The summer of 2009 was pretty hot in the otherwise cool Bangalore and it was certainly hotter in North India when I received an invitation from IMI, Delhi for my convocation. The temperatures soared really high and dried up all my spirits. I didn’t want to travel all the way to Delhi and land up in a furnace of sorts. But the large number of phone calls from my friends and a carrot shown in the form of an outing to Hrishikesh compelled me to travel to Delhi. It felt nostalgic being in the ambience of the school that taught me so many things despite the scorching heat. The convocation went well and meeting all friends was a great treat. But the real thing was still to happen. The trip to Haridwar and Hrishikesh taught me some important lessons.We set out to Haridwar on the evening after the convocation. The AC was constantly on in our taxi and I was fast asleep as usual. Sleep never eludes me wherever I go and the night we were traveling was not different. Despite the rough roads that my friends complained about, I was as indifferent as grass is to a stormy wind. The next morning, we reached Haridwar and got into a ‘dharamshala’. My itinerary was not decided by me, but by my friends. Neither did I bother to ask them. I knew it would be enjoyable for sure. Within a few minutes we occupied our rooms and lied down to rest for a while. What we found on waking up after an hour was that the rain gods had smiled on Haridwar and water was pouring down with great intensity. I thought that our outing would be spent in the rooms and there wouldn’t be much left to do. But then in an hour or so the rain gods smiled at us and listened to our prayers. In a cloudy mood, we all were off in our cab to Hrishikesh. A white water rafting deal had already been struck even before we left Delhi and the rafter had been waiting for us for quite a while. Numerous phone calls from the rafting vendor and our delayed start finally took us to the starting point of the sport. My elder brother, cautious as he is, had dissuaded me from being part of the rafting sport. The words of caution ringing in my ears, the downpour intensifying a feeling that the waters would be turbulent and the very sight of the gigantic river caused fear in me. My friends were with me trying to allay my fears, but I would not listen. After a lot of back and forth, I set my foot ahead to attempt to enjoy the rafting experience.
Our guide, a lean tough guy was named Gabbar Singh. He gave us a bunch of instructions, which I heard with rapt attention but forgot all that he said in the very next moment because of the fear. And then I realized there was not point in fearing as I was already on the raft. Moreover, I had all the safety gadgets on. Yet, you know, fear has no medicine. And then we set sailing. Our guide was instructing us and we were following him and the sailing was smooth. A few minutes into the river and what we saw was a reduction in the river’s width rendering the water turbulent; and Gabbar began to shout and asked us to row with all our energies. I could look at the waves gushing at us and the raft literally vertical. I was sitting somewhere close to the center and naturally the amplitude in the center is much less than at the ends. My fundamentals in Physics helped me from swaying a lot. And then as we sailed ahead, what I could see was that the position of the raft relative to the water surface did not change much. The moment I looked all around, I could see that we were literally at the mercy of the turbulent waters, but the next moment when I looked at the water beneath, all I could see is the water moving past us as we moved forward. As we moved ahead, I was looking at the water beneath and looking elsewhere and I realized that I was in safe hands and the ride began to become enjoyable.
Then came the next stage in which our guide asked us to jump into the deep water. We all were forced into the water and asked to set our hands off. I too jumped and as soon as I jumped I found myself surrounded on all sides by water. That was damn scary and I began to struggle to float. The funny part was that I was not drowning at all because of the safety jacket! That was fun. Gabbar looked at me and said ‘Shut up, you’re not gonna drown. We won’t look at you if you howl’. And then I realized it was fine to be floating. But then, by then, I was fully tired. I just asked the guide to get me back on to the boat and I was back in. I then saw my friends floating merrily in the Ganga teasing me for my cowardice. With a smile on my face I took them on. We then headed to a location on our journey where people were climbing on to a rock and then plunging into the deep water. The rock was a good 25 feet in height and the very sight of people jumping was a treat. I knew I too could make it. But by the time we reached there, I was drained fully and could not get on the rock at all. I gave up for lack of strength. But then, I could not avoid being called a coward. “How does it matter?” I felt. There I was in the pristine waters of the holiest river in the world. We had sailed into the river hailing Mother Ganga. How could anything untoward happen at all? So what if I drowned in the water? Isn’t drowning in the holiest river a fortune? These were some thoughts that were running in my mind. We then set sail from the jumping rock and the water, then on was pretty calm. On both the sides of the river, we could see ‘ghats’ that were replete with mutts, ashrams, temples, saints, and a multitude of devotees. The very atmosphere seemed so charged up and yet it was so calm. It was indeed a different feeling. At every moment, we could see the breathtaking beauty of the Ganga. We eventually wound up our rafting session and had a wash.
We then moved across the river to witness the Ganga Aarti. Amidst the huge crowd, that seemed unruly, a sudden order arose as soon as the chants in praise of the Ganga began. With eyes closed, I sat quietly for about an hour till the well trained kids sang in praise of the Ganga. What I went through is hard to explain in words, but it was a feeling that was all positive. I used to be amused and ridicule people when I would hear them say that they were washed of all sins by taking a dip in the Ganga. I somehow began to appreciate it and believe in it after all this. A sumptuous dinner awaited us badly after the long haul with the rafting and the sleep that followed was really peaceful – and as I said earlier, sleep usually doesn’t elude me!!
The next morning, we went to Haridwar for an authentic dip in the Ganga at Hari ki paudi. I was convinced that there is something called faith that defies rationality. I do not know if I am washed of all my sins, but I do feel that such a belief is not foolish to have. I have no words to describe the feelings, but I feel blessed to have had the fortune to be there. Sometimes, I feel analysis can even vitiate a good feeling. One should stop analysing and feel things and they appear so beautiful! Swami Vivekananda rightly said, “Religion begins where philosophy ends.” At times, we need to stop thinking and listen to the voice within. If we hear it loudly, it feels great. I keep thinking of these words by Javed Akhtar.
“Mann apne ko kuch aise halka paaye
Jaise kandho pe rakha boj hat jaaye
Jaise bhola sa bachpan phirse aaye
Jaise barson mein koyi ganga nahaaye
Khul sa gaya hai ye mann
Khul sa gaya har bandhan
Jeevan ab lagta hai paawan mujhko”
