In the Footsteps of Sankara Part 1

Footsteps of Sankara

I am an agnostic but a climb up the Sankaracharya Hill in Srinagar-Kashmir in 1960 kindled my curiosity about the great man who wandered over north India and gave Hinduism its resurgence. Puffing and panting up the hill in Srinagar made me not only admire his mental genius but also his physical stamina. I read books about him-his philosophy was beyond me-but gained a picture of a genius integrating and humanizing the culture of the sub continent. Years later I visited Kaladi, Sankara’s birth place, and the peace and tranquility of the place overwhelmed me. I yearned to see the places in the Himalayas where Sankara had traveled. The chance came when my friend Bobjee arranged a mini trek in Garwhal Himalayas for a small group of friends. It so happened that we visited a number places where Sankara had traveled and set up maths which are still in good shape and visited by pilgrims. For the believers there was the joy of temple worship and for the others the trek provided well needed physical relaxation that comes of long walks in breathtaking trails.
Madras to Delhi by train, and then by van to Haridwar via Mathura.

Haridwar-the banks of the Ganges

Haridwar- crowded with pilgrims, busy and bustling, was a sight for sore eyes at the time of aarati in the evening and night. The view of oil lamps floated on the river by devotees was a breathtaking sight. The Ganges flowed majestically with tremendous force, the water ice- cold even in summer time.
Next day we drove on past Rishikesh, famous for  its ancient and modern sages and modern day ashrams. It looked lovely from a distance. A few miles upstream was Sivpuri where the rapids started and modern rafting facilities were available.

 

The rapids at Sivpuri

As we climbed we looked with sorrow at the denuded mountains. When Sankara went through nearly a thousand years ago it must have been gorgeous with forests all round. On to Deoprayag at the confluence of Alaknanda and Bhagirathy rivers to form the Ganges. From the top of the road  the sight of Deoprayag was awesome.

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             Deoprayag

We passed through Sri Nagar the capital of the Garwhal region. Sri Nagar was the ancient capital of the Garwhal kings. Sankara had passed through and is said to have stopped human sacrifice by throwing stones into Alaknanda River. Sri Nagar was hot, crowed and filthy and we were glad to get off after a quick lunch. Rudraprayag, situated at the confluence of the Alaknanda and the blue Mandakini was the site of Naradamuni’s penance and mediations thousands of years ago. But alas the present day Rudraprayag is denuded of all forests. Rudraprayag has become famous nowadays as the site of the shooting of a man eating leopard in 1926 by Jim Corbett. The forests were in existence then. His book on the Kaumon region refocused the attention on this beautiful region. The only saving grace of present day Rudraprayag was the blue Mandakini River.

Jim Corbet memorial

We drove past Agustmni, where a local temple honors the saint Agastya. In his time it must have been a forested paradise with the Blue Mandakini for a background. At Kund we turned right to Okemath, where prayers are offered to Lord Kedarnath during winter when the Kedarnath temple is closed. We missed a view of the Kedarnath Mountains and Choukana as the sky was heavily overcast with threats of rain. We were in Chopta lodge at 7.30 at night

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Chopta Lodge

Chopta lodge was a quiet peaceful place off the beaten track which revealed its true beauty next morning. In the freezing morning, which seeped through our heavy clothing, we were warmed by the glistening sun showering its glory on the lawns and pine forest all round us and the sight of the Kedar and Chamkamba peaks lit up by the golden sunshine.

Kedar peaks

We loosened our muscles by a walk down to Kancholi Kank to see the musk deer sanctuary .We saw very few musk deer but there was a lot of wild strawberry on the ground. Hurricane lanterns at night in the lodge, swathed in heavy woolens against the bitter cold we prayed that we would not be disturbed by calls of nature at night.

Next morning the sun was out in all its glory, lighting the peaks in golden light. We had a very dusty drive to Mastura village. A very steep trail took us to Deorital-the lake of the Gods. A beautiful lake on a plateau Deorital had a breathtaking view of the Himalayan peaks. The overcast sky did not allow us to enjoy the full beauty and we had to hurry back to avoid getting drenched. Some of us did the climb and descent on two legs and some on two legs and two hands!

Comments

[Kamini Dandapani]

Wow, lovely to read about this. The photographs are simply stunning.

[Satish Kumar]

Excellent writeup and photographs.
Satish.

[Raja Ramakrishnan]

Thanks Satish and Kamini.The picts were taken by me during the trek

[Kamini]

What happened to Part 2??

[Raja Ramakrishnan]

Kamini-I removed it and will correct it .You will have 2 and three today

[Raji]

Such a nice experience so beautifully told. and lovely pictures too

[Raja Ramakrishnan]

Thanks raji.look for part 2 and part three 3 also keep looking and reading .tell others to read!

[Maryellen]

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