Pravhu Sharanam !!

 

Now thats nostalgic!!!

It used to be on the radio every morning between 4am to 6am on radio nepal, when i used to gear up my bike for a quick 'morning walk' to Sleshmantak Ban while making a first stop at Bishranti Tea and Sweets in Maitidevi Chowk with couple of surya and chiya .. to be precise ra.ka.chi.ka. rang kada chini kada! and then a secod stop at the tea shop in front of Gaughala police post waiting for friends to show up and a second round of ra.ka.chi.ka. with chu. pi. churoot piudai !

Then leaving the bike in the parking lot by the Shiva Linga Maze, making a quick darshan round around the temple, reaching every nooks and getting blessings from each dieties, the revolving chandan stone, the harmonium bhajan team under the gazebo on top of the prys, throwing coins on the mandala roof to check the luck for the day, then running through the Shiva Maze!, getting out of the rear stairs, a quick glimpse at the ever rising Kalki Awatar, sprinking the holy water on the body before committing a sin,  about to begin soon across the bridge atop Sleshmantak. Ringing the enormous bells on sleshmantak, making particular ring bells signals, to let know fellow friends who reach late that we wee already there, sitting on the benches that lay across, hitting some pot in the morning hussu, warm jackets, tight topis, kathyangrido fingers, waiting for the sunrise, the gleaming pashupati pagoda roof, the damaru, trishul and slowly waking/flying parewas, mischevious monkeys, loud clear chanting om 'shambhooooo kailashpati' every now and then from somewhere. The mood slowly wearing off, sometimes lucky enough to catch an entire ritual of a meaningful incarcenation of the human body, around the clock ... curious tourists, lamenting loved ones, confused young ones, looking over the burning chitaa, friends, relatives, families, in dire distress, as if everyone questions themselves "what is life? anyway?"

 

Then again every purnima nights, returning back to our favourite sleshmantak ban, after a quick trip through the divine shrine across the bridge...this time hitting the pot harder, returning to the stairs .... counting some steps, then reaching for the 'hole of sin' a hole on the left wall by stair number 73, moving back 10 steps with a namaste posture, closed eyes and trying to aim for the sin hole to check, how pure we still were ! Getting back to the benches again, waiting for the sound, the divine sound, the music, we all waited for ..... and then at a precise time 8PM the slow, intruiging saddening thoughtful sound of the divine flute would emerge from somewhere in the holy forest 'Sleshmantak', followed by sitar, tabla and holy hymns ....."raam sharanam, prabhu raam sharanam, raam sharanam, prabhu hari sharanam".....

 

Alakh Niranjan! jai Shambho Kailashpati, Jai Shiva Shankar Bholenath, Jai Pashupatinath!