A Fully Sensory Experience of Life by Lexie Wolf
Wow.
Our first few days in India was a fully sensory experience of life expressing itself loudly and in technicolor. A complex vibration, part cacophony, part symphony. Visuals of technicolor and bling, decay and debris. Aromas from dung to spices to sweet jasmine, often at the same time. And souls. So. Many. Souls. Amidst extreme exterior chaos – while I can’t guess at anyone’s inner experience – faces appear calm and voices soft.
First stop: Jaipur, Rajasthan, a city known for culture, textiles, Maharajas, pink buildings. At an elephant sanctuary just outside the city we play with a sweet, playful and banana loving elephant Shabu. We happily attend the joyful, uplifting morning Aarti (devotional ritual) at the central Krishna temple. Every city in India has its central deities and in Jaipur it is Lord Krishna. Even in our spacious and quiet hotel room in a beautiful, restored palace, we are not alone. There are spirits.
Second stop: Varanasi, a.k.a Benares, a.k.a Kashi. One of the world’s oldest continuously occupied cities. A holy city and like nearly all of India, totally syncretic: Vedic, Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, Muslim, and probably other things too. A place for spiritual pilgrimages as well as art, music, and culture. According to Hindu mythology, this is the hometown of Lord Shiva himself and his consort Parvati.
In a wooden boat we watch the sun rise over the Ganges. Pilgrims and holy men are bathing in the river. Vendors are selling little jugs to take water from the holy Ma Ganga home.
Yoga in the wild! Two monks in white (Jain? Buddhist?) on the banks of the Ganges practicing Nadi Shodan; later a Sadhu in orange robes in the meditation chamber of a temple in a lovely Gomukasana pose.
We walk narrow alleys and crowded streets dodging cows and water buffalo, honking motorbikes, and tuk tuks, vendors of every kind, street dogs, and people. People sleeping, people talking, people praying, people buying, people selling, people begging, people being. At sundown, we attend the famous nightly Ganga Aarti in devotion and gratitude to the holy river. This is a highly choreographed ritual featuring offerings from each of the elements to the Goddess. There is a great deal of fire, the air thick with smoke and sandalwood.
10K outside of the city is Sarnath where the Buddha first began to teach his followers after enlightenment. A simple temple is there, with beautiful murals depicting the life of the Buddha. Pilgrims in white from Sri Lanka were chanting under a large Ficus tree – made from a cutting of the Bodhi tree, we were told. Unbelievably this Buddhist pilgrimage site is not crowded. The tree swayed gently in the breeze as Bill and I walked and slowly turning prayer wheels. Deep peace. Whispered prayers. Om Mani Padme Hum.
A wall carving at the Shiva temple reminds us that to be here on this planet as a human being is an improbable karmic miracle not to be squandered. As spiritual beings in a human body we have a unique opportunity that other life forms do not have: to learn, heal, grow and transcend.
We’re off to Rishikesh this morning to study the how-to manual that came to be known as Yoga.
