Rediscovery

The morning was bright and beckoning. It was an October morning. To be precise, it was 6.00 am on the second Sunday of October in Mount Abu, a city in Rajasthan in north-western India. The cool crimson orb of a sun had just peeped out from behind a grassy hill that bordered the fields seen from the hotel window and lit the room with a warm orange glow. October in Mount Abu is rather chilly but not cold and the people in the small hilltop city rather welcome the warmth of a sunny morning. Satish, too, was no exception. He gathered the blanket tighter around himself, turned to switch off the alarm clock and picked up the hotel intercom receiver. He punched the number 9 and yawned sleepily.

“Good morning Sir. How may I help you?” The receptionist inquired pleasantly.

“Send two coffees and two plates of butter-toasts please to room 214. Also tell me if a fellow called Lakhan Singh is here. Both me and my friend Amar are planning a trek to the highest cliff point here and Lakhan would be our guide.”

“Right Sir. Lakhan does a lot of business with our hotel guests and we know him well. I’ll get back to you as soon as he reports here.”

Satish stretched himself up, got out of the bed and pushed Amar, still asleep, on the other bed. “Hey Lazybones! Time to get up. Don’t you remember that we are going to Jaishikhar today for trekking? Get ready for the trip.” With that he crossed over to the attached bathroom and stepped in. Half an hour later, three young men in their early twenties were seen to walk out of the hotel lobby with their trekking gear in their backpacks. All the three were healthy, tall and well built, the type of men who enjoy physically challenging hobbies.

“I have brought my jeep along. We shall drive to the foot of the cliffs some 12 miles from here and then start with our rock climbing. At the top of the Jaishikhar cliffs you’ll find the ruins of a temple nearly thousand years old. This temple used to house a sacred fire that is still burning out there in a rock-pit.” Lakhan said with a heavy local accent. He was a bright Rajput youth, fair skinned and tall who had grown up among the local warrior clans known for their dare and courage all over the region. Now that the era of the monarchy was over in India, most of these people had settled down to a quiet life of farming on the lands of their forefathers. Recently, some of them had turned hosts to the ever increasing number of tourists visiting the place. Lakhan’s folks were one such family.

“Thanks Lakhan. We have packed in the food, some first aid, few coils of ropes, pegs and a couple of chisels. That’s the lot. But we are not carrying any tents or bedding as you had said that we would be back by evening today itself.”

“That is correct Satish. Just now it is seven in the morning. We shall reach the site at about seven-thirty. If we are able to make good time, we should reach the top by eleven-thirty to twelve. We shall take a couple of hours break there, have our lunch, visit the ruins, loiter around a bit and then start our descent at about two-thirty. That means that we should be back at the hotel by seven in the evening.”

“Sounds great! I have brought my new camera along. I bet there would be quite a few breathtaking views to be captured on the way. We promised to send a few to our college magazine editor before the end of the month. Satish, I hope you brought a few extra batteries along?”

“Yeah Amar, I got them with me. I also popped in a couple of electric torches and matchboxes though we might not need them at all if we are back by seven.”

The party moved on in Lakhan’s white jeep, climbing up the serpentine mountain roads. Just as Lakhan had said they reached the foot of Jaishikhar within half an hour of their leaving the hotel. On the way, Amar had been busy photographing the green and deep valleys and the beautiful flowering trees growing on the sides of the mountain roads. These mountains formed a part of the Aravalli ranges, which are one of the oldest fold mountains in the world formed from tectonic movements millennia ago. Amar had a somewhat dusky complexion and sported a stylish French-cut beard while Satish was fair and clean shaven. Both the boys hailed from central India where they were studying in a reputed engineering college. As soon as the three of them walked over to the foot of the cliffs, Lakhan assumed the lead. He tied one end of a rope coil to his waist and gave the other to Satish. Then he asked Satish to tie this rope end as well as another end of a rope coil on his waist and pass on the other end to Amar. Thus linked, the trio started their rock climbing with Lakhan leading the way and Satish and Amar following in his wake. It was a strenuous job and all the three of them sweated and panted with their exertions. However, a cool morning breeze blowed freely through the valleys and brought much relief to them.

There were quite a few small trees and shrubs growing on the mountain sides that were made of black sedimentary rocks and housed many caves of various sizes. “Just be careful when you pass near a cave as some of them are homes to bears and leopards.” Lakhan called out to the other two following him. They were not carrying any weapons on them as hunting in this region was illegal due to forest conservation laws. That meant that they would have to depend on their wits and whatever rudimentary defenses they could find in case they encountered any wild animal. However, most of the animals of that area had also got accustomed to the frequent visitors and no untoward incident had been reported in decades. Most of the leopards thrived on wild boars and deer that abounded in the place.

After about four hours of steep climbing they reached the top of the cliffs. The view was spectacular from there. They could see miles of green forests spread all below them in whose various nooks small villages could be discerned from far up. They looked really pretty as small whitewashed mud houses with red tiled roofs lay all huddled together and gleaming under the noonday sun. There were quite a few large lakes as well amidst all the forest greenery, looking smooth and slate-blue in the noon haze. The trio sat down in the shade of a mango tree and lunched on wonderful vegetable kebabs and chapattis that they had brought from the hotel. They had brought vegetarian meals with them as they were visiting the ruins of a temple and Indian customs generally forbid non-vegetarian food and alcoholic drinks in temple vicinities. After that they washed themselves at a small and clear spring gushing from under one the rocks nearby and drank their fill. Then Satish lay down for a while to have a quite smoke while Lakhan led Amar around to all the scenic spots nearby to take pictures.

They were all up and about in an hour when Lakhan took them to the famous ruins. It was once a fairly large temple made of sandstones, which now lay all broken and spattered all around. One could still see the remnants of the exquisite artwork etched on these stones. There were pieces of beautifully crafted pillars containing various intricate motifs and sculptures and huge stone chunks bore all sorts of delicate designs and patterns. This temple was constructed fencing a large cave on one end of the cliff top, which still contained the deity but no one worshipped there anymore. The local people said that the temple had broken down centuries ago in an earthquake and the monks and priests living in it had disappeared then. Since then the temple ruins had stayed unattended.

“I say Satish, what artwork man! Just look at the sculptures. One cannot believe that the artisans of those time could work these out without any of the modern tools or electricity. I am going to take a few close snaps of these pillars lying here.”

“Right, Amar. This seems like a world-class heritage site. It is a real shame that no one is trying to restore the dilapidated condition of this place. We might as well send some of our pictures to the Ministry of Culture and Arts and ask them to do something. We could even approach some of the international anthropological societies as well.”

Lakhan coughed and cleared his throat. “In my childhood I had heard a few stories of nightly visitors to these ruins from the village elders. They sometimes heard faint sounds of the temple bells and saw distant glow of the ceremonial fires here. That is why no local villager visits this place. Now a days, with modern education and development of the tourism industry in the area, things have changed. Young men like me are more bold and forthcoming on this subject and we do not mind bringing visitors here during the day time.”

Satish looked at Lakhan and laughed. “What! You mean a brave and adventurous rock-climber like you is afraid that there might be ghosts here in the night. Some story.”

“We are not afraid of life. We can stand in battles and face death like any other brave warrior out there. The Rajput people are well known for their valor. But how do you fight the dead? Look, I am not superstitious myself, but growing up in a remote village like mine I was taught to respect the local customs prevalent out here and we do not question them.” With this, Lakhan turned about and went inside the temple’s cave. Satish looked at Amar, who smiled and shrugged. Then both of them followed Lakhan inside.

The cave was quite spacious inside and in the far end, the ancient altar still stood on a slab of intricately carved slab of stone supporting the idol of the deity. However, it was clear that this place was abandoned. The floor was all cracked and filled up with dirt and soil. There were bats hanging from the roof of the cave and dried leaves and grass were scattered all about. However, stone embers still glowed hot and red in a rock pit just in front of the altar. It was the only live thing in the whole place that bridged the gap in time between the earlier days of worship and the present days of neglect.

Amar edged softly near the pit as he focused his camera and took several pictures of the deity and the fire pit. Then he whistled softly. “How could the fire go on this long unattended? Must be some volcanic gap.”

“They say that the fire was kept alive through the spiritual strength of the worship and the meditations performed by the priests and sages who used to live here. This fire has never gone out in all these years and it will never go out in future as well. It is blessed.” Saying this, Lakhan removed his shoes gingerly on one side and then stepped up to the pit and bowed in front of the fire, praying for a while. Then he got up, slipped on his shoes and walked out saying “Okay then. I am waiting outside. Join me when you are done.”

Satish also stepped up to the pit and took a good look at the fire glowing through the stones. The heat was quite perceptible even outside. Both he and Amar stood there for a couple of minutes in silence looking on at one more enigma of Nature. After that both of them went out and joined Lakhan, who was now squatting in the shade of a large boulder. He grinned as the other two approached him. “So there. What do you think? Wasn’t this trip worth the while?”

“Absolutely. Thanks to you my man, we were lucky to visit this extraordinary place.” Satish sat down on a flat stone beside Lakhan while Amar kept standing.

“You may now take some rest. We shall start descending in half an hour.” Lakhan looked from Satish to Amar. Both the boys nodded. “I guess we’ll sit here with you if you don’t mind. Do tell us some more about yourself and your village. It sounds interesting. Amar, you also please sit down somewhere.”

“Well, there is nothing much to tell, really. I grew up on my ancestral farm. We have some ten acres of arable land where we grow wheat and maize and some vegetables. We also have a dairy where we have had ten to fifteen cows all these years. I and my younger brother used to go to the local village high school with our cousins and friends. I was not particularly interested in studying so I took to helping my father in the fields after finishing high school. My brother however has moved to the nearby city of Udaipur to finish his college education. When the occasions arise, I also act out as a tourist guide. Sometimes we also offer hospitality to tourists who are interested in getting a firsthand feeling of this place and stay at our place instead of a hotel. What about you guys?” Lakhan looked at Satish.

“Us? We are city brats. Our stories might not interest you. My father is an architect in a big city called Bhopal while Amar’s father is a doctor in Indore. We grew up in our homes, went to school, grew up and met each other at the engineering college in Bhilai where we are now studying and staying on campus. Amar has a passion for photography, while I like to write. Together, we travel whenever we get the chance to do so. I have a younger sister who is studying medicine and sometimes joins us whenever her schedule permits her. This time, she was held up due to her examinations. So we decided to come along anyway and I am glad that we did as we shall take back all these pictures for everybody to see.”

“Sounds like nice families you have got there. As for now, we should get up and move on” Lakhan said while getting up and brushing his clothes. The threesome were soon on their feet and on their way down. However, the way down proved more arduous than the climb. In the morning everybody had been fresh and enthusiastic. In the course of the day, the sun had sapped their energy and the food taken in the noon had brought along a stupor. So everybody was feeling quite lethargic and made slow progress.

As a result, after about two hours of descending when they were still midway on the cliff sides, Amar who was coming along the last, suddenly lost his footing and slid towards Satish, yelling caution all the while. It was lucky that they were linked together so that both Satish and Lakhan got all alert and absorbed his momentum of fall while Satish grabbed at his rope and pulled Amar in. In the process however, Amar badly sprained his right ankle and was unable to move a single step further. Lakhan skillfully managed to get the two boys on a ledge outside a medium sized cave and made them comfortable there. Then he looked at his watch and shook his head with concern. “It is five in the evening now and in couple of hours more, it will be dark. We still have to go down for the remaining half of the cliff side. Once it is dark, then no local guy would want to come up here and so it would be useless for me to go for fetching help now. In such a scenario, I see no other choice but to stay here with you till morning and watch over you while you guys sleep. Once the sun is up, I would go down alone, get help and take you to the nearest hospital. I think that would not be too bad as Amar has only a bad sprain and could wait till tomorrow morning without medical attention if we help him out.”

Amar was suffering from the sharp pain in his sprained ankle and lay groaning with his eyes closed. Satish was however, all alert and could appreciate the astuteness of Lakhan’s suggestion. He nodded approval and grabbed Lakhan’s hand. “Thanks a lot Lakhan. You are going through a lot of trouble for our sake.” Lakhan shook his head. “No, no. No trouble at all. This is my duty as your safety is my responsibility till I see you off at the Hotel gates. I only regret this mishap which I could not help you avoid and which has spoiled your trip here.” With that he got up from beside the other two and went about gathering firewood, grass and twigs from nearby areas. About an hour later he returned with enough firewood and twigs to last them the night and built a small fire on the rocky ledge where they were putting up. “This would keep the wild animals away” said Lakhan. Then he again left with one of the torches Satish was carrying and returned after half an hour or so with some wild berries, guavas and some green coconuts. “This is all I could manage for our dinner”. “Great. Thanks again” said Satish as he helped Lakhan arrange the things. Amar was somewhat relaxed now but his injured foot was all swollen up and he could hardly budge it. It was nearly seven-thirty in the evening and the three of them ate the fruits and drank the coconut milk and turned in for the night. Satish and Lakhan took turns in keeping watch to guard against any wild animal and to keep the fire burning. They had already inspected the cave behind them and it was vacant but they still slept outside on the ledge, near the fire to stay warm and safe.

Thus the night passed on. However, after midnight, something was heard moving nearby. It was now Satish’s turn to tend to the fire and he at first thought it to be a wild animal. Both Lakhan and Amar were fast asleep on the other side of the fire. So imagine his surprise when he looked up and saw an old man in the orange garbs of a priest approaching them. The man had long flowing white hair and beard and a vermilion mark on his forehead. Instead of feeling alarmed, Satish was engulfed in an unprecedented feeling of peace and tranquility. He sat rooted to the ground as the man effortlessly climbed down the cliff side and stood by his side. His face was glowing serenely in the firelight as he smiled reassuringly at him. “What is life and what is death?” He asked in very solemn tones. “Same as light and shadow, day and night, waking and sleeping….but whatever is divine will endure. The truth prevails over everything.” The sage then moved towards Amar and sprinkled some holy water on him from the copper jug he was carrying. After that he came and extended his hand over Satish’s forehead in a gesture of blessing. Immediately, Satish felt loosing himself in a blissful unconsciousness but in the knowledge of a divine and benevolent presence.

He woke up at day break with the first rays falling over his eyes. He sat up beside the warm remnants of the fire and looked around. Lakhan too had just woken up. In a few minutes, Amar too woke up and wonder of wonders, his injured foot was all healed and well and he could walk again. Both Amar and Lakhan seemed very surprised and astonished at this development. Then, Satish told them both about the visitor of the night. Everybody was silent after Satish had spoken, their hearts all full. They rose and made their way downwards silently. Satish kept thinking, ‘how true…what is life and what is death? Light and shadow…day and night….waking and sleeping. Only the truth prevails.’