Travelogue: McLeodGanj + Dharamshala

The abode of the Dalai Lama and the seat of the Tibetan Government in exile....McLeodGanj is a thoroughly unique proposition where India is concerned. This beautiful hill station at the foothills of the Himalayas is also a major draw for devotees and foreigners who swarm all-year-round due to the salubrious and damp climate (2nd wettest place in India!). It is a place of bountiful natural wonders as any trip to google image search can testify!

It's an extremely compact town and one that is sure to work your calf muscles as you navigate the hilly terrain and shuttle between the transport hub of Dharamshala and the main Buddhist complex almost a mile overhead at McLeodGanj

Devotees and 'touristers' alike will encounter a simple main street overladen with a vast array of restaurants and food-holes...even a few disco beer bars which provide an incongruous backdrop to the maroon-robed monks making their way down to the monastery...

This is a strange tension in McLG, on the one hand it is a village town catering to the vast streams of Tibetans who have endured the trauma of resettlement and now look to carve a new life for themselves in exile. At the other end of the sadhana scale, the fledgling buddhist westerners who haven't quite relinquished their worldly attachments, are served with beer and meat and discos in between that all-important audience with the Dalai Lama. Perhaps this is not an issue or deserves my judgement and I should not have had such lofty expectations of what is after all the nerve centre of Tibetean Buddhism in exile...but when I visited the scale of 'entertainment' development was one of the most over-riding arcs of concern amongst the locals, as it generates the very real prospect of Tibetan culture being diluted in the one place which was established to preserve it!

There is ample opportunity to attend a discourse by the Dalai Lama, visit the monasteries and cultural centres, walk/talk/befriend a young monk or two and absorb the Buddhist/Tibetan flavours. Volunteering and campaigning work is also available for those who wish to aid the Free Tibet campaign. For this reason McLeodGanj is very much a long-stay town and one that would facilitate multiple visits. It is also, for obvious reasons, the one town I visited on the subcontinent where India felt like a guest at its own party!

An airport is imminent which will  free up the ease with which McLG can be visited and inevitably change its complexion forever. Such is the nature of impermanance and transience of life!

But few would bet against the plucky Tibetans, who have already lost more than we can begin to imagine......

Losing My Religion...the Return to England

I want to blog today about the curious process of acclimitizing to English soil after a few months in India. The transition process starts in earnest at the international airport, Delhi or Mumbai......once inside the terminal, Indian dust has swirled its last. The chaotic arrangements of animals traders food and people settle into traditional western notions of separate and organised commerce cells......actually you can discount seeing any animals here also......except in the take away outlets where the animals have already multiplied in relation to their usually vegetarian customers!
Colours seem to recede as one walks through the gates.....everybody is in dull Western mode already, preparing to blend in as dutiful citizens of their adopted motherlands.
On the flight one can still enjoy a pure veg or "American veg"(vegan) meal of 'Asian' heritage....but, oh look, the spice quotient has dropped to an imperceptible level. Bye bye spices.....

I cling onto every last drop of Indian influence, watching the latest Akshay Kumar flop on the inflight entertainment system.....If I'm flying Jet or Indian Airways I can savour the colour wheel inflight lightshow as we prepare for touchdown....it might be the last time I see all those colours in succession until my next trip to the subcontinent!
In the no-mans-land of mid-air homelessness I feverishly try to balance what I am losing with what I will gain....deep hot baths, the ability to prepare a luxurious salad in a sterile environment, a night's sleep without guarding against mosquitoes, poverty being not quite so confronting (swept under the carpet instead), family and friends (mustn't forget those!).....I play the game of convincing myself it's good to return home and the Indian itch has been well and truly scratched for another year at least.....!

Heathrow Immigration.
Queuing up at the UK Boring, sorry BORDER Control.........Make the most of all these turbans, saris and moustaches....the most interesting looking people seem to get detained longest, but I am straight through and at the baggage belt.........another imperceptible sense of loss.....and then I realise (as I start to shiver and apply another layer of clothing)....where did all the smiles go? Seems they were mostly all abandoned somewhere between takeoff and touchdown...particularly the over-30s....it's all over for them!!

Onto the London Underground for the lengthy, but relatively inexpensive train journey to town..........this is hardcore back-to-earth with a bump reality check........miserable or inexpressive faces, no eye-contact or conversation whatsoever, black and grey clothing by coded consent....the colour, chaos and drama long since abandoned. Back to a life of comfort, control, safety and order.
A country with a high standard of living by anyone's standards, yet a quarter of the populace are on antidepressents. Kids and older people disappear from the streets after dark. Of course everybody is far too sophisticated to believe in God, hard to reconcile that with the non-stop moveable feast of puja that is India. I wonder if it's a propensity to self-absorption that makes us a melancholy country. No Gods to break up the pity party!

Last leg of the journey in a taxi milling through the London traffic. Talk Radio is on, I am listening with disinterest as the whole broadcast seems to be one continuous whinge-fest. Britain is in deep recession, but I can't ascertain much of the famed Bulldog/Blitz spirit...we shall not overcome!! Everybody hates the bankers, the middle class are cagey about those on benefits, the benefits class are painted as scroungers anyway and everybody hates the government...and before I know it, I find myself moaning about moaning!

I have fully acclimitized. When I get  home my bright, shiny and colourful clothes get demoted to a laundry bag labelled  'Only open in case of severe depression or freak outburst of tropical weather'. I find myself meditating under a duvet blanket propped up by about 27 cushions. I have to take a magnifying glass to Indian restaurant menus to find anything spicy and vegetarian as a pick-me-up. Actually it's impossible to recreate a believable Indian ambience anywhere.......I come to the disturbing conclusion that I am homesick for a land that I only first encountered 4 years ago. What absolute insanity, but I have given myself up to the magical confusion that is India. Photos can't bring it back. Blog posts just twist the knife. My attempts at recreating Masala Dosa or Thali??? You have got to be kidding.

But one thing is for sure. India is changing me......and eating up all my air miles!

Cobra Kings of Seventh Hill

Check out this discarded snake skin we encountered on the recent trek to Seventh Hill in Vellaingiri Mountains (see previous post)> As long in length as our trek was arduous, it's chilling to think how many Goliaths like this would be roaming around, all fully aware of our presence, but us unaware of theirs, until we spot a reminder like this....!

Happy Holi!!

Time to re-post this::

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Pilgrimage: Seventh Hill, Vellaingiri Mountains

"In its beauty and its sacredness, the Velliangiri Mountains are no less than Kailash......

"The Velliangiri Mountains are purely steeped in Southern Mysticism, a very unique form of mysticism that cannot be found anywhere else in the world." - Sadhguru

"This Mountain is known as the Seven Hills because if you climb, there are seven undulations which make you feel like you are going up seven hills. The last peak is totally wind-blown – nothing grows there except grass. There are just three very huge boulders which have formed a shelter between themselves which is like a little temple with a small lingam. It is an incredibly powerful place.

So many beings, the kind of men that Gods would be envious of because they lived with such grace and dignity, have walked this Mountain. These great beings let the whole Mountain imbibe what they knew, and it can never be lost. This is also a Mountain where my Guru walked and the place he chose to shed his body. So for me and everybody here, it’s not just mountains, this is a temple for us. There is a tremendous amount of information here and for me, everything about how to consecrate the Dhyanalinga, was from here.” - Sadhguru

On a scorching Saturday morning, I joined the Isha meditators and embarked on a day-trip to these mountains which surround the Yoga Centre. It's a punishingly steep climb from foothills to cloudscapes.

 Here is the temple fixing the spot where Shiva himself meditated giving the 'Kailash of the South' tag

Natural water springs offset the discomfort of tired and aching limbs.....

Powerful meditation spot where Sadhguru Shri Brahma left his body from all 7 chakras, the view is heavenly, the sheer drops terrifying...

staring into the illimitable void......

A fierce day out, most people stay the night up in the mountain caves but we had to be up and back within the same day due to 'activity' in the elephant corridor.......better safe than sorry!! Right now my limbs are cursing me....but that's the nature of pilgrimage :)

Make some Noise for the Desi Boyz!

I'm baaaaack!!!

One of the most life-affirming and electrifying experiences is the Indian street band. Usually spotted in celebration of  public holidays and religious festivals, this free public spectacle will amplify all that come before it!!

the sights and sounds are raw, exuberant and quite punk rock in their own way! I love the way the vocalist and synth-player have to walk with the vehicle as it is powered from within

This is a good place to spot some awesome uniform action, with emblems, and insignia aplenty.

There are many awesome things about the above photo, but I particularly like the oval windows lending a toytown feel to the houses on the left.....

KRISHNA BRASH BAND.....unsure whether this is a deliberate play on words, or not,  but from Brass... to Brash....= Genius :)