To a mountain in Tibet
A verse from Adi Sankracharya's Atmastakam
Na punyam na papam na saukhyam na dukhamNa mantro na tirtham na veda na yagnahaAham bhojanam naiva bhojyam na bhoktaChidananda rupah shivoham shivoham
I am not attached to any righteousness or sin;I have neither pleasure nor sorrow;I have no need for any Mantra;I have no need for pilgrimages; I have no need for any sacred scriptures; nor do I perform any sacrifices or rituals;I am neither the meal nor the one who consumes or what is consumed;I am the fortunate, joyful, supreme being who is the very emblem of truth, knowledge and eternal bliss.I am consciousness and bliss.I am Shiva, I am Shiva.
Source: http://livingunbound.net/atmastakam_shivoham/And yet since 2010 my desire to visit this mountain in Tibet reigned supreme. It has been over two months since I have returned from Manasarovar and Mt. Kailas. Four days in that holy land that I have tried to capture in a written word but cannot seem to find more appropriate words than Adi Sankracharya’s. To each being, the experience of walking the grounds of that land is unique, to be experienced in our way and yet I would like to share my experience with you. For me, it was a simple lesson of releasing the ego and attachment.After 4 days of waiting in Nepal for Tibetan visas and enjoying the sights in Kathmandu and Mt. Everest, a short flight to Lhasa and a three days of drive across the most beautiful countryside, we arrived in Manasarovar. The source of four great rivers including the Bhramaputra, whose name means “manas” or the mind (consciousness) and sarovar “lake” can truly test your ego. (click on the the location titles for visuals of the place)They say if you can make it to Saga (at 13000 feet), the rest of the trip is difficult but manageable. My head clearly let me know that we were nearing Saga, a massive headache ensued that could only be relieved by drinking liters and liters of water (read on after the images of the top five things I had paid attention to). Resting overnight in Saga, I was excited to make the 6 hour journey to Manasarovar. The first time you see the lake with Mount Kailash in the background, it almost seemed surreal. Are we really truly here? Kailasji were mostly covered in clouds, there was a fierce wind and the air was chilly and yet when you prostate on the banks of the lake, you feel this energy and warmth envelop you. Even as I write this I can feel that warmth radiating through me. As we drove closer to the guesthouse at the foothills of Choi Gompa Monastery, we were even more anxious to see Mt. Kailas. All the stories that I was attached to, the expectations, the desires were still there. Overnight in the guesthouse, in bunkbeds without any facilities was the first sign from the universe to simply let go.The next morning the view that awaited us was simply divine. Watching the sun rise over the lake with Gurla mandala on one side and Kailas on the other, I was over whelmed. The Raynauds that had kicked in was a distant experience as I embraced the divine's blessings. Om Namah Shivayah!One of the first lessons I learnt was in perspective...nothing is truly as it seems if you see it with different perspective. Have you seen the beautiful images of Mt. Kailash and Manasarovar? Well, no-where is the visual true, it is simply a composite. Similarly I shot the first two sunrise images exactly 3 minutes apart.
The wider I opened the shutter, the brighter the world around me....exactly as in life. Being present and opening our hearts and minds wide will let in that much more light, and, just as nature comes alive, so do we.
Here are some images of the lake. I hope to catch up with the parikrama blog soon. If interested stay tuned by subscribing to the blog and scroll down to the bottom as I share three tips that I wish I had paid attention to.[gallery columns="1" link="file" size="large" ids="1302,1309,1299,1308,1303,1304,1305,1307,1306,1310,1311,1313,1312,1314,1316,1300,1301"]The top three things I should have paid attention to from the guidance of our tour leader Vaishalididi
- Drink 3 liters of water a day starting at least 12 weeks before your parikrama
- Walk at least 4 km a day
- Accept rest when your body desires