OUR AWESOME ASSAM JOURNEY

After touring Meghalaya, we started for Assam with our spirits fully rejuvenated but knees strained and protesting vehemently

We first visited Basistha ashram as it was close to the Meghalaya Assam  border, it is believed to be hermitage of sage Vashisht , one of the Saptarishi and it was on the outskirts of Garbhanga reserve forest

Vasishtha is one of the oldest and most revered Vedic rishis or sages, His ideas have been influential and he was called the first sage of the Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy by Adi Shankaracharya and has written Yoga Vasishtha, Vasishtha Samhitha ,few versions of Agnipurana and Vishnu Purana.

He is famous for his legendary conflicts with sage Vishwamitra ,was the family priest of the Raghu dynasty and teacher of Rama and his brothers.

As we entered I noticed the usual hustle and bustle in the locality with pilgrims going around and beggars all sitting in a row, the usual tea and toy stalls

We were on our way to the temple when I noticed a car coming, people in it wanted to distribute blankets to the poor, suddenly there was a flurry of activity and I could see the beggars rushing and taking and hiding the blankets in their bags and asking for more , it saddens me to see greed in the people ,be it any category

The temple was in a hilly area and very near the forest and as a result, there were plenty of playful monkeys which showed similar greed by snatching parcels from the hands of pilgrims

The temple was reachable by ascending few steps and had three rivulets named Lalitha, Sandhya and Kantha forming a waterfall with the water originating from Meghalaya gushing down to enter Bramhaputra river  

The temple was built by the Ahom king, Raja Rajeswar, in the second half of the 18th century

Apparently many years ago, a stone hill collapsed revealing four Ganesh idols and a Durga idol carved into a giant rock.

We saw Janardan Devalaya, dedicated to Lord Vishnu and a Ganesh mandir

There was a big statue of a huge mouse standing royally alone

In the courtyard, there was an imaginary statue of Sage Basistha ,there were idols of various other Gods

A cave said to be used by Ma Arundhati, wife of Saptarishi Vashistha for sadhana exists a little distance away

The place was serene and beautiful but needed more maintenance, I noticed some local people washing their clothes in the water in which I could see multiple linga being worshipped and felt helpless

We then passed by the streets of Guwahati ,it was a typical busy day with lot of shopping going on, I found the autos very colorful and attractive

We next visited the Kamakhya Temple 535 feet above at Nilachal hills also called Kamagiri hill ,adjacent to the hill we could see the mighty Bramhaputra river flowing ,Kamakhya temple is one of the oldest and most revered centres of Tantric practices and is dedicated to the goddess Kamakhya. The temple is the center of the Kulachara Tantra Marga and site of the Ambubachi Mela, an annual festival that celebrates the menstruation of the goddess.

Structurally, the temple dates back to the 8th-9th century with many subsequent re-buildings and the final hybrid architecture with a hemispherical dome on a cruciform base defines a local style called Nilachal. It is also one among the oldest 4 of the 51 Shakti Pithas .

Historically the worship progressed in three phases— yoni under the Mlechhas , yogini under the Palas and the Mahavidya under the Kochs.

The Kalika Purana, an ancient work in Sanskrit, describes Kamakhya as the yielder of all desires, the young bride of Shiva, and the giver of salvation and this denotes the spot where Sati used to retire in secret for a carnal union with Lord Shiva, and it was also the place where her yoni (genitals and womb) fell after Shiva's tandav nrutya with the corpse of Sati

The main temple is situated in a complex of individual temples dedicated to the ten Mahavidyas of Saktism namely, Kali, Tara, Tripura Sundari, Bhuvaneswari,  Bhairavi, Chinnamasta, Dhumavati, Bagalamukhi, Matangi and Kamalatmika.

We took a ticket for special darshan as there was heavy rush and a panda accompanied us, the garbhagriha was small, dark and reached by narrow steep stone steps. Inside the sanctum it was quite dark and  from somewhere a sudden gush of very cold air brushed our faces, there was a sheet of stone that sloped downwards from both sides meeting in a yoni like depression  about 10 inches deep.

This hollow is constantly filled with water from an underground perennial spring. It is this vulva-shaped depression that is worshipped as the goddess Kamakhya herself and considered as most important pitha (abode) of the Devi. Before we could even experience or see it fully we were lead out by our panda

Historians suggest that the Kamakhya temple was likely an ancient sacrificial site for Khasi and Gharo people and that the name originated from the Khasi goddess, Ka Meikha meaning old cousin -mother

Garos people, offered worship at the earlier Kamakhya site by sacrificing pigs. The tradition of sacrifices continues today with devotees coming every morning with animals and birds to offer to the goddess.

Due to a legendary curse by the Goddess, members of the Koch Bihar royal family do not visit the temple and avert their gaze when passing by as they are not supposed to even glance at the temple

As a centre for Tantra worship, this temple attracts thousands of tantra devotees in an annual festival known as the Ambubachi Mela. In June from the 7th to the 10th day, the Kamakhya Temple doors are closed for worship as the goddess is believed to be menstruating. 

This festival is seen as a celebration of menstruation, which is often a taboo topic in many cultures, and is a unique expression of female power and fertility, temple is closed for three days during the festival.

During the festival, the river near the temple is said to turn red, symbolizing the goddess's menstruation. Prasad during the festival includes "Angodak" (fluid from the body) and "Angabastra" (red cloth used to cover the stone yoni during menstrual days), which are distributed to worshippers.

Durga Puja is also celebrated annually at Kamakhya during Navaratri

Our next visit was to Deepor Beel a fresh water lake located to south-west of Guwahati city. It was a very peaceful place with a large expanse of water, Rani and Garbhanga hills guarded the lake on one side and we could see a bridge and fields around.

Over 120 species of birds have been listed in the sanctuary, including kingfishers, fishing eagles, adjutant storks and abundant varieties of ducks. A watch tower has been erected on the bank of the beel for bird watching and also security purpose.

Occasionally people see herds of elephants visiting this lake to quench their thirst and also enjoy a thorough bath in the water

Surveys have revealed 20 amphibian, 12 lizards, 18 snakes and 6 turtle and tortoise species in the beel. Over 50 commercially viable species of fish, belonging to 19 families have been identified

Deepor Beel is declared a wetland under Ramsar Convention due to its biological and environmental importance.

We visited the lake in evening so there was a cool breeze wafting in, there was provision for boating but there were no traces of the boatman

Shooting and bird-trapping are prohibited by law, but enforcement is said to be inadequate.

The Dipor Bil provides, directly or indirectly natural resources for the livelihood of fourteen indigenous villages

The Basistha and Kalmani rivers and local monsoon run-off are the main sources of water to the lake, between May and September. Khonajan channel drains the beel into the Brahmaputra river.

The lake acts as a natural storm water reservoir for the Guwahati city during the monsoon season

During the winter months, when the size of the lake reduces in area by about fifty percent, the shore area is cultivated with rice paddy as the climate is also relatively cool and dry.

We then went to a temple of Lord Venkateswara, the temple looked serene and beautiful and had pure white architectural structures and images of deities carved out in the walls. The wooden doors of the temple were handcrafted in Chennai and were intricately carved.

There was a park located outside the temple for tourists to enjoy the scenic beauty. Goddess Durga temple is built to the right side of the main temple

The temple premises had a Yagasala built for performing yagnas and an auditorium decorated with beautiful interiors and exquisitely designed statues to hold cultural functions of classical and folk music gatherings regularly during Sundays. The temple looks divine in the nights as it is well lit with lights.

That night we went for a cruise in the mighty river Bramhaputra, as the sunset cruise tickets were sold out, we chose the Alfresco Grand Luxury Dinner cruise, we could get seats on the deck area, seats were comfortable and food was good , served hot and quickly too 

We enjoyed going around the river with the cool breeze caressing us and listening to the pleasant live music ,the singer was in fact good and belted out old Hindi songs

The next day after the customary complimentary breakfast in our hotel we left for Hyderabad, in the foyer I found these typical domestic items we call as cheta nicely decorated ,I admired the creativity of the Assamese people 

VISIT TO THE CLEANEST VILLAGE, CLEAREST RIVER AND LIVING ROOT BRIDGES - MEGHALAYA JOURNEY

This was our last day in Shillong, after breakfast we started our day with a visit to Ward’s Lake, locally known as Pollock Lake or Nan Polok an artificial lake in the centre of the city

Though the lake was built by Colonel Hopkins in 1894, it is believed that the area around the lake was developed by a Khasi prisoner to relieve the monotony of his daily routine.

It is a horse-shoe-shaped lake with a white bridge crossing it, it is close to Raj Bhavan and is surrounded by a beautiful garden laid with cobble-stone footpaths and a fountain. 

It is just a 10-minute walk from the Police Bazaar and is ideal for morning walks, as we walked around we were greeted by the multi colored flower beds, well-groomed trees and boating facility  

We then sped on our way to Umsyiem village, on the way we saw some ladies cozily chatting and washing their clothes near a brook, I said it is very common in our state too and is a form of popular social media

We stopped at a small village ,I was entranced by their life styles and the tin roofs which are used to withstand heavy rains

We found Memorial stones or monoliths in a village, there were large vertical stones or Menhirs known as male stones and few horizontal stones or Dolmens known as female stones which are put in honor of the deceased, they serve as focal points for rituals and ceremonies

We then drove to Dawki, a sleepy town in West Jaintia hills, the last Indian post on road connecting to Sylhet in Bangaladesh of the Jaintia community who are mostly fishermen.

The view from the top of the hill was awesome, we could get tantalizing views of the Umngot river, it is the venue of the annual boat race held during March- April in the Umsyiem village.

The car stopped and we got down the hill through the roughly cut uneven steps, a word of caution to the readers, most of the places in Meghalaya need a lot of climbing up and down the hills and unless we used to long hours of walking and trekking and are fit and agile ,our poor knees start protesting after a while with this unaccustomed exercise.

There were many country boats eagerly waiting for customers , we got into one and started our journey in the beautiful river ,the water though deep was so crystal clear that the other boats passing by looked as if they were stalled on the river ,the stones in the water seemed to beckon us wickedly daring us to join them ,

Hills around us watched solemnly and there were small water falls gushing down the hills ,apparently these boat rides can be appreciated only between months of October to March as the level of water increases crazily from April due to the pre monsoon rains making boat riding impossible

Being a cancerian I do seem to have an affinity for water as my long suffering hubby says I get very excited whenever I see any water body

We passed below the hanging metal bridge built by the British way back in 1932 connecting Assam and East Bengal and noticed zip lining adventure activity a little further down

There were tents set up along the riverside where one can spend the night and enjoy the nature at its best but as usual an inadvertent thought struck me what if wild animals also decide to share our dinner and I brushed it aside as anyway we had no intention of staying there.

In a short while we could see the source of the river Umngot which was energetically gushing through stones and seemed to be in an indecent haste to flow towards the plains.

There were the usual bamboo bridges and a solitary fisherman fishing in the water, I tried to peep into a boat to see the catch and could find quite a lot of them but I was pulled back by my hubby who was scared that I may fall off the boat, ha ha !

Next we went to the point where the river diverged partly towards Bangladesh and saw a narrow rocky strip separating the 2 countries, intermingling of Indians and Bangladeshis happens along the river, 

We could see a sea of people along the banks of Bangladesh side of the river, people were picnicking and frolicking, our boats went so near that we could see the people very clearly.

As I was busy chatting with the boatman, I came to know that Meghalaya follows a matrilineal system where the youngest daughter gets all the property and has to take care of her parents

The boat ride was amazing and I felt as if I had been to another country without any visa

After climbing the inevitable excruciating steps we were back in our cab and reached the border force, the electric wire mesh between our country and Bangladesh was indeed terrifying

We stopped at a restaurant for tea and snacks, I just entered it when I heard  someone calling out Ramani mam! To my joy I saw a doctor couple who were my UG students from a medical college I had previously worked, the couple were both super specialists in a big hospital ,they were introducing me to their sweet little children , for a strict teacher like me , meeting my students many years after I have taught them and being recognized is a big reward indeed

We then went to Mawlynnong a tiny village where after undergoing a serious bout of cholera, the villagers decided to take cleanliness seriously, after few days the world noticed and the village promptly shot to fame in 2003 when it was declared as the cleanest village in Asia, having 90% literacy rate it soon became a model for other villages and began to draw in tourists as media coverage grew.

The Prime Minister of India has repeatedly referred to Mawlynnong contribution in cleanliness in Swatch Bharath

Presently the village has around 1000 residents and sees hundreds of visitors every week, we need to pay an entrance fee of Rs.100 each to enter and there is also a parking fee

We went around the village and found it very clean and well maintained, I felt it was like a well decorated house waiting for its guests, it follows useful initiatives like meticulous waste disposal, community cleaning, banning of plastics and smoking

There was a bamboo watch tower which I promptly climbed, a little apprehensive that it may collapse but luckily it didn’t, from the top I could see Bangladesh very clearly

We saw areca nuts being dried in the courtyards of many houses ,most of them were maintaining beautiful gardens

As we were famished by then we had a small vegetarian thali at a restaurant where food was served hot

We were now about to see the living root bridge  in village Riwai ,next to the Mawlynnong, the practice of creating living root bridges is found all over Meghalaya where functional, living architecture is created by slowly training the aerial roots of the rubber tree ( Ficus elastic) from one side of the river to the other to form a natural bridge, they are strengthened by mud and stones to  hold the weight of a few humans at a time

Living root bridges are indeed masterful solutions to the seasonal problem of crossing fast-flowing torrents during the rainy monsoon.  Large numbers of these bridges still exist but are slowly being replaced with more standard steel bridges.

The Cherrapunjee double decker bridge is very famous but it needs one full day and we have to undertake an arduous trek which we were not up to, so we chose to see the living root bridge at Riwai , even this was quite tedious as the steps were very roughly hewn and slippery and I was literally hanging onto my side rail for my dear life

I was very impressed by the intricate design and formation of the living root bridge, though I thought it may not bear much weight it stood tall and strong even with 10 to 12 people standing on it, a river ran under it sedately.

After a long tiring day we returned to Shillong for a night rest