KAILASH-MANASAROVAR YATRA 2016 & 2017
As knowledge dawns, we realize that every single movement happens only at the will of Mahadev and Devi.
It was late summer 2015. We were walking on a trail with friends when I came across three ladies talking in an animated fashion. When we sat down later for tea, their animated conversation continued unabated. As I cocked my ear to eavesdrop, I heard "Kailash Yatra". I muttered to myself "There they go again! All talk, no action ...". How wrong I was! They later walked up to us and said "We are going on Kailash yatra this year. Do you wish to join?". I said "No!" I had heard about this holy yatra at high altitude, where a visit can be temporary— or permanent! Although I was very spiritual, I also had an acute sense of responsibility to ensure that I had delivered all my responsibilities before I embarked on something for my spiritual satiation. However, my wife Gayathri was adamant and so were our friends Mythili and Neetha Reddy. I stayed aloof as the three friends started sharing their goal with their friends and started contacting service providers for the Kailash yatra. I used to participate in some of the discussions with service providers since some of them could only converse fluently in Hindi rather than English and my knowledge of Hindi came handy. These three ladies devoured the Internet for all Kailash-related information. Each service provider left the discussion in a dazed fashion as the ladies hammered away with their Encyclopedic knowledge of Kailash yatra. Based on the advice of a friend based in the Gulf, whose team had undertaken the Kailash yatra recently, we approached ‘Karnali Excursions’ in Nepal. As we engaged in discussions with Shri Hiraji, the owner of Karnali Excursions, it was clear that he was unique. An experienced mountaineer and a genuinely spiritual Sanatana Dharmi, he was polite but firm in his communication. As we proceeded to address to the typical questions such as cost, number of days, “best -bang-for-the-buck” approach, he gradually took control of the conversation by gently focusing on the spiritual side of the yatra. Compared to other providers, who played the cut-throat dollar-based approach, Shri Hiraji educated us on everything that would be involved in making the experience a true ‘yatra’. He seemed genuinely interested in helping us make it a ‘yatra’ rather than a religious tour. The charges were slightly high compared to the other competitors, but his detailed explanation of the the quality of service they would provide whilst being firm on avoiding financial negotiations convinced us that this was a step in the right direction. His final golden advice was "Walk. Drink lots of water. Group sankalpam to complete yatra and daily prayer to Mahadev for His Grace is critical for a successful Yatra." This man knew his stuff! (Later on, he confessed that he had not met a more knowledgeable, tough but spiritual group than us. That was a great compliment).
We took a flight from Kathmandu to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, which is occupied by the Chinese. Ideally the yatra would have involved a road trip in Nepal to Mt Kailash, however, this was not possible since many of the bridges had collapsed due to the massive earthquakes suffered by Nepal. Travelling via Lhasa meant that the cost of the trip had to increase but it was unavoidable. Sight-seeing in Lhasa was an added benefit of this trip. Lhasa is a big tourist attraction since it is the highest plateau in the world and a center of Buddhism. As soon as we landed in Lhasa and started walking, we could feel the difference in our breathing since we were now at an elevation of 12,000 feet above sea level. Walking became a slight exertion and we were slightly out-of-breath. "Slow down, slow down" yelled Hiraji. Whether anyone heard him or not, everyone naturally slowed down! We cleared the Lhasa airport, a heavily militarized zone. 2 buses were waiting to load the passengers. After an hour drive, during which we spotted Bhrahmaputra river, we reached our hotel. Wily Hiraji had chosen the Yak hotel, which was posh but had no elevators! We had to walk up the staircase and he advised us to take one step at a time and demonstrated a breathing technique to employ during the climb. The hares who ignored his advice, stopped on the landing of the first staircase. Obedient tortoises like us merrily and in slow motion overtook the panting hares! That day, Hiraji demonstrated a special pranayam that increases 02, oxygen, count, which is so important at high altitudes. He proved the efficacy of this technique by taking 02 reading at random of a yatri and re-taking a reading after the pranayama. Those whose reading showed a pathetic 70 in the beginning were now showing a healthy 90 in a matter of minutes! Hiraji also advised everyone to cover their necks, head and feet all the time to protect themselves from cold and cough. While some found it excessive, the sound logic behind this step was to ensure that no one got sick and spoiled their once-in-a-lifetime-yatra. The next stop was the Potala palace, where the Dalai Lama, the political and spiritual leader of the Buddhists, used to live but now lives in exile in India. This palace was built over several centuries and we needed to climb up 600 winding stone steps. One step. Take a pause and deep breath. Take the next step ... keep moving ... slowly ... and believe it or not, we made it! Several young Chinese youths who were running up the steps earlier, now lay panting on the steps, as we majestically moved past them in slow motion ... one step at a time! We witnessed the largest collection of gold in one place (more than 300 tons) in the form of huge Buddhas. Well, after some time, it became a little boring, as all the Buddhas looked the same! But we were learning a valuable lesson ... walk slowly and steadily matching your breathing style. We also visited Jokhan temple, where it was amazing to see the devotees perform endless sashtanga namaskaras. Some of the team members joined in! Later on, some did shopping at the local bazaar for nice shawls, saffron and jewelry. Regular morning and evening health and 02 checks were done by the Sherpas — each one of them an uncertified doctor! Some were faring well, while some were hanging in there. We then resumed our road trip and reached Shigatse. Now and then someone would shout "Water time!" and each yatri would dutifully take a sip from their water bottle. The bus would stop at regular periods of time for the yatris to attend nature's call. Men headed to one direction while women to another. While it was awkward in the beginning, the yatris adapted quite well to attending nature calls in the open in a short period of time. The hotel in Shigatse was excellent and had intricate art work throughout. The views during the drive were splendid. Nature at its very best. As we wound through the mountain roads, the brilliant blue sky with white clouds and the colourful mountains on the sides were a joy to behold. From Shigatse, we moved to Saga where we stayed for a couple of days for acclimatization. Now we were at 16,000 ft. The next day, we were going to get our first glimpse of Kailash and Manasarovar! As we first got the glimpse of Kailash, we were speechless with emotion. The feeling as the pulse raced is indescribable. How many were blessed to visit the home of Mahadev and his family? The sheer feeling of facing Mahadev had all of us in raptures and goosebumps. The bus stopped and everyone piled out and did a shashtanga namaskaram in the direction of Kailash. It was raining on Kailash at that time and Hiraji explained "Abhisekham is going now on now!" A strange thrill ran up everyone's spine. Nature's abhisekham for Mahadev! What a divine sight! We all immediately performed a Sashtanga namaskaram to Mahadev. As we moved on, we came to Manasarovar lake! We were struck by its brilliant changing blue and emerald green colours with the twinkling of stars on its gentle waves due to the shining sun. We performed the 150 kms parikrama around the lake and then stopped at a good spot for a holy bath. It was freezing cold. We quickly took a dip and each one chanted the mantras they knew. Taking bath in Manasarovar gave an immense sense of becoming purified. The sherpas, our guides, filled our water bottles with Manasarovar's holy water so that we could bring it back home. We quickly dried ourselves and slipped into warm clothes again.
