Saturday October 26
Today was an interesting day with a field trip to an ancient Hindu Temple and historical site. It was only about an hours drive from our compound up to a prominent hill out in the country. The Temple can be seen from several miles away. Our car wound up the backside of the mountain on a narrow road and we finally came to a parking lot where we parked the car and walked the rest of the way. Looking up at the walls from the lot, we noticed our first monkeys perched atop the walls. We wandered through tarpaulin covered eating areas where people could sit and relax in the shade to eat. But today was overcast and a great day for strolling outside and it wasn't unbearably hot.
At first, we looked down into what appeared to be a sinkhole, walled with bricks and stone and adorned with walk-in grottos that overlooked a deep, litter strewn pool. It is an old archeological site.
We turned to trudge up the hill towards the main temple. It wasn't a short walk and the path was lined on one side or the other with stalls selling coconuts, flowers, nuts and other items to be used in worship to the multitude of Hindu gods. The monkeys became more plentiful and often ran past the stalls grabbing a bag of nuts or whatever they could grasp and run. Eventually we saw about 40 or 50 monkeys throughout our visit. The monkeys could be fed by hand but when they become a nuisance, some of the men use slingshots to chase them away. They are pretty smart too, because as soon as they see someone pick up a sling shot, there is a mad pellmell to escape out of reach of the rocky artillery.
The closer we got to the actual temple, the more serious things became. Crushing coconuts, burning incense and offering flowers or foods at various shrines. At one point a couple of Hindu men asked me where I was from and was I visiting various shrines in India. As our conversation proceeded, I asked about the Hindu religion out of genuine curiosity. How do you decide which gods to worship out of the more than 3 million Hindu gods? Well, you pick one that you like, one that reflects your personality, one that suits your needs or your character, and that's the one you go with. You can go with more than one. The one gentleman said his personal favourite was Lord Shiva. I asked about the one with the elephant nose. That one was Ganesh. Since they shared their personal favorites, I shared that I only worshiped one God. They guessed questioningly, "Jesus?" I replied in the affirmative and they carried on with their visit to the shrine. I tried to get closer as well, and was asked to remove my sandals and leave them behind. I did get to see the inner sanctum where a Hindu priest was handing out something to the line up of individuals passing by. I didn't follow them but slipped out a side door. I wasn't permitted to take photos on the inside. There were gold-gilt images and pictures behind bars behind the priest. I don't know what they were exactly. But in the dim room and through the haze of burning incense it was difficult to get clarity.
I continued my tour and found a deep pool, deep in the sense there were many stone slabs that protruded down the wall to the pool on one side and regular stairs and another entryway to the pool through an arch and more stairs into the pool itself. I spoke with another man who explained it was a pool where in ancient times, priests came came out of their forest habitats to bathe and rest. Hence the name of the place was Ram (god) and tik (resting place) or Ramtik, the name of the temple.
At first glance, it appeared to me that the site may have been an early fortress with gun or archery embattlements from early days under British rule, and then in a later period developed into a Hindu shrine. But I was informed that it was always a Hindu holy site perched atop the hill overlooking the wide expanse of the valley and village below.
Carsen enjoyed chasing monkeys and coaxing them with peanuts he bought at one of the many vending stands. And it didn't take much to coax them either! He had fun as there were a couple boys that came along from the orphanage. They climbed all the high viewpoints around the perimeter walls and poked their heads through stone arched windows wherever they could..
All in all, it was an interesting site to visit and gain some insight into. One person I spoke with said there was another holy site at Kothagudem where Carsen and I will be going in a couple of days.
In the afternoon, we stopped at some roadside markets to get vegetables. At one point I had a standoff with a cow grazing from a box of red onions. I planted myself between the cow and the box and when it tried to dodge around my legs I shifted to head it off. Then in frustration the young cow put its forehead against my shins and began to push, and none to lightly. So I yelled at the vendor to look after his own produce and left the cow to it.
Carsen also found firecracker vendors and bought some. A bag of 100 for 30 rupees or 60 cents. They had fun back at the orphanage with the boys lighting them off in an empty echo chamber of a room. As if we hadn't had enough by this time!
Today was an interesting day with a field trip to an ancient Hindu Temple and historical site. It was only about an hours drive from our compound up to a prominent hill out in the country. The Temple can be seen from several miles away. Our car wound up the backside of the mountain on a narrow road and we finally came to a parking lot where we parked the car and walked the rest of the way. Looking up at the walls from the lot, we noticed our first monkeys perched atop the walls. We wandered through tarpaulin covered eating areas where people could sit and relax in the shade to eat. But today was overcast and a great day for strolling outside and it wasn't unbearably hot.
At first, we looked down into what appeared to be a sinkhole, walled with bricks and stone and adorned with walk-in grottos that overlooked a deep, litter strewn pool. It is an old archeological site.
We turned to trudge up the hill towards the main temple. It wasn't a short walk and the path was lined on one side or the other with stalls selling coconuts, flowers, nuts and other items to be used in worship to the multitude of Hindu gods. The monkeys became more plentiful and often ran past the stalls grabbing a bag of nuts or whatever they could grasp and run. Eventually we saw about 40 or 50 monkeys throughout our visit. The monkeys could be fed by hand but when they become a nuisance, some of the men use slingshots to chase them away. They are pretty smart too, because as soon as they see someone pick up a sling shot, there is a mad pellmell to escape out of reach of the rocky artillery.
The closer we got to the actual temple, the more serious things became. Crushing coconuts, burning incense and offering flowers or foods at various shrines. At one point a couple of Hindu men asked me where I was from and was I visiting various shrines in India. As our conversation proceeded, I asked about the Hindu religion out of genuine curiosity. How do you decide which gods to worship out of the more than 3 million Hindu gods? Well, you pick one that you like, one that reflects your personality, one that suits your needs or your character, and that's the one you go with. You can go with more than one. The one gentleman said his personal favourite was Lord Shiva. I asked about the one with the elephant nose. That one was Ganesh. Since they shared their personal favorites, I shared that I only worshiped one God. They guessed questioningly, "Jesus?" I replied in the affirmative and they carried on with their visit to the shrine. I tried to get closer as well, and was asked to remove my sandals and leave them behind. I did get to see the inner sanctum where a Hindu priest was handing out something to the line up of individuals passing by. I didn't follow them but slipped out a side door. I wasn't permitted to take photos on the inside. There were gold-gilt images and pictures behind bars behind the priest. I don't know what they were exactly. But in the dim room and through the haze of burning incense it was difficult to get clarity.
I continued my tour and found a deep pool, deep in the sense there were many stone slabs that protruded down the wall to the pool on one side and regular stairs and another entryway to the pool through an arch and more stairs into the pool itself. I spoke with another man who explained it was a pool where in ancient times, priests came came out of their forest habitats to bathe and rest. Hence the name of the place was Ram (god) and tik (resting place) or Ramtik, the name of the temple.
At first glance, it appeared to me that the site may have been an early fortress with gun or archery embattlements from early days under British rule, and then in a later period developed into a Hindu shrine. But I was informed that it was always a Hindu holy site perched atop the hill overlooking the wide expanse of the valley and village below.
Carsen enjoyed chasing monkeys and coaxing them with peanuts he bought at one of the many vending stands. And it didn't take much to coax them either! He had fun as there were a couple boys that came along from the orphanage. They climbed all the high viewpoints around the perimeter walls and poked their heads through stone arched windows wherever they could..
All in all, it was an interesting site to visit and gain some insight into. One person I spoke with said there was another holy site at Kothagudem where Carsen and I will be going in a couple of days.
In the afternoon, we stopped at some roadside markets to get vegetables. At one point I had a standoff with a cow grazing from a box of red onions. I planted myself between the cow and the box and when it tried to dodge around my legs I shifted to head it off. Then in frustration the young cow put its forehead against my shins and began to push, and none to lightly. So I yelled at the vendor to look after his own produce and left the cow to it.
Carsen also found firecracker vendors and bought some. A bag of 100 for 30 rupees or 60 cents. They had fun back at the orphanage with the boys lighting them off in an empty echo chamber of a room. As if we hadn't had enough by this time!
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