ON THE GHATS OF BANARAS

Narrow lanes

cattle and dogs seen on the way

           

Kashi Viswanath Temple

                                              














                          1)         The town appeared too quaint and old
                                      With moss-grown roofs and moldering walls
                                      With shaded casements and pillared halls
                                      Fringed with designs of faded gold
                                      With winding muddy streets not wide
                                      With foul odor coming from every side .

                          2)         The uneven paths and obstructing beasts
                                      Make you wonder at this sordid state
                                      The oldest city adored as heavenly great
                                      To sustain its fame none paid attention least
                                      The priestly class struggles to better their ways
                                      From whom we can't escape but have to pay.

                          3)         Through crowded lanes of temple-city
                                      Where vendors hail you to buy their ware
                                      Displaying flowers, fruits and idols rare
                                      Make you brood and look for true sanctity
                                      At every nook men trade and bargain for everything
                                      No touch of divinity in your bosom rings.

                         4)          A vast expanse of water, pure Ganges seems
                                      The cherished goal of so many devotees
                                      Flowing from snowy heights of purity
                                      Welcomes all to her sun-lit sparkling streams
                                      Her children to take their holy dip and pray
                                      For her motherly blessings in every way.

                        5)           A festive spirit with devotion combined
                                      Enthused pilgrims to chant her names aloud
                                      The mighty river drew a multitudinous crowd
                                      The broad-stepped ghats beside the river remind
                                      The gradual progress of men in course of time
                                      From selfish depths to noble heights sublime.

pilgrims on ghats

 Pilgrims taking holy bath

                  

Ganga Aarti

People sailing in boats

                         6)          A fitting backdrop to this Great Ganges indeed
                                      These lofty mansions looking from above
                                      Structured in ancient style, fit expressions of love
                                      Delivered from earthly snares of lust and greed
                                      And feel the holy touch of Ganges near
                                      Their feelings of devotion still we hear.

                        7)           This place gained fame as eternal house of Lord
                                      Sanctified by Ganges, since immemorial days
                                      The seat of salvation, purity and grace
                                      Where great sages and gods did penance hard
                                      And installed countless idols with reverence intense
                                      Where Death  delivers souls to eternal heavens.

                       8)            The Ganges thrills our hearts, a soul-elevating scene
                                       In fresh light of the blossoming dawn
                                       With fluttering flags the boats move smoothly on
                                       The ghats assume a pious view serene
                                       The rosy globe of sun worships the golden dome
                                       As pundits pour oblations chanting OM.

Panch Ganga Ghat

Manikarnika Ghat

                          









                      9)              In the dusky glow of twilight, ghats are filled
                                       With crowded pilgrims who eagerly wait
                                       To view Aarti to Mother Ganges Great
                                       A soul-inspiring sight as all are thrilled
                                       As priests holding huge lamps on ghats do stand
                                       Waving Aarti to sparkling Ganges Grand.
                                                                     
                                     
                      10)            The ghats look lively with devotees' throng
                                       As bathing pilgrims offer lamps afloat
                                       The priests recite prayers from moving boats
                                       Great Ganges flows like an epic-song
                                       The funeral pyres beside the ghats ablaze
                                       Death too a celebration at this sacred place.

Polluted waters

Drainage water flowing into the river

    


                     




                      
                      11)            Let cleanliness with our pious acts blend 
                                       Let us not fill her streams with tons of waste
                                       Befouling her Himalayan waters so chaste
                                       What use if authorities millions spend
                                       To clean this river of perennial fame ?
                                       Yet all is wasted and  who is to blame?

                     12)             So many dead bodies and refuse thrown
                                       Industries destroy life and poison her streams
                                       At every nook pollution reigns supreme
                                       Is this due reverence to pure Ganges shown
                                       Can we create a river in her pristine state ?
                                       Let us mend our ways before it is too late.
                                               
                                              
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                26th December, 2015                                      Somaseshu Gutala
             
               


                   
                                             
                                   

                    

A Brief Note on Ghats of Banaras

 

Lord Vishwanath

   

Dharbhanga Ghat

Boats near Ghats

   Banaras or Kashi (Varanasi) reflects the soul of India. This pilgrimage center is venerated as a worth-visiting place at least once in one's life. This place is regarded as the eternal abode of Lord Shiva who informed gods and great rishis that he would like to stay there for ever. So this place is called "Avimukta Kshetra" (a place never abandoned by Lord) or Ananda Vana (a place where you find spiritual joy). At this place even death is welcomed with joy as it is believed that people who have the fortune of leaving their mortal bodies here will attain salvation. When Lord Shiva came here, all other gods came down to be in his blissful company and worship Lord Vishwanath ( god of all worlds). The presiding deities of eight directions and nine planets along with seven sacred rishis and gods did penance and installed innumerable idols (Shiva Lingas) to show their intense devotion. Lord Vishnu dug a lake with his holy discus (Sudarshan Chakra) and did penance to obtain the grace of Lord Shiva.

Banaras is said to be the most ancient city and has a history of nearly three thousand years. It  will exist even after the dissolution of the whole world. This is the place where Shiva manifested himself in the form of spiritual glow or Jyothirlinga. Only great devotees and gods can view that spiritual form. His consort Mother Parvathi manifested here in two forms: one as Shakti Peetha called Visalakshi and the second as Annapoorneshwari, the Goddess who satisfies her countlesschildren  by bestowing food and divine wisdom. Shiva's most powerful incarnation called Kala Bhairava guards this city in all four directions and no evil force is allowed to enter this city.

Ganga Aarti

Lord Kalbhairav

                   











Apart from this Kashi or Varanasi became more prominent by the presence of Goddess Ganga who flowed from the holy feet of Lord Vishnu and through the matted locks of Lord Shiva, who restrained her overwhelming speed so that she can flow down to earth without inundating the whole world. As the holy river flowed, many of her tributaries like Gomati, Gandaki, Kosi, Alaka Nanda, Mandakini, Sarayu and Yamuna joined her during her long journey covering about 2,525 kms. In Kashi two tributaries, Varuna and Asi  join Ganga from the Northern and Southern borders. Many famous ancient kingdoms and civilizations flourished on her banks. Ancient cities like Varanasi, Patna, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Allahabad and Ayodhya became holy pilgrimage spots. Kingdoms like Anga, Magadha, Kosala and  Kashi rose to prominence on the banks of Ganges. Great sages, scholars and philosophers came here to devote their lives in meditation and spiritual speculation. Lord Gautama gave his first sermon in Saranath ( just ten kms from Varanasi) in 589 B.C. In spite of facing many foreign invasions Banaras remained as the strong citadel of spiritual knowledge (Sanatana Dharama) preaching universal brotherhood and peace.  The present temple of Lord Vishwanath was built by the Queen of Indore, Rani Ahalyabhai in1776  and the 15.5 meter-high temple spire was  covered with gold by Ranjeet Singh, king of Lahore in 1835. It is said that there used to be  nearly 2000 temples in and around Kashi.  But in 1194 the soldiers of Qutubuddin Aibak destroyed one thousand temples and later during Shah Jahan's time nearly seventy-six temples were destroyed in Kashi.

Apart from the majestic Ganges the various ghats (nearly 87 in number) all along the bank of the river created a very impressive and eye-catching spectacle where one can see crowds of people taking their holy bath and worshiping Ganges with flowers and lighting lamps placed in leaf cups. The religious fervor of the people resonates everywhere near the ghats. Just perched above the top of the ghats many hermitages. shelters and temples were built lending a sense of grandeur and sacredness all around. Most of these ghats were built by Maratha kings in seventeenth century. Rajas of Jaipur, Scindia and Dharbanga built palatial mansions above the ghats to stay in Kashi and witness the Ganga celebrations.  The famous ghats are Manikarnika ghat, Panchaganga Ghat, Dasawamedha Ghat, Harischandra Ghat, Hanuman Ghat, Dharbhanga Ghat, Kedar Ghat, Shivala Ghat and Assi Ghat. In the evening the Ganga Aarti given at Dasawamedh Ghat is a grand spectacle to see. In the twilight the glowing lamps and torches along with chanting of hymns fills everyone with a sense of devotion and pious delight.

Yet in spite of having deep reverence and intense devotion for this perennial river, Indians paradoxically have made this holy river of purity the fifth most polluted river in the world. Industrial wastes, dead bodies, garbage and plastic material madethis heaven-born river polluted for many decades. Though 40% of India's population gets water from this river, nearly 2,900 million tons of sewage is let out into this river every day. A very sad and stunning fact which questions the true sense of our devotion to this deified flowing river. Though Ganga Action Plan was started in 1980's it has not produced any tangible results. Many people sat on indefinite strike demanding purification of this river. In 2014 Namami Ganga Project was started by our beloved Prime Minister, Sri Narendra Modi who was an ardent advocate of Swachchata Movement. Let us hope that under his able guidance this mega-Project will create awareness in the society to keep all rivers clean on which our survival depends. After all, without cleanliness how can we expect to feel true Godliness ? Our ancestors knew the vital role of water in existence and so in Sanskrit, the word "Jiva" means not only "life"  but also "Water". What a meaningful coincidence !

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  20th December, 2015                                                              Somaseshu Gutala

On Mt.Titlis

Glacier Park

Snow Tubing on Ice

   







   In the glacier park we saw huge mounds of snow with deep slopes of undulating ice. Many people were gliding down the slopes seated on inflated rubber tubes to feel the thrill of skiing on the smooth ice and experiencing the sudden jerks as they moved up and down the ice mounds. As I glided down, the rapid downward movement with sudden twists and turns made me a little bit nervous and I tightened my grip due to the fear of being thrown out like a feather in the air from my gliding tube. Luckily I held on to my tube till it came to an abrupt stop. I had to climb up to the ground dragging the rubber tube behind me. This proved very difficult as the ice beneath my feet is very smooth and sagging.I lost my foothold and slipped many times.The assistant standing above saw my predicament. He held out his hand and pulled me up along with the rubber tube. Some others also faced this problem and got up at last with the help of others. This experience of snow-tubing taught me a lesson to understand the problems of mountaineering, and the hardships of treading on slippery ice. How much fortitude and grit are required for the heroic mountaineers who dared to climb the steep icy slopes in the most inclement weather exposing their lives to utmost perils ? Really they may be called true conquerors of Nature.

Suspension bridge over the glacier

  Later we tried to walk on the highest elevation suspension bridge in Europe on Titlis cliff. This bridge was opened in December, 2012 to commemorate the 100 th anniversary of the Engelberg Gershinalp Cable Way. This bridge is just one meter wide and one hundred meters long hanging over the ice-covered glacier at a height of 500 meters off the ground. The swinging movement of the bridge made our gait unsteady and so we had not gone up to the other end which leads you to the ice-chair lift station.

Glacier Cave

Glacier Cave 

    

      
  After collecting our photos we entered the 150 meter-long glacier cave which branches out in several directions and descends twenty meters below the surface of the glacier. The whole cave is brightly illuminated and is kept at freezing sub-zero temperature (-1.5 degrees centigrade). The cave looks hazy and bluish due to refraction of light on its icy walls. The walk through this cave is another thrilling experience. Of course, a spine-chilling one too, revealing the wonders of Nature's creative skills. 

Swiss Chocolate Shop

300 varieties of toffees

                               







            

Swiss Lion Watch Store

                   
                










 On the third floor of the mountain station, there is Chocolate Shop with nearly three hundred varieties of colorful chocolates heaped in trays or neatly  packed in boxes.  Our journey remains incomplete without tasting these delicious toffees made of pure Swiss cream and milk and blended with other tasty ingredients. If you wish to wear branded wrist watches, there is Swiss Lion Shop offering best quality watches which you can wear to show your sophisticated style. After buying some chocolate boxes, we went straight to the coffee shop to warm our frozen bodies. But our hearts remained warm with admiration of these pure and breath-taking views of this snowy mountain.

Mt. Titlis Map

View of Alpine glaciers from Stotzig  Egg

    

Biking Tourists

Skiing persons

 Our trip to Mount Titlis gave us a novel experience of entering a new world of ice where Nature looms large in pure white like a massive cloud in the sky with scattered patches of green grass and blue lakes below. We saw some people trekking up the hills and others riding on bikes with agile shouts and laughter. One has to hike from Titlis to Stotzig Egg to get a clear view of the surrounding glaciers. The spirit of freedom free from worldly worries and bustle is really felt in places like this. So even sages and saints prefer such peaceful spots to experience a sense of divinity and spiritual elevation. No wonder then if poets call Nature as holy as a temple or the outer garment of God. 

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8th December, 2015                                                         Somaseshu Gutala

ON OUR JOURNEY TO MT.TITLIS

Titlis Glacier

View of Titlis from above

   We stayed at Banklialps in Engelberg for two days. On the first day we saw the Trummelbach Waterfalls, a unique thundering waterfall naturally formed below the rocky cliffs and made us feel the mighty and magnificent thrilling force of water. The same day we had the thrilling journey to Jungfrau mountain to experience the pure virgin-like touch of ice-world with artistic ice-palace and refreshed ourselves there with hot cups of coffee and scintillating Swiss chocolates. The next day we went on another adventure to view the snowy hill, Mt.Titlis and explore more miracles of this Alpine region. Engelberg is just at the foot of this mount at a  distance of 5.4 Kms, a matter of ten minutes to reach the Mount Titlis, which is in the Urner Alps of Switzerland is located between the two cantons (regions) of Obwalden and Berne.

Titlis Rotair

Ice Flier

                                               

View of Titlis from Rotaire

Mount Titlis Station

The first ascent of Titlis (3238 meters or 10,263 feet high) was made in 1435 by Ignaz Herz and J.E.Waser along with two other men. In March 1967 the cable car to Mt.Titlis was inaugurated. On Jan. 21.1904 the first ski-ascent was made by Joseph Kuster and Willi Amrhein. Due credit we must give to Swiss engineers and workers who toiled hard to set up this cable car arrangement and facilitated so many tourists to reach this summit of 10,600 feet high above the sea level, and enjoy the breath-taking view of valleys, lakes and snow-white glaciers from a high altitude.

 We have to reach Mt.Titlis in three stages. In the first stage the cable car takes passengers from Engelberg to Gerschnialp (1262 meters high) in twenty minutes. In each cage there is accommodation for six people. During this ride one can see the distant view of Engelberg town with green slopes, cottages and cattle grazing freely with tinkling Swiss bells around their necks. From Trubsee Lake Station we have to go in a bigger cable car, each carrying about sixty people. In five minutes we can reach Stand located at a height of 2428 meters. From Stand there is a rotating cable car called Titlis Rotaire whose base rotates 360 degrees to give you a complete view of the glacier and mountain valleys on all sides. It takes just five minutes to reach the Titlis Mountain Station located at a height of 3020 meters above sea level. The topmost station in the whole of Europe looks quite ultra-modern with all facilities and comforts with flight of steps up to fourth level.

 Soon after we got down we rushed to the photo shop located on the fourth floor so that we may have our photos taken early without standing in queue and waiting for our turn. As soon as we entered the photo studio we saw an array of clothes, boots, head gears and socks connected with mountain-climbing and native Swiss tradition. A row of photos are displayed showing people dressed as Swiss musicians, farmers and hunters with the backdrop of bluish Titlis Mountain range. Three ladies helped us in getting dressed as a Swiss musician holding a long brass Alp-horn and another person a  in the guise of a hunter with a gun held aslant on his shoulder accompanied by two of our ladies dressed in traditional Swiss gowns  and broad-brimmed hats. Though at first we felt a little bit nervous to get dressed in a strange attire, our helpers encouraged us to assume right posture facing the camera, by saying "Cheers, Cheers" again.

Tourists in Swiss native dress

Photo Shop at Titlis

                                                                        
           

 Later we climbed into the lift and went up to the snow park upon the glacier. As we entered we saw the life-size portraits of the most popular and romantic Indian film actors, Sharukh Khan and Kajol as shown in the Hindi film "Dil Wala Le Jayenge Dulhania " (Briefly called DDL). We learnt that many Hindi films are shot in Swiss mountain regions which serve as an apt romantic landscape for many movies. At the far end of the glacier a huge mass of snow is seen in the shape of the Buddha seated in meditation, lending an aura of purity to this white glacier. A surprising coincidence indeed !

Portriait of Sharukh Khan and Kajol

Trubsee Snow Park on Titlis Glacier

  









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           3rd December, 2015                                                     SOMASESHU GUTALA

ON OUR JOURNEY TO JUNGFRAU

   

View of Jungfrau from Interlaken

Jungfraujoch Station

               

View of Jungfrau from moving train

Train moving through tunnel

                 









  After viewing the subterranean waterfalls inside the rocky mountain, we travelled to Lauterbrunnen to catch the cogwheel railway train to explore the wondrous charms of Jungfrau, one of the summits of the Bernese Alps. From Lauterbrunnen the Bernese Oberland Railway will take you up to Kleine Scheidegg. From there the Jungfrau Railway will take you to Jungfraujoch, the highest railway station in Europe, standing at a height of 11,332 feet,  the nearest railway station to go to the Jungfrau hill summit. As we travelled we had a spectacular view of hills, pastures and bushy firs with small cottages here and there. The distant snowy peaks of Alpine mountains came nearer to our sight as our train slowly climbed up the mountain slopes. Our train entered the seven km. long  tunnel, a miraculous achievement of Swiss Engineers, made through mountains towards the glaciers on the south side of Jungfrau. In 1893 Adolf Guyer Zeller (1839-1869) conceived this idea of constructing a tunnel to reach Jungfrau. It took almost sixteen years to accomplish this task. The summit station was opened in 1912.  

Restaurant at Jungfrau

Chocolate Shop

              









  Our train entered the tunnel running eastward through Eigher. On the way our train halted at two places namely Eigherwand (on the north face of Eigher) and Eismier (the south side of Eigher) for a few minutes. It took fifty minutes to reach Jungfraujoch, which is nearly 9.4 kms from Lauterbrunnen. As soon as we got down, we saw a spacious hall with a coffee bar. A surprise indeed even on such a lofty freezing icy summit ! A blur tour symbol on the wall with arrow mark gave us the direction to reach the snowy hills. In the  first hall called "Jungfrau Panorama" we watched the 360 degrees cinematic experience of the Alpine world of ice, rocks, snow, cloud and cold blowing winds--a sort of introduction to our exploration of these crystalline shining charms.

  In the second hall we can witness the heroic struggle and dedication of the people who strove to set up this tourist center on the highest level in Jungfraujoch. By means of light, music and carved statues and figures, we are given a clear picture about the past and present conditions of tourism and the construction of the Jungfrau Railway track through formidable fountains.

Statue of Adolf Guyer Zeller

Ice Palace Entrance

        










  Another attraction is the man-made ice palace and the ice-cave, a must-visit for all tourists.This cave is nearly 1000 square meters in area and has many niches and passages. To keep the ice-sculptures and statues away from melting due to the warmth caused by thousands of tourists, the cave is cooled and constantly kept at minus 3.0 degrees. This ice-palace or Eispalast is the highest altitude palace in the world. This palace was started in 1934. The crystal figures of penguins, bears, automobiles, humans and eagles is an awsome and wondrous work of ice-art. In the dim-lit vault they shine with glossy, transparent charm. These ice-made grottoes remind one of the legendary palace of the Chinese Emperor, Kublakhan, described by the great poet, S.T.Coleridge in his unfinished poem. 

Ice Sculpture

Penguins carved in in ice

                       

        Due to lack of time we could not visit "Sphinx Terrace" which was opened in 1931. In 1950 an observatory with a dome was set up for astronomical study and research. One can go there by lift and view the Aletsch Glacier, a shining expanse of lily-white snow with clouds of hovering mist touching the blue sky. On the topmost level people go on skiing or gliding on the cable snow-ride over the Aletsch glacier just below Jungfrau. 

  In the Lindt Chocolate Shop in the main complex, we can find a vast variety of Swiss chocolates made by Lindt  Master Chocolatiers, the world-famous enterprise which manufactures delicious chocolates like Lindor balls.From here we can have a glance at the breath-taking view of the Alpine charms,tasting the most delicious sweets at the same time while standing on the highest altitude of Europe. If you still feel warm, you can enjoy the sweet, melting Swiss ice-cream too. In the coffee bar we can enjoy a hot cup of steaming coffee which tastes heavenly after our spine-chilling adventure through icy world.   

 As if to admire our courage and adventurous spirit, we were given Jungfrau Railways Passport, a compliment to us, who reached the topmost station in Europe. Before leaving we went to see the gift shop where one can find Swiss branded articles like souvenirs,
T-Shirts, bags, Tissot Watches and many other items to buy as cherished tokens of this unforgettable journey to one of the most enchanting places on the top of Europe, as enchanting as another lunar world of shimmering ice.   

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   15th November, 2015                                                  SOMASESHU GUTALA