Jivaka Ayurveda

Ayurvedic Studies in Vrindavan India
Part 4

1/26/06
Parikrama: A walk around the town

The name 'Vrindavan' is derived from 'Vrinda', another name for the sacred tulsi (basil) plant. A legend has it that the entire place was a tulsi grove at one time. The town is on a peninsula of land that is surrounded on three sides by the Yamuna River. The sacred Yamuna was once much closer to the town but has receded and has left much land between the town settlement and the river. This area has been developed for agriculture. A path around the town called the parikrama path encircles the town, staying on the edge to the developed area, looking out over the fields of wheat, barley and mustard. When the water of the Yamuna was high in the 16th century, the kings of India build elaborate temples at the water’s edge with step leading into the water for bathing. These are called ghats. The remains of these temples and the tower like pagodas that once extended into the water like docks are all that remain of the previous time of wealth and opulence. India is said to be an advanced civilization in an advanced state of decay. The parikrama walk would have been about 20 yards off shore and yields a nice view of the temples with an overview of the green fields and the Yamuna.

Twice a month, on the 11th or 12th after the new or full moon, is ekadasi (eleven). This astrologically significant day is a day for spiritual renewal. The custom is to abstain from grains and legumes (rice and dhal) and take a walk around the town on the parikrama. This was my second ekadasi since my arrival here. The first one, I only was aware of because the restaurant at MVT guesthouse had a special menu on that day which had no rice or dhal in the thali (sampler plate). Buckwheat, quinoa and peanuts were substituted. After asking Dr. Gupta and Pretu Das, my Germany friend, what the change was about they explained the story. The change in the diet is to give the body and period of rest from the normal foods and the 6 mile walk about town is to renew ones connection with spirit (in this town that is Krishna).

When in Rome, do as the Romans. Today was my second ekadasi and I had the day off. I had prearranged with Pretu Das, my German friend, to take make the tour around the town. This was a familiar concept from my Buddhist travels in India and Nepal where one circumambulates the stupa (temple) or sacred hill in a clockwise (sunwise) direction. It is customary to do this parikrama walk with bare feet, which they say is fairly painless, even for one who never walks in bare feet. But being a white boy from Jersey, I took the foreign exemption and wore my low hiking shoes. Glad I did, as usual the barn animals were all out the parikrama too.

Spires of the ISKCON temple,
on left is the main temple and on the right is the burial temple of Prabhupada

We started out our walk at the ISKCON (Hari Krishna) temple. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada started the Krishna Conciousness movement in 1966. Yes, Mom ...these are the people who hand out free books at the airport and don't worry I'm not joining a cult.

Krishna (left) and Radha, his wife being attended to by a priest

The interior of the temple is very ornate and has three "stages" where the dieties reside and are taken care of. The are considered to embody the spirit of the diety and must be paid great respect. They are awakened before dawn, bathed, dressed, presented to the waiting congregation, fed, rested, sung to, presented with garlands of flowers, presented again, fed again and finally put to bed. They actually have small beds for the statues in the wings of the stage. They are put to sleep using mantra. You know its powerful if it can do that. The area around the dieties is heated in the winter and cooled in the summer. The dieties have different outfits for different occasions. Some of the dieties had blankets wrapped around them because it was so cold. They even have their own kitchen where their own food is prepared. After they "eat" the food. It is offered as prashad (spiritual food) to the congregation. Now you understand why I didn't buy a statue of Krishna and bring it back to the States. It would entail taking care of diety. Not a minor affair in this culture.

After leaving the temple we passed the Krishna Balarama tree. The old tree was being worshiped with incense and water. Incense is said to be the food of the gods. There were once two interwined trees here one white and the other black. The black tree is said to represent Krishna and the white tree, Balarama. Only one of the trees remain but that didn't slow any one down from paying respect.

Many walk the Parikrama barefoot, some ride rickshaws and some drive cars. Does that count?

As we continued with the flow of people on the path, I realized that a whole lot of people where walking the path. We stopped to talk to some friends of Pretu Das and I realized that this town really had some cohesion in their spiritual direction going on here. Pretu Das estimated that about one half of the town makes the walk and includes people from all levels of society. Imagine if that happened in the states.

The first third of the trip covered areas that I had explored before including the ISKCON Goshala (cow barn) land, large red sandstone temple tower of the Mandana Mohana Temple and the Keshi Ghata where I had seen the sunset puja (ceremony) during the first week of my stay in India.

Colorful boats used to cross the Yamuna near Keshi Ghata

The next third of the walk went through village areas with little town development. The main attraction for me was the stop at a small temple for the worship of Lord Caitanya. He is a reincarnation of Krishna who lived in India five hundred years ago. A huge banyan tree marks the spot where he sat in meditation on the bank of the Yamuna. The cool shade of the tree was a welcome retreat from the midday sun and dust of the road. I always enjoy tree worship in any form, be it hikes in the wood, tree hugging, or going to the Bodhi Tree, Buddha’s enlightenment spot under another huge tree in Boda Gaya. We bowed to the energy of the huge tree and make a few circles around the tree before continuing on our way.

Big smiles as I take a photo of the boys' oxen with painted horns and scarf

Mind you there are 5000 temples in Vrindavan. Pretu Das, who has lived here on and off for 30 years, long ago gave up trying to visit them all. Just last week we were out for a walk and he was trying to find a specific temple to take me to and we “discovered” one he had never been to. It turned out to be a real prize as the temple contains the “staff of god” himself which the caretaker of the temple was kind enough to touch to the top of our heads. To tell the truth, I didn’t know what was going on at the time, but Pretu Das told everyone we met on the parikrama to not miss this temple, so I feel grateful to have received this special blessing. Postscript: Pretu Das later found out the real story of the staff... it was only a processional staff used in parades. Ok, the caretaker of the temple was trying to make the white boys happy and make a few rupess. No harm done.

Pig "worshiping" at a Shiva Lingam

As we proceded on our walk we found a pig at a Shiva Lingam. This is perhaps my favorite photo. I finally got a picture of a pig. Do you know how hard they are to photograph. They usually run off as most people throw rocks at them. Here the little guy stayed still as he slurped up some milk which had been offered to the Lingam. The non antrhropomorphic Lingam form of Shiva is what is held in reverence in temples all over the Indian sub continent. The Lingam is a symbol. It is a symbol of that which is invisible yet omnipresent. It is hence a a visible symbol of the Ultimate Reality which is present in us (and in all objects of creation). What makes this so special is that no one cared that the pig, an animal of the lowest status, was standing on the Lingam and drinking the sacred offering. A great lesson from India to the world - tolerance. In a land with 30,000 gods, you have to have tolerance.

When the a large statue of Christ on the Cross was unloaded from a ship once in India, the Christians who were unloading it explained to the locals that this was "The only God." The locals simled back and promounced, "We have MANY only gods." That is India logic for you!

The last third of the trip was across the land portion of the peninsula and was mostly developed. We crossed a small gauge railroad the British sold to the Rajas (kings) so that they could get their loads of marble and other building materials into Vrindavan to build more temples. As we walked we met two young men about 16 years old, who from the age of 14 had dedicated their lives to Krishna and had joined as ashram (monastic center) to study holy writings and become priests. They are taken care of by the community, which donate money to maintain the ashram. We past may peaceful ashrams on our walk which looked as if they have remained unchanged for hundreds of years. The needs of a monk are simple.

As we completed our round of the parikrama, after 2.5 hours, we stopped at the local honey seller. After inquiring he explained that his honey is from wild bees and that he collects the honey from natural bee combs in the tree. The honey which is a dense yellow butter color and consistency had a mild sweet taste with an astringent (drying) after effect. Ayurveda says it is good to reduce vata and kapha. Now I know why it is good for Kapha. Real honey has an astringent vipaka (aftertaste). I bought a small jar to contribute to the local economy. As with everything here, it is not quite the same as in the States but they have something like it.

Rose offering on the Yamuna

On the last day of my trip, I went down to the Yamuna to pay my respects to this sacred river. None of this, the town, Krishna, Dr. Gupta would probably not be here, if it were not for the Yamuna. The Yamuna is said to be so pure that it is impossible to offer anything to it. So what one does is take a handful of water and offer it back to the river. So simple and pure. I sent a rose out on the water just to show I meant it.

Just another day in Vrindavan.

Review: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3