Maheshwar, Madhya Pradesh, India Jan 9 – 20, 2016 “The extraordinary thing about inventing a persona is that one is loathe to give it up, especially if the fiction sits comfortably.” Gita Mehta, A River Sutra “Detachment is the emblem of the mastery of one who sees and hears an object without craving” Patanjali, Kriya Sutra 15 “Without desire there is no life. Everything will stand still. Become emptiness. In fact sir, be dead.” Gita Mehta, A River Sutra My first knowledge and then fascination about the Narmada River arose during my long period (23 years) away from India during which I read the novel by Gita Mehta “A River Sutra”. The main character is an older man who manages a guest house bungalow on the Narmada River. He encounters pilgrims, ascetics, people posse... read more

"Raam ke nam hee saty hei" (the name of Ram is the only truth) Chant of those carrying bodies to the banks of the Ganges river for burning in Varanasi "Some people think that the truth can be hidden with a little cover-up and decoration. But as time goes by, what is true is revealed, and what is fake fades away." Ismail Haniyeh "There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting." Buddha Ayodhya has interested me ever since learning about the terrible events across India (mainly the communal violence that erupted in Mumbai and in Gujarat) following the 1992 storming and destroying by Hindu fundamentalist zealots of the Babri Masjid (a mosque built in 1528 under Emperor Babar, ... read more

Shoja, Inner Seraj Valley, Kullu District, Himachal Pradesh May 15, 2015 “....the path ...... must eventually be abandoned, just as you abandon a boat when you reach the other shore. You must disembark once you have arrived. At the point of total realisation, you must abandon . The spiritual path is a temporary solution, a placebo to be used until emptiness is understood.” Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse The plan mooted a week ahead was to trek up to the nearby mountain sacred site of Skiran with a friend (Ved) to witness the huge local religious ceremony held there in May each year. This particular ceremonial festival is where the Shringi Rishi god statue is carried to Skiran (where there is a small wooden Shringi Rishi temple) from his usual temple abode below Chehni (four hours by foot) ... read more

Kathmandu, Nepal 14 – 25 March 2015 “Never trust a man who, when left alone in a room with a tea-cozy, doesn't try it on” Billy Connolly “Strive ardently,.... and burn! Purity comes from burning away the dross. Gold must pass through a crucible in order to be refined” S.N.Goenka What could possess one to spend 11 days in a relatively small captive space while in one of the most expansively beautiful countries on earth; to be woken each morning at 4 am; and to then spend 10.5 hours a day sitting on the floor (often in pain); to have one's life totally regulated by a bell; to be absolutely silent even when back in a shared sleeping residence and not even making eye contact or gestures with anyone; to leave one's phone and laptop locked ... read more

Pushkar, Rajasthan India 24th February 2015 “Emotionally we have many problems, but these problems are not actual problems; they are something created; they are problems pointed out by our self-centered ideas or views.” Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind Beginners Mind It had been a pleasant evening entertaining my friend in my room. We had cooked pasta with mushroom and tomato cream sauce and had followed up with a cup of spice chai. I was putting on some music on my Zenbook ASUS Solid State Hard Drive Ultrabook (I quote all this to bring home my special attachment to my computer of choice these past two years... the decision to buy having been long and arduous for my fickle mind, and the care I had taken travelling across India and Turkey and back being particularly careful with it ... read more