Solar Eclipse

The BBC ran an article on the solar eclipse that happened yesterday here. Seems everybody was out gazing at it.

Here’s the link.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8161578.stm

Here in Vrindavan it was different. Such an event is considered inauspicious and auspicious at the same time. Certainly it is not recommended to stare at it.

The bad bit is that people here believe that it is so powerful  it can contaminate food and so no one cooks  during the time of the eclipse and for a period before and afterwards. Temples close for the duration as it  is thought the food offerings normally made would be  polluted. Restaurants close and if you eat at this time it is thought you will become ill.

The good side is that it is meant to be a very good time to practice religious ritual or perform devotional acts as their potency or benefit is magnified.  The whole town of Vrindavan took to the parikrama path, with husbands wives, children, sadhus, and just about everybody and their granny seemed to pass by the gate of my ashram, (which is on the parikrama path) all day long.

Rooftop view at 6am morning of eclipse

 

Govardhana Hill

Govardhana Hill

I went on a carikrama ( that is parikrama by car and not on foot) to Govardhana last Monday. A parikrama is about 23 kilometres and takes about 5 to 6 hours to complete at a brisk pace. I preferred the travel-stop-and-linger mood the car enabled this time.

Govardhana Hill features most famously in the 10th book of the Bhagavata Purana where he (everything is personified in these stories) stars in the story of Krishna lifting him as an umbrella to protect the citizens of Vraja from torrential rain sent by an envious Indra.

The Bhagavat Purana writes:

Of all the devotees, this Govardhana Hill is the best! Of my friends, this hill supplies Krishna and Balaram, along with their calves,cows and cowherd friends, with all kinds of necessities-water for drinking,very soft grass,caves,fruits,flowers and vegetables.In this way the hill offers respects to thee Lord.Being touched by the lotus feet of Krishna and Balaram, Govardhana Hill appears very jubilant.‘ B.P 10.21.18

Theology aside, the recognition of the dependence we all have on nature with its bountiful and life sustaining offerings is appealing in todays climate of ecological catastrophe. The idea of reciprocal respect and co-existence reverberates throughout the Hindu scriptures and our Govardhan visit offered a refreshing alternative to more impersonal and exploitative considerations of the natural world.

Govardhan is about an hours drive fromVrindavan and before setting out on our walk we bathed in two beautiful lakes or kunds, Radha- Kund and Shyama -Kund considered sacred lakes to devotees of Krishna.

Radha Kund

Reverential Geese

Seems like we got some blessings since what might have been a walk in the searing sand and heat, turned out to be the coolest day so far. Dark clouds, rolling thunder and cooling breezes framed our pilgimage and we saw peacocks, Nilagais (meaning ‘blue cow’) a type of antelope, electric green parrots, monkeys galore, cows and buffalos.

Nilagai, the 'blue cows' of Govardhana

Pilgrims construct little houses all along the flank of the hill to house prayers, to have ones home blessed, or in some sense to reside here long after leaving. I built a little OCHS, very similar to the one in Oxford and impressed at least one resident with my architectural flair.

The Govardhan branch of the OCHS

Some pilgrims circumnambulate Govardhan over several weeks by daily performing prostrations all around the hill. They mark with a stone each arm extension and proceed with the next prostration from there. It is called dandavat parikrama. I thought a pilgrimage in Ireland up a mountain(Croach Patrick) in bare feet was something but so far this takes the biscuit. Sorry, the digital camera just missed the ‘down’ moment.

Dandavat Parikrama

 

The Parikrama Path

Everyday people go on Vrindavana parikrama.This means circumambulating the entire town of Vrindavan with its myriad temples, on a barefoot walk of about 6 miles.

Pilgims on parikrama

Early in the morning when people seem to imagine it is cooler, and especially on Ekadasi (the 11th day of the waxing and waning moon) the parikrama path is packed with pilgrims. During the day too groups continue to add their footprints to this devotional circuit.The reasons may be singular or multilayered for performing this feat.

It might be an act of devotion; an act of atonement or purification; desire to have some prayer or need fulfilled or a wish to gain punya or pious merit.Whatever the motivation it draws people from all traditions and all walks of life.

The route is peppered with shrines and temples, some of them as simple as this Shiva Linga under a tree:

The very Shiva linga mentioned above

Shiva is considered the protector of Vrindavan. There are five famous temples of Shiva in Vrindavan and innumerable simple Shiva linga shrines dotted around the periphery of Vrindavan and beyond.

A protective Shiva in Vrindavan

Door Darshan

Sounds of singing and chanting echo throughout the town competing with the ever-increasing volume of car-horns, rick-shaw bells, and megaphone music.

Listening to  singing behind one door, I met someone on the way out from her temple visitation.

Which leads me to one of my favourite pastimes in India……neck-scratching!

The sacred ritual of cow-tickling!

Inner wear

While Vrindavan resounds with reminders to nurture our inner spiritual life,  a more recent  trend – see body care sign –  competes for more material gain just in case it all gets too spiritual!

Ok will sign off now. A major incentive to send these posts is the air-conditioning in the Internet cafe. It’s not working today so I look and feel like melted  strawberry ice-cream. I will  find a fan and meditate under it!