Samatva

Harmony lived each day, Triloknath

Triloknath. Temples of Himachal…14

Triloknath is a small, but primary temple in Lahaul valley of Himachal. The valley is cut off for six months each year. The snow blocks the passes and the residents just live out the winter. Every now and then, a chopper addresses emergencies; and drops firewood when the winter sours. That will soon change as the tunnel near Manali will make it accessible all year.

The Chandrabagha, as Chenab is called in Lahaul, defines the Lahaul valley. A thin strip of green stretches on the sides of the river continuously. Then suddenly there is a sharp rock outcrop with a vertical face, almost as if someone worked on it. Across the river. Triloknath temple is on top of it.

It is a totally nondescript temple with a deep message. Its original identity is claimed as both Hindu and Buddhist, 1000 or 2000 years old. The deity is worshipped as Shiva by Hindus and as a bodhisattva by Buddhists. The form of worship defines harmony. There are both Hindu and Buddhist priests sitting together. The pujas alternate between the traditions every few hours. The festivals also keep flipping between Hindu, Buddhist and common festivals. This is not photo-op secularism but deep lived harmony.

The landscape around adds to the harmony. There are stunning patches of greenery amidst the sand and rock face. Chenab snaking through the thin valley. Suspension bridges adding mystery to the landscape. Streams cutting through mountain passes to feed Chenab. I was happy riding a scooter and took more than 4 hours to cover the 40 km distance along the valley.

Lived harmony in the temples of Himachal. Triloknath.

When the whole town is a temple, Kullu Dussehrah

Kullu Dussehrah. Temples of Himachal …11.

Kullu has long decoupled from Manali.

The thin riverside town doesn’t look pretty with narrow streets and its general untidiness is a misfit with the rest of Himachal. It has its glory though, for a week every year during Kullu Dussehrah. Kullu excels in the tradition of Devtas. Each village was a small kingdom with its own Devta and the tradition continues till today. The devtas resemble a vertical plate – all gold we hear. The Devtas advise and mediate; and fix every joy and address every sorrow. People say even elections are decided before polling by the Devta, with a sacrifice of a goat.

Raghunathji in Kullu is the presiding devta, with a legacy tracing back to Ayodhya. Each year, Raghunathji invites all the Devtas to Kullu, for a week. Even today, the District Magistrate writes a formal letter to each Devta on behalf of Raghunatji, inviting them to Kullu. The Dussehrah starts on the day it ends in rest of India, on Vijayadasami, and continues for a week after that.

The deities arrive on foot to Kullu, carried by villagers, around 225 each year. They visit Raghunathji and make their way to the large ground in Kullu. Each Devta has a designated area; and the villagers live, cook, eat and celebrate with their deity for a week.

I first saw the last day of Kullu Dussehrah in 2017 for a brief while; and then resolved to come back. Last year, I managed a whirlwind trip to see the opening day. The festivities are remarkable; the stream of Devtas and pilgrims paying respect to Raghunatji; then march their way through narrow and steep alleys to the ground. The joy and revelry at the ground in the evening. Women dressed in Kullu fineries. Children awestruck at the chaos which no You Tube can show.

If you want to live a festival with no center of gravity, think of Kullu., the coming together of 200+ deities in one place. There is raw festivity, colours, noise, crowds and celebration.

After all, these seven days, the whole town is a temple.

Hatkoti, on its own

Hatkoti, Temples of Himachal… 5.

Shimla is over visited, so is Dehradun-Mussourie. Surprisingly, the region between Shimla and Dehradun is not. There are several routes, some as short as six hours.

Hatkoti is in one of them, a 100 odd kms east of Shimla. This is the start of the Yamuna river territory. Every drop of water that falls on this side finds its way to Yamuna and eventually to Allahabad and Varanasi and Bay of Bengal. The road passes through Karapathar: a hill station that Himachal tries to hide for its own good. You can see all the snow you want, and also leave behind the crowds of Kufri and Shimla.

The Hateshwari temple is at Hatkoti, where the road meets the river Pabbar. At Hatkoti, Pabbar opens up into a wide valley and the temple overlooks the valley and the rice plains.

On an idle day, there is so much to do around. You can wander in any direction and into any field as guests are assumed to be non threatening. There was a dam under construction and I even slithered up the spillway without anyone objecting.  The depth of knowledge in the chit chat within the temple; the extent of their global awareness stunned my assumptions.

The route from Hatkoti towards Dehradun is bliss. It snakes along the Pabbar river at level; jumps over the confluence of Tons and Pabbar; and then runs along the Tons for several miles. There is not an outside soul and no Gujarati, South Indian, Chinese Vaisnavi Dhaba. I stopped at the riverside and was served fresh milk tea, by a Gujjar family.

Temples, rivers and hospitality, Hatkoti, Himachal Pradesh