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Published: December 28th 2006
Hanuman - the Monkey God
Seeing as it was our last night in Hampi and we needed to catch a train the day after next, in Hospet, we decided to change hotels, let me tell you we’ll never forget this day, or rather the morning after. After an amazing tour through the old cities of Hampi, our guide Rajnu had suggested we head up to the holy temple of Hanuman - the monkey god of strength. The temple is of much significance to the Hindu peoples, as it is the birth place of this super strong, face of a monkey, body of a man, God. And what a place to be born, atop of a peak overlooking the whole of Hampi, and which is only accessible via the infamous 1000 step staircase into the clouds.
So as is the norm for us both here in India, we were up early, it was to be a 7.30 start, customary breakfast choice when in unfamiliar territory, toast butter jam, coffee and another bottle of water. We finished just as Krishna had finished washing his auto rickshaw, it was a brand spanka you see, he had just gotten a loan from the
bank and was paying it off quite quickly I’m sure if he charges everyone what he charged us 800rups/day. Not much to us, but considering flag fall is 12 rups and at most it’s 7 rups/km and you can only travel 20-30km in a day, you can see why we tourists are the passengers of choice. Good luck trying to get any Indian taxi driver to use the meter if your not a local, and even better luck if you can haggle your way down to local fares, both of which given our local skill levels at the time was near to impossible, although we have had much more luck of late.
Anyway back to the story. It’s 7.30 and the trip is 50kms away, it’s only about 10km at best, but the temple is on the other side of the river, the closest bridge is being repaired, we think, well that’s what we were told, so the next crossing is 20km down the road, across a bridge and then another 20km up the river on the other side of the bank. Let me just say that given all the deception, foreigner fees and the duration of the trip,
it was so very much worth it. I keep on saying this that the pics just don’t create the sensory overload one receives from a country like this, but some of these will hopefully give you some perspective.
There’s something quite real about travelling in a three wheeler, for one you’re so close to the ground, secondly the drivers get you s close to everything else around you and thirdly they can also make you feel like the thing is going to tip over at any moment. Then there’s the irritating combination of diesel fumes and dust. At home trucks spew their exhaust fumes into the air above the rig, here the exhaust pipe is just behind the cabin on the drivers side at window height, so all oncoming traffic gets splayed with diesel and dust. It is so hard to keep clean. I guess that considering that this three wheeler was brand new, our driver was especially cautious and for the most part the ride was quite pleasant. Well his driving was a little less erratic than most, the Indian roads are never enjoyable, you could be in a limo and the potholes would let you know that
you were you were definitely of the subcontinent, if not the potholes, it’s the ripple strips which are designed to slow traffic down placed in area’s that are “accident prone”, if that were the case the whole road network would be a series of corrugated stretches with the occasional length bitumen linked together. It is truly terrible; Hampi and Hospet were no exception. This trip was different, not the same highway traffic as most of the others, for the most part, once out of the main town, we got to experience a very different India, a mix of very rural landscapes, rice paddy’s and farmland, jutted up against the sheer granite cliffs which were now mostly quarries feeding the regions demand for this beautiful stone, a good part of which will end up in the kitchens and floors of the nations well to do’s. We got to see some amazing things along this two hour adventure, little villages, bustling markets, small children on the way to school, complete with neatly pressed shirts, shorts and ties but with no shoes… ! Tractors and carts stacked to the sky with hay, rolling road blocks I call them, because you can’t get past
them, they block both lanes of traffic and travel at 5kms/h and of course the usual plethora of dogs, cats, cows and for the first time goats. All of which a vying of a piece of road no wider than a city laneway. None of which would let you pass without continuos horn blowing and screams of something not very nice from the multitude of drivers, herders all trying to get somewhere a whole lot quicker than is physically possible in this chaotic world. The colours are as vivid as the people, the diversity colours and cultures are parallel, once again I was struck by the majestic expression of Mother Nature, this time it wasn’t the redness of the chillies drying the sun at Capo De Rama, Goa, nor was it like the rainbow of spices from the markets of Mysore, but this time the radiant green of the fresh new shoots in a rice paddy, contrasted amidst the dryness of the scorched surrounds and harshness of the mountainous terrain that is geography of Hospet and Hampi.
It’s about a two hour ride from our Kalampuram, to the base of Hanuman temple, and in an autorick, you feel it
all. Thankfully for us the beauty of our surrounds more than made up for the stop starting, slow moving, extremely bumpy mode of transport. We get to the steps and the task ahead all of a sudden becomes very real and so worth every step. It was a tiring energy sapping journey for most, at the best of times, this step by step trek coupled with the dry heat and scorching sun left us scampering for our bottled water every few steps, well not every few, but it sure felt like that. As we climbed, what felt like a near vertical stone staircase, and we got higher from the valley floor, we could see that this whole place was basically one giant river bed. With the towns of Hampi and Hospet on higher ground, further along the bank. The giant pebbles kind of made sense now. When we got to half way, we stopped for a rest to take in some much needed water and to just appreciate where we where. We thought the view back down into the valley from here was amazing, but when we reached the top, the 360’ view from up here is really breathtaking, on
a clear day you can literally see for miles. We were definitely torn, atop of the mountain with so much to explore, yet knowing that the temple and the purpose of our trek was right before us. Considering the importance of Hanuman, the temple was not as grand as other’s we had seen, yet it didn’t need much to impress, if its location represented anything at all, then, this was an inspiring God. Apart from the height and the baroness of this granite rock shelf, the lone frangipani tree atop of this mountain has left a lasting impression. In amongst all of this stone, this single tree, was alive and well looked after. How it and the hundreds of monkeys survived up here is a mystery to me. We got as war as the side pf what looked to be no bigger than a small white two bedroom house, when as customary we were ever so politely reminded to remove our shoes, by all three; the painted sign, the Hindu priest and the little old lady screaming whilst looking and pointing at our shoes, at the Hindu priest, we presume she was telling him to tell us to take our
shoes off. All of the above was totally unnecessary, as we have respect, and temple etiquette down to a fine art. Around the painted corner we immersed ourselves into another dark chamber, this time both of us rung the bell and presented ourselves to be blessed by the presence of Hanuman. This is a never forget location if you happen to get here, that and the significance of the site, to so many hundreds of millions of people add to the lasting feeling and impression left upon you by the geographical birthplace of Hanuman.
The temple is built upon a granite mountain, which comprises of what looks like one really large piece of granite and then hundreds of boulders from my size all the way up to those the size of large houses, strewn across the exposed granite face. Given The beauty of where we were, it was impossible to not go for a little further exploring, to the rear of the temple, there is a rock cliff which just hangs over the side of this mountain, I have never felt so exposed, sitting on this perch of stone, with my legs hanging over the edge, I really got
the sense of how high up we were. It was a beautiful clear day, the sky so blue and the stone around seemed so out of place. One can only imagine that this is what an ant would feel as it scampered across an exposed creek bed, over one pebble only to be confronted by an even larger one, with even larger ones in the distance. A lot of India is really picturesque, but this place was surreal. So some photos from the top, a scamper across a few more giant pebbles and we began our descent.
Coming down never takes as long as going up, the 1000 steps seemed to pass us by as quickly as those still struggling up to make the summit. Luckily we had set out early enough to beat most of the pilgrims, but not the midday sun. Lunch at the Mango tree, when you find a good eating house over here, my advice would be to eat as much as you possible can as many times as you can manage in your stay. You just never know when the next good meal is going to come from. Mango tree was exceptional and so
received many a rupee from these hungry travellers. A leisurely afternoon walking around a few more historic sites and our time in Hampi had come to an end. This is very special part of India in so many ways and we could have spent so much more time here, yet the urge to move on is strong. That coupled with the heaviness of these twin towns was enough to see wanting to experience more. So we did, off to Hospet for our last night. The next day Rajnu, who is a very talented young artist, musician and dance instructor, had entered a group of local girls into a traditional dance competition, so before finally retiring for dinner and a well earned deep sleep, we went to see the pre show, impromptu recital. These six young girls were so talented at such an early age and were so totally unperturbed by the presence of these two foreigners, that we could not help but buy them each an armful of glass bangles to express our thankyou for sharing a part of their life. Let me tell you they were thrilled and is some way so were we.
The next day proved
to be so much more than we have ever expected, it shocked the both of us and left us a little shaken if not stirred. More about that in the next blog.
Well, it’s xmas and we’re in Darjeeling now. I’ve been so immersed in this country and so have been a little tardy with my writing, but I hope to quite quickly bring you all up to date. Stay well family and friends, I hope you all enjoyed your Christmas and that each of you is right into the “Christmas spirit”.
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Val
non-member comment
happy new year
Hey you guys, I was only just thinking, I wonder where Mel and Rez are with their travels... then just like Indian magic an email appeared... Great to see you guys are well, u both look v relaxed and the pics are beaut ! Hope you guys have a fantastic new years, I'm sure it will be special where ever you are... We're heading down the coast for week to relax at Manyana..can't wait. take good care.. love and best wishes . Val, Gen and boys.