Memoirs of 2009: Travelogues – 6 [Decoding the expressions of few of the amazing Ajanta paintings - 1 ]

The world renowned, UNESCO heritage sights of Ajanta are known for the sculptures inside its caves and the amazing mural paintings of the Buddhist era. The sculptures which we saw inside the Ajanta and Ellora caves are truly a masterpiece of Buddhist religious art. But more than sculptures what I liked were the mural paintings inside some select caves at Ajanta.

The paintings date back to second century BC and even though they could be found in only few of the caves (cave 1, 2, 16, and 17), they are all over the cave except for the floor. At many places, this amazing pictorial artwork has been eroded due to decay and human interference. Most of these paintings are fragmented and one can’t see the whole picture depicted in a large scenic painting. It is said that these paintings are the narratives of the Jataka tales, tales from Buddha’s time, which help devotees to learn Buddha’s teachings.

Well, I am not an expert (or even a novice) in Buddha’s teachings nor do I know much about Jataka tales. But, as an admirer of art, I was simply amazed when I saw such a superb piece of art which was being created 2000 years back. There was complete darkness in these caves to preserve the paintings from further deteriorating from sunlight. Few fluorescent lights were directed towards these paintings so that they would become visible to the viewer’s eyes. Such darkness was imparting an enigmatic glow to the entire atmosphere. Below is my take on these paintings; what I felt when I looked and relooked at them many times over. I would like to stress here to the point that these are not expert comments but are just the feelings of an art lover.

Painting 1 & 2 – Vajrapani and Padmapani: Two of the greatest paintings in Ajanta; Vajrapani - Bodhisattva holding diamond in his hand (as in Sanskrit - Vajra – Diamond, Pani- Hand) and Padmapani - Bodhisattva holding lotus in his hand (as in Sanskrit - Padma – Lotus, Pani- Hand) are visible as you enter the first cave.

Have a look at the calm and composed look on both the faces. Now look at their eyes; you would see a serene of peace within them. They are half-closed as if he is meditating. But then if you see the surroundings of the picture, Vajrapani and Padmapani both are surrounded by many of their followers / devotees. This gives the picture another dimension. In the midst of the crowd, Bodhisattva had the spiritual power to meditate as if no one is around him. These eyes reminded me a famous sher written by Momin, the famous Urdu poet, which goes as below:

Tum mere paas hote ho goya
Jab koi doosra nahi hota

[The Urdu poet is telling the God: You are always so near to me as if there is nobody around]
The eyes show a sense of modesty and equanimity. One must remember that the Bodhisattva himself was a king in his own right. So, such modesty is a rare phenomenon amongst the kings of any era. The eyes also show a feeling that comes when somebody abstains from worldly pleasures – one who doesn’t care about the joys, excitements, fears, sorrows, and pains of life.

Now, look at his slightly bent posture in both the forms. It is a yogic posture; a posture taken by a Guru when he is imparting the knowledge and devotion (Dnyana and Bhakti), in the hearts of his devotees, men or women. Bodhisattva never differentiates between a man and woman or for that matter between a human being and animal, giving them equal rights to gain knowledge and perform devotion. This is clearly visible from the kind of devotees you see around both the paintings.

Why is such a saintly form of Bodhisattva carrying a diamond or lotus in his hand? Lotus is a symbol of peace and harmony. Lotus is also a symbol of the universal win of good over bad. As lotus comes out of mud, Bodhisattva is telling his disciples that nothing is a waste. A mud has the power to give life to and grow a beautiful lotus flower. So, the key thing is that even if you are bad you can change yourself to generate better results.

Diamond symbolizes purity and brightness. Bodhisattva wanted to give the necessary wisdom, so pure and bright as sunlight, to his disciples that none of his followers can lose their track towards achieving ultimate peace. In both the forms, the disciples are so eager to learn as much as you can from your Guru and it shows on their humble yet eager faces.

Overall, both these paintings, drawn adjacent to each other in cave no. 1, are a magnificent piece of universal pictorial art and their teachings hold good even in this era.

Vibrant and distinct colors used in adjacent paintings:

See the distinctive color scheme used in adjacent paintings in cave no. 1 in Ajanta. While one has a greenish shade, the other is in reddish – orange color. This is a plain photo without a single modification

There are a couple of other photos of paintings which I could take. More about them in my next blog.

Next: Decoding the expressions of few of the amazing Ajanta paintings - 2

Memoirs of 2009: Travelogues – 5 [ Unlocking the mysticism behind the ever alluring Lonar Crater ]

Buldhana district comes under the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. In spite of being surrounded by few of the richer districts of Maharashtra such as Aurangabad, Jalna, and Amravati, as a whole Buldhana district is very poor. Such is the state of the district even though it contains one of world’s highly preserved treasures; the well known astronomical gem – the Lonar Crater.

We recently had a chance to visit the place. Just to add to reader’s knowledge, Lonar lake is created by a meteor hitting the earth. It is the second largest (largest in Asia and the only one in India) impact crater in basaltic rock. The crater is quite huge with about 1.5 Km diameter. It is a lake which has huge importance for the studies of geologists, ecologists, archaeologists, naturalists and astronomers to conduct various experiments.

The place is clean and heavenly beautiful. I somehow found some kind of mystic peace in the surroundings. The crater, the salt water lake, various old and dilapidated temples especially, the Daitya Sudan temple, the surrounding mountains, each and every surrounding monument possess in itself an ascetic mysticism. The place is highly secluded and lonely. (In spite of we being there in a tourist season and we witnessed lacs of tourists at Ajanta just the other day which is hardly about 250 odd Kms from Lonar.) After spending a few hours in that area, I started thinking as to why such a geographically and archaeologically important site has been left highly ignored. Well, after doing some mental analysis, I found few logical answers:

1. Location of the place: Lonar is not located very near to any major city. The nearest city is Aurangabad which is about 200 to 225 Km. away.

2. Lack of amenities: The place is highly secluded placed in inner parts of Buldhana with not much amenities available in the surrounding areas. In the whole of Lonar, we could find only one decent hotel of that of MTDC which is being recently built. As can be guessed, the hotel is not at all well maintained in spite of it being situated at a scenic location.

3. Difficulties in reaching towards the lake: Somehow, Maharashtra tourism department has not created concrete steps to reach towards the lake. Whatever steps available are quite broken and the way towards the crater is extremely steep which makes it almost impossible for small kids or 50+ people to even think of getting near the lake.
This has simply acted as a blessing in disguise as the area surrounding the lake remains quite clean.

4. Presence of salt water: Lonar lake is a salt water lake meaning that it can’t be used as a source of potable water. I guess that also might have led to its ignorance by localites.

5. People’s perceptions: Indian tourists often visit places which fall under only few select criteria such as pilgrimage, historical monument, hill station or a beach resort. Lonar crater doesn’t fall under any of this thus taking a backseat in people’s priorities.

I think all the above reasons have given this place a kind of loneliness, aloofness, a feeling of separation from the crowd. This loneliness which is observed in and around Lonar has given it an enigmatic appeal of its kind. We saw few once beautiful temples in ruins. Their architectural styles resemble that of Konark temples. But again, there are hardly anyone willing to pay a visit to them – No pujari and no devotee.



I was simply amazed by this place. Thoughts galore in my mind! According to me, Lonar Crater is just like an ascetic saint, abstaining from all the worldly desires, meditating peacefully in a secluded place, away from crowd; a Yogi in its own right. Like a saint, this crater hardly cares for any attention from the tourist, scientists or even the government for that matter. It is vast and deep at the same time which shows its magnanimity. It is above all the worldly pleasures, the joys, excitements, fears, sorrows, and pains of life. Like a true saint, the crater looks worldly wise and modest at the same time for all its uniqueness.

All of these are my perceptions. The interpretations would change from person to person. But the mystic and enigmatic charisma that the crater carries with itself is quite unique in its own right and I do hope that such a charisma would persist for many centuries to come.



Next: Decoding the expressions of few of the amazing Ajanta paintings

Memoirs of 2009: Travelogues – 4 [ Watching the Total Solar Eclipse amidst Dark Clouds ]

“Mesmerizing!” is the only word that comes to my mind for the experience of watching a total solar eclipse. I had seen it in the year of 1995 when it was visible in the pink city of Jaipur. I always like to compare the whole event of the solar eclipse to a thriller movie only that the plot of this thriller takes place outside the earth. As in a thriller, events happen so fast that there is no time for the viewer to think. Additionally, the sequence of events leads to the climax exactly as that of a thriller.

Initially, you observe the changes in your surroundings, the changed behavior of dogs, cattle, and birds. Then, slowly, the shadow of the moon overlaps the Sun’s surface. When the eclipse reaches totality, you see some marvelous celestial beauties; sun’s corona, bailey’s beads, various invisible planets and stars and then the climax! The diamond ring; which according to me is the finest moment in the entire experience.

In the year 2009 – 10, the Indians have the good fortune of witnessing this once in a lifetime experience twice in the same year. First was on 22nd July in the northern part of India and second was today’s morning that is on 15th January in the southern parts. Considering myself an enthusiastic amateur astronomer, I felt I must watch this moment on 22nd July. Surat was the nearest place from Mumbai where the total eclipse was going to occur hence I chose that place and enrolled myself along with my wife with one of the groups in Surat who had made all the arrangements to view this event.

Sometimes in life, we make decisions in haste. At times, these decisions are quite courageous also, contrary to one’s normal behavior. In such cases, many around us would discourage us to take such a path; sometimes even ridicule us. I feel such is the time when one needs to listen to his heart and follow his dream. At the end of it all, one may not even reach his desired goal but the rich experience that one gets out of such exercise is worth for just giving it a try. When I reflect on our Surat experience these thoughts gather in my mind as we couldn’t see the eclipse (for that matter, even the Sun) at all on that day but such was our experience that the vivid pictures of that one and half days trip is still quite fresh in my mind.

I can mention many things which were at odds for us to see the eclipse –

1. Month of July – As it is a month of monsoon, experts were highly skeptical of any possibility for its clear view in India.
2. Eclipse timing – The eclipse was to occur just after sunrise that is at about 6:20 AM so even if it becomes visible it is very near to the horizon so one needed to find a plateau to view it.
3. I was driving such a long distance (more than 600 KM to and fro) for the first time and that too when only both of us were there.

We were little late to start (at about 9:30 AM). As we crossed Mumbai and entered into Thane district it started raining cats and dogs. It was pouring so heavily that many a times I could see nothing in front of eyes in spite of continuous movements of wipers. The conditions were absolutely adverse for driving. I had to drive very cautiously which made our journey to Surat to last for 7 hours instead of normal 5 hours. When we reached our destination (the premises from where we were supposed to view the eclipse) the participants were little nervous due to such cloudy weather as the chances to see the event were becoming slimmer by every passing hour.

The rains poured throughout 21st July and continued its great form in the night also. Still, we were determined to go to our destination to see if we can get any glimpses of it. Large crowd was present, spanning all age groups. Apart from the local Surat crowd, people all around the country have gathered there. Many Chinese and Japanese students and their teachers were also visible. By the time it clocked 6:20 in the morning, we were pretty sure that we will not be able to see anything. The rains had stopped leaving behind huge dark clouds in the sky. Some kind of disappointment started creeping into the minds to the gathered crowd. Everyone started to feel that the entire episode would lead into an anticlimax. But then Mother Nature has her own ways to surprise the human being which no one can ever predict! That’s what happened. Exactly at 6:23 AM (the starting time of totality), the surrounding became pitch dark all of a sudden. Literally, nothing was visible in the surrounding. This built huge excitement within the crowd; people started shouting, howling, exclaiming and what not! The period of darkness remained for next four minutes. The way the total darkness came all of a sudden, it went away equally quickly and the cloudy morning light filled the surrounding. People thanked the beloved nature with huge round of applause.

The gloomy faces of the crowd which were clearly visible before this sudden event of 4 minutes now were flowing with joy and satisfaction. Even though no one could watch the eclipse the nature had at least ensured that everyone would be able to get the sense of it, that everyone would be able to get the feel of it.

With this satisfaction in mind, we took the leave of that place to drive towards Mumbai. It was a hectic but equally exciting journey. To sum it up, we could not reach towards our goal of watching the total solar eclipse but the whole experience of just attempting to see it was highly enriching. Sometimes, the “means” are so much important in life than the “ends”, isn’t it?

Next: Unlocking the mysticism behind the ever alluring Lonar Crater

Memoirs of 2009: Travelogues – 3 [ Tale of 2 Balajis]

I had been fortunate to have Lord Balaji’s darshan twice in the last year; one immediately after my marriage in June 2009 at Tirumala - Tirupati while the other later in the year at Mehekar town in Buldhana district which comes under the Vidarbha region of Maharashtra. Today, what I want to narrate is the stark differences that I noticed in the surroundings of these two temples of the same God.

Tirupati Balaji devasthanam doesn’t need an iota of introduction. World renowned pilgrimage where tens of lacs of people visit each single day; which is one of the richest temples in the world; where you should consider yourself fortunate if you get more than 3 to 4 seconds to look at the shrine; where Balaji’s darshan continuously happens round the clock; where the bhaktas need to book the darshan coupons 4 to 6 months in advance; I would say that visiting this place is really a lifetime experience. One can compare the aspirations to visit Tirupati Balaji for a devotional Hindu to a Muslim devotee’s aspirations of visiting Haj at least once in his lifetime.

The climate on top of the Tirumala hills is quite superb. In spite of the daily load of the visiting people, the arrangements are quite nice for stay as well as for food. There is absolutely no chaos when one takes the darshan except that one feels the heat as one approaches towards the Balaji idol. When I was sitting outside the main temple hall in the early morning at around 3 to 4 AM before our darshan, the spirituality in the surroundings were slowly sinking inside my body and then in my soul. As I was listening to M S Subbalakhmi’s divine voice, whose Venkatesha Suprabhatam has the powers to wake Lord Balaji up every morning, amidst the vast crowds I could feel the lightness that comes to one’s body and thoughts; I could somehow feel the inner peace which is so difficult to even think of in the hustle bustle of a city life. Overall, visiting Tirupati Balaji is an opportunity I should never miss.

The other Balaji temple that we saw in Mehekar lies amidst one the poorest regions of Maharashtra. The town is quite shoddy with flies and pigs roaming all around. The roads are so narrow and in bad conditions that hardly one way traffic could pass through. The poverty was visible all over the place; from the dilapidated houses to the torn clothes that the villagers were wearing to the garbage thrown over the narrow roads and lanes. Amidst these, this famous temple of Lord Balaji is located.

But once you enter the temple premises, suddenly things change. There is no comparison between the financial state of the temple board of the two temples. Still, the premise is very clean, airy and vast. Unlike in Tirupati Balaji’s case, here you get ample amount of time for the God’s darshan. The stone idol of the God is simply marvelous; a tall stature of close to 11 ft. I felt the warmth from the people inside the temple. The people were very happy seeing that somebody as far from Mumbai has come specially to visit “their” God. I was touched with the kind of belonging the localites had with the God. The pujari spent almost half an hour with us explaining the genesis of the very temple, the beauty of the statue and its importance. He even allowed us to take ample amount of photos of the God. Sitting in the temple verandah, facing the God, as the quietness in the surroundings sinks in my body, I felt the similar calmness as experienced in Tirupati.

Thoughts galore in my mind. Two well known temples of the same God and such a difference in everything you see in and around it; the people, their financial states, their nature, the facilities provided by the government and what not! But I strongly felt that in all these differences one thing that remains exactly the same in both the places is the kind of mental calmness, tranquility and peace that one gets in both these places. There is not an iota of difference in that, believe me!

Tomorrow: Watching the Total Solar Eclipse Amidst Dark Clouds

Memoirs of 2009: Travelogues – 2 [ Discovering and Rediscovering Cauvery ]

Whenever I think of our Mysore – Coorg tour which we did in June 2009, the memories of the magnificent Cauvery river come vividly in front of my eyes. “Yatra Tatra Sarvatra” – I guess these words aptly describe her presence because wherever we went, the river Cauvery was there to greet us.

From the hilltop of Brahmagiri hills where she starts (what is called as Talacauvery) flowing with an enthusiasm of a small kid, to the famous Bhagamandala temples where one sees the sacred confluence as the river Cauvery takes along with it small rivers like Sujyothi, to the grand falls like Shivasamudram and Abbey where one sees the river with all its rawness, to the ancient monuments like Talakat where one can see her serene calmness, to the temples in places like Shrirangapattan and Kumbhakonam where one sees the river with the spiritual peace and finally to the places like Mysore where one sees her grandeur on one side of the Krishnaraj Sagar dam, one sees the river in all possible forms.

Being a person grown up in a city like Mumbai where there is no river, (as the only natural river in Mumbai; the infamous Mithi river has been converted into a manmade gutter by Mumbai’s rulers and citizens alike) I feel jealous of those whose life has been spent in a place which has a river flowing through it. I have been lucky enough to spend a lot of my leisure time on seashore but have hardly spent time on the banks of a river. One can look upon the sea with all its grandeur as a patriarchic father figure but one always tends to treat a river like his beloved mother. And a mother is after all a mother.

A mother has a big heart; mother Cauvery welcomes the flowing of other small rivers unto it and also accepts the man-made solid / liquid wastes in her sacred water with a big heart. For a mother, all her children are equal; mother Cauvery bestows equal fertility to the soil through which it flows. We found that people living at the bank of river Cauvery always treat her like their mother – “Amma”; never allowing anybody to enter in her waters with slippers / shoes. We saw many boatmen saluting the mother river before starting the river ride. Mother Cauvery, the lifeline of the people in Karnataka and Tamilnadu, is really a jewel much more pure and most importantly much more valuable than any of the rare gems ever have found in India; even the Kohinoor diamond!

I end my Cauvery saga with the following lines:

Oh river Cauvery,
The moment I think of your majestic flow
My heart lifts up and eyes start to glow

Dear mother Cauvery,
The child’s enthusiasm, the youth’s rawness,
Old men’s calmness and a saint’s spiritual tranquility
You show all of these with a humble modesty

Oh my great river,
From the Hindus to the Mughals to the English dynasty
You bestow unending happiness to every religion of humanity

Oh my beloved mother,
Where lies the source of energy that keeps you gunning?
What is the secret that, till today, keeps you running?

Dear mother Cauvery,
You are so serene…
You are so scenic…
You are so sublime…
You give us life – You give us hope – You show us the way
I know one thing for sure, which I would loudly say,
Everything in this world might change but you are always going to stay

Tomorrow: Tale of Two Balajis

Memoirs of 2009: Travelogues – 1

With the start of a new year, one tends to look back at the previous year – how the year has been passed, the ups and downs, the mistakes one does, the achieved milestones as well as the missed ones. (Even though every year I miss 99% of the milestones which I plan at the start of that year, like the Indian Government who only plans but rarely implements, I plan for the new year with equal zest.) I dont have the credentials nor do my experiences are so vivid that I could chalk out any kind of learnings from the past (and even if I do I bet if anyone would ever get benefitted from them). So, I thought of sharing whatever little that I have seen, experienced and analyzed throughout the last year in a form of a series and I am thinking of beginning it with my travalogues.

To tell you a fact, I really dont know whether I learnt anything worthwhile in the last year but one thing is for sure; I traveled a lot in 2009; thanks to my marriage. And I thoroughly enjoyed it; be it a small weekend trip or a long tour. Most of the tours I did along with my wife. We share many common interests; travelling and photography are few amongst them. Wherever we went we ensured that we learn about the history, geography and the culture of the place we visit. I dont want to bore my blog readers (if there are any) by doing a travel agents' role and simply mentioning the names of the locations we visited along with their importance. What I intend to do is to reflect on my travel experience and put in forth my interpretations.

Well, I would begin this exciting journey by narrating to you the story of Cauvery River as seen by my eyes during our Mysore – Coorg tour.

Tomorrow: Discovering and Rediscovering Cauvery

From Airy Nothings to Worthy Reflections

Well, I have started blogging again. In the past, I had blogged intermittantly on http://amrutaunshu.blogspot.com/ but somehow that activity had stopped in the past 3 years. Even then, the writing urge was always there within. I fulfilled that urge by writing papers, case studies (for a Prof in IIM B, for Red Hat and others) and other technical writings but then the urge to express the random thoughts that were appearing in my mind remained.

So, with the start of the new year, with a newer outlook towards life, I thought of writing regular posts as a new year resolution. I hope, I would be able to capture those floating airy-nothings and come up with some real worthy reflections.