Kumaon Part 3 - Chitai Golu Temple - Apr 2023

April 29, 2023 

This is in continuation of the Kumaon experience. See other parts of this journey - part 1, part 2.

After visiting the Jageshwar Dham we started for Chitai Golu dev temple. Golu devta also known as Goljyu in Kumaon is the God of the Kumaon community in Uttarakhand. Also known as the God of justice, Golu devta has many temples in Uttarakhand, the major ones being Chitai and Ghorakhal. 

Chitai temple gate

Golu dev is an incarnation of Gaur Bhairav (Shiva). Golu dev wears a white pagdi, white horse is his consort and he is considered as the lord of justice. 

There are tales about Golu devta, the most famous one in which Golu devta is the son of the Katyuri kings who ruled Kumaon or Kurmanchal as it was then known from 7th-12th century. It is said that his mother was the favorite queen and when he was born, her jealous co-wives exchanged him with stone and left him in the river nearby. He was saved by a fisherman and at the age of eight returned riding a wooden horse. He took the horse to the pond where the queens of the king were taking bath and made it drink the water. When the queens laughed at him, he said – if a woman can give birth to a stone, he can ride a wooden horse. King came to know of this, punished the queens and made Golu the king. In time, the boy came to be known for his justice and became popular as Golu Devta. 

Golu dev

Chitai Golu temple is very famous not just amongst the Kumaoni people but throughout Uttarakhand and even nearby states. People come here looking for justice. One can see prayers in the form of letters written on plain paper to stamp paper to blue mail envelopes asking for the fulfillment of their wishes. When the prayer is fulfilled, they come back and offer a brass bell at the temple. Thus the temple courtyard is full of letters and brass bells in different shapes and size. Most temples in Kumaon are on a hill so the ambience is quite peaceful and scenic if one wants to sit in the courtyard.

I last visited this temple around 13 years ago and the number of letters and the bells have since then increased which talk about the popularity and the faith in Goljyu.

Our next stop was Almora town which is 7-8 km from Chitai temple. Follow the rest of the journey in the next part. 

Kumaon Part 2 - Jageshwar Dham - Apr 2023

April 29, 2023

This is in continuation of the Kumaon experience. See other parts of this journey - part 1.

After spending some time in the Dol Ashram, we started towards Jageshwar. The road from Dol ashram to Jageshwar via Chalnichina and Dhaspar was quite winding. 

A village on the way to Jageshwar

We were able to get some fresh Kaphal being sold by small local girls. Kaphal is the local berry found in Uttarakhand and some other hilly regions of Nepal, Bhutan and east India. It is good for the digestive system and improves appetite. My mom told me a childhood story of my innocence connected to Kaphal - as a kid once I was told that eating this berry will 'clean' the stomach (digestive system). The child in me was constantly raising my frock and looking at my tummy to see if my tummy skin looked any brighter than it was, taking the words of my mom quite literally. 

Kaphal

Jageshwar Dham

We reached Jageshwar dham at around 1pm. The weather was nice and cold and a jacket/shawl was comfortable. Jageshwar dham has one of the 12 Jyotirlingas (there is some debate around it) with a collection of 125 temples small and big built between 9th and 13th century. It is nestled in the deodar forests alongside the Jataganga river. The verse describing the 12 Jyotirlingas - 

सौराष्ट्रे सोमनाथं च श्रीशैले मल्लिकार्जुनम् । उज्जयिन्यां महाकालमोकांरममलेश्वरम् ।

परल्यां वैद्यनाथं च डाकिन्यां भीमशंकरम् । सेतुबंधे तु रामेशं नागेशं दारूकावने ।।

वाराणस्यां तु विश्वेशं त्रयंम्बकं गौतमीतटे । हिमालये तु केदारं घुश्मेशं च शिवालये ।

ऐतानि ज्योतिर्लिंगानि सायं प्रातः पठेन्नरः । सप्तजन्मकृतं पापं स्मरणेन विनश्यति ।।

There is a museum under the control of archeological survey of India (ASI) that houses a number of sculptures from these temples - Uma-Maheshwar, Lakshmi-Narayana, Surya etc. 

Among the main temples, we visited the main Jyotirlinga, Mrityunjaya temple, Pushti Mata mandir, Kuber mandir along with the Brahma Kunda. One can easily sit anywhere in the temple vicinity amongst the deodars to meditate. Such is the peace at this place.

Kuber temple

Shiva-Parvati tree

There is deodar tree with one trunk at the bottom splitting into 2 above a certain height to give a sense of 2 trees at the top. It is known as shiva-parvati tree by people given its resemblance with shiva-shakti. 

Shiva-parvati tree

Rain and the Sudden Hail storm
After the temple darshanam, we stopped by a nearby restaurant to eat lunch. There are many home stays and small restaurants serving traditional simple food. Maggie can be found everywhere and is much in demand. Just when we finished the lunch and had a cup of tea, it started raining along with a hail storm. Perfectly planned for us to enjoy the rain and hail surrounded by the deodars. It was amazing experience even though it started getting slightly cold. I was well prepared with my shawl.

Hail storm!

 

From there we started for the Chitai Golu temple. Follow the rest of the journey in other part. 

Kumaon Part 1 - Dol Ashram - Apr 2023

April 29, 2023

Kumaon is one of the regions of Uttarakhand, the northern state of India, also known as devabhūmi - the land of Gods. The name is appropriate and one can experience the same by traveling through the state. Given I have a deep connection with this place, it always excites and gives me peace that is hard to describe while being there in the nature and its simplicity. 

This journey had a number of temples I hadn't visited. Since there are many places in this trip, I am splitting it into multiple posts, this being the first part with the experience of Dol Ashram. 

We left home on Thursday around 7:40am. We went through Bhimtal towards Almora via Dhanachuli. Our first stop was at a tea stall in Dhanachuli. We had tea and bought some sweets. The weather change was quite visible by this time and the air was cooler.

Dol Ashram
From the tea shop in Dhanachuli we started for the the Dol ashram in the Kanara village. This was not planned in my itinerary but since it was on the way now, we decided to visit. I had heard a lot about the place from my family who had all visited and stayed there previously. It's a huge ashram nestled in dense forest surrounded by hills. We reached the ashram at around 11am. Ashram was preparing for the Bhagwat Katha starting from the week after. The ashram was built in 1990, founded by Baba Kalyandas ji who was born in Almora district and later took sanyasa. It is a beautiful Ashram with a temple of Shiva, Hanuman, 9 Durga, Krishna deities and a residential Sanskrit Vidyapeeth for Veda and Vedanga studies. In 2018, the ashram also established the biggest Shri Chakra weighting 1600kgs under the meditation hall in the temple. 

We started for Jageshwar Dham from Dol Ashram. Follow the rest of the journey in other part. 

Kumaon - Garjiya Temple - Apr 2023

April 8, 2023

Garjiya Devi Temple is an old devi temple close to Ramnagar in Uttarakhand. Another close destination is Jim Corbett National Park. The temple is by the side of Kosi River and is built on an isolated hill. It is around 60 km from our home now. This temple has a special place in my heart as it was a frequent destination for us while growing up. Our maternal uncle lived 15km from the temple so all the more reason to visit at that time. 

We went on a Saturday and it was quite crowded that day which also says how much popular t his place is. It took around 2 hours to get to the temple as the queue was quite long. The scenery around is beautiful so it can be enjoyed. Temple also has bhandara though the food was extremely spicy for my palate. 

On the way, one could see the G20 summit preparations with walls along side the road painted with murals featuring the local culture - Chholiya dance the pichoda clad kumaoni woman. 

Varanasi - Kashi - Mar 2023

April 1, 2023

Kashi, the oldest living city in the world has been on my mind since long. The beautiful verse by Adi Shankaracharya in his 5 verse composition of kāśī pancakam describes self, the self shining awareness as kashi in which shines everything - सा काशिकाहं निजबोधरूपा. Its a beautiful verse comparing the tranquility of the mind to the manikarnika ghat which is also the cremation ghat signifying tranquility, putting body identification to rest. The tranquility of manikarnika and the pure flow of river Ganga as the knowledge both are kashi in which the self is understood as kashi - the self shining one in which everything shines. 

I am writing about my journey so that it can be useful to anyone visiting Varanasi. Google map of kashi isn't up to date and thus can be confusing. 

For our visit, we took an intercity train from Lucknow to Varanasi which started Sunday morning 7am and arrived around 1pm at Varanasi junction railway station. From there we took an e-rick to the ghat area. Note that the rickshaw does not go exactly till the ghats and thus some walk is required to get there. On the way we had puri-sabji at Madhur Milan near the ghats. From there we directly checked into the lodge - Ganga darshanam near daśāśvamedh ghat.

Gaṅgā aarti

We went to the daśāśvamedh ghat around 5pm to be there on time for the gaṅgā Aarti. Aarti starts around 6pm and the boats start filling up by 5:30 so one can take a boat ride to see various ghats and then come back close to the daśāśvamedh ghat to watch the aarti while sitting in the boat. We saw major ghats from hariścandra to maṇikarṇikā both of which are known as ghats for performing last rites. We got back to the aarti ghat in time and then stayed in the boat till the aarti completed at around 7:45pm.

Ganga Aarti at Dashashvamedh Ghat

Food
After coming back from the ghat, we started looking for a place to eat. After exploring a bit we decided to eat at the Cafe D Benaras in the market area. Food was good. We had aloo parantha and roti with kadhai paneer. After dinner, some of us had lassi from a road side small shop near our lodge. 

Kāśī viśvanātha

Next morning we were supposed to visit the kāśī viśvanātha mandir early morning at 3am so we decided to retire early in the night by 9:30pm. kāśī viśvanātha is amongst the oldest shiva temples and one of the 12 main Jyotirlingas as per the śiva purāṇa (वाराणस्यां तु विश्वेशं त्र्यम्बकं गौतमीतटे). Next day woke up at 1:45am in the morning and got ready with a good shower. We departed for the mandir around 2:30am and reached there in 10 min by walking. It had rained in previous night so the streets were a little wet. There was already a long queue at the mandir. Even though we had bought the limited reserved mangala tickets, the experience of standing in the queue wasn't worth it on a Monday morning as there were likely lot more people than usual. We were allowed to enter the temple around 3am. Aarti lasted around 45min and then we were allowed to go near the Shivalingam. By that time the local crowd was also allowed to enter the temple thus making it very crowded as everyone was just eager to do abhishekam on a Monday. While it was amazing to see the people and their faith, we were just hoping that it doesn't lead to a stampede. Other days of the week may be better to do mandir darshanam. 

Morning chai
After walking around the temple verandah, we started back for our lodge at 4am. We got some more sleep after getting back. Around 7:30am we walked to the nearest chai stall - Harih Om chai stall and had good morning tea in kulhaḍa.

Ghat walk and Vishwanath Corridor 
Later that morning, we started to walk towards the Vishwanath mandir corridor between daśāśvamedh and maṇikarṇikā ghats. We went inside the corridor but then decided to take the maṇikarṇikā ghat road as belongings were not allowed inside the corridor. We needed to get to gate no. 4 from where to buy the tickets for sugam darshanam as some of us didn't do the early morning visit. Since this is the road that leads to the ghat from the maṇikarṇikā dvāra from the market area, one must see multiple funeral processions on the way. 

Lassi and Breakfast

I wasn't planning on visiting temple again this time so we enjoyed the lassi at the blue lassi shop on the manikarnika ghat road. At least 4-5 death processions passed through while we waited at the shop for lassi. They can make one question the activities of life including eating. It also turned out that the sugam darshanam time were not available that day so everyone decided to eat breakfast at a kachori (a deep fried snack) shop near Manikarnika gate in Gowdolia road. One of the gali there is also famous as kachori Vali gali. 

Sarnath

From there we walked back to the nandi circle and decided to hire auto rickshaw to visit Sarnath. After some price haggling we were able to get a to and fro auto rickshaw which took us to Wat Thai Temple at Sarnath. This was established by Thai dignitaries. There is a Buddhist temple inside and a 80.9 ft Buddha statue along with gardens and a pond with blue lotus from Thailand.

After that we visited the silk shop near by and had lunch at a restaurant called Lazania. After the lunch, we went to the Sarnath stupa and museum. The remains at the museum gave a good view of the temples at the time of Buddha. The temple and architecture remains had Hindu gods.

Sarnath

Assi Ghat and Street walk
From there we got back to Varanasi and stopped at Assi Ghat, the southernmost ghat. We were able to be at the Ganga aarti and then walked back through the narrow streets to our lodge. During this walk one can get a good glimpse of the narrow streets of Varanasi and the optimal use of space for shops etc. There are many guest houses and small eateries on the way. That night we ate dinner at our lodge restaurant. 

Morning Ghat visit
Next morning I went to take an early morning walk at the ghat. The morning scene was quite busy with people taking Ganga bath. You can also find some people using dātuna. Overall everyone was disciplined and respectful of Ganga ji. 

Journey back
That afternoon we took a train back to Lucknow (varanasi-indore mahakaal express). The train was quite good and got us back in 4-4.5 hrs.

Summary
Lodge - Ganga Darshanam near Dashashwamedh ghat. It is a decent facility and 1 minute walk to the ghat. 
Trains - Intercity from LKO to BSB, Varanasi-Indore Mahakaal express from BSB-LKO
Food - street food was the best. 
Places - definitely visit the major ghats - dashashwamedh, manikarnika, assi and others nearby. Visit Vishwanath temple, old kashi streets, temples all around. Take a boat ride to see the ghats. 

Scissor cuts but a Kartari Kartayati

December 23, 2020

Writing after a long time or let's just say I was going through the writer’s block. An alert that this post contains many Hindi/Sanskrit words and some may be unfamiliar but that's fine, probably if you read till the end they won't be strange anymore.

The inspiration for this post comes from a chat with my nephew, niece. The word ‘कर्तनम्’ came as we were listening to a Sanskrit story. They know what कर्तरी is so I casually said ‘a scissor cuts but a कर्तरी (Kartari) कर्तयति (Kartayati)’.

By now you probably know what ‘कर्तरी’ and ‘कर्तनम्’ mean. ‘कर्तरि’ (Kartari) is an instrument for cutting. So a Scissor is ‘कर्तरी’. कर्तरी is also the name of a हस्तमुद्रा (hand-gesture) in Indian classical dance - कर्तरीमुख. This mudra is used to denote separation, death, opposition etc. in dance. Interestingly a similar gesture is used to denote victory which people often use while getting photographed or spoiling them to say the truth. What made me ponder more and more is that, by knowing one word, it is easy to know another one - knowing कर्तरी can give me some idea about कर्तयति without knowing too much about the context, knowing कर्तरी and मुख can help me know कर्तरीमुख. ‘Knowing’ here means that it is possible to form an image of the meaning in the mind without having to explain the 2 words in a particular context. If I know only ‘scissor’ then saying the word ‘cut’ won’t help me much without knowing additional context like a sentence where the two words are used.

If we see more, a comic book has pictures and illustrations but a चित्रकथा (comic) has चित्र. A photo and movie may not have much in common but a moving चित्र is indeed चलचित्र (movie). The books are found in the library but a पुस्तक in पुस्तकालय. The Giraffe is the animal with a long neck but दीर्घग्रीवः is the one with a दीर्घ (long) ग्रीवा (neck). A donkey is a donkey and a zebra is a zebra but a गर्दभः (donkey) can become चित्रगर्दभः (zebra) by drawing a little चित्र on it. Applying butter to a fly doesn’t turn it into a butterfly but adding चित्र to a पतङ्ग (fly) can make it look like चित्रपतङ्ग (butterfly). A mountain and a stone are not related and comparable in size but a शिलाखण्ड: (stone) is a खण्डः (part) of a शिला (mountain). A pen can write but the लेखनी for sure लिखति. A chair can be used to sit but आसन्दः (chair/seat) ददाति (gives) आसः (seat). A window may not bring air, but from the वातायनम्, वात: आयाति. Don’t know how many tires a cycle has but द्विचक्रिका has द्वे (2). The slippers might make one slip but पादत्राणम् protects (त्राणं) the feet (पाद). Glasses can sit anywhere but उपनेत्रम् sits close to नेत्रम् (eye). A handkerchief may be the chief of someplace but करवस्त्रम् is just a simple वस्त्रम्. One may have to do more to worship but only needs to take the उप (near) आसनम् (seat) to the lord for उपासना.

I feel like going on and on but hope you were able to relate to some of it. To me personally, anything written in Hindi and sometimes Sanskrit feels like somebody just added visual illustrations to an English story that was previously written in just plain text. Who doesn’t love pictures?

all errors are completely mine!

शुभ दीपावली

नवम्बर १२, २०२० 

कुछ वर्ष पूर्व दीपावली की स्मृतियों पर लिखा था, हर वर्ष का यही क्रम है, दीपावली आते ही बचपन की अनमोल यादें सतह पर आ जाती हैं -  

आज वो बचपन के दीपावली के दिन याद आ रहे हैं....... 

अम्मा और उनका ऐपण देने के लिए बुलाते रहना,

वो दीयों को पानी में भिगोना,

और पटाखों को दिन भर धूप में सुखाना,

लक्ष्मी जी की मूर्ति बनाने को मम्मी का साथ देना, 

नए कपड़ों को पहनने के लिए मचलना,

लक्ष्मी पूजा के लिए पूरे घर को साथ बुलाना,

दिन भर काले साँप वाली गोलियां जलाना ,

फिर रात को अनार की रोशनी में उछलना, 

सैर करते हुए नानी के घर दिवाली मनाने जाना,

मन भर जाने पर भी एक और मिठाई खाना,

और अगली सुबह पूरे मोहल्ले में दिवाली के खील मिठाई बांटने जाना

आज वो बचपन के दीपावली के दिन याद आ रहे हैं .... 

A love letter to 'Adrak vali chai' (Ginger Tea)

 October 29, 2020

Belmont Teahouse, Portland

My dear ‘Adrak vali chai’,

I am leaving this letter for you on the kitchen countertop so that you read this before we see each other today.

I hope by now you know that we share a bond that is known only to us. When I met you the first time, you moved me beyond my limited world to a place of bliss. Soon your dark complexion became something I could fall for, again, and again. Your spicy nature makes me feel protected every time we meet. Your warmth is absolutely unrivaled. You have that magic in you even when you boil with those violent emotions.

You say you don’t like using fragrances like others, you say you can’t keep up with all the fancy dresses and decorations around. You often tell me how you are told to wear a little elaichi or cinnamon just because the world would adore your beauty a little more. But do you know that this simplicity of yours is what made you shine in my eyes? There seems nothing in the world that I want more when I am with you.

You are my inspiration to get going each day. I wake up craving for your company. I know you don't like to rise early but you still do it for me every single day. I think about why my longings end with you, and a silent sound comes from within that you let me be ‘me’, the one that is at peace. You lift me to cloud nine each day.

Remember the time when we had to be away while we traveled, that was the time I missed you the most. I woke up groggy each day without your company. These days I often excuse myself in between work just to spend some time with you and hold your hands in mine. By now even the coworkers know about you and how precious you are to me.

I am so glad I am getting to spend time with you during this pandemic. While many may be complaining about their partners, I couldn’t have found anyone better than you.

I know you are feeling a little shy and flattered but please take care so you don’t tumble with the overflowing joy :) Looking forward to waking up to your smile each day.

Forever together!

*Raised your eyebrows? This was written as part of an exercise for a writing workshop. The writing prompt was ‘Love Letter to something you love'. The picture is from a teahouse visit in Portland. I would not think of going to a teahouse, at least for the tea, but this one I don't regret. 

मृत्युंजय

सितम्बर ३०, २०२० 

Home 

लगातार लिखते न रहो तो लिखने वाली कलम की स्याही भी सूख जाती है. आजकल बस उस किनारे रखी कलम जैसी स्थिति हो रही है - बार-बार मंथन करने के बाद ही लिखने को विचार आते हैं. डायरी के पन्नो को पलटा तो जैसे बीच में मोड़ के सहेज के रखा कोई पुराना कागज का टुकड़ा मिल गया. काफी समय पहले लिखा था कुछ और उस कागज की तरह किसी किताब के बीच में रख दिया था.

लिखना एक कला ही है, बाकी कलाओं की तरह इसमें भी पढ़ने वाले को मन्त्रमुग्ध करने की शक्ति है. इस बात का अनुभव मुझे बहुत साल पहले एक उपन्यास पढ़ते समय हुआ. मराठी साहित्य के एक प्रसिद्ध लेखक श्री शिवाजी सावंत द्वारा रचित इस उपन्यास के हिंदी संस्करण की प्रति छुट्टियों में पढ़ने को मिली. उपन्यास पढ़ने में मेरी रुचि हमेशा से कम ही रही है और इसकी मोटाई देख शायद वैसे भी सोचा नहीं था कि पूरा होगा. पर इसके विपरीत मेरी पढ़ने की चाल जल्दी ही कछुए से खरगोश की में परिवर्तित हो गयी. 

‘मृत्युंजय’, इस उपन्यास में शिवाजी ने महाभारत के कर्ण को मुख्य पात्र बनाकर लिखा है. मूल उपन्यास मराठी भाषा में है और बाद में ‘भारतीय ज्ञानपीठ’ द्वारा हिंदी अनुवाद प्रकाशित किया गया. उपमा अलंकार के ऐसे अनोखे उदाहरण पढ़ने को मिलते हैं इसमें. उदाहरण के लिए शकुनि मामा राजनीति के बारे में कहते हैं - “राजनीतिज्ञ का मन जंगली चूहे के बिल जैसा होना चाहिए. जैसे यह किसी को पता नहीं चलता वो बिल कहाँ से शुरू होता है और कहाँ जाता है, वैसे ही राजनीतिज्ञ के मन में क्या क्या है इसका किसी को कभी पता चलने देना नहीं चाहिए.” 

इसी पुस्तक के एक संवाद को यहाँ लिख रही हूँ. दुर्योधन और गुरु द्रोणाचार्य के पुत्र अश्वत्थामा के बीच हुए इस काल्पनिक संवाद को पढ़ के जरूर लगेगा कि महाभारत में जिस दुर्योधन का विवरण है वो इस काल्पनिक दुर्योधन से थोड़ी प्रेरणा ले लेता. 

दुर्योधन के मन में इस बात का क्षोभ था कि पाण्डवों को लाक्षागृह में जला कर उसे क्या मिला? उसके जैसे कुरुवंश के राजकुमार को क्या यह शोभा देता है. अचानक उसके मन में प्रश्न उठता है ‘जीवन क्या है?’ ये प्रश्न किसके मन में नहीं आया? दुर्योधन अपने प्रिय मित्र अश्वत्थामा के समक्ष यह प्रश्न रखता है - ‘जीवन क्या है?’ अश्वत्थामा के मन में कुरुवंश के कुमार के लिए बहुत आदर था अतः ऐसे दुर्योधन के सामने जीवन की गुत्थी सुलझाने के लिए शब्द न पाते हुए कहा - जीवन म्यान में रखा हुआ खड्ग है. दुर्योधन की उत्सुकता ये सुन कर और बढ़ जाती है और अपने मित्र को आगे समझाने को कहता है. म्यान शरीर की तरह है और खड्ग की धार उस म्यान में रखा हुआ जैसे शरीर में मन. अश्वत्थामा की कल्पना अभी पूर्ण न हुई थी. आत्मा उस खड्ग की मूठ (hilt) के समान है जिसका उससे सम्बन्ध है भी और नहीं भी. बिना मूठ के न म्यान अच्छी लगेगी और न खड्ग चलाया जा सकता है. 

दुर्योधन के प्रश्न भी अभी समाप्त नहीं हुए थे. आगे पूछा कि शरीर के न रहने पर आत्मा का क्या होता है? या म्यान के नष्ट होने पर मूठ का क्या होता है? अश्वत्थामा को ये याद दिलाना पड़ा कि मूठ को क्या होगा, वो तो कभी म्यान में रहती नहीं है. शरीर के नष्ट हो जाने पर आत्मा का क्या होगा? खड्ग के कारण म्यान में रखी लगती है ये मूठ. ऐसा ही है आत्मा का इस शरीर और मन से सम्बन्ध. 

अश्वत्धामा की अनूठी उपमा की सराहना करें या शिवाजी के निराले लेखन की? शिवाजी सावंत जी का एक और उपन्यास मेरी किताबों की सूची में जुड़ गया है - युगन्धर. 

‘जीवन क्या है?’ - महाभारत काल में (काल्पनिक ही सही) दुर्योधन के मन में यह प्रश्न आया तो उसने अपने मित्र की सहायता से इसका समाधान कर लिया. बीसवीं सदी में एर्विन स्क्रोडिन्गर (भौतिकज्ञ) के मन में फिर यही प्रश्न उठा और उन्होंने इस पर पूरी किताब लिख डाली - What is Life ?. पढ़ी तो नहीं पर दोनों में एक समानता लगती है, जिसके पास जो साधन था उसने उसी से अपने प्रश्नों के उत्तर ढूंढ लिए - खड्ग या भौतिकी, संभवतः उत्तर एक ही मिला होगा.

The exile and the year of disguise

Aug 30, 2020

At Rishikesh

We all know the story of Pandavas exile and then their incognito stay. When Pandavas lost everything in the game of gambling with the Kauravas, the last game of dice forced the Pandavas to accept the condition of spending twelve years in exile and one year incognito such that if they are found during that time, they will need to spend another twelve years in exile. This is mentioned in the Sabha Parva of Mahabharata.

During the twelve years, Pandavas meditated and prepared for the battle they will need to fight for the kingdom after their exile. It most definitely wasn’t an easy time for them. The Vana Parva of the Mahabharata mentions the details about their twelve years of exile in the forest. At the end of twelve years, they had to decide where to spend the next year so they could remain in disguise and not be found by Duryodhana and his allies. Duryodhana being himself, would make all attempts to uncover the Pandavas wherever they may be. Pandavas then chose to be in the kingdom of Virata based on the advice from their priest - Dhaumya. This is mentioned in the Virata Parva of Mahabharata. They decided roles for themselves so that they will be trusted and nobody will find them as Pandavas during that year.

Yudhishthira pretended to be a brahmana and served as an advisor to the king under the name of Kanka. Bhima turned into a cook with the name Vallabha to prepare food for the king. Arjuna used his curse by Urvashi that he would be a eunuch for a year. He became the dance teacher with the name Brihannala for the women of Virata. Nakula became the keeper of Virata’s horses under the name Granthika. Sahadeva became the caretaker of cows as Tantripal. Draupadi turned into queen Sudeshna’s maidservant with the name Sairindhri who pretended to be skilled in dressing hair. An important part of this preparation was to also hide their weapons in a tree so that nobody doubts that they are Kshatriyas. 

The story reminded me of something. It had been thirteen years since I came to the US. Maybe I can call it twelve years of exile and the additional year of incognito stay? This year has felt like incognito, being in disguise so that nobody can figure out the whereabouts. Almost everyone had to play one or more roles to remain in disguise. For some of us, this time is as natural as it probably was for Nakula and Sahadeva. The incognito just fits into our lifestyle and needs. While some others probably had to turn their curse into a blessing and be with it like Arjuna.

Whether one feels like Arjuna, finding themselves in conflict with their identity or is enjoying using one's natural skills, the one-year incognito mode will be over and the battle of Kurukshetra will follow. If the incognito becomes longer, maybe I will be writing on Rama’s return to Ayodhya next year.

all errors are completely mine...

बूंद हूँ या पत्ता ?

जुलाई ३०, २०२० 

कभी कभी एक सूखा पत्ता भी लिखने की प्रेरणा दे देता है। अपनी चाय के कप के साथ धूप सेकने बाहर बैठी थी कि नीचे कुछ चमकता हुआ दिखा। देखा तो ये बूंदें चमक रहीं थीं। पत्ता तो अपने रंग के कारण पहले स्पष्ट नहीं दिखा। सूखे पत्तों को वैसे भी कहाँ देखते हैं लोग। उसका फोटो लेने के लिए थोड़ा हिलाया और उसी में कुछ बूंदें नीचे गिर गयीं।  

इस पत्ते को देख के लगा जैसे कुछ बोल रहा हो। इसी पत्ते की प्रेरणा से कुछ लिखा है। भाव मेरे और भाषा पत्ते की है।  

बूंद हूँ या हूँ पत्ता ?

आखिर क्या है मेरी सत्ता ?

रोज सुबह ये ओस की नन्ही बूंदे

होती हैं द्युतिमान फिर आंखें मूंदे

गतिशील हुआ मैं लगती ठोकर इनके

मिट जाता है अस्तित्व जैसे हों तिनके

पत्ता तो मैं सूखा का सूखा रह जाता

क्यों इतना था सम्मोह समझ ना आता

फिर नई इन्हीं बूंदों को कल सहलाऊंगा

अपने अस्तित्व पर प्रश्न कभी ना उठाऊंगा

***

बुरा जो देखन मैं चला, बुरा न मिलिया कोय

जुलाई १४,  २०२० 

PC: freepik.com

बुरा जो देखन मैं चला, बुरा न मिलिया कोय।

जो मन खोजा अपना, तो मुझसे बुरा न कोय।।

वैसे तो यहीं लिखना रोक सकती हूँ क्योंकि जो लिखने जा रही हूँ वो संत कबीर दास जी ने इस दोहे में दो पंक्तियों में लिख दिया।

आज संस्कृत में लिखी एक रचना के बारे में लिख रही हूँ। श्री श्रीधर अय्यावल (तमिल नाडु के एक भक्त कवि) द्वारा विरचित ‘दोषपरिहाराष्टकम्’ नामक अष्टकम्। जैसा नाम से ही जाना जा सकता है - इस अष्टकम् में ८ श्लोक हैं। इस अष्टकम् का विषय ‘दोष’ और उसका निवारण है। यहाँ बात किसी साधारण दोष की नहीं हो रही है, रचयिता दूसरों में दोष ढूंढ़ने की मानव प्रकृत्ति का विवेचन कर रहे हैं।

ये श्लोक बहुत ही सुंदरता से वसंत तिलका छन्द में लिखे गए हैं। ये वही छन्द है जिसका प्रयोग ‘सुप्रभातम’ में हुआ है जिसे सुबह देवताओं को जगाने के लिए सुनाया जाता है। यहाँ वर्णित श्लोक भी कवि ने ईश्वर अनुग्रह पाने के लिए ही लिखे हैं अतः कहा जा सकता है कि इनका गान भी सुबह सुबह होना चाहिए।

कवि ने श्लोकों की रचना बड़ी ही चतुर शैली में की है जिसकी तुलना विष्णु शर्मा द्वारा रचित पंचतंत्र से की जा सकती है। पंचतंत्र की कहानियां तो आज सम्पूर्ण विश्व में विख्यात हैं। कहानियों को पशु जगत से पात्र लेकर लिखा गया है ताकि पढ़ते समय कहानियों के माध्यम से मानव आचरण की जिन प्रवृत्तियों को दर्शाया है उनसे पाठक को हीनता का अनुभव न हो। पशुओं के माध्यम से नैतिक मूल्यों को पाठक तक पहुँचाना भी सरल हो गया होगा अन्यथा तो पढ़ने वाले आधे में ही भाग खड़े होते।

इस अष्टकम् में भी कवि ने दोष ढूंढ़ने की प्रवृत्ति को केवल अपने माध्यम से ही, अन्य किसी पर आक्षेप न करते हुए प्रस्तुत किया है। यदि उन्होंने अन्य लोगों को अपनी रचना का पात्र बनाया होता तो शायद रचना अपने शीर्षक पर खरी न उतरती और दोष ढूंढ़ने की ही रचना बन जाती। सत्य तो यह है कि दोष ढूंढ़ने की मानव प्रकृत्ति उसके अज्ञान का एक परिणाम है। अधिकतर दूसरों में ढूंढे गए दोष खुद के अज्ञान कारणवश जनित विपर्यय का दूसरे पर अध्यारोपण होते हैं।

कवि ईश्वर अनुग्रह की प्रार्थना कर रहे हैं ताकि अपनी अन्य लोगों के दोषों की गणना करने की अपनी इस प्रवृत्ति से निवृत्ति पा सकें। यहाँ मैं उनके द्वारा लिखे श्लोकों का शब्दशः विवरण न करते हुए उन्ही की शैली में कुछ मुख्य तथ्यों को लिख रही हूँ।

प्रथम श्लोक की तुलना तो सीधे तर्जनी से की जा सकती है। जैसे तर्जनी ये भूल जाती है कि दूसरे की ओर मुख करते समय उसकी बाकी सखियाँ उसके अपने स्वामी की ओर देख रही होती हैं। कवि के अनुसार दोष ढूंढ़ने का उनका ये कौतुक उनके अपने ही दोषपूर्ण होने का आविष्कार करता है। वे बड़ी ही चतुराई से इसे तर्क पूर्वक सिद्ध भी करते हैं। यदि ‘सर्वं खल्विदं ब्रह्म’ से सब कुछ ही वह (‘ईश्वर’) है, और मैं उसी में दोष ढूंढ रहा हूँ तो निश्चयेन दोष मेरे ही अंदर होगा - भला उस ईश्वर में दोष कैसे हो सकता है?

मेरी दोष ढूंढ़ने की कला से मेरे अपने दोष ही सतह पर आते हैं, दोष ढूँढ़ते समय मैं आखिर दिखता कैसा हूँ? इस पर उन्होंने गंदगी में लोटते एक सूअर की कल्पना की है जिसे कीचड़ में रहना पसंद होता है। कीचड़ का उपयोग करके भी कैसी सुन्दर कल्पना की जा सकती है ये आप सोचें।

दोषगणना किन स्थितियों में की जा सकती है इस पर वो ३ स्थल गिनाते हैं जहाँ दोष गिना जा सकता है परन्तु वो फिर भी दोष ना ही ढूंढ़ने का सुझाव देते हैं। ये ३ परिस्थितियां हैं -

१. जब कोई आप पर अपने विकास के लिए निर्भर हो जैसे शिष्य या संतान
२. जब कोई अपनी उन्नति के लिए आपसे अपने दोष पूछे
३. जब कोई इतनी निम्न दशा में हो (व्यसनातुर) कि उसके दोष उसे गिनाने से वो उस व्यसन से बाहर आ जाये

मेरी मानें तो ना ही गिनें दोष या फिर कवच धारण कर के ही ऐसा करें।

यदि इतना समझने के बाद भी दोष ढूंढ़ने की इच्छा हो तो क्या करें? यहाँ पतञ्जलि योग सूत्र के एक प्रमुख सूत्र को भी लिखा जा सकता है - वितर्कबाधने प्रतिपक्षभावनम् (जब अनुपयुक्त विचार बाधा डालें तो उन्हें विपरीत विचारों से निरस्त करना चाहिए)। कवि इसके लिए एक और सुन्दर उपमा देते हैं। अपनी दोष गणना करने की प्रवृत्ति से छुटकारा पाने के लिए मुझे दूसरों में अच्छाई ढूंढनी चाहिए जिससे वैसा ही आनंद मिलेगा जैसा एक भौरें को कमल के फूल की सुगंध लेने से मिलता है।

कवि की कल्पना से प्रेरित होकर मेरी कल्पना शक्ति भी जाग गयी। दोषगणना से साधुत्व देखने का ये दृष्टि परिवर्तन मुझे ऐसा लगा जैसे तर्जनी ज्ञानमुद्रा में परिवर्तित हो गयी हो। जहाँ तर्जनी दूसरों की ओर संकेत करती थी अब वही तर्जनी झुक कर दूसरों की प्रशंसा करती लग रही है। आजकल की व्हाट्सऍप-फेसबुक की दुनिया में इन हस्तकलाओं का प्रयोग करना भी बहुत ही सरल हो गया है।

Fair Isn't Lovely Anymore

जून २५, २०२०

Image from freepik.com

आखिर दशकों बाद अब अमेरिका में हुए जातीय भेदभाव की घटनाओं और ‘Black Lives Matter’ आंदोलन के चलते हिंदुस्तान यूनिलीवर को ये समझ आ गया कि गोरापन सुंदरता का मानक नहीं होता। 'Fair', 'Whitening', 'Lightening' क्रीम जैसे उत्पादों ने भारत में चुपचाप रह कर रंगभेद की आग सालों से सुलगाई है। अब जाकर यूनिलीवर ने ‘Fair & Lovely’ से ‘Fair’ हटाने का निर्णय लिया है। उनके अनुसार वो अब सुंदरता के विविध रूपों को मान देने में अग्रणी भूमिका निभाना चाहते हैं। अकल चरने गयी थी शायद जो भारत में सुंदरता के विविध रूप अब याद आए। आश्चर्य ये है कि अभी भी क्रीम बेचना बंद नहीं करेंगे। 

मैंने ‘Fair & Lovely’ का नाम बचपन से सुना है। सोच रही हूँ घर में शायद आर्थिक तंगी रही होगी वरना हमारी माँ भी ‘Fair & Lovely’ छोड़ दही-हल्दी-बेसन से हमारा रंग न निखारती। एक बार स्कूल के एक कार्यक्रम में मुझे कृष्ण की भूमिका निभानी थी। हमारी शिक्षिका ने आकर अवलोकन किया कि बच्चों ने कुछ श्रृंगार नहीं किया है और हमारे मुँह पर कहीं से लायी ढेर सारी Fair & Lovely क्रीम लगा दी। उसी दिन गोरेपन की गंध कैसी होती है ये पता चला। आज भी सोचती हूँ कि उन्होंने कृष्ण को गोरा बनाने की कोशिश ही क्यों की? 

गोरी चमड़ी का सदियों पुराना प्यार आज भी है शत प्रतिशत बरकरार। पहले केवल एक Fair & Lovely थी पर पिछले दशक में स्थिति यहां पहुंची है कि अब Lakme, Nivea जैसे नामों के whitening version भी बाज़ार में उतर चुके हैं। दोष किसका? गोरों के शासन का या पश्चिम को श्रेष्ठ मानने की विचारधारा का? हर उन माता-पिता का जो आज भी अपने सांवले बेटा/बेटी (?) के लिए गोरे जीवनसाथी की ही अपेक्षा रखते हैं या उस समाज का जो निरंतर गोरेपन को गुणों की खान मान सराहता है?

सौन्दर्य-प्रसाधन का ये व्यापार एकांत में नहीं पलता है। बाहर काले कृष्ण और वेंकटेश्वर की पूजा करने के बाद मन से गोरे रंग के पीछे भागने को पाखण्ड नहीं तो और क्या कहेंगे? 

The Yogic Twist - International Day of Yoga 2020

 Vrikshasana and Gomukhasana at Sunol Regional Wilderness

Tomorrow is International Day of Yoga. The International Day of Yoga has been celebrated annually on June, 21 since 2015. The proposal was introduced by India’s current Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I thought of writing a post today by taking a few excerpts from my dissertation for yoga teachers training. 

Someone at work used this quote by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and it received criticism as folks associated the Modi government with the recent protests and riots in India. I thought this quote was a great way to unfold what yoga is. He quoted it in his address during the opening of the UN General Assembly: 

“Yoga is an invaluable gift of India's ancient tradition. It embodies the unity of mind and body; thought and action; restraint and fulfillment; harmony between man and nature; a holistic approach to health and well-being. It is not about exercise but to discover the sense of oneness with yourself, the world and nature.”

Yoga is often twisted, turned and assumed into something else. Dr. H. R. Nagendra, president of S-VYASA (Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana, India) and also Prime Minister Modi’s Yoga teacher, says, 

“To consider Yoga as yogasanas and yogasanas as physical exercises is to work with limited if not wrong knowledge of Yoga. Similarly, to use the terms "Yoga" and "meditation" is like saying Maths and arithmetic. Even the Yoga masters in India have started using this phrase forgetting that meditation is the seventh limb of the Ashtanga Yoga of Patanjali.” 

The challenges to the problem of this twisting and turning are associated with the journey of Yoga. In ancient India, Yoga used to be part of the mainstream lifestyle. People’s lifestyle and their sadhana was more inline with what the Indian scriptures prescribed as Yoga, a means to get established in the self. 

The society and lifestyle changed and so did the practice and the meaning of Yoga. While we have made great progress in modern science, the studies of the Indian wisdom of Yoga and spirituality from the sages of the past are no longer part of the mainstream education system. Yoga has become limited to being understood as a physical postural practice. Even then most people these days tend to Yogasanas when they are looking to get rid of physical or mental ailment as a means to get rid of stress. While Yogasana is a great practice to control stress levels, it is not completely effective if not continued regularly as a means to get to the root of the problem not just at a physical level but also at the mental, intellectual and psychological level. 

Swami Vivekananda played a key role in introducing Yoga to the western parts of the world. Vivekananda emphasized on meditation and the psychological dimensions of yoga. He constructed a holistic yoga system based on his philosophical interpretation of both the Yoga Sutras and Vedantic thought. Postural Yoga came later when people started focusing on Yoga with the lens of fitness and physical health. 

In the late twentieth century, many different brands of Yoga emerged - Iyengar, Bikram, Vinyasa, Ashtanga Yoga. All of them focus on the postural sequences synchronized with the breath. These were popularized in the west as they are not considered associated with any religious orientation and thus were adopted easily by people of all faiths.

I found many misconceptions and among those one of them was that one should be able to do Shirasasana (headstand) after becoming a Yoga teacher. Shirasasana has its own physical health benefits like other asanas but scriptures or Yoga philosophy do not prescribe any specific asana as the means to get established in Yoga.

My personal experiences told me that the understanding of yoga is narrowed down and postural yoga, if not combined with the Yoga philosophy, is at best a form of Hatha Yoga and misses out on the depth of Indian philosophical wisdom. 

I will be writing more posts primarily focused on the Philosophy of Yoga based on my understanding. It helps set the right expectations for oneself. For example, the knowledge can help eliminate false perceptions where one may think that yoga is for flexible and lean people, yoga is too easy or too hard or yoga is about mastering the asanas. The knowledge can motivate one to adapt and continue the Yoga keeping the higher goal in sight.