On July 8th 2005 we embarked on a blessed Yatra to Uttaranchal with Gurumaa and several devotees from Lonavala, Dr. Sanghpriya from New York and I from Delhi. It was a dream comes true for us for it is not often that mere mortals like myself, can be with their Guru for l0 long days. It is indeed divine grace that makes these rare opportunities possible.
We left the Birla Mandir in New Delhi, after seeking blessings from Baba (Hanumanji). A 27 seater A/c bus was our Vahan to Kedarnath and Badri Vishal. Amidst loud chants of “Bol Shri Bajrangbali Hanumanji ki Jai” the bus slowly meandered through the hot dusty roads of Delhi towards Haridwar.
After 5 hours drive we arrived at the Holy City. In Kankhal, we headed towards Gyan Niwas Ashram where we had a delicious hot meal. We took off to Har Ki Pauri Snan Ghat. This is the hallowed spot where drops of Amrit spilled during the churning of the great Amrit Manthan. Every l2 years, the Purna Kumbh Mela (and Ardha Kumbh Mela – every 6 years) is held here. It is a place of great sanctity and reverence. Also, it is said that Hari Ki Pauri means thye stairway to Lord Shiva, Kedarnath. For centuries, rich and poor alike seek to absolve their sins in the watery lap of Ma Ganga. The force of the water is very powerful, and a dip is enough to wash away sins accrued from several Janaams. We all washed Gurumaa’s feet turn by turn and seeked Her blessings.
Next, we proceeded to attend the famous Ganga Aarti, which was sponsored on that day by Vedic Heritage. As dusk descended, the warm glow of the setting sun dipped into the horizon. The evening Aarti began with bells tolling and conch-shells blowing in the soft evening breeze. The huge Diya with about l0,009 wicks were lit amidst the sounds of Ganga Aarti. Local priests proceeded while we all stood around Maa. Thousands of devotees from near and far became ONE in this moment of sublime devotion. The air was filled with incense and sacred chants of Har Har Gange. The torrential river swept away the tinkling lamps placed in the holy waters by countless Bhaktas. We felt that time stood still and Maa Ganga showered us with Her blessings.
On July l0th, at 6 am, we set off to visit the famous Parad (mercury) Shivling, the largest in the world. Incidentally, this Shivling is located in Juna Pithadeshwar Acharya Mahamandleshwar Swami Avdheshandji’s Ashram in Kankhal. Rudraksha trees stood tall and handsome in the beautiful Ashram premises.
Every morning, when we sat in the bus for the entire duration of the Yatra, we endeavored to chant at least eleven Hanuman Chalisa’s while Gurumaa would meditate quietly with eyes closed. Pushpa, Minu, Kapish Priya (Sunita) busily served breakfast to all of us. Usually, we would stop at local markets to get fruit, milk or Chai. Our next destination was Parmarth Niketan in Rishikesh.
A steamer took us across the holy river to the enchanted Parmarth Niketan Ashram of H.H. Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswati. Swamiji welcomed Gurumaa and all of us into the beautiful Ashram full of flowers, trees, and statues of Shiva, Ganesh, and Shri Krishna. We were invited to a room where Maa and swamiji exchanged notes. Then we went for Prasad. After, a delicious hot meal, it was time to move on.
Back again on the bus we climbed up the Himalayan foothills inching our way slowly to Rudra Prayag. We drove by small sleepy hamlets nestled between steep mountains on the one side and the ferocious Alaknanda River on the other. At one point, the Alaknanda merged with the muddy waters of the Ganga. The distinct colors of the waters of the two rivers embraced each other and flowed ahead. It was late evening when we arrived at the Birla Guest House perched on a hilltop where our bus was unable to go. So we trudged up with our luggage tired but glad to have arrived. However, our happiness was short-lived. There was no air conditioning. No hot water either. In the killing hot weather we managed to pass the night. Hot water buckets arrived promptly at 4 a.m. After getting ready, we raced for the morning Puja to Gurumaa’s room. After the Aarti we ran downhill to the bus and set off to Kedarnathji. The first five hours drive to Gauri Kund was in our bus, followed by four hours ride on horseback.
The roads from Rudra Prayag to Kedarnath were mountainous and steep. The bus slowly inched up the hill creaking noisily as it went. The air got cooler as we went higher and higher up the mountain. Most of the bus Yatris was sound asleep. The uneven road was full of bumps and jerks enough to put anyone to sleep. Fast asleep, suddenly, the bus stopped abruptly. I saw our driver outside yelling to the oncoming bus to stop. The road was very narrow. There was no space at all for the other bus to go ahead. From the window we saw a very steep gorge below. Everyone, was silent as a single wrong turn could prove fatal. Hanuman Chalisa Path must have saved the day. As slowly, Harjinder, our driver, managed to inch his way ahead. During this whole traffic mess, we lost valuable time. But, definitely we had seen death from very close. It was a once-in-a-life-time experience.
We drove on to Gauri Kund the village below Kedarnath. We reached there at 12 noon. Gauri Kund is famous for its natural Hot Spring. Here Gauri must have bathed during Her years of Tapasya to obtain the grace of Lord Shiva. This was the birthplace of Lord Sri Ganesha, where Shivji, after understanding His mistake in cutting the head of His own child, found the head of a baby elephant and restored the life of Ganesha. At Gauri Kund, first we took bath at the holy Kund, and then we performed Gauri Puja. The, we performed Guru Puja by washing the holy lotus feet of our Guru - GuruMaa. A bustling town, full of Pilgrims, small restaurants and Ghora Wallas trying to get us to go on horse back to Kedarnath. Not much convincing was needed as we all settled to make our way up the mountain l4 Kilometer road to Kedarnath. It may take 4 to 5 hours. We started at 3 pm.
Our group set off on their sturdy ponies in a single file. The steady downpour of rain makes it difficult to climb up the steep winding road. On the way we met devotees who chanted “Bhole Nath Ki Jai”, “ Har Har Mahadev”, and “Jai Kedarnath” on their way back after having had Darshan. Despite, the weather conditions people seemed content and grateful that they would soon reach the feet of the Lord.
The sheer beauty of the place makes you feel that it is indeed the abode of the Gods. Rocks jutted out from crevices in the mountains forming Hanuman like faces. Sanghpriya, brought this to my attention saying, “See the rock overhead it looks like Baba” Yes it did. Some rocks resembled Jatayu, others Ganesh and so on... Wild fruits, flowers, and berries hung majestically on the trees overhead. There were huge waterfalls on the way...seeming to gush forth from the heavens. I thought to myself this is heaven. The mountainous peaks had streams endlessly flowing down. The Mandakini river water was white like milk. She merrily flowed through enormous boulders of every shape and hue. There was tranquility in the air. No sounds except for the horses clip clop and the occasionally shouts of Bole Ki Jai. The road seemed endless. Many Yatris were walking bare-foot with only a flimsy raincoat to protect themselves. It seemed that faith is the strength that made all difficulties surmountable. Divine protection was there for them. They were the real devotees for whom nothing mattered except the feet of the Lord. Finally, my Ghorawalla announced that I must get off now and walk. It was now cold, raining and foggy. Drenched I carried my belongings and set off up the mountain. I felt old, cold and weary. I could hardly breathe. Local people told me that Birla Dharamshala was still further. I kept on going. afraid to stop, lest I was unable to continue. I looked around to see if someone would help with my luggage but no such hope. Finally, I reached the Dharamshala, which was next door to the Mandir. I looked for others in our group but no one else had reached. Thankfully, I dumped my bags and ran into the temple courtyard. Nandiji sat there looking high and mighty. He was quite enormous and welcomed me. I ran into the Garbha Griha to have Darshan of Kedarnathji. I was numb with hunger and cold to my bones. But despite that I was so thrilled that we had indeed made it to His Charan Kamal. It is only grace that makes it possible for us to reach His divine presence. Every hardship is too small in comparison to the great feeling of peace and contentment one feels in his presence.
Back to the Dharamshala. Gurumaa had arrived. She was very cold and unwell. Doctor Sanghpriya was in total command. She took loving care of Ma and put Her to bed. I was worried sick but knew that Baba was the Commander in Chief not I so why worry? I left Sangpriya to take care of Ma and raced off to make preparations for the next day’s 4 a.m. Darshan.
We reached the temple promptly at 4 am. 5 priests were waiting for us. The head of Char Dham, Mr. Vijay who came to see GuruMaa at Haridwar had arranged for VVIP room for GuruMaa, and special puja for GuruMaa’s Bhakta Mandli. The puja was one and an half hours long. It was a very personal and divine experience since only 21 members of the group were sitting around the JyotirLinga. The priest knew from me that GuruMaa was ill. So, he took all the precautions for Her comfort. GuruMaa was extremely delighted to be there for the divine darshan. Within half an hour of the Puja’s start, She could see millions of Hanumanjis and 5 Ganeshes on top of the Linga. The SivParivar, exactly like the Murti from the NY temple was also gracing the Linga. GuruMaa had tears of joy on Her face. After the end of the Puja, we all came back to our DharamShala. Because of the height of the holy site, due to lack of oxygen, heating was not allowed. The group had carried 10 oxygen cylinders with them. Om Prakash Khandelwal, Alka Gupta and others needed the oxygen. But, GuruMaa was fine just with the Darshan of Kedarnathji.
After some sightseeing and picture taking by the Yatris, while GuruMaa enjoyed Her solitude, the group re-assembled together for the 7 pm Aarti.
The next morning, we left for RudraPrayag. GuruMaa took the Doli, instead of riding a horse. They reached GauriKund to catch the bus. However, they were told of landslides. The driver recommended that they stay back for 1 or 2 days. But, GuruMaa was determined to leave and asked the driver to go via Chamoli to Badrinath. The was a detour, which forced us to halt for the night. We stopped in a small town called Chopte. Despite, the lack of electricity and torrential rain we enjoyed a wonderful hot meal made by the hotel staff. Their warmth and friendliness won our hearts. Next morning the sunshine welcomed us all
It was very dark, so we had to wait for a few hours. We took shelter in a few cottages. We received great hospitality in candlelight. The staff was outstanding. After spending the night here, we left next early morning for Badrinath. The weather was good again. We reached Badrinath at 7 pm. Badrinath was very different than Kedarnath. Badrinath, like Tirupatiji was very commercial. Mr. Vijay had arranged for a VVIP cottage. Due to the distance, GuruMaa tried the Doli. But, She did not enjoy it and walked anyway. The VVIP cottage was very clean but smelt of Fenyl. So, after trying different alternatives, we went to the guesthouse of the Governor of Gharwal. This guesthouse was better than the rest, and seven of us stayed here, including GuruMaa.
The next morning, we were at the Badrinath temple at 4.30 a.m. for Vishnu Puja. The charges for the Puja were high, and it was not a personal experience. We left the next day at 12.15 pm. However, there was news of many landslides. We reached a place where there were landslides only 200 feet away. It was an extraordinary experience. The landslides and rain showed no signs of slowing down, and we were forced to spend the night on the road. We slept in the bus. We saw a Qualis SUV with three newly married couples. They were caught in the middle of a landslide. The 6 people were smart and ran out and took cover. Soon, the Qualis was destroyed and thrown in the ravines. God protected them. We were caught in a death trap with rising waters on one side, and landslides on the other. But, GuruMaa was very relaxed. We did not know when the roads would open again. The next morning rain had stopped. Luckily, our bus had stopped right next to a Dhaba, where we had some delicious food.
We finally reached RudraPrayaga. We stayed in the Birla Dharamshala. It was 15th July, and my birthday. We celebrated my birthday and found a restaurant where 21 of us ate for the amount, which would not have been sufficient for even one person in Delhi. Next morning, we reached Haridwar. On the way, at DevPrayag, we saw the Sangam of Mandakini, Alaknanda and Ganga, and reminded us of the Triveni Sangam at Prayag (Allahabad). After a couple of hours, we reached Haridwar. The group split into two groups, and some devotees accompanied Her Holiness GuruMaa to Delhi so that She could keep Her appointment with Padma Vibhusan Brihaspati Trigunaji, a famous Holistic/Ayurveda doctor based in Delhi. GuruMaa and the group reached Delhi at 1 am in the morning, and Sayar Bengani welcomed the group with open hands. The next day, GuruMaa had to return to Lonavala for Guru Purnima celebrations. It was an exciting, but a very spiritual pilgrimage for all of us!! Jai Sri Hanuman! |
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