Sadhus, monks and mountains

At New Delhi Station, we boarded the Dehradun Shatabdi Express to Haridwar, Uttarakhand (UT) – the Gateway to Lord Hari. We both remember the extremely comfortable seats and being served a meal! It was the end of March, an excellent time to leave the heat and polluted skies of Delhi and head for the mountains. The British introduced the idea of retreating to the hills in the summer to help restore their health for they suffered greatly in the unrelenting sultry weather of the plains. They also hoped it would reduce the risk of cholera and malaria.

We traversed Delhi’s densely populated urban sprawl, then journeyed across the plains considered the “food bowl of India.” The wheat crop was ripening, creating waves of gold. Wheat is planted in winter; it ripens in March then rice is planted – two annual crops from one piece of land. Sugarcane and cotton, fruit and vegetables, pulses (to replenish nitrogen) and mustard; and rapeseed oil are also products of these plains.

Haridwar on the Ganges, surrounded by the foothills of the Shivalik Range, is a sacred city which takes its turn hosting the Kumbh Mela, a significant Hindu festival that rotates between four holy sites and occurs every twelve years. We had our sights set on Rishikesh so cruised on, easily locating a bus for this last leg of the journey – a gentle ride north along the Ganges.

Once in Rishikesh we wasted no time to find a guest house so we could deposit our luggage and explore. We crossed the Laksman Jhula Bridge and picked one out.

Rishikesh, Uttarakhand

The name of the bridge, Laxman Jhula, is derived from the name of the younger brother of Lord Rama (Laxman) and Jhula meaning swing – so it’s Laxman’s Swing! Such a wonderful name for a suspension bridge. Unfortunately it has been permanently shut down due to safety concerns. A replacement bridge has been built adjacent to it. (The view walking across that bridge, so long ago, had made a strong impression on us. The Ganges River looked so pristine, the setting giving a sense of harmony. I was so disappointed when returning to Rishikesh many years later to find that the bridge was no longer operational.

I remember so well the advertising campaign launched by India in 2002 – “Incredible India” – appealing to an international audience initially, and then adapting to charm the local population. The images highlighted the beauty of the landscape, the opportunities for spiritual exploration, and India’s incomparable historical sites courtesy of its fascinating and extensive history. Already on this visit, in 2006, Rishikesh was recognized as the Yoga Capital of the World. And of course, the Beatles’ visit to Maharishi Mahesh Yogi’s ashram in 1968 helped put Rishikesh on the global map for meditation.

Maharishi established the Chaurasi Kutia Ashram (meaning eighty-four huts) in 1961. The small domed huts – consisting of a bathroom and a living/sleeping space – were built for those who wished to study Transcendental Meditation. As well as the Beatles, many other celebrities spent time here.

For Hindus, Rishikesh is sacred. The Ganges has just descended from the Himalayas and is still pristine (or at least gives that appearance). Bathing in the waters of the Ganges is believed to remove lifetimes of karma. Older people who wish to enter the spiritual phase of their life (vanaprastha) with the focus on meditation and charity, are welcomed by Rishikesh’s ashrams, many of which line the river banks.

Sadhus have been drawn to Rishikesh for thousands of years to meditate on the banks of the Ganges, seek enlightenment, and distance themselves from worldly distractions. The nearby mountains offer caves for shelter and solitude. Additionally, the community supports them.

A gathering of sadhus shaded from the intense sun by the bountiful canopy of a banyan tree.

L: A snake charmer with the traditional snake charmer’s flute (pungi), which is made of a gourd and two reed pipes. It produces a continuous hypnotic sound, perfect for the craft. Unfortunately the snakes were sleeping (we suspect), in the covered basket!

R: The cows of Rishikesh are smaller than cows elsewhere in India due to evolutionary adaptation to the terrain and the available food supply, which consists mostly of shrubs.

Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh

Our next destination was Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh (HP) and former summer capital of the British Raj. We made the journey of 160 miles (250 kilometers) by bus; it took all day. Here, for the first time, we beheld the glory of the Himalayas. Once again, we found ourselves picky about where to stay and walked up and down those endless ascending and, of course, descending steps of Shimla’s terrain.

A very kind young man carried my pack – otherwise I might not have made it! We eventually found a great place; the room had a wall of windows with a stupendous view of the mountains rolling out below, ridge after ridge, and the most enormous bathroom with a plentiful supply of steaming hot water.

The town is quite picturesque and has remnants of its former occupants in terms of architecture; its backdrop of snow-covered peaks took my breath away. The main street (below) is not unlike an English High Street.

The weather was cool but not cold, the air crisp, and the light magnificent. A person feels very grounded amid mountains! The men sport the most magnificent mustaches, tips curled upwards which always causes me to take a second look.

And then onward and upwards and northwards to Manali, again by bus – a distance of 80 miles (130 kilometers). (Purushottama would often have to climb up the side of the bus and arrange our packs; he remembers vividly standing on the ladder on the side of the bus in Shimla reaching up and seeing those towering mountains. Meanwhile I would board the bus and secure us a couple of seats!)

The journey is a scenic overload: terraced farmland replaced by rocky gorges, and pine-covered hillsides. And then the churning Beas (Vyas) River accompanies you through the Kullu Valley and into Manali.

Vashisht and Manali, Himachal Pradesh

We spent the first night in the village of Vashisht next to Manali. Kept warm by wonderful thick comforters, we woke to a view of an imposing mountain range. Vashisht has a hot water spring used for laundry and bathing. The water runs continuously.

The mountain range from our room.

We were able to observe the activities of village life from our guesthouse such as women carrying feed for the animals and fuel for cooking in baskets on their backs. (I am not able to see what these women were doing in the photo.) The roof deserves attention: loose slates that must be heavy enough to withstand wind since they appear to be carefully arranged though unattached.

We moved to Old Manali, a short walk away, for the rest our stay. It is a wonderful place for walking, hanging out in its many cafes and restaurants catering to travelers and backpackers, and sitting by the Beas River – an amazing blue color so tempestuously rushing down the mountain at breakneck speed eager to reach the ocean.

This farmhouse was next to our guesthouse on the perimeter of Old Manali. The baskets in the photograph are the type that women strap to their backs for carrying fuel, etc. We used to walk past a group of cows each day to reach the road, always assembled near the path. One day a cow squirted on me, accidentally? I am not sure. I was told it was lucky!

Perhaps returning home after taking her water buffalo to graze, this woman is wearing the traditional dress of the Manali-Kullu region: a pattu, a handwoven garment that drapes over her shoulders and is fixed in place with a gachchi (a belt), made from handspun wool to help combat the cold.

Red, green and maroon are the favored colors decorated with geometric patterns and traditional motifs. A square headscarf, dhatu, and heavy traditional silver jewelry complete the outfit, though this hat looks like a winter adaptation. (Click on images to see fullscreen.)

On the outskirts above Manali in the Dhungri cedar forest sits the Hidimba Devi Temple, which was constructed in 1553 by Raja Bahadur. Hidimba is a figure from The Mahabharata, an epic poem that, through the conflict between two antagonistic lines of a royal family, explores karma, the dharma and ethical dilemmas. It continues to be an influential sacred text in Indian culture, particularly to Hindus. The temple has no idol, but has been built over an enormous rock that is considered to be the image of the temple deity.

Yaks are winterized cows! And they prefer altitudes of 9,800 to 16,400 feet (3,000 and 5,000 meters). They suffer at altitudes below 3,000 meters because of their thick coats and a slow cooling system.

This young yak is at the limit of its tolerance. Manali has an average elevation of 6,730 feet (2,050 meters). Yaks don’t moo like cows but grunt and squeak. They are sometimes crossed with regular cows producing dzos (male), or dzomos (female).

Yaks have larger hearts and lungs than cattle at lower altitudes, and they are better able to transport oxygen through their bodies due to the persistence of fetal hemoglobin; they have three layers of fur to trap heat and block wind (in males, the fur hangs lower than the belly); their split hooves are able to grip icy rocks; their tails are like horses’ rather than cattle. How well adapted they are!

Men at work.

McLeod Ganj, HP

And then came the long journey to McLeod Ganj. The bus to Dharamshala was a mountainous 150 miles (230 kilometers), a journey of ten or eleven hours. I remember the beauty of the journey particularly the fields of ripened winter wheat, golden in the sunshine, stretching endlessly into the distance. And the delicate purple of the flowering jacarandas.

We arrived in McLeod Ganj in the early evening, but it was not until the second day that we found our McLeod Ganj forever home! The guesthouse is set back from the main street and the third floor has an enormous terrace; this became my favorite place to sit, hypnotized by the play of light on the peaks.

McLeod Ganj is one of my favorite places in the world. To wake up daily to the beauty of its peaks gives such a sense of expansion. The practice of loving kindness in this small town creates a sense of peace and an atmosphere where it is possible to slip into profound relaxation.

The Chinese invaded Tibet in 1950, then occupied and governed with increasing brutality. The Dalai Lama fled Lhasa in 1959 because he feared an imminent assassination or kidnapping attempt by the Chinese (they invited him to a theatrical performance but insisted he attend without his usual armed bodyguards). When the public heard of this treacherous invitation, 30,000 Tibetans rushed to the Norbulingka Palace to form a human shield.

As tensions outside the palace mounted, the Dalai Lama feared the Chinese military were going to open fire on the crowd. To prevent this, disguised as a soldier, and with a small entourage, he made the fourteen-day trek to the border with India, where he received political asylum from the Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. The Indian government offered him McLeod Ganj, a former British hill station (hence the name), that had been abandoned after an earthquake in 1905. This had resulted in plenty of open space and empty properties for the thousands of Tibetan refugees who fled to join him, and where the Dalai Lama would be able to form a government-in-exile.

An extensive temple complex including a monastery and library has been constructed – the Dalai Lama Complex or Tsuglagkhang, which means House of Religious Sciences. A beautiful walk surrounds it – a mix of Tibetan prayer wheels of varying sizes, the odd stray cow on the path, an artist painting om mani padme hum (the jewel in the lotus) on a rock, and a generous assortment of prayer flags and stupas. The very air is sacred, and the nearby Himalayan range, the Dhauladhar (White Ridge) escort you on your walk.

L: The Kalachakra (Wheel of Time) Temple can be seen at the end of the street. We found it open one day and wandered in. Such a delight!

R: Dharamkot, a village just outside of McLeod Ganj, offers a tranquil, more rural environment.

Tushita Meditation Center (Place of Joy) is less than half a mile (0.66 kilometers) from McLeod Ganj and sits just above the village of Dharamkot. The setting is exquisite. Founded in 1972 by Lama Thubten Yeshe (whom Purushottama had met in the mid-seventies) and his main student, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, it evolved from a Retreat Center into a Meditation Center in response to the increased interest from Westerners in studying Buddhist philosophy and meditation. Lama Zopa replaced Lama Yeshe as the spiritual director after the latter’s death in 1984. Among Tushita’s many offerings is a popular 10-day residential Introduction to Buddhism course to provide for those new to Buddha’s teachings.

Coincidentally, we were in McLeod Ganj on 2 June 2023 when the Dalai Lama presided over a Long Life Puja Tribute honoring Lama Zopa, who had passed in April 2023. There was a special quality in the air that day. Light rain was falling in the early morning as people streamed, with umbrellas hoisted, undeterred, to the gathering in the large central hall of the temple to await the arrival of the Dalai Lama. The excited, loving anticipation, so reminiscent of us waiting for Osho before discourse, filled the space. After some time, the Dalai Lama appeared, frail, supported by a monk on either side. He beamed at the gathering of his lovers and they beamed back at him. So much love reflected back and forth.

References

• Rishikesh – Wikipedia: wikipedia.org
• Hidimba Devi Temple – Wikipedia: wikipedia.org
• Yak – Wikipedia: wikipedia.org
• The Office of His Holiness The Dalai Lama | The 14th Dalai Lama: dalailama.com
• Tushita Meditation Center: tushita.info

In the same travel series: A Pilgrimage

• Castles in the sand – Amido and Purushottama visit the cities of Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Pushkar (Part 5)
• A woman sage and the City of Lakes – Amido and Purushottama travel to Rajasthan, Udaipur and Mount Abu, where they visit Vimala Thakar (Part 4)
• The end of the Pilgrimage (for now…) – Amido and Purushottama visit the samadhis of Osho, Hazrat Babajan, Ramesh Balsekar, Sai Baba of Shirdi, and Meher Baba – plus Nisargadatta’s flat and the Ajanta and Ellora caves (Part 3)
• The Pilgrimage continues… – In 2006 Purushottama and Amido visit Kerala and Karnataka – and two holy men, Ajja and U.G. (Part 2)
• A pilgrimage – Amido and Purushottama visit India in 2005 – a pilgrimage to places where Masters and holy men have lived (Part 1)