the outset, I start with pranams to Jagadguru Sankaracharya His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamigal, the ruling and 36th Pontiff and His successor designate Jagadguru Sankaracharya His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vidhu Shekhara Bharathi swamigal the 37th Pontiff of Sri Sringeri Saradha Peetham for everyone’s welfare & continued prosperity. 

                   
Gita and Ganga constitute the essence of Hinduism; one is theory and the other its practice.” - Swami Vivekananda

River Ganges - Hari pauri ghat

Our last leg of the tour brought us to Haridwar and Rishikesh. We went to Rishikesh first and as we traversed the holy cities, it is the River Ganges all the way in the form of River,tributary and canals. An over-whelming feeling pervades the atmosphere both internal and external. Sitting on the banks of Ganga, when I reflected for few moments in silence, the first thoughts that came to me were.

 The river Ganges has seen the past of our generations from time immemorial, is guiding us in the present and will be there in the future with our succeeding generations.

Rudraksha Tree

Lakshman Jhula

We went to 'Lakshman temple' and I understand this is the place Lord Sri Lakshman bestows his blessing and grace in an unique manner. In other temples elsewhere the Idols are always with Rama and Sita. Lord Lakshmana did severe penance and followed strict austerities here on the banks of river Ganges for 12 years in order to free himself from 'Brahmahathi Dhosa'after killing Indrajit (Meghdooth) the son of Ravana.   ( Brahmahathi Dhosa - A sin that accrues after killing a Vedic Brahmin or Sacred cow. Doing severe penance, tapas, Japa, homa and wearing of Eka Mukhi Rudraaksha are believed to help a person to get rid of this sin. The causal effect of the sin is endless cycles of re-birth ) 

We spent some time in Lakshman Jhula and moved to the next hop.

Ganga Arthi Bhajans in Paramartha Nikethan Ashram

Paramartha Nikethan Ashram

Devotees Offering floral Thanks to River Ganges

In Rishikesh, we participated in 'Ganga Arthi' from the precincts of Paramatha Niketan ashram. I was very impresssed by the social work done by this ashram. The most notable being the 'Bio- toilets' done in participation with our Indian premier research organization DRDO, whcih is the need of the hour. Melodious and Heart-rendering bhajans were sung by devotees and a Yagna ( Fire ritual ) performed as a thanks-giving to River Ganges for all that she ahs done. This ritual is conducted every day and many foreign devotees also participate and perform the yagna. For a congregation of about 500 people hardly 5-6 floral plates were offered to the river. 

( Thanks to the ashram for this cleanliness, as unmindful dumping of flowers into river Ganges is also a main source of pollution in the down-streams - We noticed this in Haridwar)

Hari Pauri Ghat - Haridwar

Maya Devi temple - Haridwar

Myself and Dev took a long and fast paced walk to Maya devi temple. The interesting, aspect was when we enquired the way, everyone said, it is 10 mins from that point and the same was repeated in the next hop on further inquiry, and the 10 mins seemed an endless walk in the narrow and intertwining lanes. I brought back 'Ganga Jal' (water) in a big bottle and handed over for pooja in a nearby temple. The Ganga jal was used to perform abhishekam for lord Shiva in the subsequent 'Pradhosha pooja' in the nearby temple and I also participated. I felt immensely happy :-)

Devotees tonsuring their Hair in fulfillment of prayers 

River Ganges

River Ganges - The cradle of our civilization continues her journey without any reward or recognition. Let us do our duty in keeping the Ganges clean and pass the rich legacy to our succeeding generations.

I have not penned down much on Haridwar and Rishikesh as lot of content is available on the web and I do not want to duplicate myself

The request i have for the blog readers are two fold:

1) Some of these places like Haridwar and Rishikesh are physically challenging  . In a huge country like us with 1.2 billion people and good amount of disposable income these historically and religiously important places are perennially crowded. Visit these places when you are young and energetic and do not procrastinate. When we are aged, the Spirit may be willing, but not the flesh

2) All of us took a vow to keep all our rivers clean and we request you to do the same.

And, that ends my interesting saga for our visit to Ninital, Binsar, Corbett , Haridwar and Rishikesh. Hope you enjoyed as well.

Jim Corbett Nationl Park - Home Sweet home for the wild !

“OM Sree Gurubhyo Namaha”.

At the outset, I start with pranams to Jagadguru Sankaracharya His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamigal, the ruling and 36th Pontiff and His successor designate Jagadguru Sankaracharya His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vidhu Shekhara Bharathi swamigal the 37th Pontiff of Sri Sringeri Saradha Peetham for everyone’s welfare &     continued prosperity. 

The river that flows in you, flows in me as well - Kabir

River view - Ramganga ( Kosi River)

Moving on with from the snow-clad peaks of Himalayas which was a picture perfect setting of our break-fast family rendezvous, we moved on to Corbett National park to enjoy the beauty of wild-animals in their natural habitat. We had a unbelievable welcome, where-in we had hi-tea on the river side. Our stay was in River-view retreat and post check-in we were asked to join-in for hi-tea on the banks of river Kosi ( Ramganga). The resort is situated on the banks of Kosi and an exit leads you to the river directly

Cooling off near the river side

Light Music party in hotel

The sparking and crystal clear water of Kosi river attracted us and we spent lazing around the river banks and indulging in idle conversations. Video shows and light music were organized and a singer sang priceless Hindi songs of yesteryear's and brought us back to our child-hood days.

Massive Bee-Hives in a tree

A Scavenging Jackal

A Sambha Deer eating Mud - for Minerals

Jim Corbett park is situated around in  park area of 500 +Sq km’s and adjoining the another park Sonanvadi wild-life sanctuary. An buffer area is also ear-marked and in total the animals have around 1300 Sq km to freely tress-pass. On the high-way we can see multiple sign-boards “ Animals ( elephants and Deers) have the right of way” . The message was loud and clear, “we were in their home”.

Monitor Lizard resting in its burrow

The park is named after the famous British Jim Corbett and stories abound on his prowess in shooting down man-eating tigers and leopards. He had single handedly brought down 30 of them (which were man-eating) and was being revered as ‘God’ in helping the tribal villages from the prowling nocturnal beasts. After retirement, he has actively focused his energy in “forest conservation” and keeping a habitat for our National Animal. Records indicate the tiger population in the wild has picked-up and conservation endeavors are yielding desired results.

I wanted to pen- down the below instance of Bird and Animal behavior which we observed.

Black faced Langur - Alpha Male

Submission to Alpha Male ?

Spotted Deer

          The Monkey’s ( Rhesus monkey )and Deer’s are most of the time spotted together. The monkey perched on top of the tree branches pluck the leaves and keep feeding the Deer’s beneath ( Spotted deer’s and barking deer are a common sight). The barking deer which has acute sense of smell warns the monkey’s and other animals if case a tiger or cheetah is around by making a barking sound continuously. On our Safari, we noticed a deer, was barking continuously on the impending danger and the monkey’s and birds were running helter-skelter by making various types of sounds. 

We definitely have a lessor or two to be learned from our wild-cousins. ‘Stay together and help each other”



Red whiskered Bulbul

A pair Indian Horn-Bill in playfull mood

Oriental Magpie Robin

We spotted different Himalayan species of birds namely parakeets, different breeds of king fisher, Green bee-eater. The cynosure of all eyes was a the playful ‘grey Indian hornbills

Indian Peacock

Two peacocks were in hot pursuit in attracting a pea-hen. The mighty one displayed it’s plumage and was able to hold-on for a longer time than the other one. The pea-hen ran a distance of 30-40 meters towards it’s partner and they disappeared into the bushes. Peacocks were seen in plenty

An Elephant herd

At one stretch, we saw a herd of about 20 wild elephants making a cross. The herd got split into 2. Elephants are a matriarchal society and this was very evident in the crossing. The matriarch stayed behind, ensured the young calf’s have safely crossed the road, checked on all sides for any threats or impending danger and then joined the herd on the other side

Girija Lakshmi temple on the banks of Ramganga River

The authorities have taken cognizance to the fact of keeping the local community engaged in wild-life protection. The wild life safari park nicely supports good local employment opportunities. The locals are also trained on wild life conservation and heavily depend on tourists for their income and livelihood. This has resulted in good awareness resulting in a win-win situation . We visited the Corbett National park museum and Girija devi temple. 

Binsar - Flora and Fauna - Nature @ it's best

Binsar : Travelogue

At the outset, I start with pranams to Jagadguru Sankaracharya His Holiness Sri SriSri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamigal, the ruling and 36^thPontiff and His successor designate Jagadguru Sankaracharya His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vidhu Shekhara Bharathi Swamigal the 37^th Pontiff of Sri SringeriSaradhaPeetham for everyone’s welfare and continued prosperity.

Himalayan snow capped peaks - A picture perfect setting

Mrigthuni peak

To live in the world without becoming aware of the meaning of the world is like wandering about in a great library without touching the books.”

-Dan Brown in ‘The Lost Symbol’

From Nainital we moved into the 2^nd leg of our tour covering Binsar. Binsar is located in Almora district. Our stay was in ‘Grand Oak Manor’ inside the Binsar wild life sanctuary. Binsar wild life sanctuary is located in central Himalayan region. Tourists need to get permission for entry into the sanctuary and there are time restrictions.

The Kumaon region was under the control of Chand Kings and they used the Binsar region as their summer capital. During the colonization the nearby Raniketh town became a cantonment and the Almora district ( also known as Kumaon) was a key administrative town and the commissioner of Kumaon operating from Almora district. Sir Henry Ramsey moved the administration to Binsar during the summer months in 1866. He built a residential bungalow in Binsar which served as his office and residence. Sir Henry Ramsay endeared himself to the people of Kumaon through his affable and compassionate style of functioning winning the hearts and minds of the local population. Almora remained loyal to British and Sir Henry Ramsay administered the region for 26 years. He wanted to settle in Binsar post retirement and however, was called back to England by the British.

Grand Oak Manor nestled in the mountain ranges

A Grand oak tree

His residential home changed hands and is now converted to a heritage hotel namely ‘Grand Oak Manor’ .

Binsar mainly consists of Oak, Cedar and Pine trees with an amazing variety of flora and fauna. The area was declared wild life sanctuary in the year 1988 for the conservation of forests and wildlife. Within the sanctuary there is no electricity (as wild animals like elephants and leopards may get electrocuted). Power is provided for 2-3 hours in the grand oak manor via gensets in the evening. When we lose a comfort-zone, the power of the human mind to adapt and plan to the availability of resourceis amazing.

On our day of landing in Binsar, there were dark clouds and the wind was howling. The net impact brought down the temperature further down and all of us scurrying for extra protection. The rains sheeting against the mountainous backdrop was amazing to watch.

Nanda Devi and Nanda Devi East peaks

Next day morning, when we sat in the break-fast table a look outside the windows was breath taking. The clear sky show cased the snow-capped Himalayan peaks. Imagine having break-fast with the grand and magnificent ‘Himalayan peaks’ in front of you as the setting. Awesome and overwhelming

Trek to Zero point - Himalayan peak -Trishul Parvat

I did an early morning trek to a place called ‘Zero point’ to have a closer look into the Himalayan peaks. It is suggested to this early morning to get a clear view of the peaks in the morning sky. 

Sher Singh and Sundar enjoying the Trek

Chestnut bellied rock thrush - Himalayan bird species

On the way, we saw Wild boars, Deer, mountain goats and different species of birds namely Chestnut bellied rock thrush, Rufous Sibia, Himalayan Bul-Bul, Red billed Blue Magpie etc. I repeated this along with Sanjay the next day using a different route and we saw many species of Himalayan birds. The guide Mr Sher Singh was very knowledge and adept and adroit in maneuvering tourists in the rough mountain terrains.

We did a 1 day trip to Jageshwar, Pre-historic cave painting of Lakhudiyar, Chitai temple and Kasardevi temple. 

Cedar tress in the Jageshwar temple complex

Jageshwar temples 

Jageshwar has been an important pilgrimage center and consists of a cluster of 125 temples built during the 7th and 18th century AD. Jagadguru Adi Shanakaracharya ( 790 to 822 AD) has visited this place and has re-established the sanctity of many of the temple. The area has served as the main transit center or 100+ years when spiritual seekers were visiting the holy Manasarovar in the Tibetan plateau by foot across the Himalayan Mountains. 

Lord Mrithunjaya

The temples are dedicated to Lord Shiva ( Yogeshwar, Jageshwar, Mrithyuanjaya, Lakulish, Surya, Kedarnath, and Goddess Navadurga, Prushti Devi, Kalikamba, . Special mention needs to be made for Lord Lakulish as the the statue is an exact replica of Buddha and one can see the integration of cultures between Buddhism and Hinduism . This statue is available in the museum. Do visit the museum opposite the temple, wherein ASI has preserved the rare stone sculptures for preservation and safe-keeping from Jageshwar temple. The 2 huge imposing Cedar trees in the temple complex standout.

Pre-historic cave painting in Lakhudiyar

In Lakhudiyar, the cave paintings captures the images of the daily life-style of the pre-historic people with drawing of animals, lizards, deer and hunting patterns.

Dev and family in Chitai temple

Sundar and family in Chitai temple

We visited Chitai temple ( A temple of bells) where one can find tens of thousands of bells being offered by devotees to fulfillment of their wishes and prayers. A statues of the Chand dynasty ruler is found in the temple as guardian of Justice.

Kasar Devi temple

Shiva Temple atop Kasar devi hills

An interesting fact of the Kasardevi temple is that it dates back to the 2^nd century AD. Swami Vivekananda has meditated and has captured his experience in his diaries. The Shiva temple atop the Kasar Devi hills is built by a person from the south named as ‘Rudra’ son of ‘Vaithi or Vaithili’. The stone epigraph in the temple captures the details.

Group photo with Sindhoor and Shikka

The stay in Grand oak manor was pleasant. The current owners  Mr Sindhu and Mrs Shikka Sindhu are very friendly and their suave mannerisms automatically attract people towards them. They and their team have imbibed the statement of belief ‘Hospitality is our creed”. The team treats the guests as their family and makes you feel at ease. We were treated to authentic ‘Kumaoni food’ with a variety of local spices for dinner and the taste buds relished it and craved for more. 

Floara @ its best

We left Binsar with a vow and resolve that we would come back to enjoy the Nature and the Nurture of the team in Grand Oak Manor J

Nainital - The city of lakes - A travelogue

Nainital 

At the outset, I start with pranams to Jagadguru Sankaracharya His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Bharathi Theertha Mahaswamigal, the ruling and 36^th Pontiff and Jagadguru Sankaracharya  His Holiness Sri Sri Sri Vidhu Shekhara Bharathi Swamigal the 37^th  Pontiff of Sri Sringeri Saradha Peetham for everyone’s welfare and continued prosperity.

A mountainous stream originating in the upper reaches of Himalayas

View as seen from Dorthy Point

Himalayan Mountain Ranges in Nainital

Earth and sky, woods and fields, Lakes and River, the mountain and Sea, are excellent masters and teach us more than we can ever learn from books

-John Lubbock

We visited Uttrakhand for a vacation covering Nainital, Binsar ( Almora district), Corbett National park, in Kumaon region and Haridwar and Rishikesh in Garhwal region. Nature’s splendor which has bestowed mankind with bountiful scenic beauty in these regions are to be cherished and admired for a life-time. The images of Nature keep coming back over again and again. The Lakes, Snow capped mountains, the woods, Mother Ganges create a magic charm and keeps me spell bound. Over my next 4-5 blog pages, I want to pen down my experiential journey to these parts of northern India.

Our 1^st port of call was  Nainital – referred as ‘Lake District’ as the district boasts of many lakes. The British made Nainital as the summer capital of United Province (present day Uttar Pradesh). It is said, the city boasted around 60 lakes in the past and was referred as “Chakta”.

Nainital is referred in ‘Skanda Purana’ as the Tri-Rishi Sarovar with reference to the patron saints Atri, Pulastya and Pulaha who in order to quench their thirst during their penitential pilgrimage dug a hole and brought water from the scared lake Mansarovar

Naini Lake

Painting of Naini lake - sometime beginning of 19th Century

The centre of attraction is the ‘Naini lake’ which is nestled around  mountain ranges. A comparison of the lake picture in the late part of 18^th century to the current state one can observe that it is preserved intact without many encroachments. The various feeders of water channel into the lake and its organization leaves a charming feeling. The temple of Goddess Naini devi is on the northern banks to which the origins of the lake can be traced

Horse ride from Horse point to Dorthy point

From ‘Horse point’ we took a tour of the mountain ridges ( Dorthy seat, and other peak points). This horse ride is a challenging and life changing experience. The stone pathway is a steep hilly rocky terrain and is very narrow with steep slopes on the sides. The way the keepers love and tender their horses are amazing. The horse-keeper gives simple instructions on the control of the horses and it is imperative to pay attention and follow the instructions to the letter and spirit. ( We understood this experience can no way compared to the horse-rides which we do in the plains). With the reigns draped over in one hand and clutching the saddle on the other hand, we were looking like colloid actors ready for action. It just takes few steps on the rocky terrain to realize what lay in store for us on this challenge

Sundar and Family

The horses typically chose the path of least resistance and have a tendency to stroll around the edges of the percipience. Using the commands, we need to bring the horse back to the centre of the pathway. The ride down-hill is more challenging than up-hill. One needs to maintain a correct body position in up-hill and down-hill to prevent the human body weight from sliding and falling over the road. All of us after overcoming the initial fear ( At least the elders pretended that they overcame the fear and the children did a great job) the maneuvering was smooth.

View of Himalayan peaks

Closer view of 'Trishul Parvat' and 'Nanda Devi' peaks

Both in the steep up-hill and down-hill course the horses show their dis-pleasure on being stopped (by pulling the reigns) due the weight and loss of momentum and make some moves to ensure that you release the reigns. The weather was clear and we saw some breath taking views of Himalayan snow-clad peaks namely Trishul, Nanda Gunti, Nanda devi. The journey lasted for 1 hr: 45 mins. We re-called the horse ride for the rest of our tour every now and then.

Bengal Tiger

A Male 'Sambar Deer in High altitude zoo

Himalayan Bear - recognized by the white 'V' neck

We spent the rest of day visiting many places of interest namely Cave gardens, Upper lake view, Lovers view point. The Rope way connecting the flat lands to the snow view point is a major attraction. We travelled by Ropeway and had lunch @ snow view point. 

Sattal Lake

Bheem Tal lake

A lovely duckling - New entrant to the Bheem Tal lake perimeter

In Day 2 we visited Sattal, BheemTal , Naukuchi tal. The High Altitude Zoo has many birds and animals in healthy condition. Bengal tiger and Himalayan bears were major attractions in the zoo.

The tour operator suggested that we visit Hanuman Kadi ( temple) in Nainital. I thought, we will quickly wrap up our exiting and exhausting day with a visit to the temple by spending 5-10 mins. The temple has been built by Neem Karoli Baba Maharaj, who had his initial roots in UP, then wandered to places in Gujarat and Himalayan regions in search of spiritual enlightenment. The sprawling temple complex consists separate temples for Hanuman, Shiva and Rama. The temple complex and surroundings are maintained spic and span by the volunteers. We joined the bhajans in the temple and spent around 90 mins there. I definitely felt positive vibrations and connected back to the temples in my native village Sattanatahapuram and Surabharathi foundation in Bangalore and the associated spiritual activities.

‘What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal’

Our Sacred land Bharath has definitely been enriched by the selfless service and sacrifice of numerous sages and gurus down the centuries and here was one more shining gem in Neem Karoli baba. We thanked the taxi operator for his kind suggestion as without him this pleasant spiritual experience wouldn’t have been added to our memory.

City Centre

In the town center a cricket match was on between 2 club teams and we stood by to have a glimpse of the action. The spin bowler bowled to full-tosses (which took ages to the reach the batsman) and got two wickets in the firts two balls of his over. We were flabbergasted with the action and results. I reminisced on my cricket playing days, wherein full-tosses bowled by me were deposited by batsman either in deep mid-wicket or wide long-on. To rub salt on the wound the boundary fielders will have the choicest expletives and the captain will walk to me to have an invective word.

To an great extent the city is very disciplined. There are even queues for rickshaws and people and the rickshaw walla’s diligently follow them . Special mention needs to be allocated to the people here who are helpful and co-operative and always welcome you with a friendly countenance. Most importantly we did not see people begging for Alms in any of the tourist spots

Last but not the least, we stayed in Naini Retreat belonging to the erstwhile Maharaja of Pilibhit. We were treated as royals with every aspect taken care off. Thanks to my colleague Dev Prasad who did a stupendous job in planning and taking care of every minute details of the tour itinerary. Both the families enjoyed to the core the start and the entire leg of the tour.