January 28, 2002
Fortune favored my arrival in Sri
Lanka,
for the weary combatants in the long
civil
war there seemingly timed their cease-fire
to welcome me. I had visited the Isle
of
Serendib, the home of serendipity,
just once
before, 17 years previously, with my
sister,
for a mere five days. This trip I had
for
my guide Rose Baudin, who lived in
that land
years ago and has continued to return
there
regularly, and I had nearly three weeks
at
my disposal, long enough to get a feel
for
Colombo Seven, a taste for curd and
treacle,
and an unforeseen appreciation for
the state
of transport in India, which despite
its
problems is by and large an easier
country
to navigate than is the erstwhile Ceylon.
Galle and the southwest coast did no
more
for me than did the archeological sites
that
have been tarted up for tourists, like
Polunnaruwa
(which does, however, still sport an
ancient
smashan-turned-stupa of great beauty
and
power). But the striking rock of Sigiriya,
the seven holy hills of Kataragama,
the beaches
and rocks of Arugam Bay, and a (mainly)
quiet
night at the ruin of Mohul Mahavihara
(marred
only by the bizarre behavior of the
nightwatchman)
all helped to make up for the disappointments.
The highlights: wild elephants, particularly
in the Lahugala marsh, and on the road to
Okanda; the forest shrine of Okanda; a night
on a hillside just outside Kandy, at the
home of Rahju and Rasika and their children
Rudrani and Ravana; and a night on naked
rock next to a small pond filled with a chorus
of assorted from species, just down the hill
from an elephant migration route, not far
from Vellavaya, on the property of the gracious
PB. PB was particularly entertaining with
his practical tips for dealing with tuskers
- should, for example, you find yourself
behind an elephant, be sure to clear your
throat a couple of times to get his attention
before you try to pass him.
Interesting people: too numerous to
mention,
but two in particular were Rose's dear
friends
Manik Sandrasagra, our host in Colombo,
and
Asoka Ratwatte, who hosted us in Kandy.
Manik
once made movies, and Asoka (whose
surname
means "hot gardens") once
wrote
software for supercomputers, but both
concentrate
now on living well, in their own inimitable
styles. Scariest moment: unknowingly
straying
onto turf controlled by the Tamil Tigers,
and meeting a Tiger up close. Most
peculiar
sight: a long, narrow, blackly serpentine
cloud that for hours doggedly refused
to
stray from just above our heads during
our
night worship at Okanda.
Worthiest challenge: finding a way
to preserve
Kudumbigala, a complex of 52 caves
near Okanda
carved 1500 or more years ago from
a single
long outcropping of solid rock. Saving
Kudumbigala
from exploitation, and turning it into
a
center where young people of all factions
can meet together, to promote peace
and reconciliation,
is a worthy goal, for that area is
truly
wonderful. May it become so!
January 13, 2002
On my way to Bombay
I stopped
in Florida long enough for Lynda and
me to
drive up to Kashi Ashram, in Sebastian,
Ma
Jaya's turf. Since meeting her a few
years
back Ma Jaya has been exceptionally
kind
to me, and it is always a pleasure
to enjoy
her darshan, and the association of
all her
devotees, and the pond that holds the
ashes
of hundreds of the quiet dead.
Bombay was as exciting as ever, particularly
since I was able to rendezvous there
on January
2 with my dear friend Dr. Claudia Welch
and
affable husband Dr. Jim Ventresca,
at the
end of their month's stay in India.
Jim looked
amazingly well preserved after his
first
visit to that singular realm, and Claudia
looked refreshed and renewed (she having
lived in India for a year at a time
on three
different occasions). We lunched that
day
with Mr. John Kwaku Miller, his brother
Zweili,
and friend Jane. John is a native of
Boston
who years ago, after some successful
seasons
playing professional basketball in
Europe,
turned down a tryout with the Celtics
in
favor of the Siddha Yoga Ashram in
Ganeshpuri,
where he now continues to reside.
From Bombay I hopped over to Poona,
where
from 1974 through 1980 I attended the
Tilak
Ayurveda College. As usual I spent
most of
my time in Poona (now officially called
"Pune")
catching up with old friends: the family
of Dr. Vasant Lad (whose son Pranava
is now
in medical school there); my old professor
Vaidya B. P. Nanal, who taught Dr.
Lad as
well; Nergish Irani and family, in
whose
home I first met Vimalananda; the convivial
Shahs in Raviwar Peth; the folks at
Vitthaldas
Narayandas & Co. where I buy my
incense
& attars. Even dearer than these
humans
are the Ganeshas, including Kasba Ganesha,
Dagdu Sheth Halwai Ganesha, and my
favorite
of all, the Ashta Vinayaka Chintamani
Ganapati
at Theur (about 30 km outside Poona).
No visit to Poona would be complete
for me
without calling on Chintamani, nor
would
I feel right about leaving Poona without
making the 21 km trek to Alandi, the
home
of Jnaneshwar Maharaj, the great saint
of
the 13th century whose samadhi cave
has long
been a pilgrimage center. This year
Pierre
and Sanhita Munier and their sons Kirit
and
Arun accompanied me. Pierre is an alchemist,
whose products I have enjoyed for many
years
(he also brews admirable wine, and
is an
avid collector of objets d'art). Nowadays
when in Poona I usually stay with the
Muniers,
who curiously enough have for many
years
tenanted a house owned by the same
refined
Mr. Peshwa (a former mining engineer
and
now gemologist whose ancestors used
to rule
Poona) who also owns buildings in Benaras
in which I have frequently resided.
From Poona back to Bombay, then Cochin,
and
a visit with my dear friend Mr. Ramesh
Nayak,
who traded in a career in engineering
for
devotion to playing the sitar until
an accident
led him into Jyotisha, a subject at
which
he has become adept. It is always a
treat
for me to spend a couple of days with
Rameshji,
a first-class human being, and his
lovely
family, usually just before enjoying
Ayurvedic
hot oil treatments on a peaceful river
near
Trichur. May the Nine Planets shine
brightly
on Mr. Nayak, and on everyone else
who hosts
this unworthy wanderer!
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