The Char Dham in Namchi

Hardly five km from Namchi is the Char Dham. There has been built a replica of the four pilgrimage sites, Uttarakhand’s Badrinath, Odisha’s Puri, Tamil Nadu’s Rameshwaram and Gujarat’s Dwarka and  are collectively called Char Dham. They are good replicas and one can get a beautiful view of the Kanchenjunga. There were lovely flower gardens.They had religious bhajan made to the tune of hindi film songs  blaring away.This was the only irritant in a otherwise beautiful place. The hills have a music of their own and there is so much serenity in the calm and quiet. I found this in the Buddhist viharas and gompas here. Why cannot our temples have that quiet and peace, I fail to understand.

 The replica of these four shrines, along with 12 jyotirlingas, have been built atop the Solophok Hill in South Sikkim’s Namchi. The replicas of the twelve jyotirlingas or Dwadash Jyotirlingas namely, Somnath, Mallikarjuna, Mahakaleswar, Omkareshwar, Kedarnath, Bhimashankar, Viswanath, Triambakeshwar, Vaidyanath, Nageswar, Rameshwar and Grishneshwar encompass the statue of Lord Shiva and the Char Dhams. Also known as the Siddhesvara Dham, the sweeping temple compound was inaugurated in November 2011. The picturesque complex also houses a 108-feet statue of Lord Shiva.

Rumtek Monastry in Sikkim

On 13th November, 2016, took a taxi and went around the local sight seeing tourists spots in Sikkim.The drivers are real experts and can negotiate in steep and narrow roads many of which have become very uneven due to the rains. Went to the monastery at Rumtek also called the dharma chakra centre and enjoyed the peace and calm and it was very difficult to get up from there.Rumtek meaning God left the Dharma Chakra Centre was  established in the year 1740. It is about 45 minutes drive from Gangtok (24 km), the seat of the Kagyud order of theTibetan Buddhism.Rumtek, a Kagyu monastery near Gangtok in Sikkim, was founded in the sixteenth century by the Ninth Karmapa, Wangchuk Dorje. It is the largest monastery in Sikkim and the seat of the Kagyu tradition in Sikkim. It was significantly rebuilt with patronage of the Sikkimese royal family by the Sixteenth Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpai Dorje, who in 1959 left Tsurpu in central Tibet and fled to Sikkim with his brother, the Sixth Dzogchen Ponlob, Jikdrel Tsewang Dorje and other followers. Rumtek is the tradition's primary seat in exile.The Sixteenth Karmapa's relics are installed at Rumtek. The monastery is currently the largest in Sikkim. It is home to the community of monks and where they perform the rituals and practices of the Karma Kagyu lineage. A golden stupa contains the relics of the 16th Karmapa. Opposite that building is a college, Karma Shri Nalanda Institute for Higher Buddhist Studies.The largest monastery in Sikkim, Rumtek Monastery is the seat of the Karmapa Lama, the third highest monk in Tibetan Buddhism. It also serves as one of the most important seats of the Kagyu (Black Hat) sect of Tibetan Buddhism outside of Tibet and is also known as Dharmachakra Centre.

Ban jhakhari has a beautiful fall and nature around it .The flowers grow wild with very sharp colours. A lovely environment  for nature lovers.

 

Nathula Pass

 On 11 th Novemeber, 2016, visited the Nathula pass at 14450 ft.above sea level. One of my Ph.D students Pabitra who is from Sikkim accompanied us. The ladscape  en route is awesome .It was a fun filled journey admiring nature, its rugedness and the research of my student. The yaks look very cute. From here we can see the Chinese border .Found it strange that though there were so many tourists and soldiers  from the Indian side there were no Chinese tourists or soldiers to be seen.Could not make out if they are not allowed or they are not interested. The air is chilly and one gets breathless due to little oxygen. It is difficult for one to stay here for long and one has to rush back to be in the warmth of the taxi.As I climbed down I could not help but salute the Indian soldiers many of them in their late twenties who are staying there in this harsh weather guarding our borders.

 Nathu La, one of the highest motorable roads in the world, is a mountain pass in the Himalayan peaks that co-joins Sikkim and China. Nathu La is one of the most important Himalayan passes in the country. Nathu means 'listening ears', and La means 'pass'. Nathu La is one of the three open trading border posts between India and China and is famous for its picturesque beauty and beautiful environment. The temperature here remains low for most parts. Located on the Old Silk Route, Nathu La Pass connects Sikkim to China’s Tibet Autonomous Region. It was sealed for almost 4 decades after the People’s Republic of China suppressed a Tibetan uprising in 1959. However, when the former Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited China in 2003, talks to open the strategic route were resumed. The Nathu La Pass was reopened in 2006 and since then, it has served as an official Border personnel Meeting(BPM) Point.

Since it is one of the three open trading border posts between India and China, Nathu La Pass has played a key role in the Sino-Indian Trade. It has also shortened the distance between the important Buddhist and Hindu pilgrimage sites, thus strengthening the economy and improving border relations with China.

 

Lovely trip to Kamakhya temple

On 28th September, 2016, had a lovely trip to Kamakhya temple. Guwahati looks so green and as we climb the hill to reach the temple we get a beautiful view of Guwahati. As we  wind our way up the Nilachal hill to the temple,  we get a spectacular views of Guwahati. Standing at 562ft, it definitely holds an air of mystery about the place. Guwahati is the gateway to the North East of India Gauhati Kamakhya temple is  based 7km out on the west side of the city.

 Counted among the most sacred shaktipeethas (devotional shrines where the severed body parts of Goddess Sati fell), the temple is believed to be the place where the womb of the goddess fell. Devotees believe that, it was in the  Nilachal hill the yoni (womb) of Sati fell, And that yoni (womb) took the form of a woman who is called Goddess Kamakhya. Thus, it is also synonymous with supreme female power and fertility. Kamakhya Temple hosts an annual Ambubachi Mela every year, which celebrates menstruation of the goddess. During that period, the temple remains closed for three days. Representing The Female Power of Shakti and celebrating a woman’s ability to conceive, this temple doesn’t have an idol of Kamakhya to worship but a yoni (vagina).

 

Dandi Kuteer Museum

 

Dandi Kuteer a museum of Gandhi 's life.  Visited the Dandi kuteer on 9th September, 2016 and it is shaped in the design of a salt mound. Using films, holograms it depicts the life of Gandhi and the forces that shaped him and his philosophy It has been specially designed to portray the biography of the Father of the Nation. The use of audio-visual techniques has been employed to show the early life of Gandhiji. One can see how Bapu, from his birth on October 2, 1869, in Kathiawad, to his childhood, was a shy and remarkable student. The visuals also give a glimpse of Gandhiji's marriage to Kasturba and his youthful experiments. This museum is designed with sophisticated electronics technology in which audio, video and 3-D visual, 360-degree shows and displays are used to show varied knowledge. Dandi Kutir was set up with the aim of representing Gandhiji's powerful idea of people from all sections of the society, across the lines of gender, age and class, have a common right to salt. Referring to his legendary march to Dandi to make salt from the sea water, a practice that was prohibited by the British, the museum is indeed a must-visit on a trip to Gandhinagar. It was opened in January 2015 under the Sports, Youth & Cultural Activities Department, Government of Gujarat. 

I really felt proud that at last India can boast of a museum that is of International standards and can leave a great impact.It brought alive the era of Gandhi and his times in England,South Africa and then India.I only wish we can have more such museums in other parts of the country so that the new generation is not left out and remains aware of our past and the personalities and philosophies that have shaped it. It is a pity that photography is not allowed inside but really I had an amazing day and a museum I would recommend to every one.

Sun temple at Modhera in Gujarat

 On 8th September 2016, went to visit to the Sun temple at Modhera in Gujarat. Situated on the banks of Padmavati river. It is situated on the bank of the river Pushpavati. It was built after 1026-27 CE during the reign of Bhima I of the Solanki dynasty. It is made of sandstone. The temple was destroyed in Medieval period and this temple is older than the Sun temple in Konark which is dated 13th century. It is said that Alauddin Khilji broke the temple and damage it. A soothing drive amidst green farmlands almost 25 km away from Mehsana on the way to the temples of goddess Bahucharaji reposes the village of Modhera. Set along the backdrop of River Pushpavati, surrounded by a terra-formed garden of flowering trees and songs of birds, rests the famed Sun temple of Modhera.

The remains of the Sun Temples at Modhera dedicated to sun god are relics of times gone by when reverence of the natural elements fire, air, earth, water and sky were at their peak sharing space with myriad manifestations of Vedic gods. The ancient philosophy venerating natural elements and its association with humans was considered the prime force and energy of the life cycle. A walk around the serene temple campus makes you aware of the positively strong aura of energy which the place radiates and through it brings one closer to the environs. The temple is designed in such a way that during every equinox, the first ray of the rising sun would fall on a diamond placed on the head of the Sun God. This would also light up the shrine with a golden glow. The Sun Temple is famous in India due to its unique craftsmanship.

67th Republic Day

 A very happy 67th Republic Day to all. This is how I am celebrating the Republic day on 26th January, 2016.