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TRAVEL BLOG ENTRY
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Our time in Haridwar was good and authentic. It is a very holy city and the streets were filled with pilgrims and Sadhus in bright orange. Street stalls offered dyes and beads and holy trinkets for the pilgrims. People went in droves to the Ganges for puja, carrying water containers from the river to the nearby temples and back home with them.
Walking through the streets, some people were still clearing the silt and mud out of their shops after recent floods. Some shops were shoveling mud onto the streets, and others were sifting through their wares discarding the badly damaged, that rag pickers were then ready to sift through for something useful.
We visited the Ghats along the Ganges, and immediately were beset by people asking for donations for it's upkeep. I gave 20 rupees, which I was told was too low, and got a receipt. They even wrote my nameon it: Mau. A moment later, a woman demanded money for the maintenance of the ghats. I was pleased with myself for having paid only 20 rupees for a receipt that would give me clearance from the beggars and con men. I pulled out my receipt and was told that was for the ghats not the maintenance. I then tried to ignore her bad mouthing me and enjoy the scene and people watching. When I stepped down to the water to wash my feet and sandals, her volume got twice as loud and I could feel her desperation. I jumped out, and she screamed at me, “not your shoes, not your shoes.” I had made a terrible mistake and felt infinitely guilty, partly because she was yelling at me with boggling eyes. The Ganges water is holy, the water is like nectar to Hindus, and it is used in ceremonies of life and death. Shoes and sandals are filthy, they step in dung, and should be removed before entering into any temple and especially the holy Ganges. I won’t make that mistake again. In fact, after some more time in SE Asia, I am careful to not point the soles of my shoes at people when I cross my legs, because that can be insulting too.
Haridwar was less touristy than what we had seen in the rest of our time in India, and we welcomed this change. We took cable cars up to the Hindu temples of Mansa Devi and Chandi Devi. These were high on a hill overlooking the town and the Ganges. Streams of devotees made their way through the temples, making offerings of flower petals and nuts. We were completely not noticed and left to our own devices, which was strange to us. Everyone was so busy praying and organizing the offerings. Although at one point we did get sprayed by paint as we walked by a man painting a chain link fence. We stopped at a water tap and tried to wash our selves off, and this drew a crowd of about 15 people who stood around and watched with curiosity. I’m sure they were wondering why were the Westerners cleaning themselves after going into the temple instead of before?
Rishikesh was our next stop. It was far more touristy and new-age than Haridwar. Many of the Sadhus seemed to be conmen dressed in orange clothes, many of the Ashrams seem to be solely money making businesses. We stayed for 3 nights in an Ashram, and it was peaceful. There were happy reverent pilgrims, a quiet garden, vividly colored statues of Shiva, Vishnu and Hanuman. There weren’t any yoga classes available at the ashram for the week, so Erin made her way to the neighboring hotel and attended a couple courses there. We found one statue of Buddha, labeled as the 9th incarnation of Vishnu, a claim that the Buddhists strictly deny.
We had some peaceful walks around town, and on 2 nights attended an Aarti on the Ganges. The Aarti was organized by the Ashram, and is a riverside religious ceremony accompanied with chanting monks, symbols, flaming torches, drums, and trumpets. It was a grand production, and at the end everyone dropped offerings into the Ganges of large leaf boats filled with petals, incense, and candles.
On the second day in the Ashram, we recognized a familiar accent and made friends with a Trinidadian woman. She worked at the Ashram, teaching English and asked if we could attend one of her classes to give the boys practice. We showed up the next day for 2 classes and conducted a question and answer session with these 40 some boys. They were Brahmins, studying to be holy men. Each had their head shaved except for a long ponytail out the back, called a Choti. And most had sandalwood paste smeared across their foreheads. It felt good to help out and made us mindful of our original plan at the beginning of this journey to spend some time doing charity work.
previous travel blog entry
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