THE REAL TRUTH OF LIVING,MOKSH KI PRAPTI-

 a sadhu is a wandering monk who has renowned all the worldy pleasures in search of peace and satisfaction often termed as eternal salvation. IN an ashram up the reva ghat was a sadhu called Mahesh, and he had given up his life of being an engineer to attain something tha he felt was missing. He told me the decision was a difficult one, especially as in our country the profession of a sadhu was usually a trade, a means to earn more, or a fraud. He quotes-

“Sadhu ki jeevan ek jhole mai hoti hai, maya mai nahi hoti,nahi mandir ya ashram mai, agar ham ana kalyaan karenge toh desh ka kalian apne aap ho jaega, ham dharm ki raksha kar rahe hai, sache dharm ki, koi akhada thodi chala rahe hai yeh hamara jogipana hai!”

Magesh (aghori sadhu)

       

The city of light-light of life, not the visual one the one to be felt, the light is our knowledge-that’s the work of a sadhu. The skull is the symbol of impermanence of life and it is that last thing that remains before you go back to the earth in the form of ash. And that’s how death and life are related, impermanent. A cycle of death and life is what we have to understand in life. Nature has to balance itself with us. One has to go for another to arrive. We are taught sharing within the basics of nature, while growing up we forget it.

Striking a conversation is one of the most difficult when it comes to strangers and people who are so culturally rich and vibrant. But I knew if I had to get to the crux of this city it was the people of Banaras who could help me with it. I did not want this trip to be like one for the tourist, but this was a city of my country and I wanted to be a part of it, hence building a relation with the people was the main idea to get to know the city better. After loads of talking, rather than questioning just being inquisitive helped. Questioning someone who belongs to a place is offensive and the latter doesn’t really take an interested but being a part of them and then talking is one of the skills that I was taught by my facilitator.  Many stories and many riddles helped me form my basic image of this city of light.

All what we see is an illusion, “MAYA” it attracts us but it is not permanent. This is what –M.P Kesri ji told me, he is man of mid-thirties, born and brought up in Banaras, even has studied and graduated from Banaras Hindu University, owns a luggage shop opposite the lane to Lanka gate. A wise man with such inspirational talks and rather open enough to share with me all his knowledge. I spent about two and half hours with him, and his story is the one that gave me an insight to my further research in Banaras.

“MAYA HI MOKSH KA KARAN HAI                  “ GYAAN KHAN AG HAAN KAR

MOH HI DUKH KA KARAN HAI”                     MAHA MUKH MAHIDAAN”

I was educated by Kesri ji about the history of Kashi, its identity being religion, and all its beliefs including the architecture a result of mythology. The city sustains itself on the beliefs of the people. The story of ‘Satyawadi Harishchandra’, one of the attendants in the court of the ruling Raja of Kashi, and was appointed with the duty to bear taxes on the dead bodies, and at the time of his childs death, he did not even spare his own wife but asked her for the tax to which she tore the saree piece in which she had wrapped the kid and handed over it to her husband, hence he quotes-

TEENO LOK SE NYARI HAI KASHI

SUGYAAN DHARM AUR SATYA KI RAASHI

YAHA KI HAI EK PAVITRA SHIKSHA

KI SATYA KI RAKHSA FIR ATMA RAKSHA

It means that this holy land, Prachinatam nagar, will teach a lesson for life, that truth is the essence of living and then you. He spoke with a sense of pride and love for this city, his belonginess to the city was not just Gangaji but much more than that. He in his own manner calls the city as ‘sanskritik rajdhani’ of India, where education is taught in the home itself, no where else will you see children still reading and learning the ved/vedas but Kashi. Aadhunik shiksha is what he feels one gets from the city itself.

One of the most interesting things that I learnt from talking to Kesri ji was , his idea of a change. I asked him about his favourite thing about this city and he told me, this city is a crazy one and the people here are the craziest of its kind. That is what makes this city, and that is what the outsiders come to see it. It has developed over the years but the fact that we manage to sustain its essence is because our system here is our culture. IT’S A CULTURE HERE SYSTEM ELSEWHERE. System is required to keep a city in order but we have made our culture our system and that’s what you come to see here and that’s what you like about this city. My city.

 “AGAR JYADA SYSTEM FOLLOW KAR LIYA TOH YEH KASHI NAHI SANTIAGO BAN JAEGA BITIYA”

MP Kesri ji and his words of wisdom.

A quote I once read by Sir Walt Whitman said “ I exist as I am, and that’s enough” is something that related to me, of how comparative we are in today’s world and greed and the materialism has overpowered every feeling and all that remains are useless aimless goals to achieve! L We have become the one dimensional man in this three dimensional world.

The city is old, the city is new. Its both at the same time and more..It has a palimpsest like quality,with one difference all the layers of signs can be seen at the same place at the same time.