The lunch in the monastery is always warm and fresh. Though late, we were received cordially in the lunch hall. We were served food. The food was simple, but well cooked. There were a few other families who joined us together including the brothers and their wives. They expressed relief that their ritual was completed. We met another family from Kerala. They had just arrived. After lunch, we went back to our room, put our clothes in the drying line and took rest. I had come to know Soumyaranjan more. He was airlines pilot for a while and then returned home to help in the family business. He is resourceful and thoughtful. He wanted to spend more time in conversation on life matters. I continued to advise him to gain experience in life. We cannot know how to live via instructions but must confront life directly. Navigating life is not difficult if one remains positive all the time. A view of life could develop in time. Our stay in Allahabad was only until the evening. We thought of taking a tour of the city as a part of our sight seeing. Allahabad is a spread out city. It has history. Emperor Akbar had changed its name and had built a new fort. The British had established a Cantonment and used it as an administrative center for the area. The elder Nehru lived in the city. His participation in India's struggle for freedom was a significant turning point. Their house still stands as a Museum. The city is known for its poets and scholars. My uncle had gone to study in the University, which is one of the most reputed in the country. The political unit that contains Allahabad is called Uttar Pradesh, a sprawling area of Hindi-speaking people. It is the most populous State in the Union of India. The State is politically active and boasts of maximum number of appointments in the Union cabinet. Most of free India's Prime Ministers originated from the State. There is a significant Muslim population in the State and there is religious stress in the society. Along with the neighboring city of Varanasi, the area is known for excellence in music, arts and folk theater.
The climate and the fertility of the soil help grow plentiful of food leading to various culinary experiments. The snack and sweet shops are special and we thought to try out. A snack shop in India is like a bakery in the west. Various kinds of sweets and saltines in colorful varieties would be displayed in glass cases enticing the visitor. Stacking and displaying food in public is an art in itself. Half of allurement to food is its visual appeal: the texture, color and shape all add to the interest. India has a deep tradition of culinary preparation.
We took a few sweets and had our tea. There were flies in the air due to an open drain. Sanitation and sewerage in India are weak in most areas. Most urban development is not planned from the public health point of view. There are larger issues like public toilet and fresh drinking water. Economic survival becomes a higher priority than health and well being. In the modern terminology India is called a "developing" nation. It is not clear where does a nation develop to. India needs massive investment of capital in developing infrastructure. it must not however compromise with her culture and populism.
We hired a taxi and requested the driver to take us around the city according to his choice. He took us first to a newly constructed Temple called Navagraha Mandir, "the Temple of nine planets". Nine "planets" have been in vogue in Indian astrological system from olden times. In the sky dome above we see seven bright objects: the Sun and the Moon and five nearby planets. Then they add two mysterious shadowy objects to explain the eclipses. These nine are assigned properties correlating their position in the sky with the earthly events. While the intent of connecting an event to a cause is a scientific thought, the premise of celestial influence may not have much merit. Elaborate calculations are done to measure the direction of the planet from the earth based reference. The assumption remains that the planets were set on a spherical dome. Astrology is a big part of people's life in many cultures. Its hold on India is enormous.
Each of the empirical attributes of a "planet" was depicted in an iconic anthropomorphic idol. Converting ideas into art is a peculiar Indian trait. While the Christianity thinks that the God was born as a man, Hindus think that everything has a human form. It is a massive generalization which challenges proof. The Islamists do not like such idea. They rebel against the idols. In their view: "God and powers must be extra-terrestrial, no human or animal form can depict God; God must remain an abstract concept residing away and busy in judging." The zealot Islamic militants destroy all statues. New India is trying an experiment of co-existence. All religions have turf issues.
In the temple complex there was a shrine to Rama, who is very popular as an God-incarnate in India. Rama has particular presence in this area, the believers thinking that he was "born" in a town close by. The story is old and is powerfully scribed by the classic poet Valmiki who possibly lived two thousand years ago. The literature set in melodious Sanskrit poetry helped create the framework of living and conduct in India. A local poet Tulasi Das from Varanasi, rendered the epic into the local language and added musical tunes. Called "SriRamacharitamanasa", it is the staple of any religious observance in the north India. It was being sung by a group in the Temple. They were however not good singers.
Then we went to a Devi temple, where the divinity is worshiped in feminine form. This is an old tradition in India. The mother is the physical representative of creation. She is responsible for our food, health and well being. We owe our intelligence to our mother. An unhappy or angry mother can be dangerous. There was a woman assembly singing the praise of this Divine mother in their local language. Indian folk poetry has fun and wit. It needs be heard to appreciate the creativity of common people. I loved the women's folksy rendering.
We moved towards the river to visit a temple attributed to the Indian philosopher Shankara of eighth century. The multi-storeyed building looked modern, but the idols were old. One can view the expanse of the river from the balcony of the building. There was a shrine to Shiva in the upper floor. In the theory of the Ganges, water and cosmology, Shiva does not play a role. Liberation through ablution is different than liberation through meditation. The latter possibly has a more permanent effect
It was a Tuesday. There was a mile long line to enter a Temple dedicated to Hanuman, the monkey-god. To create force characters out of animals was a talent of Valmiki. His rendering became so real, that many assumed the story to be true. Hanuman is portrayed as a loyal devotee to Rama and accomplishes objectives through sheer diligence and devotion. He is an embodiment of mindfulness and dedication. He succeeds in all his tasks. He enjoys doing work and has fun. Hanuman is allotted a Tuesday birth for some reason. Some Hindus are fanatic in worshiping Hanuman.
Finally we ended up at the river bank to participate in a special event called Ganga Arati. Arati is an old Indian word, of which the exact origin is not researched. The term is used to show lighted lamps to the divine object. It is an expression of the culmination of faith and sometimes is rendered with songs and music. It is a part of fellowship in Indian tradition.
There were three ten feet high concrete platforms on the river banks. A red-attired person rode up each platform. They had their body and head covered. They were handed large plates of burning camphor. They had to raise the plates high using both their rams and create a clockwise motion. Then they were handed a pyramidal formation of lighted lamps. It was a spectacle. Several bells were ringing being pulled by strings. Music was being played from a recorded unit on the center platform. It was an organized and planned event. There was high ecstasy in the assembly of both men and women. More than a thousand people had gathered to witness and participate.
