Pilgrimage in INDIA - 2006 February by Jayant Doshi

Any holiday to India has to have an element of pilgrimage in it; any place of interest in India always has some religious significance attached to it, otherwise it is not worth

visiting. But the latest Bhagini trip had an important pilgrimage attached to its itinerary, and as such the interest and enthusiasm of the group was different from other trips. Fifty three passengers and the manager were at the airport at six on the evening on 23rd February at the start of the tour. Health had taken toll of three other passengers who had to cancel their trip at

the last moment. Just like at the start of every trip, the President of Navnat and other committee members of Bhagini were at the airport to wish everyone a good trip. Each passenger was given a lunch box to

tide them over till meal was served on the flight. We arrived at lunch time next day to the city of joy – Kolkatta. We just had a passing glance at the city on our way to the hotel. What we saw were dilapidated, derelict, colonial dusty buildings, hut type shops, crowded narrow streets and foot paths that badly needed attention in this city of Joy. This is the city where the British first established their trading post and then slowly entered rest of the country. This is the city of Rabindranath Tagore, the Noble prize winner for literature; this is where Mother Theresa took the street children into care and received world acclaim for her wonderful work. The economic miracle and regeneration being seen in other parts of the country seemed to have bypassed Kolkatta. Poverty seemed rampant in the city. But our itinerary was such that we were not to see any of the important sites in the city. We started our tour with a visit to Kali temple. In this part of India, Goddess Kali has highest regard and importance in their religious lives. We left Kolkatta next morning to go to Samet Sikhar. We had lunch en-route at Durgapur. When we reached our destination, we passed through desolate, poor and little developed villages of Parsavnath and Madhuban where the sacred mountain of Samet Sikhar is situated. We reached our destination after a long tiring day of bumpy ride on coaches that were not that comfortable.

Our coaches were parked outside the dharamshalas (rest houses for pilgrims) where we were staying for the next two nights. There were road works going nearby and we had little space in which to unload the baggage. With a generous weight allowance, and with the desire to give their old clothing to poor people, the volume and quantity of baggage was far in excess of what is comfortable for such coach trips. All the pleas and warnings by organisers seemed to have been ignored by all. To make our problem worse, there was a throng of people (at least fifty) who flocked our coaches expecting some work. We had to ensure that no bag got stolen and had to tackle the problem with care. We downloaded few bags at a time,

and ensured that each porter was accompanied by our member. We accomplished the task without any loss, and that was an achievement under the circumstances.

As Vatican in Rome is for Cathloics, Mansarovar and Kailas is for Hindus, Mecca is for Muslims, Jerusalem is for Christians and Jews, in the same way Samet Sikhar is for the Jains. The mountain has the foot steps of twenty two of the twenty four Tirthankars; each pair of steps has been enshrined in small temples. Every Jain has the desire to do the pilgrimage to this place once in their life time; and for all the tour

members, this was the most important purpose of their joining this tour. After a delicious dinner, everyone retired

early. We had to wake up before 3.30 in the morning, and start the pilgrimage by 4.00. There was so much joy and happiness all around that all members of the tour were ready well before time. The street outside our residence was packed with pilgrims and people offering their services with dolly. As the walk up the mountain was considered very steep and difficult, almost all the members of the tour booked a dolly, some booking one between the couple. Dolly is a chair tied to two poles, and carried by four men. This allows the person to sit on the chair with ease, while other type of dolly required a person to sit in cross legged position which is quite uncomfortable for most. While all the members of our group were grappling with getting a dolly, I decided to make a move and start walking. At the end of the street, where we started our pilgrimage, is the temple of Bhomiyaji. There is a lot of myth on which the temple has achieved its popularity and importance. Bhomiyaji implies a guide who will direct one in the right direction, and will stop one from getting lost or going astray. The belief goes that everyone must go and worship at this temple before starting the pilgrimage. It was said that if one did that, then some dogs come from no where and keep walking in front of the pilgrim, and perhaps guiding the pilgrim. I did not wish to offend any feelings and followed the ritual without actually putting much faith in it. I did see some dogs, but they were actually looking for food rather then guiding me, and they kept coming and disappearing rather then being there most of the way. I was right. The myth was built up to create that faith and suspicion in

the pilgrims. I knew there was no truth in it. Over the centuries, Brahmins depend on religion for their livelihood, and they create such myths and temples to keep their livelihood secure. This was so true in this case, and this can be seen in every corner of the country. I was not taking the dolly, and I was confident that I would be able to walk. I started while others were still arranging their dollies, and with my speed of walking, I was soon far ahead of most of the crowd in front. It was cool in the morning and the mountain had proper steps built so walking was quite easy and I could walk at a fast pace. The breaking of the dawn, with light rays showing through the trees

and over the hills gave a wonderful sighting. Then the golden rays of the sun peeped from behind the hills, and throwing their rays on other hills, and one could see the glow

on those hills. The beauty of nature was astounding, and walking alone in that nature, my mind began to wonder; I began to think of the creator, the nature and religion. God created this wonderful earth of ours; the mountains and the valleys, the rivers and oceans, forests and greenery – and the endless mysteries of our universe. He created life, and put all types of life on this planet from tiny insect like ant to huge animals like dinosaurs; and gave us this wonderful life and body. Man imagined Him in

his own image, and created His idols; and then put those idols in temples, and elevated Him to position of esteem and respect by building temples on high hills and mountains. We travel long distances to visit those man made places of pilgrimage. But He is everywhere. We worship Him, but ignore His creations. We perform all sorts of rites and rituals, but fail to take care of the nature and beauty He has created. We go to

worship in far away places, but we do not have time to admire and take care of His creations which He has endowed to us in the form of natural beauty. While walking alone, I was pondering over all these thoughts. Dawn was just breaking through, and we could see the glow in the east horizon. It was calm and peaceful. The joy of walking on these mountains is immeasurable; it has to be experienced, it cannot be described. With dawn, life seemed to come to earth. Birds were flying in the sky. Wind was blowing the tree leaves in unison and creating a musical sound. He has given us this wonderful body; we have time to pray to Him but we do not have time to take care of the same body given to us by Him. I should be grateful to Him for giving me this life and for giving me a healthy body. It is my supreme duty to take care of what he has given to me. Instead of thinking of myself and my future in lives to come, I should use the gift given by Him to help others – to help those who are not that fortunate, and need my help. If I take good care of this body then I will be able to offer help and not be a burden on others. To me, this is what He intended of us. To me, this is

the supreme religion. We are told that He is every where; He is within us also and yet we go out looking for Him, but do not look where He is. We do not take care of what He has created and given to us. My mind was awash with all these ideas and thoughts and I could not come to any answer. We remember and build monuments in memory of great men of history. We praise and recite their wise teachings. We celebrate their birth days, and we build statutes and temples in their memory. We learn their teachings, but we fail to adopt those teachings in our lives. We give more importance to their teachings, and

build rites and rituals around those teachings; but when it comes to understanding and implementing those teachings in our lives then we totally fail. We recite the religious sayings, but we do not take time to understand and adopt what those sayings are telling us. Religion teaches us good way of living, provided we put those teachings into practice. But if religion is just practicing the rituals, and believing in the myths built around it over the centuries, then it just becomes a religion. We create a religion, but we forget the creation of the creator whom we believe to be following in that

religion. Religion teaches us to love others; we resort to violence just to protect that religion. Religion teaches us

to be truthful in life, and we resort to lies as and when it suits us. Religion teaches us to forgive; we claim to follow that, but in reality we do not practice it in life. We spend more time in following the rituals of religion and little time to understand and practice the same religion. The sun just appeared over the horizon, and the peak on the opposite side was glowing with golden rays. It was so wonderful to look at. I walked at speed and I was near Gautam temple before seven. I decided to finish one of the highest peaks before going to Jal Mandir where every one was going to meet. I walked to the Chandrapraphu peak. The path was steep in places, and difficult to tackle. It is believed that there are foot steps of twenty two tirthankars on this mountain, and I could see small temples scattered on the various small peaks on the way. After visiting the highest peak, I walked down to Jal Mandir where many of my colleagues had already reached. This is where the main pooja was to take place and partaking people took a bath before starting the ceremony. I could see smiles and pleasure on all faces. This was the ultimate step in their pilgrimage, and there was joy that they completed the pilgrimage without any hindrance or obstacle. The pooja took place in the temple. After pooja we were served with our breakfast cum lunch. Just after noon, we started walking back, but taking the route that would take us to the third peak where the temple of Parsavanath was located. The actual temple was high up, with some steep daunting steps deterring many from climbing those steps.

We were back by five in the evening. I did not feel any tiredness, but I took a good massage, and then a bath refreshed me. Just when we had finished dinner, one of the members tripped and injured his forehead. He was taken for first aid across from our hotel. Later we spent quite some time trying to find some medical help but without much success. There was hospital in town which did not deal with emergencies and was closed. The local doctor was away, and we needed to travel some distance to go to another town. As the patient seemed to be fine, we decided to wait till morning for any further action.

Everyone was happy that the pilgrimage had been completed successfully. The joy and smiles were distinctly visible. Our trip has just started, but it appeared as if we had

successfully completed it. One of the group members fell sick; he had fever and bad throat. While he suffered from it for days, or weeks, the same ailment slowly afflicted literally every member of the group, picking up one by one. Through out the trip, there was not a day gone by when one or other member was not affected; and many members suffered from the symptoms long after coming back home.

Like almost all days, it was an early morning wake up at five, and we left for Rajgir at nine. On the way we visited

Rajuvatika where Lord Mahvir achieved Keval Gyan (ultimate knowledge), and where his foot prints are preserved in a temple. We reached after dark to Veerayatan in Rajgir. It was a long tiring day for every one and after reaching and sorting out the baggage, it took even longer time. It was dark and we had to wait around the coaches and bags till all bags were sorted out and taken to our rooms. Rajgir, or Rajagriha as it was known originally, is situated in the State of Bihar, and is 65 miles south-east of Patna, the capital city of Bihar. Rajagriha, which literally means the residence of the King, has been associated from time immemorial with mighty empires, which once held sway over the entire length and breadth of India and beyond. It had also the privilege of association with great and mighty men, who though long dead, are even today influencing the mind and spirit of a fairly large portion of humanity, spread over the entire civilised world. Amongst these are the names of Lord Mahavira and Buddha, who are associated with the two great religions of Jainism and Buddhism respectively. Rajagriha remained the capital of the great Magadha Empire for centuries. Rajgir has five hills and Veerayatan is situated at the foot hills of these hills. It is said that Lord Mahavira, and thirty years later Lord Buddha, came to these hills and spent years in meditation, and that is where they achieved ultimate

knowledge. It was because of this importance that a Jain muni some thirty years back established Veerayatan. The idea was to establish a hospital for the local people and offer them eye operations. Now some sadhvis run this hospital, and have expanded their activities to other parts of the country and in other fields. We had our own cooks who prepared our evening meal, and we had dinner after settling down in our rooms. After dinner we were called to the meditation centre where one of the sadhvis gave a sermon followed by prayers. After the prayers some of us went and saw an exhibition on the life of Mahavir which is housed in one of the other buildings. Next day the plan was to go to

Kshatrayakund and Lachhavad, birth place of Lord Mahavir, but we were told scare stories by our manager and the sadhviji, and most members of the group decided not to

go there. While regretting that change of plan, it turned out for the good as we visited Budh Gaya which was much more fascinating and worth a visit. We travelled to Budh Gaya. A guide said that the Budh Gaya, which literally means Budh has gone, has been named as such when Buddha left the town where he achieved the ultimate knowledge. However, we did not leave till 9.00 and by the time we reached there it

was 11.15 when we were told that all the eight Buddhist temples close at noon. While others were thinking about it I

took a riksha and visited all the temples. Each temple was built by one of the overseas Buddhist country like Japan, Thailand, Vietnam etc. Each temple had class of its own. Money has been spent lavishly, and the temples are well maintained. I took some wonderful photos of the temples and the giant Buddha statutes in gold in each of these temples. I had to rush on each temple and did not get time to appreciate any of the temples. I visited the main Budh Gaya temple where Buddha sat under the papal tree for the first week. While the original tree is long gone, it is claimed that a branch of the original tree was taken to Sri Lanka and from there a branch was brought here and tree replanted. After that he spent a few weeks in the same area but in different places and different positions. One week he spent on a red stone throne where he achieved enlightenment and got the name Buddha. He spent one week in standing posture and gazing at the papal tree. A shrine has been built here. One week he spent walking up and down a path, and where stone steps shaped like lotus were constructed. When the British came, those steps were badly damaged and they rebuilt those steps. He spent another week in a place which is now a lake. It is believed that when he was in meditation, it rained heavily and formed that lake. He spent a few more weeks under different trees, and each place has a monument built to remember those weeks of meditation. His foot steps have also been preserved in concrete. In the evening some of us went to hot water springs nearby, and refreshed ourselves in hot sulphur spring waters.

Next day we visited some of the nearby temples .We used horse carts to do the travelling. First we visited Kundalpur. The Digambara believe that Lord Mahavir was born here, though some historians say that he was born in Vaishali. Pawapuri is where Lord Mahavir attained Nirvana in 490 B.C. and as such is an important site of Jain pilgrimage. It was here that Lord Mahavir gave his very first and his very last sermon to his disciples. A white marble temple called Jal Mandir has been constructed on an island in the centre of a large lotus lake to commemorate the spot where he was cremated. North of the lake lies an old temple built over the spot where Lord Mahavir

died. It is believed that originally the lake did not exist but crowds of people taking a pinch of the sacred soil from the holy spot to make the usual Tikka on the forehead, created a great hollow which later formed the lake.

We visited the ruins of Nalanda University, which is the second oldest university in the world. It is said that Lord Mahavir spent fourteen rainy seasons at Nalanda, and Buddhist literature also have references to Buddha visiting this place. It was in late seventeenth century that the ruins of Nalanda were located and identified. Excavations have taken place over the

centuries and still continuing. From details supplied by a Chinese visitor, the university was residential and had accommodation for over four thousand

students. It was famous for its disciplined life and strict Buddhist code. Students came from all over India, and other countries, and the entrance tests were hard. It is said that seven out of ten entrants failed to enter the university. The University was first built in fifth century B.C., and improvised over the centuries. The ruins are spread over a vast area. The fact such an institution of education existed in those days made me proud of my ancestry and of Indian civilisation and at the same time it saddened me that the great institution had died without passing its greatness to the posterity. But the highlight of the day’s sightseeing were two Buddhist temples, the most impressive of all the temples we had visited. Compared with the other temples, they were all well built, spacious, well maintained and impressive to visit and worship or meditate, or walk around in the temple and surrounding gardens. They were in complete contrast to the other temples I visited. One Buddhist temple is on top of a hill, and it is connected by an aerial ropeway, which is the chief attraction of present day Rajgir. The Buddha temple, called the Vishva Shanti Stupa (World Peace Memorial) was constructed at a cost of over Rupees 22 Lakhs by Rev. Fiji Guruji of Japan. After destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by atom bombs, Guruji, in his anxiety to prevent a recurrence of such disaster, decided to propagate the Buddhist Philosophy of world peace and he started constructing Vishwa Shanti Stupas in different countries, and the one in Rajgir was 22nd in the series.

Our last day at Veerayatan was spent by visiting the patients in the hospital, and observing the working of the hospital. Navnat Vanik Bhagini Samaj sponsored an eye camp and photos for the same were taken to commemorate the event. We had a long journey ahead and soon after an early lunch we left for the city of Patna. To night we were travelling on a train, and those who have travelled in India would understand the problems and difficulties we face on such a journey, especially when there are fifty three passengers and their luggage to take care of. We reached quite early to allow us plenty of time to transfer the luggage safely to the right platform. All the women members were taken to a waiting room. Each

male member accompanied the porter with the baggage which was piled on the platform where our train was coming. It took us a long time to carry out this process, and when

we had brought our luggage on the right platform, we had another hour or more to spend before the train was due. The train stops for a limited time only. We just about managed to get all the luggage and passengers on train when it arrived at 10.40 at night, but it was mid night by the time each passenger located their luggage. For many, this was their first ever train journey in India, and for some it was their first ever train journey in their lives. But all is well that ends well.

We all settled down, and soon were fast asleep. Some slept very well with the rollicking of the coaches, and the musical

sound that is made when train moves along the track, but some found it too difficult and could not manage any sleep. We reached our destination at New Jalpaiguri at 1.30. We left for Silguri once luggage was on board and we had delicious lunch ready at destination. Our extra luggage was left at Silguri, and we started our long, arduous journey to Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim. Because of the mountainous terrain, smaller coaches were used. While each coach had 25 seats, and we were only 18 in each coach, still the space was so little and it was so difficult for two passengers to share a seat. For tall persons, it was impossible even to sit on those seats. These uncomfortable seats made our journey even more tiring. The route was along winding roads along the valleys and mountains of the region. Scenery and greenery outside were breathtaking. Sikkim, once an independent Kingdom, and sandwiched between India and China, decided to join Indian Union in 1976. Located on the slopes of the Himalayas, the country has the natural beauty of the Himalayan region. Being a Hindu country, and with strong cultural and language ties with India, this was the obvious choice. It looked quite prosperous with hardly any beggars to be seen any where. In Rajgir we had the problem of keeping a flock of porters away from our bags, while in Sikkim we could hardly find any porters. After the hot weather of the plains of India, we found Gangtok very damp and cold. With no

heating facilities, everyone was wrapped in warm clothes, and asked for extra blankets at night. Next morning, taxis were arranged to take us all on sight seeing. These included some beauty spots, a flower show and views from high points on the peaks surrounding the city. We visited some temples and museums. Previous day’s journey had knocked everyone out, and most of the members of the group decided to sleep in the afternoon which was free time for us. I had sore throat for some days, and a bad cough also, and I felt feverish on this day and remained in bed for the rest of the day.

Next morning we drove to Pelling, a mountain holiday resort, and the drive was through some of the beautiful parts of the country. We had lunch in open grounds along a river.

We reached the resort where we were staying at about 3.30. It was very cold here too. Most members of the group were well prepared with winter coats so the effects were not much felt. After dinner we had a huge bon fire, and lot of singing and enjoying for the first time on this trip. The hectic schedule, and tiring journeys, hardly allowed any time of mingling and enjoying, but here we had the perfect opportunity and everyone took advantage of it.

We rode in mountain jeeps as the terrain made it difficult for our coaches to drive

on those roads. We visited the Khecheopalri Lake. Local people believe that whatever one wishes in front of the lake will come true, and their wish will be fulfilled. Naturally, human mind accepts such beliefs, and many members of our group threw coins in the lake and made wishes. We visited Rimbi Falls, and Kanchenjunga Falls. At the falls, every one walked down to the falls as near as possible to the waters coming down the steep cliff. We visited a Buddhist monastery on the way also. Afternoon was free for us and most members of the group took a rest. One member of the group was taken to hospital accompanied by his close relatives. Next morning we drove from Pelling to Darjeeling, the hill capital of summer time created by the British. With its hills, and inundating valleys, and a pleasant cool climate, it was ideal for the British who could not bear the searing heat of the Indian plains. And now it has become an important holiday resort for the Indians, and especially for the newly weds. With its undulating hills, it has ideal conditions for growing tea, and Darjeeling tea is world famous, and unsurpassed in its position as the best tea grown any where. It was a full days driving through the mountainous terrain, and very tiring in the not so comfortable coaches. The high light of the day was a lunch on the route along a river. Darjeeling was pretty damp and cold at this time of the year. The whole city is built on the hills, and quite a challenge for the best walkers. Next morning, we went for sight seeing, and the sight seeing included visiting Ganga Maya and the Rock Garden. Sandwiched between two hills, the valley in between has

been used to create a wonderful garden with paths and steps winding along the slopes of the valley, planted with some beautiful flowers. Many of the group had enchanting walk in the garden. We were entertained to some local dances by some youths in an arena in the garden. Later we visited a museum, mountain institute where mountaineers are trained, and a zoo with some exotic wild life in quite spacious and spread out cages. Most of the members spent the afternoon shopping. While walking down to the shops seemed easy, the thought of climbing back those steep hills deterred many from venturing too far from the hotel.

Next morning we were visiting Tiger Hill which is 11 kms from Darjeeling at an altitude of 2555 metres, and the site provides a fine view of the Everest and Kanchenjunga

peaks, and a lovely sight of sun rising from the horizon. We were woken at 3.30 in the morning and taken to the Tiger hill. There is a restaurant with an upper floor with glass windows all round where every one sits in the freezing cold, to view the rising sun, and a possible sighting of the two mountains. However, the large crowds were disappointed due to mist and clouds obscuring the view of the mountain peaks, and the rise of the

sun. Our early morning wake up was in vain; and to add to that disappointment, when we came back to

hotel we found that power supply in the area was disrupted due a tree falling over power supplies. We were supplied with buckets of hot water and had to take our baths with that. Some of us went to visit the famous botanical gardens. It was a nice walk down the steep slopes of the town, and gave us an in sight into the life style of the city. While originally we had planned to take a taxi back on the steep slopes, we actually walked up those slopes and it was interesting and satisfying walk for us all. At lunch time we took the world famous Darjeeling narrow trek small train round the town. The slow moving train was an experience in itself. Next morning we left early to visit Mirik Lake. The huge lake had a path around it and some of us had a wonderful walk in that serene beautiful setting. We visited two temples during our walk. Some members did horse riding while others just relaxed and enjoyed the beauty of the place. We had hot lunch served on the shores of the lake. After that we left to visit a very impressive monastery. To top it all, we went to the border of Nepal, called Pashupati Fatak, and had the satisfaction of crossing into Nepal. After paying the visa fees, and hoping to see Nepal and do some shopping, we were disappointed as there were limited number of shops, and most were closed. As this was the last but one night in India, and as the cooks were leaving us from this point, at dinner time some emotional

speeches were made. The cooks were praised for some wonderful selection of cuisine in all the meals on our trip, and were given awards. Words of praise were said from all, and there was satisfaction that the tour had been good, and that over all everyone had enjoyed the trip. A cake, with decorations on the table, was made to celebrate the birthday of one of the group members. Next morning, we drove to Bagdogra from where we were to take our flight to Kolkatta. On arrival in Kolkatta, we were taken to hotel. Our baggage was to be kept in the coaches, but the drivers refused to take responsibility and all the baggage was taken out and put in the lobby. We were

given few rooms for freshening up. Everyone had prepared themselves with special clothes for the gala night, but in view of the circumstances few bothered to change into them. The gala night was not as grand an affair as it normally is or should be. Instead of live music or disc jockey, we had to accept a tape recorder. Instead of sit down dinner with service, we had to sit on chairs in a circle, and help ourselves to the dinner. However, everyone enjoyed the evening with some lively talks and photo sessions.

But this was our last night, and everyone was more worried about the departure and their next destination. After being together for seventeen days, a bond had been built between all the members of the group and there was sadness in saying farewells. Final good byes were said, some tears shed, promises of keeping in touch were made, and the good moments of the trip were recounted. Final speeches were made, and after final good byes, we departed for the airport. Some left for Mumbai while others joined in to take their flight to London from Mumbai. The difficulties of the trip were forgotten, and everyone talked of the good times we had. The sickness and virus that seemed to have affected most of the members, and the hardship on poor coaches and the long journeys were memory of the past; the good food, the satisfying completion of the pilgrimage and the good times we had were upper most in all minds.

By midnight we were at Kolkatta airport; and soon we were on the flight taking us to Mumbai for some, and to London for others. In spite of it all, a group holiday is always enjoyable, and this was no worse in that respect. Your comments to : jubhai@aol.com For trip photos ask and I will send invitation to see photos on Ofoto web site.