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Published: March 25th 2009
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Sadhu
A holy man in Varanasi, on the ghats. 13 March. While we were in Orccha, I had the opportunity to take a cooking class that really demonstrated the way Indian women feed their families. Like the women in southeast Asia, they do without refrigeration, but since most are vegetarian, taking care of meat’s not a problem. Most dairy is yoghurt (it’s already sour, right?) and eggs can sit out on the counter for a few days. No one buys a dozen eggs anyway - just what you need to make an egg curry for dinner. The class was held in the teacher’s home. We sat on a mat on the tile floor, while she sat in front of us with a two-burner stove on the floor in front of her. Her sister-in-law and mother helped out with cutting vegetables, which they did on a sickle-shaped knife with a wooden handle held on the floor with the feet. That knife was razor sharp. The women wore saris or scarves which were frequently VERY close to the gas flame, and the teacher’s 9-month-old son crawled around on the floor, well within reach of the knives and gas flames. They kept an eagle eye on him, but still … Another observation:
Allahabad Ghat
Evening prayers in the home of Rama. I haven’t figured this out yet, but babies quit wearing diapers and seem to be toilet trained at a very young age. We were with this little guy for about 4 hours and there were no accidents. I’ve seen the same thing on trains and buses. Yeah, I’ll agree that the kids pee and poop anywhere outdoors, but they’re really good at holding it when necessary.
14 March. We went to Khajuraho, which is a small city that’s home to a complex of Hindu temples with some amazing carved decorations. They’re famous because a few are erotic, showing everything from “regular” sex to men with horses and women with dogs. They are well-preserved, and apparently horrified the British who found them. The next day, we went to Panna National Park, again in search of wild tigers. We stayed in a lodge beside the Ken River with beautiful cabins and met a British woman who has been helping the nearby village for years by selling prints of her tiger paintings. With the cash she’s generated, she’s completely replaced the crumbling village school - by herself. Her website is www.tigertigerburningbright.com if you want to see her work. We had no luck
Bathing on the Ganges Shore
Some these people are taking ritual baths, while others are just taking daily baths. finding tigers on our safari, despite the fact that they’ve just released two new ones into the park. India is having a huge problem with poaching of their tigers by those who sell tiger parts, right down to the bones, to the Chinese who use them in traditional medicine. (Note from 21 March: today’s paper reports that 29 tigers have been lost just since 1 January.)
16 March. Tom and I think we could have skipped the town of Chitrakoot, except that it’s a good stopover on the way to Varanasi. We stayed in a filthy government motel (and it’s a miracle that we didn’t get sick eating there). Chitrakoot is a Hindu tourist town, famous because Ram (a Hindu god who’s the seventh incarnation of Vishnu) spent several years living there. We were definitely the evening’s entertainment - not many westerners attend evening prayers. The dirt of Chitrakoot triggered a long conversation between Tom, Gill and me about dirt in all areas of Indian life - it’s definitely a different world. Neither Tom nor I has had a stomach problem but we’ve each had colds and sinus infections.
17 March. It’s St. Patrick’s Day and we’re in
Dhobiwallahs
These are professional laundrymen, washing YOUR clothes (and the sheets and towels from your hotel) in the Ganges river, just downstream from the burning ghat. Allahabad. We visited Nehru’s family home, which I enjoyed because I’ve always considered him to be one of the great men of Indian history. It’s another holy city (which means Tom can’t buy a beer at the end of a hot day), so we attended evening prayers along the river. Allahabad is located at the confluence of the Ganges, the Yamuna and the Saraswati Rivers and is home every six years to an enormous Hindu festival, the Kumbha Mela. During that time more than 20 million people visit Allahabad - we had watched a documentary on the festival before we came here. It’s unbelievable. We also had close encounters with a very large and friendly holy cow and (in our hotel room) with a rat. This was supposed to be one of the best hotels in town (The Milam Palace) but we didn’t need the wildlife. Tom looks funny standing on the bed, but I must admit I was up there too.
A critter note: those who know me well understand my feelings toward animals, and being here in India where few animals receive any care is tough. I’ve been very good about not patting all the stray dogs, cats, cows … and am trying to develop a “Hindu-like” attitude especially toward the scrawny, mangy, wormy puppies. I’ve always said that there’s a special place in hell for those who abuse animals, and now think that maybe reincarnation does work; they’ve come back to an existence they deserve.
20 March. We’re in the holiest of Hindu holy cities: Varanasi. We spent last night and this morning on the Ganges river in a large rowboat. (The boatman must have been glad that there were only 3 Intrepid guests, not the usual 12.) We watched the evening Shiva worship ceremonies - five priests and a coordinated ceremony of flames, drums, incense and music - and floated by bathing and burning ghats (see below) to put about 40 small bowls with flowers and candles out on the water along with our wishes Next morning, we rose early to watch the river’s edge come alive with color at sunrise.
For info: a ghat is a flight of stairs that go from street level to the river’s edge. Burning ghats end at flat areas where bodies of devout Hindus are cremated before their ashes are put into the Ganges. Bathing ghats end at the waters edge, where people dip under the water for religious or cleanliness purposes. The river is very polluted, but is used for everything from a sewer to toothbrushing. I found it very interesting to see that laundry for thousands is done at the edge of the water just downstream from where cremated ashes are put into the river. No wonder the hotel towels are kinda gray!
21 March. We’re back in New Delhi after a long night train ride from Varanasi and have checked into the Taj Mahal Hotel here. (The sister Taj in Mumbai was the one attacked last November.) It’s been a swift jump from the railway station to 5-star luxury. We’ll enjoy it the next two days, and then start on our fourth trip this year up into the northern areas of India.
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