Monday, July 24, 2006
Pleasure to remove Guilt
Last week I went to holy shrine of Vaishno Devi with my family. First let me tell you about the place. It lies 61 km north of Jammu in the northern state of Jammu and Kashmir. Perched at a height of 5,200 feet above the sea level, Vaishno Devi, Considered to be one of the holiest Hindu shrines in North India, the cave is the abode of the Mother Goddess in the lower Himalayas. Since times immemorial, lakhs of pilgrims every year have been visiting the holy shrine 12 KMs from the base camp at Katra. It takes around 4-7 hours of uphill travel depending upon the speed and the size of the group. After 6 km, you reach Adhkwari, the halfway mark and a holy temple. Then there is a trek towards Sanjhichat. The route consists of such a steep climb that it is called “Hathi mattha” a.k.a Head of the Elephant. Let me tell you, even 5 hours of uphill walking is very very tough on your thighs and cramp your muscles.
I have been quite a regular visitor of the shrine, the last count being 7. The thing that amazed me most is the amount of changes that have been taken place over the time. Earlier when we used to travel, the road was all muddy, rough and dangerous. There were no side barriers to the road. Because of continuous rain, the road was all slippery. Fear of land slide and stone falling from the top would always be there. Sometimes the road is filled with water and sometimes we can’t see anything because it is all covered with dark clouds. One wrong step and you could find yourself flying in the air before hitting the ground 5000 feet below. We used to keep touching the side hill to gauge where we are traveling on the road. There was no regular availability of water and food in the way. We have to pack all the stuff and take it along us till we refill it at Adhkwari. There was something which made all of us climb so high even amid adverse of the climates. We all managed to reach the top may be it was because the travel in hills exudes warmth and belief of unseen nature or it is the belief in God which transcends the physical strength and mind and the reverberating chanting of ’’Jai Mata Di’’, makes you keep moving up.. The enthusiasm of the people, the young ones, senior citizens alike in climbing up makes anybody feel younger by 10 years. The instant encouragement which any tired pilgrimage will get from the co-pilgrimage is just amazing and the satisfaction you get after visiting the shrine and having the darshan is just ultimate. To see the actual place of idol, you further have to pass through a cave is about 98 ft which is very dark, tight and rough with sharp stones and water all the way.
But over the years things changed a lot. . Several porters and ponies are available at base on hire, so you can avail the luxury of riding on the Horse entire route and make the trip a pleasure one. The entire 12 KM is quite wide and tiled. Besides, the whole path is lit up every night by high powered sodium lamps. The whole route is swept and cleaned daily. Shelter cum sheds, and cafeterias are setup through out the route. Drinking water is available all along the routes. There is a helicopter service though costly but operated by Deccan for the route. The last time I went I saw CCD(yups our Café Coffee Day) chain in the route and this time I was astonished to see that the Shrine board have made a separate route from Adkwari(half way) to Bhavan which is far less steep thus avoiding the difficult “Hathi Mattha” and above that Battery run Autos have started running on that route. So some people are just running past you on horse, some on porters, some even faster on Autos and some flying above you. No more we hear the regular chanting which was the Hallmark of the trek and energy provider to tired muscles and mind as these people are not tired at all. The trip is more becoming into a picnic and trekking than religious one. They even have blocked that cave and made a separate route to the idol though a well lit wide tunnel.
Govt. says it all has been done for our convenience and handling the increasing rush of the pilgrims. But I say they are no more pilgrims but tourists who want to enjoy the hilly season amid dark clouds and snow, avoiding harsh hot climate at homes and in the end visiting the shrine thus removing the guilt of not remembering God much.
I have been quite a regular visitor of the shrine, the last count being 7. The thing that amazed me most is the amount of changes that have been taken place over the time. Earlier when we used to travel, the road was all muddy, rough and dangerous. There were no side barriers to the road. Because of continuous rain, the road was all slippery. Fear of land slide and stone falling from the top would always be there. Sometimes the road is filled with water and sometimes we can’t see anything because it is all covered with dark clouds. One wrong step and you could find yourself flying in the air before hitting the ground 5000 feet below. We used to keep touching the side hill to gauge where we are traveling on the road. There was no regular availability of water and food in the way. We have to pack all the stuff and take it along us till we refill it at Adhkwari. There was something which made all of us climb so high even amid adverse of the climates. We all managed to reach the top may be it was because the travel in hills exudes warmth and belief of unseen nature or it is the belief in God which transcends the physical strength and mind and the reverberating chanting of ’’Jai Mata Di’’, makes you keep moving up.. The enthusiasm of the people, the young ones, senior citizens alike in climbing up makes anybody feel younger by 10 years. The instant encouragement which any tired pilgrimage will get from the co-pilgrimage is just amazing and the satisfaction you get after visiting the shrine and having the darshan is just ultimate. To see the actual place of idol, you further have to pass through a cave is about 98 ft which is very dark, tight and rough with sharp stones and water all the way.
But over the years things changed a lot. . Several porters and ponies are available at base on hire, so you can avail the luxury of riding on the Horse entire route and make the trip a pleasure one. The entire 12 KM is quite wide and tiled. Besides, the whole path is lit up every night by high powered sodium lamps. The whole route is swept and cleaned daily. Shelter cum sheds, and cafeterias are setup through out the route. Drinking water is available all along the routes. There is a helicopter service though costly but operated by Deccan for the route. The last time I went I saw CCD(yups our Café Coffee Day) chain in the route and this time I was astonished to see that the Shrine board have made a separate route from Adkwari(half way) to Bhavan which is far less steep thus avoiding the difficult “Hathi Mattha” and above that Battery run Autos have started running on that route. So some people are just running past you on horse, some on porters, some even faster on Autos and some flying above you. No more we hear the regular chanting which was the Hallmark of the trek and energy provider to tired muscles and mind as these people are not tired at all. The trip is more becoming into a picnic and trekking than religious one. They even have blocked that cave and made a separate route to the idol though a well lit wide tunnel.
Govt. says it all has been done for our convenience and handling the increasing rush of the pilgrims. But I say they are no more pilgrims but tourists who want to enjoy the hilly season amid dark clouds and snow, avoiding harsh hot climate at homes and in the end visiting the shrine thus removing the guilt of not remembering God much.
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