Blinded for Simian Reasons: The Challenge of Seeing God

A Happy New year to Everybody!

I hope that everyone had a great start to this new year. I know that I did and so did Arsenal FC as they defeated Newcastle on January 2. Football rantings apart, the year has been good so far (4 days and counting) and I hope the next 362 are just as good.

Rewinding by a few days (or shall I say to last year), I had the opportunity to visit one of the holiest places for Hindus - the land that is renowned for Krishna leela - Vrindavan.

Our first stop - The ISCKON Temple

A nice and neatly built marble structure, this temple is a refuge for all those who seek calm from the deafening din outside in the bylanes of Vrindavan and the world in general. It has a calming effect on the mind and one can sit for long listening to the melodious devotional hymns of the bhakts. We spent some time seated listening to these wonderful tunes.

At ISCKON Temple (I have my spectacles here)

The second stop - The Bankey Bihari Temple

The area takes you back a few centuries as you traverse through narrow zig-zag lanes to reach the Bankey Bihari Temple. It seems caught between the ancient and the modern with sadhus quietly lounging on one side and e-rickshaws trying to navigate the squeeze through on the other. The throngs of devotees are scary and only a brave heart can hope to navigate the crowd to get to the statue of the deity. We were not so fortunate and had to rely on long distance worship as the crowd at that particular hour was an impregnable wall of bodies and so we paid our respects from our own particular vantage point.

The third leg - NidhiVan

This van i.e. forest holds 16,000 pairs of Vanatulsi trees, wherein each member of the pair is intertwined with the other. Legend holds that Lord Krishna appears  along with Radha and gopis after sundown and the forest witnesses Krishna Leelas each night. No mortal being - human or animal remains on the premises after the evening aarti and those who have are either driven mad by the divine proceedings that they see or die. The priest also places two items each of daily use after evening aarti before leaving and these are found as if used in the morning. We even danced for a bit here by holding hands and going in circles and yes laughed a lot during the entire walk(you are supposed to laugh here). This was probably the best leg of the entire trip complete with a legend that coaxed one's curiosity. I would definitely dare to spend a night here.

At Nidhi van (No glasses!)

The final stop- Nandgaon Temple

This temple is adjacent to a tree on which Lord Krishna is said to have played his flute on (I should have taken my flute to Vrindavan!) . What struck me as being relatively off was the 'donation scheme' for the temple. Donations though subject to the wishes of the devotee, in technical terms, were quite different here (subject to subtle coercion). The priest only accepted denominations of 365, 665 and higher! Moreover, when 400 were given, the person taking donations refused to return the 35. So much for worship and service.

Thus, ended half a day long stay at Vrindavan, the place where Lord Krishna is said to have spent his childhood. The naughty Krishna that is identified as being the makhan-chor is the one identified with this place and so is the Krishna who fought the huge multi-headed serpent in the depths of the Yamuna. 

Coming to the title, before I end, while the land boasts of being the home of Lord Krishna, the trees and buildings are definitely the abode of monkeys. These sly creatures are a pain for tourists and we were warned to take off our spectacles before proceeding with the journey. I did and spent the best part of my time trying to figure out what I was actually seeing in the distance relying mostly on the inner eye (for divine sight). Throwing all courtesy out the window, I frequently nudged the person beside me to tell me what we were actually seeing or whom were we worshipping! It was only when I got into the car towards the end that I was able to put on my spectacles. So yes, seeing God definitely proved to be a challenge for me at Vrindavan!

What we missed: Prem Mandir, Govardhan Parvat and 1-2 more places scattered in and around Vrindavan. I hope I complete them during my next visit with glasses or at the very least contact lenses on.