Angrejwa ka kahat rahal ha

Angrejwa ka kahat rahal ha

Ghats of the Ganges at Benaras have different meanings to different persons. Even this meaning changes on every occasion you pay visits to these ghats. Often my visits to these ghats were restricted to walking from Assi to Dashshwamedh. This time I decided otherwise, from Dashshwamedh ghat to Rajghat. The ghats on this side are relatively less crowded.   Hardly had I crossed Rajendra Prasad ghat and reached Man Mandir Ghat,  I saw an Aghori (ascetic Shaiva Saadhu) performing sadhna (rites) with the mantras ( certainly not Vedic hymns), only they can understand. This sadhana was being performed for the welfare of a yajamaan (host) suffering from unknown/psychic or paranormal problems. The main aghori sitting in the centre, was naked, laced with bhashma ( ashes) with a trident in one of his hand, and was in complete silence mode. The chela (disciple) and the yajamaan were sitting in front on right and left respectively. The yajamaan was listening to the chela of the aghori with patience and occasional smile, with the hope of a full cure. Not daring to stand the sight of the scene for long, I decided to move on rather surreptitiously.

There is an abundance of dhobies ( washermen ) washing clothes on these sides of the ghats. As I moved on towards Raj Ghat, I noticed a large number of devotees at several ghats, especially on Gai Ghat, with their heads tonsured, sitting in many rows for pind daan (a Hindu ritual for the ultimate relief of a departed soul). The priest was sitting on a Chabutra (a high platform made of stone in a pentagonal shape). His assistants were helping the Yajmaans in the performance of the rituals. The head priest was pronouncing the mantras with his eyes closed. The use of a microphone has become very common in the group pind daan.

I sat for a while on this Ghat and observed the rituals and the devotion of the devotees with which they were uttering each word. I murmered the song in the praise of Ganges, “Maano to main Ganga maa hoon , na maano to bahata paani.” It’s all a matter of faith, beyond any logic or discussion. As this was my maiden visit to this side of the Ghats, I kept on walking until the Raj Ghat and went to the Sant Ravidas temple nearby. The Sun was going up, and the temperature was rising so I decided to return to Dashashwamedh Ghat. On the way back, at Telianala Ghat, famous for Hiranyagarbha Teertham, I encountered with two chilumchis busy with firing the chillum with Ganja (Marijuana) and smoking with intense passion.

 The Guru (the elder among the two) was chanting  Sanskrit verses (slokas) mixed with Hanumaan Chalisa in between. The pitch of the tone was going louder after each Kash (a deep puff). Guru was oblivious to the surroundings while chela was conscious. After three puffs, the Guru uttered all unrelated sentences including the one Modi honge modi, Hum bhi hain Yogi. This is a very civilized translation of his utterances. As I was watching the duo, the chela moved his finger indicating that the Guru was of unsound mind. I thought for a while and it occurred to me that ignorance (darkness) and loneliness could bring out the worst in a human being.

The daily bathers in the Ganges are perhaps unaware of the cleanliness drives. Urinating on the Ghat is a common sight. It seems that these devotees need purification not only for their sins but also for their urines as well. At Meer(Mir) Ghat, a few small children started shouting and asking each other in astonishment  “ Angrejwa kahan gail, ka kahat rahal ha ?”

My journey for this day was over. It reminded me of a famous quote about Mahabharat, “ Whatever is found in this epic may be found elsewhere but whatever is not found in this may not be found anywhere” From my experience, I can say the same about these Ghats.