Travel on my musings

Time Capsule in a Train

Harshal Suryawanshi — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 17:52:00 +0000

For most of the people who are unfortunately adult now, one of the exciting things we did during vacations was travelling by train. The first thing that made a train journey exciting was - the window seat. Oh the joy that was felt when you found an empty window seat, was indescribable at that age ( because it was overwhelming and also because we didn’t know enough words back then).

This was equally complemented by sulking when there would be a grumpy adult already occupying the coveted seat. Then you somehow try to make a hybrid crying - complaining face to appeal to that person’s conscience. If that didn’t work then complain in a low voice to your parents go get the window seat. Mostly the tactic worked and you would be watching the moving landscape for the rest of the journey.

The second fond memory of those times was eating in the train, not alone, but sharing it with your co passengers. And as the grass always seems greener on the other side, anything offered by other people always looked tasty. If anyone is not sharing their biscuit with you you try to stare them to submission, so that they finally offer you one.

Oh those were some good days! Simple days. Ignorant and blissful days! Now a train journey is about efficiency, travelling at night so you don’t waste a day. A curtain of blackness staring at you from the window, that is if you are looking outside the window and not typing away on your phone like I am doing now. But today is little different. Today brought a piece of those sweet memories of childhood journey back. It compelled me to write this entry after a long time. It made me feel happy and content.

I have already stretched the suspense too thin so here’s what happened:

I boarded the train around 9:30pm. Found my side upper berth and deposited my bags there. Removed the footwear and with the grace of a dancing bear, climbed up and sat there stretching my legs. Whipped out my phone to let everyone know that Mission is Accomplished. I repeat Mission is Accomplished. After feeling like Hritik Roshan in Lakshya when he climbed that cliff, i started looking around.

A family had opened their tiffin for dinner. An uncle was sitting on the seat opposite to them staring into nothingness stoically. As the family was unpacking all the things they had brought they offered uncle some food. As is the norm, the uncle politely refused. After few seconds another member of the family insisted to share the dinner, but our stoic uncle refused again politely with a smile. The family then proceeded to clean off their consumables.

I was watching this from my high vantage point, slightly hoping that someone from the family would glance at me. I was already done with my dinner, but it seems the grass still seems greener on the other side even when you are an adult.

It felt good to see some positivity around. In the age of globalization where me and my have mostly replaced give and share, that family was happy to share food with the uncle. Their actions spread some goodness around which I was lucky enough to bask in. It was like watching a small time capsule in a train - full of good memories and good feelings.

I feel a little conflicted about this last paragraph though. I remember the ending line of the movie ‘A Wednesday’ where Naseeruddin Shah’s character refuses to tell his name saying that people find religion in the name. I believe that there are good and bad people in whatever category you want to create be it based on gender, geography, religion etc. The family that offered food and the uncle who refused with a smile didn’t seem to be of the same religion. The family that offered food had not even thought of that. The distinction between religions didn’t make the act of kindness any greater or any less meaningful. It was just that - an act of kindness. I hope we all see the world through the same lens.

अपने अपने मायने

Harshal Suryawanshi — Sat, 12 Oct 2019 15:07:00 +0000

बैठा था में उस किनारे
औरों से थोड़ा दूर, थोड़ा परे,
सामने मेरे थी बिखरती हुई लहरें
लग रहा था की समय बस यही पे ठहरे।

लहरों की वो लयबद्ध आवाज़
शांति का एहसास दिला रही थी,
आनेवाली संध्या का साज देखने
आँखें क्षितिज पे मेरी टिकी हुई थी।

धीरे धीरे सूरज समंदर की तरफ बढ़ रहा था
आकाश के चित्रपटल पे नए रंगों का जन्म हो रहा था,
अपनी किरणों की कुँचियों को बेफिक्री से चलाए
वो अपनी कलाकारी की अद्भुत छाप छोड़ रहा था।

प्रकृति की वो शानदार रचना लेकिन
मन को मेरे खाए जा रही थी,
उस चित्र की क्षणिक सुंदरता
मुझे एक अजीब मायूसियत से भर रही थी।

लग रहा था ये सूरज कभी डूबे ही नहीं
ये चित्र कभी आँखों के सामने से हटे ही नहीं,
लेकिन मेरे चाहने से भला क्या होता है?
जाता है वो जिसे जाना ही होता है।

आखिर सूरज अलविदा कहके चला ही गया
जाते जाते थोड़े और रंगों को बिछाएं,
शायद उन आँखों को उसे कहना था शुक्रिया
जो आखिर तक उसके साथ रहे, अपनी नमी को छुपाएं।

वो सुंदरता मेरे नसीब में
हमेशा के लिए शायद थी ही नहीं,
मैंने भी आस लगाई थी उस चीज़ की
जो कभी मुमकिन थी ही नहीं।

फिर भी अंत में जीवन में मेरे
कुछ हसीन पल जुड़ चुके थे,
उस क्षणभंगुर चित्र के में क्या बताऊ
मेरे लिए क्या मायने थे।

एका सूर्यास्ताची साक्ष

Harshal Suryawanshi — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 15:44:00 +0000

एका टेकडीवर एक छोटंसं झाड होतं
खुंटलेलं, उगाच वेडंवाकडं वाढलेलं
आजूबाजूला सगळंच ओसाड, भकास
ना पशु-पक्षी, ना माणसांचा त्रास.

नुसताच सरसरणारा वारा,
बेछूट, बेधडक भिडणारा
पण तो मात्र एका स्थळी स्थिर
सोशिकपणे वाऱ्याला तोंड देणारा.

जवळच दुसऱ्या एका टेकडीवर
होते त्याचे काही भाऊबंद
भलीमोठी त्यांची उंची
खोडही त्यांचे रुंद.

बाजूच्या टेकडीवरच्या जंगलाकडे
तो रोजच उदास नजरेने पाही
त्याला आठवे तो काळ
जेव्हा इकडे ही नांदत होती हिरवाई.

वेडावाकडा असला तरी
त्याच्या कुटुंबाचा तो लाडका होता
जास्त नसले जरी
मोजक्या मित्राचा तो यार होता.

एके दिवशी मात्र, या आनंदवनावर काळ बरसला
कुऱ्हाडीच्या घावागणिक, एक एक जण धारातीर्थी पडला
त्यांच्या शेवटच्या घटकेतही ते, ‘काळजी घे’ सांगत निघून गेले
कुणाच्यातरी स्वार्थाग्निवर, त्याचे कुटुंब स्वाहा झाले.

आता आपली पण वेळ आली असे समजून
त्याने डोळे घट्ट मिटून घेतले
कुऱ्हाडीच्या घावाच्या अपेक्षेने
त्याने अंग अकसून घेतले
पण तो कुऱ्हाडीचा घाव कधी आलाच नाही
डोळे उघडले, तेव्हा गमावले होते त्याने सर्वकाही.

कावरा-बावरा झालेला तो, समजत नव्हते काही त्याला
“का बरं ह्या लोकांनी सोडून दिले आपल्याला?
ज्या फांद्यांची वाटे लाज, त्यांनीच आपल्याला वाचवलं
कमी उंचीमुळेच मला, कदाचित हे जीवनदान मिळालं.”

म्हणता म्हणता दिवस गेले, एकटेपणाची त्याला सवय होऊ लागली
काळाच्या मलमाने मनाची जखम हळू हळू भरून येऊ लागली
इतकी वर्ष मायेच्या सावलीखाली वाढलेला तो, आता लख्ख प्रकाशात न्हाऊन निघत होता
त्याच्या वेड्यावाकड्या फांद्या तो, स्वच्छंदपणे इकडे तिकडे पसरवत होता.

पण तरीही कधी कधी एकांताचे ढग आकाशात गर्दी करायचे
पावसाचे पाणी अंगावर घेण्याच्या आनंदात कुणाला सहभागी करायचे?
आजूबाजूला असणारी पक्ष्यांची वर्दळ कधीच नाहीशी झाली होती
एकांताची ती भयाण शांतता त्याचे मन आतून पोखरत होती.

रोज सकाळी सूर्योदयाची किरणे त्याच्या मनात एक आशा पल्लवित करत
दिवसभर त्याचे भोळेभाबडे मन त्या सुंदर भविष्यात रमत
“आज तरी हे पवनदेव एखादे बीज घेऊन येतील
माझ्यापाशी येऊन हलकेच ते त्याला धरती मातेच्या कुशीत सोपवतील
वरुणदेवाच्या आशीर्वादाने ते बियाणे पण ह्या आशेसारखेच अंकुरावे
माझ्या आयुष्यातल्या या वनवासाच्या अध्यायाने पण इथेच संपावे.”

पण त्याची ही प्रतीक्षा प्रतिक्षाच रहायची
दिवस सरून पुन्हा सूर्यास्ताची वेळ व्हायची
मावळत्या सूर्याने आकाश लाल-नारंगी रंगाने भरून जायचे
त्या मावळत्या सूर्यबिंबाकडे बघून त्याला अजूनच भरून यायचे.

कधी कधी रागही यायचा त्याला त्याच्या परिस्थितीचा
मग त्वेषाने जाब विचारी तो सूर्यदेवाला
“हे सूर्यदेवता, तू तर साक्षी आहेस या जगाचा,
सांग मला, कधी संपणार माझ्या आयुष्याची ही काळी रात्र
हवंय तरी काय असं मला फार मोठं?
कुणाची तरी सोबत, आपलं म्हणणारा एक मित्र.”

त्याचे ते हृदयद्रावक स्वर कानी पडायचे सूर्यदेवाच्या
पण सांगावे काय आणि कसं, याने जखडून जायची त्यांची वाचा
त्यांच्याकडे त्या झाडाच्या प्रश्नांचं उत्तर नव्हतं
त्यांची साक्ष म्हणजे त्यांचं मौन होतं, फक्त मौन होतं…

The Reason I Travel

Harshal Suryawanshi — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 18:15:00 +0000

Recently one of my friends posted a question on FB as to why do you travel? He got many responses to the question including mine. Many of the responses had the common thread of exploration, perspective, life is short etc. Even when I was writing my response I wanted it to be brief, but ended up writing quite a few lines. Many days have passed since, and I have visited some more new places and gained new experiences. But it is not always about the pleasant experiences and beautiful locations. Sometimes you are stranded at a bus stop and meet some unpleasant people or have the beautiful image of the place that you have in your mind, destroyed by the ground realities. It is at these times I think to myself, why do I do this? I know this sounds corny, but such questions inevitably occur when you are waiting for the train for 10 hours. (I reached 6 hours early and the universe rewarded my overzealous punctuality by delaying the train by 4 hours. I finished a novel in that time, cleared the candy crush level that I was stuck on for months, had conversation with twins from Bengal who were pursuing MBBS in Bangladesh and destroyed some pigs in Angry Birds who seemed angrier because of the delay.)

So why do I do this? The answer that I gave to my friend’s question was this:

“To get perspective…We read so many things, fictional, non fictional…It gives me a background to whatever non fiction I have read be it historical, geographical or any other thing…when I visit the place suddenly the temple architecture that I read about in school textbooks or the wars that were fought on the forts come alive….You also get to experience the unexpected which broadens your mind and makes you more humble…Also I like to be left alone with my thoughts, that’s why I travel alone most of the times…frees me from the constraints of our time like social media, negative news and such…And finally, there are so many beautiful places to be seen, it feels a waste of life if I don’t visit at least some of them.”

Now since this is FB, we all try to be an pompous ass. From heavily ‘beautified’ photos to ‘vadhiv’ photo captions, FB is the place where everyone is supposedly living their dream. And I was no exception here. The answer I gave isn’t necessarily untrue, but it glosses over many aspects and just presents a one-dimensional, pleasant and perfect image.

Initially when I started to go on outings it was always with a group of my school or college friends. It is that time in our lives when you will blindly follow the group, even though it is towards the lecture hall (this probably - just - might be overstretching a bit). For those of us who were damned to pursue engineering, the decision is groomed long before we even know what is engineering (As a kid, I used to think engineering means building train engines, since that was the only engine I knew. I am actually surprised to not get it completely wrong). There was always someone in the group to suggest the outing and since there is never a shortage of bikes for the college kids, we would literally kick off our adventure. These trips were something out of syllabus (feels weird writing ‘out of syllabus’ with a positive connotation) for us who had arrived at engineering by following a very structured path. At this point in my life, the reason for travel was just fun and the company of friends. No hashtags, no philosophical thoughts and none of that perspective bullshit.

But life is not always about roses and unicorns. Sometimes you have things to deal with, thoughts to process, which require calm and quiet. So I went searching for places, where I will be left to my own devices. I would find some obscure hill on Google Maps and just take off there early in the morning. If I was fast enough, I would watch the sun rise through the light fog, perched on the top of the hill. There would be no one there to disturb me, and I would realise that there aren’t many thoughts to process after all (The dominant thought at those times usually was - “Why the hell did you wake up so early, idiot?”). But even amidst my sleepy thoughts, I liked the loneliness, the peacefulness of it and the sunrise. These are the times when I am travelling not because I want to go somewhere, but to get away from everything.

The book “India: A Sacred Geography” by Diana L. Eck has had a great influence on the selection of my travel locations. I came across this book somewhere around 2015 and liked it very much. There’s a map given at the beginning of the book showing all the major pilgrimage places in India. The book gave me another lens to look through while visiting places of religious significance which people might miss when they are just following the “15 places that should be on top of your list” fad. I tried to cover all the locations shown in the map which were nearby to where I was living at that time. But this was a whole new ballgame since these places were quite far and there were no bikes. But then the ubiquitous Indian Railways came to help, and I found that most of the places are easily accessible by public transport. And then I was introduced with one more aspect of travelling - interaction with strangers.

I am not very keen on talking with people (although I know some who wish that I shut up, at least once a day). But I think this is one of the most humbling and enlightening aspects of my travels. This is something you can’t plan and you have to deal with the situations as they come. When I look back at the places that I have travelled to, most of the memories that I am able to recollect are about the stories that these people lived.

I met a French woman, travelling from Khajuraho to Varanasi in sleeper class. The train was stranded just before Varanasi for more than two hours. Without any official explanation as to what was happening, the foreign tourists in the compartment were getting restless. So this French woman started talking with me about why the train is late and soon a conversation started flowing. Finally when the train reached the station, I helped her navigate the chaotic railway station. While we were alighting the train, I asked her where are her other friends to which she replied she was travelling alone. I was astonished to hear that. I usually went alone on my trips and people used to be surprised that I was travelling alone when they came to know about it. But it is a different story for me because I know the language, the culture and the implicit Do’s and Dont’s in India. But for a foreigner to manage solo travelling with hard to understand English accent in India, without any hotel booking or tourism package tour, was admirable and little frightening too. Until that point a slight sense of false pride, hubris had crept into my nature. When people repeat the same thing over and over you kind of believe it to be true and I had started thinking that I am doing something extraordinary when I travel solo. But those simple soft words shredded my ego to a million pieces. I saluted her silently from my heart to have that courage and passion to travel solo in a foreign land. Finally she negotiated with the rickshaw drivers outside (she was really good at bargaining, one more thing I admired about her) and we parted our ways after a goodbye handshake.

Then at Chitrakoot, I met a young rickshaw driver who must have been around 18 years of age. I had started walking to the places of interest there, but after some point I realised that it is impossible to cover all the places on foot. But since I had already covered a fair distance from the main town, I was not getting any rickshaw. Finally at one of the sites on the banks of river Mandakini, I found this kid willing to offer a ride. The auto was already booked by a family for sightseeing, so after taking a verbal NOC from the family I was able to travel in the rickshaw, sharing the front seat with this kid. And so the journey started and I was able to see the remaining beautiful places there. The last place that we visited was ‘Gupt - Godavari’ a cave which has a small stream flowing through it. It was really good, wading through the cold water and seeing the caves from the inside. After paying the respects to the deity there, me, the kid and the family came downstairs to have some evening snacks. The head of the family, a middle-aged person offered us snacks. While eating he casually asked this kid, “What is your caste?” I was shocked to hear that. Never before I had heard someone ask so openly and so casually about anyone’s caste. The kid too in reply told his caste coolly as though it was a normal conversation. The question itself didn’t contain any malice nor the answer had any hint of anger or shame. The incident didn’t bring about any change of behaviour from anyone for the remainder of the trip but I just couldn’t shake the feeling of uneasiness that I felt on that day till today.

I have met people offering me a ride, becoming my tour guide for a while by their own accord and people who have trained monkeys to climb on the pilgrims back and exhort money for the peanuts that have to be offered to the monkeys to get them down. I have met an elderly woman walking with me to show me the bus stop and tell (more waving and less telling) me the bus timings because I couldn’t speak the language of her region and on the same trip I have met a man who refused to help because I couldn’t speak the language of the region. I have heard people talking about the holiness of the Ganga water and the pujas and prayers they do everyday and have seen the same people pocket my mobile phone which had slipped out of my pocket in the rickshaw. I have had people denying me a place to sit even though they could easily manage it and people who have shared their food with me overriding my nay saying. I have met fellow travellers who have left well paid jobs to do farming and others who have braved the tents and the mosquitoes to follow their passion of travelling. I have heard life stories of people emptying their hearts to me, probably because it is easier to do that with a stranger and have unexpectedly met old friends to spend the rest of the day recounting memories and watching the sun set.

Again, it all seems great to read, but this is the accumulation of experiences over thousands of kilometres and many years. You are going to realise that we have formed many notions about things without ever stepping out of our district or state or region. And when you get out many of them are just going to turn out to be false notions. You are going to meet many bad people and some good ones. You are going to have few good experiences and some bad ones. But not every trip has to give you that perfect moment or that great story. You just have to let it come your way and keep walking to your destination…

Without any expectation…

In Search of Serenity

Harshal Suryawanshi — Wed, 06 Jan 2016 12:56:00 +0000

In my last blog post I spoke about my growing appreciation of history. I also spoke about the relation that history and geography have which is very evident in India. India’s history usually starts with the Indus Valley civilization (accurately called as the Indus-Sarasvati Civilization). Then it transitions to the emergence and spread of Hinduism. I had already read about this in my school History textbooks. But when I was getting reacquainted with history with a new perspective I realized that I know so little about my own religion. And since a large part of India’s history deals with the rise of the Hindu religion, its evolution, the good and the bad elements that crept in, its political nature and so on, I felt that I should start reading about my own religion and get to know it better. Hinduism is a very complex religion to get to know. The sheer school of thoughts that range from one extreme to another and still coexist relatively peacefully makes it hard to study Hinduism. If you want to start knowing Hinduism where do you start?

In my efforts to understand Hinduism I started reading books that were suggested by friends and on the Internet and the ones that caught my eye. I was more curious about the process of evolution of a religion in general and Hinduism in particular. I also read about the evolution of other religions, some books that are banned in India because of their ‘different’ take on Hinduism. I am still reading and I think that the process is going to last for a lifetime. Anyways the subject of this post is related to one of the books that I read during my quest. It is ‘India - A Sacred Geography’ by Diana L. Eck. This book speaks about the tradition of pilgrimage in India which is as old as the Hindu religion itself. It shows the awareness of the Indians towards a shared homeland, a shared geography, which they all belonged to. Though India has different regions which are culturally, linguistically different, you can find a Marvadi dharamshala in Rameshwaram or a Bengali Guest House in Gaya. The common people for centuries traveled the age old pilgrimage circuits which encompass all of India and bound this country in their conscience as a single entity.

Anyways in the last two years I have got a chance to travel a bit and explore my country. When I was in South, some of us in TCS had planned a trip to Rameshwaram and Madurai. I was excited to visit Rameshwaram because of two things - first the railway bridge on the sea near Pamban and second visiting one of the ‘char dhams’.

The journey was exciting, and I enjoyed the view when the train was travelling on the sea bridge. My hopes were high after this and soon we reached Rameshwaram temple. We were asked to first take a dip in the ocean before entering the temple. When we arrived at the ghat, we could see the people taking the dip in the water polluted to a degree that it appeared completely black. The street leading to the ghat was littered with garbage. Just seeing the surroundings I was disgusted. This was supposed to be one of the holiest places of worship in India. The mental image that I had conjured was one of a clean and peaceful surrounding. So the dirty streets and the pandemonium of the crowd was a rude shock. I just wanted to get over with the dip and then enter the temple in hope that I will feel better there. After taking the dip, depositing our belongings and phones we proceeded to enter the temple. Once inside, we were bathed in the water from 12 kunds which had appeared when Rama’a arrows pierced the ground at Rameshwaram. This bath was a relief as it washed away the feeling of disgust. Now we were arriving at the climax of our journey in the temple complex. There was a long line of devotees waiting to get the darshan of the Shiva Linga in the inner sanctum. We too joined the throng of the devotees. The line progressed at a brisk speed. The pushing and frenzy of the crowd increased as we neared the sanctum. Now, I am not a very religious person, but I was curious to see the source of the longing of all these people. So when my turn arrived I peered in the darkness of the sanctum to lay my eyes on the Shiva Linga. The sanctum was glowing in the yellow light of the oil lamps. The linga was shrouded in garlands and I was craning my neck to see through them. Just when I felt that I was beginning to see in the darkness I was whisked away by the pujaris and the onslaught of the devotees. I felt disappointed for a while but it was OK. I was there to experience the atmosphere rather than seeing the idol. So we found an empty spot and just sat there observing the crowds that were pouring in. I saw people getting in with pooja thalis, muttering incantations and mantras, babies crying, mothers consoling them, everyone focused on the sanctum, trying to get the darshan of their beloved God. Such was their determination, that people around them mattered no more. They were indifferent to the crying babies, pushing the mothers and women forward in their haste. Seeing this I wondered what is of such a great importance there in the sanctum that people have no regard for other people. I am not questioning the devotion or beliefs of the crowd but was it worth so much that you ignore your humanity.

Majority of the people coming to major pilgrimage sites in India are driven by material motives. It’s the want of things, the fulfilment of their wishes or the gratitude they need to express because their wishes were delivered. For some it’s a tradition to visit these temples. But how many people come to experience the spiritual environment that these temples provide? Temples ought to be places where one can connect to God, but our greed and want has turned them into a chaotic bazaar where people expect to get their wishes granted and offer things in return. We have become so material oriented that being in the presence of God is not enough for us. I myself am not clear on what God is or whether I believe in the concept. So saying that temple is a place of God feels weird. But if you visit a temple when there’s no rush, just sit there in the premises doing nothing, you feel a silence that soothes you, comforts you. At that moment you tend to forget yourself and that makes you realise that you are not the centre of the universe. That there are many great things out there which are more important, more beautiful, more precious and that you are just a figment. That feeling is what I have come close to describing God. Losing yourself and submitting to the collective consciousness of the universe or the nothingness. I just feel that people should at least keep this in their mind when they visit temples and try to stop for a moment and take notice of the things around them. I don’t know how people expect good grace from God when they cannot even move an inch in their seats to accommodate a stranded passenger in the train while they are on their way to visit Shirdi. Kindness, compassion, love and brotherhood are the most valued offerings that can be offered to the God. You don’t need to give away gold ornaments at the temples, you just have to make sure that you don’t throw the garbage carelessly around the premises. If we want our temples to remain as centres of spiritual experience, we have to ensure that they are clean, remain disciplined and have good intensions in our hearts. That’s it, that’s all we need.

I would like to point two contrasts that I experienced during my journey. When I was in Kolkata I visited the Belur Math. It is a math established by the Ramakrishna Mission. Ramakrishna Mission was established by Swami Vivekananda which he named after his guru Ramakrishna Paramhansa. In the math there is an idol of Ramakrishna Paramhansa and a large open space in front of the idol. When I reached there a few people were sitting there in utter silence. Some noiselessly chanting a mantra, some just sitting there with their eyes either open or closed. Now Ramakrishna Paramhansa wasn’t a God, but his deeds make him worthy of our respect and devotion. The silence that pervaded the atmosphere in the midst of all those people there was a very novel experience for me. I too sat there in silence for nearly 20 mins and when I came out I just wanted to maintain that state of silence and peace for as long as possible. Sitting outside the math and watching the Hooghly river I wondered why can’t our temples be like this. That’s why I decided to write all my thoughts down here. After Kolkata I visited Amarkantak in MP. Amarkantak is where the rivers Narmada and Son originate. The Narmada kund which is where Narmada river starts has a temple complex. The complex isn’t very big and is very nice and one of the quieter temples that I have visited recently. Going downstream I saw people taking a hold dip in the river. There were many sign boards telling the pilgrims not to use soap and oil while bathing. But after their holy dip and ‘cleansing’ themselves of their sins, people wanted to cleanse their bodies thoroughly too. So paying no heed to the sign post they used soaps and shampoos and polluted the very river that they worship. Further downstream, the river gets abused in more dirtier ways. Human excrement litters the river bed within 10km from the source, where the river is nothing but a small stream. While walking downstream in a more remote place along the river, I saw youngsters who were on a trip defecating in the water itself. Just 10 km from the source the river which millions of people worship and depend on for their household water supply is getting such a treatment. People have no right to worship the river if they don’t know how to respect it. They just don’t realise their wrongdoings. A person from Bihar(just an example) thinks that polluting this river doesn’t affect him since Narmada doesn’t flow from there. When are we going to realise that thinking in this manner is just wrong. We shouldn’t do wrong things, period. It’s not going to affect me, it’s my money, no harm no foul etc. etc. arguments just don’t matter.

Swami Vivekananda believed that for Indians to realize the glory of their religion, they must first be uplifted from poverty. Only when a person has his basic needs fulfilled can he find the time and will to ponder on religion. Today majority of people who visit pilgrimage sites have all that and some more yet we see that they are more irresponsible and disrespecting than the previous generation. Even if you don’t believe in religion, God, you at least (I hope) have the common sense of not polluting the river, not littering the temples. It’s time that our generation rises up to the occasion and takes the mantle of restoring our heritage, our temples, our holy place to their spiritual glory.

Let them be a place of knowledge and realization
Let them be a place which connects us with our civilization
Let them be a place where we find things that we miss
Let them be a place where one can find serenity and peace