We were greeted at Chitrakut
station, off the overnight train from Calcutta,
by a large group of young auto rickshaw drivers all keen to take us the 10
kilometres to the ghat area (ghats are steps descending into the
water- there will be a lot of references to them in this blog entry!!). Bleary
eyed, we agreed on a price, and were jolted in wakefulness by the appalling
potholes in the dusty road, and Richard hitting his head on the rickshaw roof.
We were disappointed to pass through an uninteresting hole of a town, and
extremely relieved to arrive at the quiet and charming ghat area where we were to be staying, especially when we looked up
and saw the huge, unique old building housing our guesthouse.
View of Chitrakut
Our guesthouse, Chitrakut
Chitrakut is
sometimes referred to as a “mini Varanasi”,
but really the only resemblance is the lovely grand old buildings towering over
a ghat area. And it is ALOT smaller-
really only the size of one of Varanasi’s
bigger ghats. But the atmosphere is peaceful, with small numbers of pilgrims
and sadhus (holy men who wander the country) mixing with locals performing
their ablutions, mainly in the mornings and late afternoon. Goats, dogs, geese,
monkeys, donkeys, and of course, cows also shared the space.
The town is most famous as the place Rama went when he was
forced to leave Ayodhya for 14 years
(see here for a blog post about Ayodhya).
Most people greeted us with “Jai Si Ram”, or just “Ram Ram”, and most of the
temples are dedicated to Rama. As Rama is an incarnation of Vishnu, there was
also a lot of Vaishites (holy men devoted to following Vishnu) around town- we
find them particularly cool looking!
Holy man, Chitrakut
Holy man, Chitrakut
Holy man, Chitrakut
Our guesthouse was perched high above the activity, but
close enough to watch the action, which we enjoyed. At night the row boats
suddenly came to life with flickering coloured lights coming on, and,
strangely, rabbits hopping around onboard. A nightly aarti (a prayer by the water, complete with flames, music and
singing) was performed at various points along the river, and we loved sitting
down on the ghats watching the bustle. One man with some English told us we
were “Watching the India stage”. Well put!
Part of the nightly aarti celebrations
Although there were one or two other tourists around, the
pilgrims were very interested in us, but unfortunately, our Hindi is
practically non-existent, and this state (actually right on the border of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh) doesn’t teach English in schools, so there was a lot
of staring, smiling and nodding! The food situation was strange, because the
town caters primarily for poor pilgrims, there was an extremely limited choice
for eating- a basic thali restaurant
(a thali is a dish with a little bit
of everything on one plate- usually as much as one can eat), or greasy fried
noodles and snacks on the street. So we delved in, well recovered from whatever
sickness we’d had in Calcutta, thank
God!!
Local chai man
Thali for lunch (rice came later)
We somehow found out a few places nearby to visit, an
started out with Kamadgiri Hill- a
sacred hill with a pleasant 5 km path around the bottom, and shared the hike
around the temples, old buildings, and stalls selling religious trinkets, with
hundreds of pilgrims. The Macaque monkeys here, as everywhere we went these
past few weeks, were an absolute menace. They are so aggressive, and are not
scared of humans at all, and only run away if there is stones or a stick
involved- we made sure we took one everywhere, We felt sorry for the locals,
who would have to constantly be on guard against the little buggars.
Doorway, Kadamgiri Hill, Chitrakut
Couple of cuties, Chitrakut
The Hanuman Dhana Temple was another delight, and we climbed
the steps to a fantastic view, and watched the gorgeous, black-faced, lanky
Langur monkeys playing and grooming. These monkeys have a completely different
nature to the Macaques, and even when they are fed by hand, do not become
violent. It was a fitting way to spend our time at the temple, with Hanuman
being the monkey God.
Cute boys, Chitrakut
Love these mud and straw houses, Chitrakut
Lovely langurs, Chitrakut
One thing we disliked about Chitrakut was the greedy priests in many of the temples. We only
had to set foot in the place before they were demanding donations. Whether this
is due to Chitrakut being a poor
area, or because it is a pilgrimage town, we don’t know. There were also a lot
of beggars, but as fellow visitors to India
will know this is something one has to get used to. Having said that, we also
met some lovely, generous people, religious and other-wise, who were happy for
us to sit with them and “chat” with no ulterior motives.
Our eventual arrival at Omkareshwar,
involved an overnight train (late), a local train (late), a bus heaving with
pilgrims(standing room only), and a lot of waiting in between. Never having
been here before, we were expecting what Lonely Planet calls “a popular chill
out destination on the backpacker trail” and Rough Guide calls “a favourite
with hard core Western and Israeli dope heads”. Actually, at this time of year,
we found nothing like that, with only a couple of other tourists, not many
signs in English, or facilities for travellers. Omkareshwar is an island in the Naramada River, and a hugely popular pilgrimage place for Hindus,
with most temples dedicated to the God Shiva, and most amazingly, is shaped
like the Om sign- a very special and auspicious symbol for Hindus.
Omkareshwar shrine
Reflective man, Omkareshwar
Dramatic cliff scenery, Omkareshwar
View of ghats, Omkareshwar
We were lucky enough to coincide our arrival with a BIG day
for the town- that of the dark moon. The sight which greeted us on our first
morning visit to the ghats was both
exiting and bizarre. Groups of people were waist deep in the river every few
meters, with priests performing ceremonies that could only be described as
extraordinary. It was mostly women being doused and dunked in the water by the
priests, and their reactions range from screaming, shaking, babbling, falling
down, fainting and waving their arms around- quite a spectacle. The priests
were also on show, with much eye rolling and moaning, and some outlandish gear
to attract the crowds.
This video shows the fascinating state one woman was in
Overwhelmed woman
The crowd gathers
Odd get-up on the priest
Another dramatic priest
Feeling the spirit
An intense experience
No-one seemed to mind us being there and watching and taking
photos- actually people were smiling and pointing at us like we were the weird
ones!! It was pretty hard to find out exactly what was going on, but most
people told us the women were simply overwhelmed by being close to God during
the ritual. It reminded us of strange kind of baptism, or an exorcism like in
an Evangelicalchurch.
Amongst all this were hundreds of other pilgrims milling
around, and lines of beggars all sitting on their pathetic little plastic
sheets waiting with their metal bowls for handouts.
Friendly pilgrims, Omkareshwar
Love the poses, guys!
Scene at the ghats, Omkareshwar
Scene at the ghats, Omkareshwar
Richard's really started to let himself go!
After that first day, most people seemed to disappear, and
the town became quiet and transformed (and actually, not quite as interesting).
We spent a few days here walking and relaxing- our guesthouse being a bit of a
haven, with rooftop views of the ghats,
and amazing food in the restaurant (until the last morning, when Richard’s
toasted sandwich contained something that looked suspiciously like animal fur!
The offer to prepare another was rejected by Richard, who, for some reason, had
lost his appetite!).
An enjoyable activity was the pilgrimage walk around Omkareshwar Island, with signs printed
with mantras (prayers) every few meters so we couldn’t lose the way. It was a
long walk, an a mixture of atmospheric old ruined temples, mud brick villages,
great views out over the river, bathing ghats, stalls selling drinks and
trinkets and steps and more steps!!
A three hour bus ride from Omkareshwar was the town of Maheshwar-
by far the most beautiful and magical of the three pilgrim river towns we had
visited since leaving Calcutta. Maheshwar also has a more interesting
history- the fort was originally built by the Mughal emperor, Akbar, and finished
off in the eighteenth century with a palace and several atmospheric temples by a
queen of the Holkar dynasty. It sits on the banks of the Narmada River (the same river on which Omkareshwar is situated).
Boy flying a kite on ghats
Ghat area, Maheshwar
Nandis on ghats, Maheshwar
Boatmen, Maheshwar
The character of the ghats
area in Maheshwar was so peaceful,
with the huge fort/palace towering over the river one side, and green fields on
the far side. Probably at times it becomes busy with pilgrims, but when we visited
there were few people around- just a few ladies washing their colourful clothes,
saris drying in the sun, a chai
stall, a handful of sadhus, and men with
boats- either fishing or taking out people to the tiny island temple in the
middle of the river. The best surprise was no monkeys at all!!
Maheshwar ghats
Maheshwar ghats
Maheshwar ghats
Maheshwar ghats
Maheshwar ghats
Maheshwar ghats
Maheshwar ghats
Inside the fort area is mainly residential, with meandering
laneways filled with little houses and families, but the biggest draw for us
was the gorgeous main temple we’d seen from the ghats. Inside it was a plethora of intricate carvings, beautiful
doorways and sweeping views down the river.
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Maheshwar fort
Also inside, we found several other less elaborate temples,
and the small palace area, which as well as a ridiculously priced luxury hotel
($300 per night- how can people spend that on a room in India?!!), housed a small display about Queen Ahilya, who built and
improved much of Maheshwar, as well
as many other places, and was a much loved benefactor of the people.
The streets around the river area were charming with little
balconies and heavy carved wooden doors, and we encountered the friendliest
people so far on this trip in India,
and we might have stayed a couple more days in this attractive town (not being
ones to rush, after all!), were it were not for the very ordinary food
situation. Not only are the Chitrakut,
Omkareshwar and Maheshwar vegetarian towns, they are so holy not even eggs are
allowed. We decided to get ourselves to the large town of Indore and have a good feed!!
