TRAVELOGUE OF A SPIRITUAL JOURNEY

Lucknow – Ayodhya – Prayagraj – Varanasi – Mathura

 “To tread the path on a never ending journey, willingly seek to submerge self with nature;

To understand coincidence as bounty of nature, willingly embrace the unknown in nature;

To realise the secrets of the unknown, know that it’s being one with nature.”

-          Veteran Col RS Sidhu

 

My quest to seek greater understanding of provenance of the occult phenomenon on the battlefield, convinced me to undertake a spiritual journey to the known spiritual abodes of Varanasi, Prayagraj, Ayodhya and Mathura. That this goal coincided with the deep desire of my spouse to pay obeisance at these centers of spirituality, eased the decision matrix.

 We decided to drive down from Dehra Dun in our tried and tested Volkswagen Vento, as we wanted to keep our itinerary relatively flexible. This facilitated us to mould our journey to go with the flow, and the long drives gave us ample time to share our individual understandings, thus heightening our overall spiritual experience.

 Journeying to Lucknow

The drive from Dehra Dun to Lucknow is more than 700 kilometers. But the journey is comfortable as the route follows four laned toll roads and expressways. From Dehra Dun we drove via Mohand tunnel to Biharigarh, from where the four laned Saharanpur – Chandigarh toll road takes off. At Gagalheri we branched off onto the Muzaffarnagar four lane toll road, which seamlessly merges with the four laned Muzaffarnagar bypass, and thereafter onto the four laned toll road to Meerut. Here on we followed the double laned Meerut bypass road before getting onto the Meerut Delhi Expressway which merges with the Eastern Peripheral Expressway. At Greater Noida we left the Eastern Peripheral Expressway to drive across Greater Noida onto the Yamuna Expressway. Somehow the project planners have not catered for connectivity between the two expressways. At Agra the Taj Expressway also acts as a convenient link road to move onto the Lucknow Expressway. Thence we followed the Agra-Lucknow Expressway. Overall it took us under eleven hours to reach Lucknow.  

Exploring Lucknow

We hired a local cab for the day to explore the sights, sounds as also the culinary world of Lucknow of old. We had already decided to forego the standard meals for the day to enable us to explore the snack delicacies that Lucknow is renowned for. After apprising the cab driver our points of interest, we let him set the itinerary for the day as well as the route to be followed.

Our first halt was at Sharma Tea, at Lalbagh, renowned for its butter bun, ‘chai’ and samosa. It was early morning and most of the shops in the market were yet to open for the day. The road here is reasonably broad, but the densely parked vehicles of the customers made it appear narrow, while also testifying to the popularity of the tea shop. The buns, filled with freshly churned butter, the aromatic ‘chai’ in earthen pot, and the finely ground potato and herbs filled samosa, appealed to both the senses and the stomach.

Next halt on our itinerary lay at the complex housing Imam Bara, Picture Gallery, and the Chhota Imam Bara. The Imambara is a labyrinth of narrow passageways, colloquially called ‘bhul bhulayya’ which may loosely be translated as ‘passageways for getting lost’. Only a part of the complex is open for view for the public, with the passages which lead deep into the labyrinth having been walled off due to public safety concerns. We decided against taking a guide, and got dutifully lost in the dingy passageways full of musty smell. It took us half an hour of exciting explorations to find our way out of the maze. Taking a guide would have spoilt this fun.

The close by Picture Gallery houses the portraits of erstwhile Nawabs of Oudh. We were disappointed by the poor maintenance and haphazard display arrangements, characteristic of most of the old monuments of Lucknow.

Having spent three hours exploring the medieval structures, it was time to refresh ourselves with more of the old world culinary delicacies of Lucknow. We first went to Chowk, the old market of Lucknow. Here we savoured the ‘Malaipan’ and ‘Jalebi’ of Radhe Lal Mishthan Bhandar, followed by the ‘Lassi’ of Shree Lassi Bhandar. ‘Kulfi’ of Prakash Kulfi at Ameenabad and ‘Aloo Tikki’ of Shukla Chaat House at Hazrat Ganj rounded up our gourmet tour.

Selection Centre on Cantt Road has an extensive array of ‘Chikan’ embroidery clothes. It also has assured quality at fixed prices, a big disappointment for the ‘bargain hunters’, but a manna from heaven to those unskilled in the fine art of bargaining.

Ambedkar Park, spread over almost a square kilometer, lies along the Gomti riverfront. Aesthetically designed, its famous open air ‘elephant gallery’, featuring statues of sixty odd elephants, is its USP. Extensively floored with polished granite and other stone floor tiles, it exudes a breadth of fresh air with its vast open space, coolness from its vicinity to the Gomti river, amphitheaters, auditoriums and fountains. It has also developed a distinct aura of its own. We also found it a good enough place to burn off some of the calories we had imbibed during our exploration of old Lucknow.

Hazratganj, the upmarket shopping complex of Lucknow, turned out to be a bit of a disappointment as sizeable number of its built up spaces gave an uncared for appearance. 

The evening was spent at Surya Officers Institute, in the very enjoyable company of my veteran course mates from our Academy days, Col JP Ahlawat and Capt Sujeet Singh, and their families. It was while we were walking down to the car park post dinner that an interesting coincidence occurred.  In the car park, Sujeet requested one of the drivers of another visitor’s vehicle to take our photograph, and I just blurted out to the driver, “Mujhe kyon lagta hai ki aap Mishraji ho?”  To the surprise of all of us, he responded, “Mera naam kuchh aur hai par sab mujhe Mishraji ke naam se hi jante hain!”

Ayodhya

Day two started with our drive to Faizabad and Ayodhya, the twin mofussil towns. The drive was uneventful. The road state was good and the traffic was light. We reached Faizabad, where we were to stay overnight, by mid-day. Post lunch we started on our tour of Ayodhya, accompanied by a local escort.

There’s hardly anything to indicate when you have left Faizabad behind and entered Ayodhya. Soon the road turned into narrow lanes barely adequate for vehicles to pass each other. Suddenly we came face to face with static and mobile picquets of armed police guarding the lanes and by lanes. Few people could also be seen lounging at roadside tea kiosks, staring obtrusively at passers-by. Though not in uniform, they had police written all over them. We had entered the heavily guarded outer security zone of Ram Lalla temple premises, the birthplace of Lord Ram.

The Ramlala site has a three tiered heavy security, manned by Central Reserve Police Force, the civil police, and assortment of intelligence agencies. Heavy barbed wire fences, reminiscent of prisoner of war cages, and electronic surveillance devices bounded the whole complex, including the passageways for the worshippers.  The actual site of the temple was barricaded by another barbed wire fence, with signs of construction activity in progress. To enable unhindered reconstruction of the temple, the Ram Lalla idols had been temporarily removed for display at another part within the complex. Ancient artifacts unearthed during archaeological excavations were on display along the pilgrims passage. These artifacts did allude to the presence of an old temple at the site, which predated the Babri Masjid.

As we passed by the site of the original Ram Lalla temple, it felt as if the environment was surcharged with latent electric current. Probably the faith and reverence of the masses of worshippers may have had something to do with it. My own body vibrations became enhanced and I could feel a warm throbbing sensation in the center of my palms. I moved in a sense of daze, part of the crowd of worshippers and yet far removed from it, overwhelmed by a surrealist feeling of hovering above it all. The feeling was quite akin to my experience three months earlier while paying obeisance at Pathar Sahib Gurudwara near Leh, and I wondered at the similarity of the experience.

The close by Kanak Mahal is the abode of Mother Sita, consort of Lord Ram. The temple in the inner courtyard displays three pairs of idols of Lord Ram and Mother Sita. The door to the inner sanctorum is adorned with glass enclosed overlays depicting the ten ‘Avatars’ of God Vishnu, including the ‘Kalki’ the future ‘Avatar’. What’s most interesting about these ‘Avatars’ is their sequence of arrival, that coincides with the evolution of life form on earth – ‘Matsya’ (fish), ‘Kurmi’ (tortoise), ‘Varaha’ (boar), ‘Narsimha’ (part lion part human), ‘Vaman’ (dwarf human), ‘Parsuram’ (warrior saint), ‘Ram’ (pursuing idealistic way of life), ‘Krishna’ (pursuit of materialism), ‘Buddha’ (Enlightened One), ‘Kalki’ (the future one).

The Hanumangarhi locality is situated on an earthen mound, the highest part of Ayodhya. As the name suggests, it has a temple dedicated to Shri Hanuman, the most ardent and powerful follower of Lord Ram. The folklore maintains that Lord Ram, pleased with the faithful services of Shri Hanuman, accorded him the status and privilege of a King by accommodating him in the highest abode in Ayodhya. A ‘Vijay Sthamba’ (Victory Pillar), believed to be brought back from Sri Lanka by Shri Hanuman, is also housed in the temple complex. Standing atop the roof adjacent to the sanctum sanctorum we had a bird’s eye view of the township. The close by centuries old temple of Lord Shiva provides just the perfect backdrop reflecting the value apportioned to the devoted services of Shri Hanuman.

The ritualistic evening ‘aarti’ on the banks of the flowing Saryu river is a grand event to experience. It is held at the spot where Lord Ram is believed to have taken ‘Jal Samadhi’. Open air, terraced steps for spectator gallery, the quietly flowing Saryu river in the forefront, and the faith of large numbers of devotees, ensures free flow of etheric energy and adds to the spiritual ambience and overall experience.

Dating of the Birth of Lord Ram

As an interesting aside Aadikavi Valmiki in 1/18/8-10 of ‘Ramayan’ has recorded details of the date of birth of Lord Ram as 9^th ‘tithi’ of ‘Chaitra’ month, ninth day after ‘Amavasya’ (moonless night), Moon near the star ‘punar vasu’ (Pollux’) in Gemini constellation, and Moon and Jupiter shining together in Cancer, with the ‘Grahas’ (planets) and ‘nakshatras’ (star constellations) positioned as under: -

Sun in Aries

Saturn in Libra

Jupiter in Cancer

Venus in Pisces

Mars in Capricorn

Astronomical calculations with the aid of computer software places the above astral occurrence, when viewed from the latitude/longitude of Ayodhya (25*N 81*E), last witnessed on 10^th January 5114 BCE.  Considerable trouble undertaken to record the details of a fictional character?!! Similarly the Mahabharat war can be astronomically dated to have occurred in 3067 BCE, near two thousand years later. Here it’s also interesting to know that the astronomical alignments reoccur every 24,000 years or so, the astronomical term being ‘Precession of Equinoxes’!!

 

Prayagraj

The drive from Ayodhya to Prayagraj was as uneventful as between Lucknow and Ayodhya. It took us two and half hours to complete the 150 plus kilometers journey.

The first place we decided to visit was of course the ‘Sangam’, the confluence of rivers Ganga and Yamuna. As per legend the mythical Saraswati river also joins the other two rivers at ‘Sangam’, though no physical evidence of the same is visible.

Interestingly, a deep well known as ‘Saraswati Kup’ is located within the premises of the fort located on the banks of the Yamuna river, two kilometers from the ‘Sangam’.  This fort also houses an ordinance depot of the Army. The Yamuna river during its flow at Mathura also has a ghat known as ‘Saraswati Ghat’.

Near Badrinath, in Uttarakhand, the locals also speak of the existence of a Saraswati river which flows for a very short distance before disappearing underground.

Ancient Hindu scriptures do record the existence of Saraswati river which originated in the Himalayas and flowed between the Yamuna and Sutlej rivers towards present day Rajasthan and drained into the Arabian Sea near Kutch region. Satellite imagery also supports the existence of a subterranean flowing water channel along this course.

We hired a boat to take us to the middle point of the confluence of Ganga and Yamuna rivers for a ritualistic dip in the flowing waters at the ‘Sangam’. The water channel was over 800 metres wide but the two rivers merged in silence, indicative of their great depth. There were several boats moored in the middle of the ‘Sangam’, with submerged bamboo platforms to facilitate the taking of the dip at the confluence. The ritualistic dip proved to be enervating.

Thereafter we drove to the nearby ancient ‘Barey Hanuman’ or ‘Letey (lying down) Hanuman’ temple. We were privileged to participate in the evening ‘aarti’ at the temple, a spiritually satisfying experience.

The ‘Saraswati Kup’ and ‘Vat Vraksh’ (Banyan tree) are both located within the premises of the Fort. As the legend goes, Lord Ram and Mother Sita prayed at the ‘Sangam’, where the ‘Vat Vraksh’, grew before commencing their fourteen years ‘vanvas’ (exile). On the completion of the exile they again returned to the place for offering thanks giving prayers, and blessed the ‘Vat Vraksh’ with eternal evergreen life. A 7^th Century CE Chinese traveler, Hwen Thsang, has recorded about this holy tree in his writings. However, no written records exist about the origins of the ‘Saraswati Kup’.

A panoramic view of the ‘Sangam’ from the ‘Presidential Viewpoint’ at the fort rounded up our experience for the day. We reached the view point at just the right time, with the sun setting on the horizon to the west, the near full moon rising from the east and the first stars being visible in the night sky.

 

It was a communion time, as the thought occurred of Hinduism being an interesting religion as well as a way of life, comprising layers within layers. In its outward form it is indeed materialistic, where overwhelming numbers enter into verbal contracts with their God to fulfil materialistic yearnings, and yet it is highly spiritual looking at long term goals and aspirations of individuals as well as society. In the latter form it also looks at life beyond life and evolution of self into a higher being.

Interestingly it is awash with knowledge of cosmology, of electromagnetic vibrations being at the core of the cosmos, while delving into the aspects of an omnipresent circle of time wherein all time past, present and future co-exists simultaneously beyond the known dimensions separated by electromagnetic vibrations.

Varanasi

We hired a taxi for the day, and left Prayagraj at 0600 hrs to reach Varanasi by 0830 hrs. The drive along the four laned toll road was smooth, with minimal traffic at this early hour.

After picking up our guide for the day, we headed straight for the temple of ‘Kal Bhairav’, the gatekeeper of Kashi. This temple is located in a narrow lane, approximately ten minutes walking distance from the road where vehicles can be parked. After seeking the blessings of ‘Kal Bhairav’, which activated the energy centers within the body, we headed for the ‘Kashi Vishwanath’ temple.

The present day Varanasi, answered to the name of Kashi in times past. The old Varanasi lies ensconced between the Varuna and Assi rivers to its east and west, respectively, with Ganga river marking its southern limits. Kashi, the sthamba (pillar) of light, the city of Lord Shiva, the oldest continuously habited human settlement in the world, is mentioned in the earliest texts of Hinduism, such as Skanda Purana, Upanishads and Vedas, as does its most famous temple the ‘Kashi Vishwanath’, one of the twelve ‘Jyotirlingas’ of Lord Shiva.

 ‘Kashi Vishwanath’, central to Hinduism, has been razed to the ground several times in its past, only to rise from the dust like the proverbial phoenix rises from its own ashes. The last time it was destroyed was by Mughal ruler Aurangzeb in the 17^th century CE, who converted the partially destroyed ruins into the ‘Gyanvapi Mosque’. The current ‘Kashi Vishwanath’ structure, adjacent to its original site, dates to close of 18^th century.

Encroached upon since centuries, the temple and its immediate environs are now being restored to its original glory. The constricting habitations in its neighbourhood have been acquired by the government, widening the complex over 57000 sq mtrs. The approach roads are being widened, and a broad 350 mtrs long corridor is linking it to the ‘Dashashvamedh Ghat’ on the Ganga river.

On reaching the location of the temple, we saw construction activities in full swing. The neighbourhood was awash with armed police security and electronic security devices. Despite the hustle and bustle generated by ongoing construction activity, we could perceive the beauty and magnetic appeal of the premises. The ‘Jyotirlinga’, that represents the form of the residing deity ‘Vishwanath’, is miniscule in size relative to the structure, but the raw energy emanating from it is palpable and can be easily experienced. No wonder the temple is central to Hindu belief, and we personally felt blessed and elated.

Post ‘darshan’ at ‘Kashi Vishwanath’, we ventured into the neighbouring by lanes for breakfast at Ram Bhandar, famous for its ‘kachori’ and ‘jalebi’, and shop at Chaudhry Silk for the famous Benares silk. 

We next offered obeisance at ‘Sankatmochan Hanuman’ temple.

Thereafter we moved to Sarnath, on the outskirts of Varanasi, to visit Archaeological Survey of India museum, followed by lunch at close by ‘UP 65’, a quaint happening joint serving yummy multi cuisine snacks and meals. 

The Ganga flows due west to east at Varanasi with a total of 84 ghats along its northern bank, starting from ‘Assi Ghat’ in the west to ‘Adi Keshav Ghat’ towards the east. Cremation of the dead is carried out at ‘Manikarnika Ghat’, and ‘Harishchandra Ghat’. These ghats are also believed to be the haunts of ‘Aghoris’, the practitioners of the occult, my current subject of interest, though from the battlefield point of view! The ‘Dashashvamedh Ghat’ is the center of attraction of the evening ‘Ganga Aarti’, which during this season starts at 1830 hrs. 

By 1700 hrs we reached ‘Raj Ghat’, one of the more renowned ghats that lies towards the east, for the boat ride on the Ganga river and witness the renowned ‘Ganga Aarti’. The river distance between ‘Raj Ghat’ and ‘Assi Ghat’ is approximately five kilometers. We hired a boat for the to and fro journey between the two ‘ghats’ and witness the ‘Ganga Aarti’ midway at ‘Dashashvamedh Ghat’.

The upstream boat ride to ‘Assi Ghat’ was completed during daylight hours, giving us ample opportunity to get a good view of all the ‘ghats’ enroute. At ‘Assi Ghat’ we got down to explore the place as also wait for the sun to go down and lights to come alive on the ‘ghats’. We were fortunate to be at Varanasi on a day prior to ‘Dev Diwali’, a major festival here which falls on the full moon immediately after ‘Diwali’. Special lighting had been laid out all along the ‘ghats’, giving them a fairy land appearance.

As the boat floated downstream towards ‘Dashashvamedh Ghat’ we were enchanted by the night lights and the serenity of the flowing Ganga river. I was inexorably drawn into a meditative spell and could sense the energy flow in the atmosphere. My attention focused on the burning pyres at the ‘Manikarnika’ and ‘Harishchandra’ ghats, which burned more brightly than the ‘Ganga Aarti’ lights of ‘Dashashvamedh Ghat’. Witnessing the burning funeral pyres and the celebratory ‘Ganga Aarti’, simultaneously in time and space, depicted to me the ‘Kaalchakra’ of life and the immortality of the soul. Was there a lesson to be drawn from this realisation?!!

The ‘Ganga Aarti’ rituals commenced on time at ‘Dashashvamedh Ghat’. A myriad of boats filled with spectators jostled for space on the river front. The loudspeakers carried the chants of the Aarti to all, as five different lamps were lit during the rituals to propitiate the ‘Panch Bhuts’ (five elements of matter in nature), earth, wind, fire, water, and ether.

Witnessing the ‘Ganga Aarti’ was the grand finale of a day well spent. We thereafter started on our return journey and were back in Prayagraj by 2230 h.

Mathura

The journey to Mathura was uneventful except for a minor coincidence. My spouse was deciding a suitable time and place to halt for lunch and I interjected that we shall come across it at 1330 hrs, and two hours later when she identified the halting place, it was exactly 1330 hrs.

It was 1830 hrs and dark by the time we checked in at Mathura for the night. But the attendant advised us that the time was still right for ‘darshan’ of the ‘Krishna Janam Bhumi’ temple. So off we went to the temple for a very satisfying paying of obeisance at the shrine.

Next day we checked out by 0800 hrs and drove down to Dwarkadheesh Mandir on the banks of the Yamuna river. We parked our vehicle a kilometre away from the shrine and walked the rest of distance. The doors to the temple had just been opened after the morning ‘aarti’, enabling a comfortable ‘darshan’.  The energy at the sanctum sanctorum could be easily experienced.

From there we made our way to Holi Gate, roughly another kilometer distance to Shankar Mishthan Bhandar for the traditional Mathura breakfast specialty of bedai, kachori, jalebi and lassi.

With this we decide to end our spiritual journey and headed back to Dehra Dun.

Commentary

We may be exploring the space, yet we are unclear about vast regions of our planet, especially the nether regions. Very few of us are aware that magnetic polarity at the North and South Pole is prone to reversal at periodic intervals, or that there exist four different Polar stars onto which the Earth fixes itself periodically in its journey through time and space, or that etheric and nether magnetic force lines exist within and without the earth surface. The existence and provenance of the Van Ellen Belt, the etheric energy force which touches the earth surface at three points, Mari Pichhu in South America, Stonehenge in England, UK and Kasar Devi at Binsar in Uttarakhand, India is a small indicator to the limits of our knowledge even about the planet we inhabit and the deep space surrounding us!

This travelogue revolves around energy vibrations for a good reason. Our knowledge, even about the physical human body has gaps. The modern medical science struggles to explain the role of pituitary gland, the position of the exotic third eye in the esoteric human body. Similarly, the presence of a second brain in the solar plexus, one that controls the reflex actions of the body and all along acknowledged in Yoga postulations of Hinduism, has been accepted by the medical science only at the turn of the 21^st century.  It is these same Yoga postulations that propagate the path of yoga and meditation to raise the energy vibrations of the human body to enable it to move into the higher spiritual dimensions. 

The spiritual journey was eminently satisfying. The coincidences encountered during the journey, and the smooth changes effected in the itinerary enabled better contact with esoteric energies. Even the overall context of understanding of provenance of the occult phenomenon on the battlefield was furthered by coming into contact with a new persona with first-hand experience in the field during 1971 War.

Thanksgiving

My heartfelt thanks to my course mates and comrades-in- arms Col JP Ahlawat and Capt Sujeet, as also to fellow Gallier Maj Gen Sharad Bikram Singh, without whose active support and assistance this trip may not have met its true objective.