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Published: December 24th 2004
hello everyone! christmas is right around the corner and i am sure you are all busy buying gifts and going to holiday parties 😊 what am i doing you ask? well i just arrived in rishikesh- yoga central of india as well as the world- and i plan to celebrate christmas and new year's in the most unique way possible...meditating and doing yoga on the ganges!
before i get ahead of myself telling you about rishikesh let me let you know what i did in my last days in kurukshetra. i was fortunate enough to be in kurukshetra for gita jayanti! it is the celebration of the birthday of the bhagavad gita- at the birthplace of the bhagavad gita. as i said before- kurukshetra is a very historical place as it is where krishna is said to have preached the bhagavad gita to arjuna which was followed by 18 days of battle. it is also said to be the place where brahma originally created man. well for gita jayanti they have 4 days of celebration with music, dance, lights, so much food and more. it was like a giant fair around the perimeter of bharmasarover tank- which is a giant manmade lake-type tank that pilgrims flock to on eclipses. it was really fun!
in my time in kurukshetra i got to see all the sights as well! i loved the sri krishna museum which showed all kinds of art about krishna's various avatars (incarnations- or 'faces' he showed to the world) in the form of sculptures, frescos, tableaus and textiles. then there was the panorama and science center which was interesting. the science center was not what you would expect in america as much of what the displays were about were things i recall learning in elementary school (meaning it wasn't current). and in america science is separate from religion- whereas at this science center it all revolved around the hindu religion. the panorama center was a lifesize display of krishna preaching the bhagavad gita to arjuna followed by the war and it's various high points. it was pretty interesting! i also got to see the sheikh chehli's tomb- a beautiful marble tomb built in the 17th century. there was a city surrounding the tomb which is undergound from floods centuries ago and they have been excavating it and finding all kinds of archeological artifacts which are on display at the museum. pretty much ajay took me to see all the sights of kurukshetra- including kurukshetra university- so that i could really get a feel for indian his city and his culture.
it was really nice being able to stay with an indian family- and i am so very glad that ajay's family extended the invitation. being a foreign tourist and going from tourist attraction to tourist attraction is nice but it doesn't really allow one to really see india- meaning the people and their culture. most of the touristy places- like mcleod ganj and rishikesh- are very westernized in order to cater to the westerner. kurukshetra was a truly indian city- and i am so thankful i got to experice it!
ajay has said from the beginning that he feels that i am in india for a reason and that i have ties to india from my past- and he said proof of this was that everything was working out for me as though the whole universe was conspiring to take care of my on this trip. well one day an old friend dropped by for a visit and met me- and as he and ajay were talking it came up in conversation that there was a sadhu living nearby. a sadhu is a self realized renunciate- one who has given up all things of the material world and lives a very simple life devoted to god. well ajay had never heard of a sadhu living near his city and he was so excited when his friend invited us to visit the sadhu with him. on the way there ajay kept saying that he was so excited and that he has me to thank for it because it was because of me that this sadhu was being revealed to us. he said he has lived in his city for a very long time and never heard of such a person living nearby but all of a sudden i come to visit and he hears about it. so we went to see the sadhu- who did not speak english- and he blessed us and gave us some fruit. he told ajay that i have been in kurukshetra before in a past life. i am not sure about that- but it is kind of ironic that he said that 2 days after we were driving through a part of town and all of a sudden i got this weird feeling of deja vu- like i had been there before. who knows though...all i can say is that i met a sadhu on the new moon in scorpio (supposedly very auspicious!).
in addition to all the sights of kurukshetra i was also introduced to all the people that lived there. okay maybe not ALL of them- but enough to make my head spin. everyone wanted to meet the american girl visiting ajay's family. so we constantly had house guests or made house calls. it was kind of weird because most of the people couldn't speak english- so half the time i was sitting there listening to them talk about me in hindi. ajay had to translate everything- but sometimes they would get into talking and forget i couldn't understand and i would just sit there 😞 or sometimes they would attempt to speak english- but all they could say is 'how are you' and offer me food- and this would go on forever! i realize that indians eat a lot- and a lot of stuff that i don't like. their snack foods are all fried and salty and their tea is full of milk and sugar. and saying no to food is not considered normal- but i had to because i don't eat that stuff! i tried one day to be polite and just eat the stuff offered to me and it made me sick. so after that i vowed not to do that to myself again. but at people's homes it would almost become a fight to see if they could get me to eat. one place i had to say no to their food 8 times! sheesh!
ajay's family is very cool. his mom is a ray of sunshine- always smiling and laughing. she and i really hit it off despite neither of us being able to speak the other's language! his eldest brother is an ayurvedic doctor and i met him twice. his middle brother neeraj is a teacher and we really hit it off as well. ajay also has a younger sister who lives in mumbai who i did not get to meet. and ajay's father was a sweetie as well. he works in a city 4 hours away so he is only home on weekends. so he would call during the week and ask to talk to me- and all he would say is 'hi- this is ajay's daddy- are you comfortable at our home?' i would say yes and he would say 'good- i will talk to you tomorrow!' and he would promptly hang up. then the next day he would call and the same conversation would be repeated- because it was all he could say in english. it was funny!
staying with ajay's family made me realize how different it is to be a guest in india versus being one in america. first of all- in india there is a saying that 'the guest is god'. this means that you do everything in your power to make their stay comfortable and enjoyable. if that means giving them your bed, your last morsel of food, your anything- so be it! and that is just what they did for me. i had my own room- but there were only two rooms there. so someone was always sleeping on the couch. all the food was prepared to my liking and when i wanted it. if i tried to cook or clean the dishes i was immediately told not to exert myself! and when it came to spending my own money on anything- well that was out of the question! everything was provided for me- my food, my water, etc... i had to argue with ajay in order to pay for my own long distance phone calls to my mom and dad! i actually felt bad allowing them to do so much for me because i know that they make less money here than in the u.s. and for me spending $2 a week on bottled water because i cannot drink the tap water is nothing but for them it is a big deal. but they would not have that! it took me a long while to get used to that and to not feel so bad. i am so thankful for all that they did for me- and for being my family in india. both ajay's parents referred to themselves as my mommy and daddy in india- and i really feel that they are just that!
so now i am in rishikesh 😊 the bus ride here was just another example of how i am supported by the universe while on this trip. at the stop where i got on the bus in kurukshetra the bus was already full and it looked like i may have to stand up! but the bus driver and his ticket person both made room for me in the front where the ticket person has his own seat separate from everyone else- and they helped make room for my bags behind the busdriver's seat! there was enough space for another person to sit up there but for the whole ride no one else was allowed to sit there besides me. at our halfway break the bus driver and ticket guy were taking lunch and they gestured for me to follow them and they broke open their lunch pails and shared their lunch with me! so i had yummy chapati with aloo ghobi (potato and cauliflower with spices) and aloo palak (potato and spinach with spices). while we were eating the bus driver had a person sitting on the bus watching my bags so no one would touch them. at one point there was a beggar child on the bus asking for money and they were near my bags and he ran up there and threw them off the bus! about 6 hours later i arrived in rishikesh safe and sound with all my belongings and a full tummy- thanks to my new friends 😊 and i bade them a fond farewall as i made my way to swarg ashram.
at the bus stand there were swarms of rickshaw drivers vying for my attention. i ended up taking a rickshaw to ram jhula- a bridge that goes across the ganges to swarg ashram where i was planning on staying. because of all my bags i took the boat across the ganges river rather than walking the bridge- and i later found out that this is the most auspicious way to cross the river for one's first time in rishikesh! i went to parmarth niketan ashram where i have a reservation on the 30th of this month (they were booked until then) to see if they had an available room- but they didn't. so i found a nearby hotel and checked in there. then i walked around to check out my new home for however long i choose to stay here. already i love it! i found a great place with all you can eat thali for only 20 rupees (50 cents)! and the internet cafe here is cheaper than any other i have found to date in india!
yesterday i walked to laxman jhula- another little area about 2km away and found the most beautiful peaceful ashram right on the ganges with very newly furnished rooms and clean bathrooms with hot water for only $3 a night! so i am moving there today 😊 they also have all kinds of balconies and sun decks so i can get up and meditate and do yoga in the sunshine! last night i attended a nightly arti (not sure if i am spelling that right) at parmarth niketan on the ganges- which was made up of their young yogis singing and chanting and lighting candles. it was an hour long and very inspirational! i plan on attending them regularly 😊
well that is about it for rishikesh so far! today i have to lug my bags to laxman jhula- but once i am there i will stay there for a while. my reservation at parmarth niketan is next week but after talking to the guy in the office there i have found out that although they have rooms and food- their schedule does not start up again until mid to late january. so i think i am going to stay at my new place until then. so i can relax, read, meditate, and do yoga- and just enjoy being here on the banks of the ganges 😊
i hope you guys have a merry christmas! i know i will 😊 it is very peaceful here- and peace is the only present i need!
until then...
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anonymous
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Greetings from Rishikesh
Greetings from Rishikesh What a Plesant surprise to find your posting on Rishikesh on a same day you posted it. Well..while surfing on net i found out the site and your posting accidently on a pious day of christmas. Anway it may be for some reasons..!! I wish you Merry Xmas and best wishes of Happy New Year 2005 !! - Mahesh