Travels

 travels

i am jaganmohan retired bank official-widower

all my children are married and settled abroad

i am free of commitments in India

Not being interested in becoming “USA returned” parent US Citizens

i decided to travel and see india -the real unseen india of the masses

The Sapta Puri are seven holy pilgrimage centres in India. The tirthas (pilgrimage centres) are: Ayodhya (Rama), Mathura (Krishna), Haridwar (Vishnu), Varanasi (Shiva), Kanchipuram (Parvati), Ujjain (Shiva) and Dwarka (Krishna).

first stop Vrindavan-where the Lord spent His childhood

i wander around the lanes of this sacred city which reminds everyone about the childhood exploits of Krishna (as told in Bhagavatha and other myths)

i went to Mathura famous for krishna’s birth in underground prison .

The Keshav Dev Temple is a reminder of this sacred place and moment.

Ground near the temple was artfully decorated with flowers .i asked a bystander how this was done

he replied “it is sanjhee -art of decoration with flowers”

holi was fast approaching and the area resounded with dholaks and folk songs (rasiya) being practised.

It reminded me of Krishnas rasaleela dances.

some women went by dancing with a column of deepas on the head.i was told that this is

Charkula a traditional folk dance of the Braj.

back in brindavan i went to Govinda Deva temple(1590).It was interesting to hear that Lord Chaitanya first “discovered” in a spiritual trance all the places associated with krishna leela in mathura and brindavan.

Pracheen Meerabai temple reminded me of Mira bai who spent her lifetime singing about the Lord.it seems she spent last 14 years of her life here.

monkeys and cows were seen almost everywhere.

strangely many nepalese -devotess as well as students were seen around vrindavan.Bhajankuti Ashram was established by a nepalese saint 150 years ago caters to these nepalese.

” kuch paisa dedo dada ”

elderly women in white begging….

i had heard of these “vrindavan widows”- abandoned widows seeking sanctuary with the Lord of vrindavan

but living in misery.

In a small temple, some of them are sitting cross-legged on the courtyard floor while young volunteers slosh out piles of rice and dal.

அய்யா ஏதாவது பிச்சை போடுங்களேன்

voice in tamil broke my musings

tamilnad in vrindavan? i couldn’t hide my surprise

யார் நீங்க எப்படி இங்கே வந்து சேர்ந்தீங்க

தெரிஞ்சு என்ன பண்ணபோறீங்க

இல்லம்மா வந்து …

எல்லார் கதை மாதிரிதான்

கணவன்(கயவன்) பொழுதுபோக்குக்காக வேறிடம் போனான்

நான் போக்கிடம் இல்லாதவளானேன்

(குழந்தை இல்லை)

கடவுளை வேண்டினேன் வழிகாட்ட

யார் மூலமாகவோ கேள்விப்பட்டேன் இந்த இடத்தை பற்றி

எப்படியோ வந்து சேர்ந்தேன்

இங்கு தங்குவதற்கு வாடகைக்கு தான் பிச்சை

அன்னமிட அநேக யாத்ரிகர்கள்

எப்படியோ நாள் கழிகிறது …

i wondered …one of the many radhas around Krishna

may be this is one of his Leelas…

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Most had travelled here from West Bengal- often by themselves and many leaving behind friends and grandchildren.

Saif Ali Das is just 60 years old but she looks much older and her walk is lopsided. Her husband was a drunk, she says, who died 12 years ago after a fall.

She had a daughter who died in hospital and a son who was murdered over a land dispute. After his death she was left entirely alone and fled to this place that she had heard was safe.

Sondi is a tough 80-year-old whose husband died young, she had to bring up her four children by herself. It is her daughter-in-law who effectively threw her out, saying it was her own husband who kept the family going and “as you have not got a husband you will have to look after yourself”.

For many of these Bengalis, surrounded by Hindi speakers, it is as if they are living in a foreign land. Some are feisty and resentful, others broken and afraid.

Dasi has been living alone in Vrindavan for the past 15 years and feels pushed into dedicating her life to the devotion of Radha.

She gets paid a few coins for singing devotional songs in the temples.

Many of these servants of god appear to live tragic lives on the streets of this romance-drenched town.