‘Akhand Bharat’

OF RESOLVES, JOURNEYS & MANIFESTATION

JAGANNATH PURI THE FOURTH DHAM

“From dream of the ‘Char Dham’ journey (Listen to hear my whispers in the wind…); to firming the resolve for the spiritual undertaking (Give flight to the Mind and the Body goes along…); to the journey that manifests the dream (In unexplored vistas the paths don’t matter…)”. – Col RS Sidhu

 

‘Dharam Arth Kaam Moksh’

‘Sanatan dharam’ (eternal religion), often fallaciously termed as ‘Hinduism’, is much more than worshipping an abstract ‘Supreme Being’. The core ‘Sanatan’ beliefs stand on the four pillars of, ‘Vasudev Kutumbakam’, the interconnectedness of the ‘Brahmand’ (Universe); ‘Kaalchakra’, the constant cycle of time; ‘Amar Aatman’ (eternal soul), on an eternal journey in a multispectral hierarchy; and ‘Moksha’ (eternal salvation), the pinnacle of spirituality.

The ‘Sanatan’ philosophy is simple to follow and yet intricately layered as one dwells deeper within. It underlines the umbilical link between the ‘Principle of Duality’, and the ‘Chaos of Free Will’; that while synchronisation of all that moves is integral to maintain balance, internalising understanding of ‘Chaos’ is central for further progression; as is in the ‘Brahmand’, so is with its minutiae, the ‘Aatman’. The contrair precepts of ‘Karma’ (Action), and ‘Maya’ (Illusion); ‘Advait’ (Singular), and ‘Dvait’ (Dual), all flow from this understanding.

The ‘Sanatan’ philosophy itself is rooted in sensing the spiritual path through the maze of chaos and duality. It is a loose, yet all-embracing fold uniting a wide canvas of beliefs under one roof. There are multitude of ‘Spiritual Seats’ propagating multifarious paths to attain spiritual realisation; and surfeit of scriptures that point to varied truths to attain singularity with the ‘Supreme’.

While the pursuit of ‘Dharam Arth Kaam Moksh’, (Morality Prosperity Pleasure Salvation) may well lie in the intangible spiritual domain, the paying of obeisance at the ‘Char Dham’ (four principal religious seats) of ‘Sanatan Dharam’ is a distinctive and tangible goal in the pursuit of ‘Moksh’.

Resolve

Looking back in time, the resolve to accomplish the ‘Char Dham’ journey was seeded at the turn of this century while reflecting on the “time perspective of life after fifty”. It led to the composition of a fifteen lines, hundred and twenty words verse. Little did I know while composing this verse, that I was penning my own course for the future; a rare privilege indeed! This realisation dawned only on realisation of the ‘Char Dham’ resolve. 

‘Char Dham of Sanatan’

There are four spiritual seats of ‘Sanatan’ located in the four cardinal directions of ‘Bharat Varsh’; Badrinath in the north, Ramanathswamy at Rameswaram to the south, Jagannath at Puri towards the east, and Dwarkadheesh at Dwarka in the west. This geographical spread also symbolises the need to progressively develop 360 degree consciousness for self-realisation.

Of the ‘Sanatan’ ‘Trinity’, Brahma is the Creator, Vishnu the Sustainer, and Mahesh is the Destroyer. Badrinath is dedicated to worship of Lord Vishnu. Dwarkadheesh is the abode of Lord Vishnu ‘avatar’ Krishn. Jagannath, believed to have begotten the heart of Krishn, too is dedicated to worship of Lord Vishnu. The Ramanathswamy ‘jyotirling’ (cosmic flame) is dedicated to the worship of Lord Shiv.

An interesting facet is the location of these ‘Dham’. Three of them are located on the seas, beacons of spirituality, evidence to cultural sway of ‘Bharat’ across the seven seas. While the original ‘Dwarkadheesh’ was subsumed into the rising sea, its successor shrine has also come up on the sea shore. The Jagannath shrine presently is 30 kms from the seacoast.  However, there is empirical evidence that indicates the seashore tugging its premises in prehistoric era, much like the Sun Temple of Konark. But it is the location of the Badrinath shrine, that is most interesting; tantalisingly close to Mount Kailash, that which is awash in legends of being the abode of Lord Shiv, and as a gateway to the mystical higher dimensional Shambhala.

Progression of Char Dham

Offerings and salutations to the ruling deities at the four ‘Dham’ facilitates the path to ‘Moksh’. But there is scriptural dichotomy on the sequence of paying obeisance at these four ‘Dham’. One belief puts Jagannath Puri as the commencement of the ‘Char Dham’ pilgrimage, thereafter, proceeding clockwise to Rameswaram, Dwarkadhish, and culminating at Badrinath.

Another perspective infers the sequence from the principal form of obeisance at each of these four seats. ‘Dhyan’ (meditation) is the primary form of invocation at Badrinath. At Ramanathswamy, ‘Snan’ (bath) forms the root of the prayer. ‘Shringar’ takes the principal form of idolising at ‘Dwarkadheesh’. At Jagannath, ‘Bhog’ (ritual of offering food) is the prime form of obeisance.

If ‘dhyan’ is taken to be the first action of the spiritual cycle, then the sequential flow thereafter should be, ‘Snan’, ‘Shringar’, and ‘Bhog’; that is, Badrinath, Ramanathswamy, Dwarkadheesh, with Jagannath Puri being the culmination of the journey; walking a zigzag path on the journey to spirituality.

The Construct of Jagannath

The reigning deities of this temple are the ‘Trinity’ of Lord Vishnu in his form of Jagannath, Lord Shiv as Balbhadra, and Lord Brahm personified as Maa Subhadra. The ‘Sudarshan Chakra’ is also viewed as the fourth deity, by a sect of devotees.

The Jagannath deity, carved out of a sacred neem tree log, is worshipped as a living deity, in which beats the heart of Lord Krishna. The deity is replaced by a fresh neem wood idol every twelve years, in imitation of the human karmic cycle of birth, death, and rebirth.

The two distinctive features of this temple are the ‘dhwaj’ (pennant) and the ‘Sudarshan Chakra’ mounted at the apex of the magnificent structure. The ‘dhwaj’ uniquely flutters into the direction of the wind, whereas, the ‘Sudarshan Chakra’ offers similar silhouette whichever direction it is viewed from. 

The Journey that Beckons

“The only impossible journey is the one not undertaken” – Border Roads

There are multiple ways of progressing ‘Life’. The multitude goes through ‘Life’, as a one off journey measuring success by the degree of material engagement in ‘Kaam’ or accumulation of ‘Arth’. But there are also those to whom ‘Life’ is a never ending series of ‘journeys of learning’.

What is foremost in the mind at this time, is not the manifestation of this twelve year long journey, but the fascinating aspect that a parallel running five years journey also attained closure a while back. Perhaps an omen that a fortuitous journey beckons…

For last three years, the daunting idea of an ‘Akhand Bharat’ has been tugging the strings of the heart and mind, so onward to the journey of ‘Akhand Bharat’, a journey beyond a human life time… 

“I wonder at the Journey and cherish it again,

And the thought emerges that Journey is so young,

Beyond the Dunes the Mountains beckon…”