According to ancient Arabic literature, love is classified into seven stages.
HUB - Their eyes meet, it,s like a touch, a spark... Attraction.
UNS - The touch of the eyes was as if, it was Infatuation.
ISHQ - The flame of her body is felt, his breath starts igniting... Love.
AQIDAT - She touches him like a whisper, as if silence is mixed in her eyes... Reverence. He prays, knelt down on the floor, a little consciously and a little unconsciously.
IBADAAT - He is entangled on her path, entangled in her arms... Love turns to Worship.
JUNOON - His living is an Obsession, his dying is an obsession... Apart from this there is no peace.
MAUT - Let him rest in the lap of Death. Let him drown his body in her soul.
Philosophical, yet so eerily true !
Friday, October 13, 2006
Weapons of Mass Deception
A friend of mine forwarded this in a mail, which I found to be quite thought provoking. It is an interesting conversation between a Father and his child regarding United State's foreign policy.
Q Daddy, why did we have to attack Iraq ?
A Because they had weapons of mass destruction.
Q But the inspectors didn't find any weapons of mass destruction.
A That's because the Iraqis were hiding them.
Q And that's why we invaded Iraq ?
A Yep. Invasions always work better than inspections.
Q But after we invaded them, we STILL didn't find any weapons of mass destruction, did we?
A That's because the weapons are so well hidden. Don't worry, we'll find something, probably right before the 2004 election.
Q Why did Iraq want all those weapons of mass destruction?
A To use them in a war, silly.
Q I'm confused. If they had all those weapons that they planned to use in a war, then why didn't they use any of those weapons when we went to war with them?
A Well, obviously they didn't want anyone to know they had those weapons, so they chose to die by the thousands rather than defend themselves.
Q That doesn't make sense. Why would they choose to die if they had all those big weapons with which they could have fought back?
A It's a different culture. It's not supposed to make sense.
Q I don't know about you, but I don't think they had any of those weapons our government said they did.
A Well, you know, it doesn't matter whether or not they had those weapons. We had another good reason to invade them anyway.
Q And what was that?
A Even if Iraq didn't have weapons of mass destruction, Saddam Hussein was a cruel dictator, which is another good reason to invade another country.
Q Why? What does a cruel dictator do that makes it OK to invade his country?
A Well, for one thing, he tortured his own people.
Q Kind of like what they do in China ?
A Don't go comparing China to Iraq . China is a good economic competitor, where millions of people work for slave wages in sweatshops and help make US corporations richer.
Q So if a country lets its people are exploited for American corporate gain, it's a good country, even if that country tortures people?
A Right.
Q Why were people in Iraq being tortured?
A For political crimes, mostly, like criticizing the government. People who criticized the government in Iraq were sent to prison and tortured.
Q Isn't that exactly what happens in China ?
A I told you, China is different.
Q What's the difference between China and Iraq ?
A Well, for one thing, Iraq was ruled by the Ba'ath party, while China is Communist.
Q Didn't you once tell me Communists were bad?
A No, just Cuban Communists are bad.
Q How are the Cuban Communists bad?
A Well, for one thing, people who criticize the government in Cuba are sent to prison and tortured.
Q Like in Iraq ?
A Exactly.
Q And like in China , too?
A I told you, China 's a good economic competitor. Cuba , on the other hand, is not.
Q How come Cuba isn't a good economic competitor?
A Well, you see, back in the early 1960s, the US government passed some laws that made it illegal for Americans to trade or do any business with Cuba until they stopped being Communists and started being capitalists like us.
Q But if we got rid of those laws, opened up trade with Cuba , and started doing business with them, wouldn't that help the Cubans become capitalists?
A Don't be smart.
Q I didn't think I was being one.
A Well, anyway, they also don't have freedom of religion in Cuba.
Q Kind of like China and the Falun Gong movement?
A I told you, stop saying bad things about China . Anyway, Saddam Hussein came to power through a military coup, so he's not really a legitimate leader anyway.
Q What's a military coup?
A That's when a military general takes over the government of a country by force, instead of holding free elections like we do in the United States.
Q Didn't the ruler of Pakistan come to power by a military coup?
A You mean General Pervez Musharraf? Uh, yeah, he did, but Pakistan is our friend.
Q Why is Pakistan our friend if their leader is illegitimate?
A I never said Pervez Musharraf was illegitimate.
Q Didn't you just say a military general who comes to power by forcibly overthrowing the legitimate government of a nation is an illegitimate leader?
A Only Saddam Hussein. Pervez Musharraf is our friend, because he helped us invade Afghanistan .
Q Why did we invade Afghanistan ?
A Because of what they did to us on September 11th.
Q What did Afghanistan do to us on September 11th?
A Well, on September 11th, nineteen men - fifteen of them Saudi Arabians - hijacked four airplanes and flew three of them into buildings, killing over 3,000 Americans.
Q So how did Afghanistan figure into all that?
A Afghanistan was where those bad men trained, under the oppressive rule of the Taliban.
Q Aren't the Taliban those bad radical Islamics who chopped off people's heads and hands?
A Yes, that's exactly who they were. Not only did they chop off people's heads and hands, but they oppressed women, too.
Q Didn't the Bush administration give the Taliban 43 million dollars back in May of 2001?
A Yes, but that money was a reward because they did such a good job fighting drugs.
Q Fighting drugs?
A Yes, the Taliban were very helpful in stopping people from growing opium poppies.
Q How did they do such a good job?
A Simple. If people were caught growing opium poppies, the Taliban would have their hands and heads cut off.
Q So, when the Taliban cut off people's heads and hands for growing flowers, that was OK, but not if they cut people's heads and hands off for other reasons?
A Yes. It's OK with us if radical Islamic fundamentalists cut off people's hands for growing flowers, but it's cruel if they cut off people's hands for stealing bread.
Q Don't they also cut off people's hands and heads in Saudi Arabia ?
A That's different. Afghanistan was ruled by a tyrannical patriarchy that oppressed women and forced them to wear burqas whenever they were in public, with death by stoning as the penalty for women who did not comply.
Q Don't Saudi women have to wear burqas in public, too?
A No, Saudi women merely wear a traditional Islamic body covering.
Q What's the difference?
A The traditional Islamic covering worn by Saudi women is a modest yet fashionable garment that covers all of a woman's body except for her eyes and fingers. The burqa, on the other hand, is an evil tool of patriarchal oppression that covers all of a woman's body except for her eyes and fingers.
Q It sounds like the same thing with a different name.
A Now, don't go comparing Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. The Saudis are our friends.
Q But I thought you said 15 of the 19 hijackers on September 11th were from Saudi Arabia .
A Yes, but they trained in Afghanistan.
Q Who trained them?
A A very bad man named Osama bin Laden.
Q Was he from Afghanistan ?
A Uh, no, he was from Saudi Arabia too. But he was a bad man, a very bad man.
Q I seem to recall he was our friend once.
A Only when we helped him and the mujahadeen repel the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan back in the 1980s.
Q Who are the Soviets? Was that the Evil Communist Empire Ronald Reagan talked about?
A There are no more Soviets. The Soviet Union broke up in 1990 or thereabouts, and now they have elections and capitalism like us. We call them Russians now.
Q So the Soviets - I mean, the Russians - are now our friends?
A Well, not really. You see, they were our friends for many years after they stopped being Soviets, but then they decided not to support our invasion of Iraq , so we're mad at them now. We're also mad at the French and the Germans because they didn't help us invade Iraq either.
Q So the French and Germans are evil, too?
A Not exactly evil, but just bad enough that we had to rename French fries and French toast to Freedom Fries and Freedom Toast.
Q Do we always rename foods whenever another country doesn't do what we want them to do?
A No, we just do that to our friends. Our enemies, we invade.
Q But wasn't Iraq one of our friends back in the 1980s?
A Well, yeah. For a while.
Q Was Saddam Hussein ruler of Iraq back then?
A Yes, but at the time he was fighting against Iran , which made him our friend, temporarily.
Q Why did that make him our friend?
A Because at that time, Iran was our enemy.
Q Isn't that when he gassed the Kurds?
A Yeah, but since he was fighting against Iran at the time, we looked the other way, to show him we were his friend.
Q So anyone who fights against one of our enemies automatically becomes our friend?
A Most of the time, yes.
Q And anyone who fights against one of our friends is automatically an enemy?
A Sometimes that's true, too. However, if American corporations can profit by selling weapons to both sides at the same time, all the better.
Q Why?
A Because war is good for the economy, which means war is good for America Also, since God is on America's side, anyone who opposes war is a godless un-American
Communist. Do you understand now why we attacked Iraq?
Q I think so. We attacked them because God wanted us to, right?
A Yes.
Q But how did we know God wanted us to attack Iraq ?
A Well, you see, God personally speaks to George W. Bush and tells him what to do.
Q So basically, what you're saying is that we attacked Iraq because George W. Bush hears voices in his head?
A Yes! You finally understand how the world works. Now close your eyes, make yourself comfortable, and go to sleep. Good night.
Good night, dad....!
Q Daddy, why did we have to attack Iraq ?
A Because they had weapons of mass destruction.
Q But the inspectors didn't find any weapons of mass destruction.
A That's because the Iraqis were hiding them.
Q And that's why we invaded Iraq ?
A Yep. Invasions always work better than inspections.
Q But after we invaded them, we STILL didn't find any weapons of mass destruction, did we?
A That's because the weapons are so well hidden. Don't worry, we'll find something, probably right before the 2004 election.
Q Why did Iraq want all those weapons of mass destruction?
A To use them in a war, silly.
Q I'm confused. If they had all those weapons that they planned to use in a war, then why didn't they use any of those weapons when we went to war with them?
A Well, obviously they didn't want anyone to know they had those weapons, so they chose to die by the thousands rather than defend themselves.
Q That doesn't make sense. Why would they choose to die if they had all those big weapons with which they could have fought back?
A It's a different culture. It's not supposed to make sense.
Q I don't know about you, but I don't think they had any of those weapons our government said they did.
A Well, you know, it doesn't matter whether or not they had those weapons. We had another good reason to invade them anyway.
Q And what was that?
A Even if Iraq didn't have weapons of mass destruction, Saddam Hussein was a cruel dictator, which is another good reason to invade another country.
Q Why? What does a cruel dictator do that makes it OK to invade his country?
A Well, for one thing, he tortured his own people.
Q Kind of like what they do in China ?
A Don't go comparing China to Iraq . China is a good economic competitor, where millions of people work for slave wages in sweatshops and help make US corporations richer.
Q So if a country lets its people are exploited for American corporate gain, it's a good country, even if that country tortures people?
A Right.
Q Why were people in Iraq being tortured?
A For political crimes, mostly, like criticizing the government. People who criticized the government in Iraq were sent to prison and tortured.
Q Isn't that exactly what happens in China ?
A I told you, China is different.
Q What's the difference between China and Iraq ?
A Well, for one thing, Iraq was ruled by the Ba'ath party, while China is Communist.
Q Didn't you once tell me Communists were bad?
A No, just Cuban Communists are bad.
Q How are the Cuban Communists bad?
A Well, for one thing, people who criticize the government in Cuba are sent to prison and tortured.
Q Like in Iraq ?
A Exactly.
Q And like in China , too?
A I told you, China 's a good economic competitor. Cuba , on the other hand, is not.
Q How come Cuba isn't a good economic competitor?
A Well, you see, back in the early 1960s, the US government passed some laws that made it illegal for Americans to trade or do any business with Cuba until they stopped being Communists and started being capitalists like us.
Q But if we got rid of those laws, opened up trade with Cuba , and started doing business with them, wouldn't that help the Cubans become capitalists?
A Don't be smart.
Q I didn't think I was being one.
A Well, anyway, they also don't have freedom of religion in Cuba.
Q Kind of like China and the Falun Gong movement?
A I told you, stop saying bad things about China . Anyway, Saddam Hussein came to power through a military coup, so he's not really a legitimate leader anyway.
Q What's a military coup?
A That's when a military general takes over the government of a country by force, instead of holding free elections like we do in the United States.
Q Didn't the ruler of Pakistan come to power by a military coup?
A You mean General Pervez Musharraf? Uh, yeah, he did, but Pakistan is our friend.
Q Why is Pakistan our friend if their leader is illegitimate?
A I never said Pervez Musharraf was illegitimate.
Q Didn't you just say a military general who comes to power by forcibly overthrowing the legitimate government of a nation is an illegitimate leader?
A Only Saddam Hussein. Pervez Musharraf is our friend, because he helped us invade Afghanistan .
Q Why did we invade Afghanistan ?
A Because of what they did to us on September 11th.
Q What did Afghanistan do to us on September 11th?
A Well, on September 11th, nineteen men - fifteen of them Saudi Arabians - hijacked four airplanes and flew three of them into buildings, killing over 3,000 Americans.
Q So how did Afghanistan figure into all that?
A Afghanistan was where those bad men trained, under the oppressive rule of the Taliban.
Q Aren't the Taliban those bad radical Islamics who chopped off people's heads and hands?
A Yes, that's exactly who they were. Not only did they chop off people's heads and hands, but they oppressed women, too.
Q Didn't the Bush administration give the Taliban 43 million dollars back in May of 2001?
A Yes, but that money was a reward because they did such a good job fighting drugs.
Q Fighting drugs?
A Yes, the Taliban were very helpful in stopping people from growing opium poppies.
Q How did they do such a good job?
A Simple. If people were caught growing opium poppies, the Taliban would have their hands and heads cut off.
Q So, when the Taliban cut off people's heads and hands for growing flowers, that was OK, but not if they cut people's heads and hands off for other reasons?
A Yes. It's OK with us if radical Islamic fundamentalists cut off people's hands for growing flowers, but it's cruel if they cut off people's hands for stealing bread.
Q Don't they also cut off people's hands and heads in Saudi Arabia ?
A That's different. Afghanistan was ruled by a tyrannical patriarchy that oppressed women and forced them to wear burqas whenever they were in public, with death by stoning as the penalty for women who did not comply.
Q Don't Saudi women have to wear burqas in public, too?
A No, Saudi women merely wear a traditional Islamic body covering.
Q What's the difference?
A The traditional Islamic covering worn by Saudi women is a modest yet fashionable garment that covers all of a woman's body except for her eyes and fingers. The burqa, on the other hand, is an evil tool of patriarchal oppression that covers all of a woman's body except for her eyes and fingers.
Q It sounds like the same thing with a different name.
A Now, don't go comparing Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia. The Saudis are our friends.
Q But I thought you said 15 of the 19 hijackers on September 11th were from Saudi Arabia .
A Yes, but they trained in Afghanistan.
Q Who trained them?
A A very bad man named Osama bin Laden.
Q Was he from Afghanistan ?
A Uh, no, he was from Saudi Arabia too. But he was a bad man, a very bad man.
Q I seem to recall he was our friend once.
A Only when we helped him and the mujahadeen repel the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan back in the 1980s.
Q Who are the Soviets? Was that the Evil Communist Empire Ronald Reagan talked about?
A There are no more Soviets. The Soviet Union broke up in 1990 or thereabouts, and now they have elections and capitalism like us. We call them Russians now.
Q So the Soviets - I mean, the Russians - are now our friends?
A Well, not really. You see, they were our friends for many years after they stopped being Soviets, but then they decided not to support our invasion of Iraq , so we're mad at them now. We're also mad at the French and the Germans because they didn't help us invade Iraq either.
Q So the French and Germans are evil, too?
A Not exactly evil, but just bad enough that we had to rename French fries and French toast to Freedom Fries and Freedom Toast.
Q Do we always rename foods whenever another country doesn't do what we want them to do?
A No, we just do that to our friends. Our enemies, we invade.
Q But wasn't Iraq one of our friends back in the 1980s?
A Well, yeah. For a while.
Q Was Saddam Hussein ruler of Iraq back then?
A Yes, but at the time he was fighting against Iran , which made him our friend, temporarily.
Q Why did that make him our friend?
A Because at that time, Iran was our enemy.
Q Isn't that when he gassed the Kurds?
A Yeah, but since he was fighting against Iran at the time, we looked the other way, to show him we were his friend.
Q So anyone who fights against one of our enemies automatically becomes our friend?
A Most of the time, yes.
Q And anyone who fights against one of our friends is automatically an enemy?
A Sometimes that's true, too. However, if American corporations can profit by selling weapons to both sides at the same time, all the better.
Q Why?
A Because war is good for the economy, which means war is good for America Also, since God is on America's side, anyone who opposes war is a godless un-American
Communist. Do you understand now why we attacked Iraq?
Q I think so. We attacked them because God wanted us to, right?
A Yes.
Q But how did we know God wanted us to attack Iraq ?
A Well, you see, God personally speaks to George W. Bush and tells him what to do.
Q So basically, what you're saying is that we attacked Iraq because George W. Bush hears voices in his head?
A Yes! You finally understand how the world works. Now close your eyes, make yourself comfortable, and go to sleep. Good night.
Good night, dad....!
Sunday, August 13, 2006
Glimpses from a Yatra
The following are excerpts from my Uncles' recent piligrimage to Lake Manasarovar in Tibet:
Hello, folks:
I have just reached Hyderabad (after a 2-day stay in Delhi) yesterday. Our Mt Kailash - Manasarovar yatra was successfully completed on schedule and by God's grace, in reasonably good health. Besides a few other difficulties, I caught severe cold w/ cough during the onward journey itself, reaching its worst stage just 2 days prior to our PARIKRAMANA (the 53km hike around Mt Kailash to be done over a period of 3 days).
Of the 35 yatris, nine were already down with various other ailments (nausea, respiratory, fever, headaches, etc) and chose NOT TO go for the parikramana, and instead chose to stay over at the base camp at the foot of Kailash those three days. Of the remaining 26 of us, I think there were 15 men and 11 women. All except six opted for ponies as a standby (those who preferred to walk, but hired the pony just in case they wanted to get on the horse if the climb was tough). I was one of those.
All the 35 of us reached Lake Manasarovar on 7th July evening –spent some time there and arranged for a good location for Pooja the next morning. By now my cold was pretty bad and I wasn't sure what to do. Next morning, all of went back to the Lake and took a holy dip in probably 20 degree temp with howling winds beating us. By about 9:30 AM, all of us finished our bathing and changed over to clean clothes (to get ready for the Pooja) for the first time in almost 3 days!
The tour party had two Pandits/ Purohits with us, specifically for the Pooja. We all sat for the Pooja facing Mt. Kailash, with Lake Manasarovar behind us. By now temperatures started climbing into 70s and 80s and eventually must have reached at least 100 by the time we were done (because many of them got sunburns with literally the skin peeling off their backs). Starting around 10:30 AM, we all did Ganesh Pooja, Siva Abhishekam with 11 Rudrams, Chandi Homam, Laksha Vattula Pooja and a few other Poojas. It was quite elaborate and lasted till over 4:45 PM. (They brought all Pooja Samagri for everybody from Hyderabad itself). We had our first meal of the day on the shores of the Lake at 5:00 PM. Returned to our quarters as outside temp was dropping. That evening, I had a decision to make –whether to go forward with my cold or stay in the base camp.
With the encouragement of a lot of co-yatris, including our own Cheruvu Murty garu and Vijaya garu, and support from the tourist/ guide staff, I decided to go seeking God's help all the while - because I was not in a position to go, but decided to go anyway on the horse. Next morning (July 9th) we started around 9 or 10 AM and did the about 14 km on horseback and walked about 2 km. It wasn't that difficult, except that there was a hailstorm and then some rain for about half hour mid-way thru the parikramana. Both Murty garu and Vijaya walked all the way. Of the rest, I think at least 10 others must have ridden the ponies.
That night, my options weren't good at all! To go forward meant undertaking a 27 km hike (even on horseback, it is tough!) thru rough weather and ascending almost 2000 ft altitude with my cough/cold (plus maybe some altitude sickness too) - the alternative was to tuck my tail in, take the pony and go back to the base camp. Again, friends came to my rescue and said they will stay with me as needed and I decided with God's blessings to move ahead.
On 10th July we woke up at 5:00 am and started around 7:00 am to the highest point of our climb, a place called Dromla Pass, about 18,500 ft altitude. We had to reach there early so that we can begin the descent early before the gathering clouds caused any rain. Luckily, weather Gods cooperated and we made our ascent in good time. During the descent, the gradient is too steep and narrow for both horse and rider to travel safely together. So, I walked about 8 or 9km with my Sherpa guide besides me - then got on the horse for 4 km and walked the last 1km - that was the toughest 1 km I could think of! I was COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED, quite sick and I needed some puffs of oxygen before I could drink my cup of tea! On this day, just four people did the entire trek WALKING - all the rest of us took ponies for all or part of our journey. Cheruvu Murty garu walked all the way and Vijaya garu rode the pony all the way - actually, she was with me all the way because both of our ponies had the same horseman! During this hike, we pass thru Gowrikund (where Goddess Parvathi is supposed to have bathed), Rakshastal (where Ravana is supposed to have bathed) and a few other small lakes. We collected the crystal clear, running waters off of the melting snow of Mt. Kailash and some water from Gowrikund also. Weather was pretty good the whole day.
On 11th July, we started around 8 AM and I took the pony again for the last some 14 km - maybe walked a km or two. We reached the base camp by about 1 pm, had lunch and headed back to the OTHER SIDE OF Manasarovar. The circumference of this lake is about 90 Km and we went around and covered about 60 km the first time by car, on 7th July. The remaining 30 Km around the lake we finished this evening in our cruisers and rested in the guest house. The idea was to see the twinkling stars in the lake on GURUPURNIMA day while looking at the silvery reflections of Mt Kailash. None of that was possible because the sky was overcast and raining. Although some braved the weather by staying awake till 2 AM or so hoping for some celestial circus, I was too sick to get out of my bed and the spent the night in pain.
Besides the pain and physical discomfort part, the three-day hike/ horse ride left a deep spiritual footprint on my entire body=mind-soul that I can't adequately describe. Many of my co-yatris were DEEPLY SPIRITUAL and they felt the vibrations stronger than mine obviously (Some of them were overwhelmed with joy and ecstatic at the first glimpse of Mt. Kailash and they literally cried with joy for hours). My experience was not so deep or profound, but yet there was that powerful sense that overtook me to feel that after 3years of planning-dreaming-planning, I was finally ALLOWED TO SET FOOT ON THAT HALLOWED GROUND where many a saint has walked over millennium and made that place so sacred. Was I humbled? Of course, yes! I even felt that all my physical pain and the resulting INABILITY TO WALK THE PATH (as I originally planned and thought was fully capable of!) WAS A DIRECT RESULT OF MY IMPETUOUS UTTERANCES THAT I OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO WALK IT IF EVEN SO-AND-SO WAS ABLE TO DO IT! I strongly believe now that Lord Shiva wanted
to teach me a lesson in humility and to tone down my cockiness by showing me who is the BOSS and one would only walk if HE wishes you to walk, and not otherwise! Even some of my co-yatris from Hyderabad were so frail, or seemingly not fit enough for the parikramana, but yet, they did it either by walk or on horse with flying colors, without any physical discomfort, some even without ONE PILL OF DIAMOX, clad in ordinary cold-weather gear and tennis shoes, without ALL THE PARAPHERNALIA that I lugged around all the way from US.
So, obviously, there is more than the medicines, high-tech gear and hiking practice that go into making a person "PARIKRAMANA-READY" – I think there is a more deeper SAMKALPA and the BLESSINGS OF THE LORD that would make one eligible for the PARIKRAMANA. I guess I didn't pass that test and the Lord gave a mere C+ or a B- for my effort instead of flunking me outright! I certainly feel blessed that I was even able to complete the PARIKRAMANA given my physical ailments.
On 12th morning some went back again to bathe in Manasarovar, though I did not (could not) go this time. We left the lake shore around 10 am and decided to reach Katmandu a day earlier (for more sight seeing there). So, we cut the usual 3-day ride back into 2 days by traveling for almost 12 hours one day and 10 the next. We reached Katmandu by the night of July 14th (instead of 15th) after clearing all those stupid border crossing formalities. The layers of bureaucracy there (both on Chinese and Nepalese sides) reminds us of our own country! Just paper after paper, signature, counter- signature and then approval signature! It is amazing that they can get ANY WORK DONE AT ALL!
On 15th morning almost everybody opted to rest in Katmandu, but being the greedy self that I am, I wanted to pack in one more temple tour while I am there! So, I along with 10 others went to visit MANO KAAMNA DEVI temple about 100 km from KTM. The journey was beautiful with the entire route flanked by tall mountains on one side and Trishul river on the other side. However, the wait was literally unbearable. We did not know that it was the last Sat’ day of that month for "BALI" to that "AMMA VARU" - there were lines miles long with people towing goats and chickens for slaughter. Anyway after a 3hour wait we got into the gondola of the cable car for a steep 1000 meter high ascent to the temple on the hill. After all this, we did not even get Darshan because there were long lines on the hill also. We returned to KTM completely tired at about 9 PM -did some late minute shopping and returned to the hotel for dinner and a final get together - for some praying, reminiscing, thanking the support staff and giving them some gifts. Finished all packing for the trip back to DLI tomorrow and went to bed. On our way to the YATRA, we stayed in KTM part of July 1st and whole of July 2nd.
On July 2nd morning, we took a one-hour helicopter ride to and around Himalayas, including Mt Everest, K-2, Annapurna and several other tall peaks - the experience was simply breath taking and exhilarating, to put it mildly. One feels SO STYMIED BY THE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE; it is simply indescribable to think how puny and powerless we are when confronted by nature.
ON 16th morning, we went to PASUPATHINATH TEMPLE again to have ABHISHEKAM done with water from Manasarovar. That was a beautiful experience because in spite of the crowds, we were able to get front row standing space and were able to watch the entire ABHISHEKAM done by the head priest there. Went back to hotel, had lunch and came to KTM airport for the flight to DLI. Reached DLI at 6:30 PM and stayed with relatives and flew in to HYD on 18th evening at 6:30 PM. I will leave for my village on 2oth July and come back to HYD on 25th or 26th and will reach SFO on July 30th.
OM NAMAH SIVAAYAH
Prasad.
I have just reached Hyderabad (after a 2-day stay in Delhi) yesterday. Our Mt Kailash - Manasarovar yatra was successfully completed on schedule and by God's grace, in reasonably good health. Besides a few other difficulties, I caught severe cold w/ cough during the onward journey itself, reaching its worst stage just 2 days prior to our PARIKRAMANA (the 53km hike around Mt Kailash to be done over a period of 3 days).
Of the 35 yatris, nine were already down with various other ailments (nausea, respiratory, fever, headaches, etc) and chose NOT TO go for the parikramana, and instead chose to stay over at the base camp at the foot of Kailash those three days. Of the remaining 26 of us, I think there were 15 men and 11 women. All except six opted for ponies as a standby (those who preferred to walk, but hired the pony just in case they wanted to get on the horse if the climb was tough). I was one of those.
All the 35 of us reached Lake Manasarovar on 7th July evening –spent some time there and arranged for a good location for Pooja the next morning. By now my cold was pretty bad and I wasn't sure what to do. Next morning, all of went back to the Lake and took a holy dip in probably 20 degree temp with howling winds beating us. By about 9:30 AM, all of us finished our bathing and changed over to clean clothes (to get ready for the Pooja) for the first time in almost 3 days!
The tour party had two Pandits/ Purohits with us, specifically for the Pooja. We all sat for the Pooja facing Mt. Kailash, with Lake Manasarovar behind us. By now temperatures started climbing into 70s and 80s and eventually must have reached at least 100 by the time we were done (because many of them got sunburns with literally the skin peeling off their backs). Starting around 10:30 AM, we all did Ganesh Pooja, Siva Abhishekam with 11 Rudrams, Chandi Homam, Laksha Vattula Pooja and a few other Poojas. It was quite elaborate and lasted till over 4:45 PM. (They brought all Pooja Samagri for everybody from Hyderabad itself). We had our first meal of the day on the shores of the Lake at 5:00 PM. Returned to our quarters as outside temp was dropping. That evening, I had a decision to make –whether to go forward with my cold or stay in the base camp.
With the encouragement of a lot of co-yatris, including our own Cheruvu Murty garu and Vijaya garu, and support from the tourist/ guide staff, I decided to go seeking God's help all the while - because I was not in a position to go, but decided to go anyway on the horse. Next morning (July 9th) we started around 9 or 10 AM and did the about 14 km on horseback and walked about 2 km. It wasn't that difficult, except that there was a hailstorm and then some rain for about half hour mid-way thru the parikramana. Both Murty garu and Vijaya walked all the way. Of the rest, I think at least 10 others must have ridden the ponies.
That night, my options weren't good at all! To go forward meant undertaking a 27 km hike (even on horseback, it is tough!) thru rough weather and ascending almost 2000 ft altitude with my cough/cold (plus maybe some altitude sickness too) - the alternative was to tuck my tail in, take the pony and go back to the base camp. Again, friends came to my rescue and said they will stay with me as needed and I decided with God's blessings to move ahead.
On 10th July we woke up at 5:00 am and started around 7:00 am to the highest point of our climb, a place called Dromla Pass, about 18,500 ft altitude. We had to reach there early so that we can begin the descent early before the gathering clouds caused any rain. Luckily, weather Gods cooperated and we made our ascent in good time. During the descent, the gradient is too steep and narrow for both horse and rider to travel safely together. So, I walked about 8 or 9km with my Sherpa guide besides me - then got on the horse for 4 km and walked the last 1km - that was the toughest 1 km I could think of! I was COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED, quite sick and I needed some puffs of oxygen before I could drink my cup of tea! On this day, just four people did the entire trek WALKING - all the rest of us took ponies for all or part of our journey. Cheruvu Murty garu walked all the way and Vijaya garu rode the pony all the way - actually, she was with me all the way because both of our ponies had the same horseman! During this hike, we pass thru Gowrikund (where Goddess Parvathi is supposed to have bathed), Rakshastal (where Ravana is supposed to have bathed) and a few other small lakes. We collected the crystal clear, running waters off of the melting snow of Mt. Kailash and some water from Gowrikund also. Weather was pretty good the whole day.
On 11th July, we started around 8 AM and I took the pony again for the last some 14 km - maybe walked a km or two. We reached the base camp by about 1 pm, had lunch and headed back to the OTHER SIDE OF Manasarovar. The circumference of this lake is about 90 Km and we went around and covered about 60 km the first time by car, on 7th July. The remaining 30 Km around the lake we finished this evening in our cruisers and rested in the guest house. The idea was to see the twinkling stars in the lake on GURUPURNIMA day while looking at the silvery reflections of Mt Kailash. None of that was possible because the sky was overcast and raining. Although some braved the weather by staying awake till 2 AM or so hoping for some celestial circus, I was too sick to get out of my bed and the spent the night in pain.
Besides the pain and physical discomfort part, the three-day hike/ horse ride left a deep spiritual footprint on my entire body=mind-soul that I can't adequately describe. Many of my co-yatris were DEEPLY SPIRITUAL and they felt the vibrations stronger than mine obviously (Some of them were overwhelmed with joy and ecstatic at the first glimpse of Mt. Kailash and they literally cried with joy for hours). My experience was not so deep or profound, but yet there was that powerful sense that overtook me to feel that after 3years of planning-dreaming-planning, I was finally ALLOWED TO SET FOOT ON THAT HALLOWED GROUND where many a saint has walked over millennium and made that place so sacred. Was I humbled? Of course, yes! I even felt that all my physical pain and the resulting INABILITY TO WALK THE PATH (as I originally planned and thought was fully capable of!) WAS A DIRECT RESULT OF MY IMPETUOUS UTTERANCES THAT I OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO WALK IT IF EVEN SO-AND-SO WAS ABLE TO DO IT! I strongly believe now that Lord Shiva wanted
to teach me a lesson in humility and to tone down my cockiness by showing me who is the BOSS and one would only walk if HE wishes you to walk, and not otherwise! Even some of my co-yatris from Hyderabad were so frail, or seemingly not fit enough for the parikramana, but yet, they did it either by walk or on horse with flying colors, without any physical discomfort, some even without ONE PILL OF DIAMOX, clad in ordinary cold-weather gear and tennis shoes, without ALL THE PARAPHERNALIA that I lugged around all the way from US.
So, obviously, there is more than the medicines, high-tech gear and hiking practice that go into making a person "PARIKRAMANA-READY" – I think there is a more deeper SAMKALPA and the BLESSINGS OF THE LORD that would make one eligible for the PARIKRAMANA. I guess I didn't pass that test and the Lord gave a mere C+ or a B- for my effort instead of flunking me outright! I certainly feel blessed that I was even able to complete the PARIKRAMANA given my physical ailments.
On 12th morning some went back again to bathe in Manasarovar, though I did not (could not) go this time. We left the lake shore around 10 am and decided to reach Katmandu a day earlier (for more sight seeing there). So, we cut the usual 3-day ride back into 2 days by traveling for almost 12 hours one day and 10 the next. We reached Katmandu by the night of July 14th (instead of 15th) after clearing all those stupid border crossing formalities. The layers of bureaucracy there (both on Chinese and Nepalese sides) reminds us of our own country! Just paper after paper, signature, counter- signature and then approval signature! It is amazing that they can get ANY WORK DONE AT ALL!
On 15th morning almost everybody opted to rest in Katmandu, but being the greedy self that I am, I wanted to pack in one more temple tour while I am there! So, I along with 10 others went to visit MANO KAAMNA DEVI temple about 100 km from KTM. The journey was beautiful with the entire route flanked by tall mountains on one side and Trishul river on the other side. However, the wait was literally unbearable. We did not know that it was the last Sat’ day of that month for "BALI" to that "AMMA VARU" - there were lines miles long with people towing goats and chickens for slaughter. Anyway after a 3hour wait we got into the gondola of the cable car for a steep 1000 meter high ascent to the temple on the hill. After all this, we did not even get Darshan because there were long lines on the hill also. We returned to KTM completely tired at about 9 PM -did some late minute shopping and returned to the hotel for dinner and a final get together - for some praying, reminiscing, thanking the support staff and giving them some gifts. Finished all packing for the trip back to DLI tomorrow and went to bed. On our way to the YATRA, we stayed in KTM part of July 1st and whole of July 2nd.
On July 2nd morning, we took a one-hour helicopter ride to and around Himalayas, including Mt Everest, K-2, Annapurna and several other tall peaks - the experience was simply breath taking and exhilarating, to put it mildly. One feels SO STYMIED BY THE AWESOME POWER OF NATURE; it is simply indescribable to think how puny and powerless we are when confronted by nature.
ON 16th morning, we went to PASUPATHINATH TEMPLE again to have ABHISHEKAM done with water from Manasarovar. That was a beautiful experience because in spite of the crowds, we were able to get front row standing space and were able to watch the entire ABHISHEKAM done by the head priest there. Went back to hotel, had lunch and came to KTM airport for the flight to DLI. Reached DLI at 6:30 PM and stayed with relatives and flew in to HYD on 18th evening at 6:30 PM. I will leave for my village on 2oth July and come back to HYD on 25th or 26th and will reach SFO on July 30th.
OM NAMAH SIVAAYAH
Prasad.
Monday, June 19, 2006
A piece of my mind
My profile in orkut starts with the latin expression "audaces fortuna iuvat" meaning Fortune favors the brave. The title of my blog is "Ab imo pectore" which means From the bottom of my heart. Why latin...why not sanskrit...or even elfish ??? People who read this are going to think
a) Latin (!)...cool
b) Latin (@)...showoff
c) Latin (?)...is it another name for Greek, or
d) I'm neutral.
Amazing how your words, written and spoken evoke a whole gamut of reactions. And this is just for writing a simple phrase in Latin. Well...as for me, I'm just glad I made a beginning as far as writing is concerned.
My reasons for not putting my thoughts on paper range from stupid notions to plain laziness. I used to think that whatever I'd put in writing would come back to haunt me someday and I would be held responsible for saying something I shouldn't have said blah..blah...blah ! The other reason was that I'm lazy(Note the present continuous grammer....yup I'm still lazy in many aspects of my life).
But as with many things about life, I changed my notion and decided to put some thoughts in writing. So, Latin, Sanskrit or Elfish...I don't care, I'm just gonna write !!!
a) Latin (!)...cool
b) Latin (@)...showoff
c) Latin (?)...is it another name for Greek, or
d) I'm neutral.
Amazing how your words, written and spoken evoke a whole gamut of reactions. And this is just for writing a simple phrase in Latin. Well...as for me, I'm just glad I made a beginning as far as writing is concerned.
My reasons for not putting my thoughts on paper range from stupid notions to plain laziness. I used to think that whatever I'd put in writing would come back to haunt me someday and I would be held responsible for saying something I shouldn't have said blah..blah...blah ! The other reason was that I'm lazy(Note the present continuous grammer....yup I'm still lazy in many aspects of my life).
But as with many things about life, I changed my notion and decided to put some thoughts in writing. So, Latin, Sanskrit or Elfish...I don't care, I'm just gonna write !!!
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