Click on a picture for full size view
 |
| Ambaji Temple |
We go back to
Jodhpur and head for
Mt. Abu
by bus. From its foot, we take a diversion by another bus to visit the famous,
beautifully carved in marble, Benevolent Goddess Ambaji temple, a
Shaktipeeth. Then we reach the 22km long, 9km wide plateau
of the scenic hill station, said to be the only oasis in Rajasthan, with
gorgeous lakes, waterfalls, evergreen forests and rivers. Next morning we take a tour of
Arbudaanchal, the ancient name of Mt
Abu, by bus and begin it with a good breakfast of hot
bread pakodas and nice
masala
chai (spiced tea) at a vendor near our hotel. Climbing a winding route, and
then walking some distance into the interior, we reach the Lovers’ point, as
explained by our guide; he also warns us, not to try to come here alone, as
the native
Gurjars suddenly appearing and robbing you is possible!
 |
| Lovers' Point |
Also known
as Honeymoon Point, a huge rock expressing a couple in love, at an elevation of
4000ft, gives panoramic views of the Arravalies and plains and also a marble
quarry; not Makrana! It’s wonderful to spend time along with other lively
people enjoying the sunshine, breeze and mutual frolic and fun!
Next, we reach
Madhuban ( forest of honey), with the Universal Peace Hall, a gorgeous,
attractive white building, with beautiful gardens around and a huge hall
without pillars with religious paintings around and a seating capacity of 3000!
This is the universal head quarter of the Bramhakumaris World spiritual
University, a worldwide organization with unusual philosophy and practices.
 |
| Universal Peace Hall |
 |
| Arbuda Devi Temple |
From
here, our bus meanders through scenic regions to reach the Arbuda Devi temple. Then
we reach the Gomukh temple, climb 700steps to visit the simple temple dedicated
to sage Vasishtha and also to enjoy the natural beauty on all sides.
 |
| Scenic Region |
We see
three live looking bulls, sculptured in stone at a distance, which are said to
be demons troubling the sages in the ancient times.
 |
| Gomukh Temple |
 |
| Near Gomukh Temple |
We keep on moving higher
and higher with beautiful scenes around and rock formations due to water
erosion, giving impressions of weird skulls. Finally, we
reach Guru Shikhar, the highest peak
of Mt Abu at an altitude
of 5676ft, again climbing a number of steps, though tired by then. It has a
small, bright, white and vermillion painted cave-temple of Lord Dattatreya (given by Atreya), a three
headed Hindu deity (representing Bramha, Vishnu and Shiva), son of sage Atri and his noble wife Anusuya as the mythology goes; adjacent
to this summmit is the Mt Abu Astronomical Observatory. We relax at the peak
for quite some time before we descend, watching beautiful views.
 |
| Weird Skulls |
 |
| Guru Shikhar |
 |
| At Guru Shikhar |
 |
| A Gorgeous View |
Our next
destination, again the next day, is the Jain temples complex of Dilwara, the miraculously artistic heart
throb of Rajasthan in marble! Very strictly, no photography is allowed at
present and the visitors are expected to maintain silence; definitely worthy
measures to preserve the worthiest of the treasures of the world created
between 11th and 13th centuries! The five temples complex,
surrounded by hills with dense forests and further concealed by a high wall
around them, seems to be a legend handed over to the civilization by Gods (the
sculptors of the era). As we enter the Vimal Vasahi Temple, created ( the most
fitting word) in 1021 by Vimal Shah, a minister of the Chalukya (Solanki in Gujarat)
king Bhim Dev1 in Gujrat; it is as if we have entered a wonderland full of
animated reality in white marble, the toughest substance to be cracked into
lively sculpture!
 |
| Enter Vimal Vasahi Temple (Wikipedia) |
 |
| Doorway in detail (Wikipedia) |
The guide (from the temple) informs us that huge marble
blocks were transported by elephants to this elevation of over 1200meters, from
Arasoori Hills at Ambaji to construct this 140ft by 90ft and 1500 artisans,
1200 workers spent 14years to present this marvel to the world! We come into
the magnificent Rang Mandap,
supported by twelve pillars throbbing with beautiful statuettes playing
different musical instruments, branching into ornamental pediments towards the
roof and as we come into the centre, the spectacular dome with life-like
lotus-buds, petals, flowers and Vidhyadevis
(Goddesses of knowledge) with different instruments in their hands.
 |
| Dome (Wikipedia) |
We move on
straight to the brilliantly sculptured Gudh
Mandap or the sanctum sanctorum with the marble idol of Adi Nath or Lord
Vrishabh Dev. Then the Navchowkis, or
the nine rectangular, again spectacularly live with a variety of sculpted
domes, making us wonder at the tenderness of the flowers and their petals! I
seem to be simply amazed that they have so much freshness and charm in them; even
today! Well, well, the sculptured elephants, horses, birds, vines and a large
variety of unusual imaginary species also enthrall your mind from all sides and
base of the walls and pillars; but nothing is obtrusive, only the time you can
give is the problem!
We come into the
circumambulatory corridor with 57 cells with different deities in them; each
cell is a sculptural pleasure again! When we come out of the temple we see the Hastishaala, a collection of elephants
with different sizes and embellishments, of course in marble!
Luna Vasahi
Temple, to the north-east
of the former, is smaller in size but more eloquent in sculpture. It was
created in 1232A.D. by 2500 artisans working meticulously for 15 years, during
the reign of Raja Bhimdev II of Gujarat, pioneered
by his two ministers, Vastupal and Tejpal in memory of their brother Luna. With
similar architecture this temple has 52 cells. Here the deity is Lord Neminath,
realistically carved in marble, with a fantasy of marble sculptured, even to
translucence in the petals of flowers and the doorways with frames of artistic
pediments and pilasters! We move spellbound in the myriad depictions of
mythological figures, horsemen, elephants and dancers; on the ceilings, walls
and columns! The multi-layered lotus dangling from the center of the dome with
lace-like filigree in a single huge block of marble is spellbinding!
Next, we come
into the Pithalhar temple, where the massive main deity, again of Lord
Vrishabha is made of Panchadhatu, or
an alloy of five metals, the main being brass. This remarkably brilliant 4
metric tons statue, 8ft high and 5.5 ft broad, replaced the old mutilated
statue in 1468, as we are informed by the precise guides of the complex. Most
of the images in this temple, with unfinished Rangmandap are of panchloha.
Then we enter
the three storied Parswanath temple, the tallest among all Dilwara temples;
here the four sides of the sanctum sanctorum has four mandaps and
the outer walls of grey sandstone contain magnificently sculpted Dikpals (guardians
of directions), Goddesses, Shalabhanjikas (
beautiful, young women under a sala
tree, in attractive poses) matching those of Khajuraoh and Konark.
We end up in the
comparatively contemporary Mahavirswamy
Temple of 1582, which
also has paintings of the Sirohi artists on the upper portions of the walls and
a 32ft high, lively marble statue of Lord Shantinath is fascinating! Definitely
my mind is boggled as I go and take my seat in the bus, relax, craning my neck
on the edge of the back of my seat and stretching myself on the seat
completely! Then I think about the generous payment made to the artisans, in
the form of gold and silver; every artisan was given gold weighing the dust he
carved and silver weighing the pieces of marble he carved out of his share of
work! Well, what a way to honor and keep the right people happy and prosperous!
Our last
destination is the Sunset Point; as we start climbing, a strenuous up, through
a path aplenty with people, ponies, carts and also vendors selling eatables, we
see fine evening sun rays adding lucidity to the atmosphere through trees,
promising a picturesque time.
 |
| Towards Sunset Point |
 |
| Twoards Sunset Point |
Soon we reach the top of the Arravalies, with
different points to view the sunset at the unbounded horizon of the sea of
sand, lying hundreds of feet below, between India
and Pakistan!
I think loudly to Poonam, “Definitely it must be an important vortex point of
the world with beneficial effects.” We move among the people, enthusiastic
tourists, students, young couples and bustling, strong oldies like us; ha,
ha….!
 |
| Reaching the Top |
 |
| Thru Cactii |
We see the already-changing-color sun through trees, cacti, rocks and people
settling for the final dip within some time. In the final moments, the sun
paints the whole horizon with bands of yellow and orange by its sides and then
suddenly takes a plunge into nothing!And hundreds of people applaud the event like the climax of an exceptional movie and rush their return to the base, the market place and center of Mt Abu town, near Nakki Lake. We have good time here, walk back to our room and then leave for Udaipur, in the night itself.
 |
| Celebrating the Sunset |
 |
| The Sun with Wings of Fire |
Reach Udaipur, the City of Lakes,
next morning; go to the hotel straight, relax, refresh ourselves and walk to
the nearby Jagannath Rai temple, early in the evening. The imposing temple in
the heart of the city, built in 1651 by 1st Maharaja Jagatsingh, is a
historical monument with unique architecture and has a classic brass Garuda
inside a beautifully sculptured Chhatri (canopy) in front.
 |
| Jagannathji Temple |
 |
| Garuda |
As the shadows
lengthen, we come out and walk towards a grand triple entrance gate of the
bathing Ghat, and as we enter, we are on the banks of Lake Pichhola watching
beautiful, illuminated palaces, with the pleasure of cool breeze from the lake;
it’s just a taste of Udaipur, we will come back!
 |
| Beautiful View from Lake Pichhola |
Next day morning
we reach Srinathji ki Haveli at
Nathdwara, as the temple is popularly known, a distance of 45km and within some
time are in for Darshan, along with
hundreds of people just flooding in as the doors open. Soon we have Darshan of Shrinathji (Lord Krishna),
the 7 year old, sweet, naughty heart-throb of the people of Gujarat
and Rajasthan;
 |
| Srinathji (Wikipedia) |
the unique idol,
with the left arm raised as if lifting Govardhan
and the right arm resting on the waist, is in black marble with a large diamond
below the lips. The holy place has the background of Pushtimarga (the way of grace) or Shuddhadvaita propounded by Vallabhacharya, the legendry Andhra
saint. Well, we are overwhelmed by the positive electric atmosphere and
collecting Prasad, come out of the
grand temple and take a bus for the historic Chittorgarh, a distance of 131km
from Nathdwara.
Our target is
the Chittorgarh Fort, at present a part of newly formed Pratapgarh district,
named after the evergreen Rajput legend Maha Rana Pratap, the beacon of the noble
qualities of honor, valor and character, cherished by Rajputs. Emperor Akbar
also had a great regard for him and the trio of Akbar, his minister Raja Man
Singh and Rana Pratap had a great influence on the history of India in the 16th
century. To begin with, we have a grand view of the biggest invincible Indian
Fort, ruled by the Suryavanshi clans of
Rajputs since 7th century till it was sieged by Akbar the Great in
1567, from a pond in the town, also reflecting the fort quivering, indicating
the fragility of cherishable human values!
 |
| Quivering Image! |
 |
| Not birds of the Same feather! |
The pond is also aplenty with a
variety of birds giving an idea about the fauna around. We go to the majestic
fort on a hill at an elevation of 600ft, in an auto-rikshaw with a friendly
driver and entering the huge Ram Pol (gate), directly reach the modest, three
storied Padmini’s Palace, the palace of the legendry, beautiful, dignified
queen who committed Jauhar (honorable
self immolation by women and children, to avoid capture and dishonor at the
hands of enemy) along with other ladies and children, under pressure of
conquest of the fort by the barbaric, powerful Turko-Afghan dynasty ruler,
Alaudin Khilji. His kind has no place in the present world!
 |
| An Entrance |
 |
| Block for Soldiers |
The palace is surrounded by a water moat and has a garden and a
block for soldiers to stay. On the way back, we visit the Kalimata temple,
where a young (children) married couple is also having Darshan after marriage!
 |
| Rani Padmini Temple |
 |
| Kali Mata Temple |
Then, we come to
the mighty Vijay Stambh (tower of
victory), in the western part of the fish shaped area of the fort, near and
around which are most of the important structures. This artistic tower,
standing 122ft tall on a pedestal of 47 sq ft has nine stories and can be
climbed by a narrow circular staircase, obviously!
 |
| Vijay Stambh with ruins around |
 |
| Gaumukh Reservoir |
Mostly, we find only the
ruins of the erstwhile palaces of Rana Kumbha, the royal treasury and some
temples. We go to the Gaumukh (cow’s
mouth) reservoir, a very big complex with the ramparts all around, and find
many school girls on a picnic having fun time, singing and playing with water
from the mouth of the cow. We feel nice and cool; this pool was the source of
water during several sieges of the fort! While returning, I spend some time in
the Siva temple, in front of which there is a beautiful marble canopy with a Nandi in it, and through it, the evening
sun illuminates the face and the eyes of Shiva, to create a totally mesmerizing
effect!
 |
| Mesmerizing Effect! |
 |
| Flaring Up Sun! |
Of course, again a marvelous sunset, with birds flying over the big,
orange sun, seemingly trying to flare up with its revolving movement! Yes, sun
rises and sunsets caste their own spell in any place on earth, let alone well
known tourist spots. While returning to our auto, we see the small, cute Meerabai
temple and the Kirti stambha nearby it, slowly turning into silhouettes, as the
sonorous Meera-Bhajans played from the temple fall on our ears.
 |
| Meera Temple |
 |
| Saint Poet Meera |
Of course the
Rajput princess Meera, a saint poetess devoted to Lord Krishna and tortured by
her husband, Prince Bhoj Raj (son of Rana Sanga of Chittor) for her selfless passion, is the most celebrated
feminine personality of the Bhakti Marga.
We return to Udaipur late in the night.
 |
| Palace View from terrace |
 |
| Marble Arches with Toranas |
It’s our last day
in Rajasthan as we have a breakfast of Gatte
ki subji (traditional yogurt and spices based curry with gram flour
dumplings) and puri topped with my
pet masala chai in the terrace
restaurant of our hotel, having a view of a portion of the City Palace.
This Palace has, with Bara Pol, the
first gate as the entrance, the largest complex of palaces in Rajasthan; then
an equally royal triple arched entrance gate, Tripolia, with a fine brass
lantern hanging in each arch, built in 1725. Between these two gates is the
first courtyard with several marble arches (Toranas), where the kings weighed
themselves in gold and silver!
 |
| Range of Palaces |
 |
| Amar Vilas |
 |
| A Section Converted into Hotel |
 |
| A Fascinating Entrance |
 |
| The Suryavanshi Emblem |
From the gate with huge armored teak doors, we
see the awesome range of palaces to the right
majestically occupying the eastern bank of Lake Pichhola
and the balconies, on the left of the entrance, give resplendent views of the
palaces in the lake. A judicious combination of European, Chinese and
Rajasthani architecture, the palace is all marble and granite with an
assortment of captivating courtyards, pavilions and corridors. There are eleven
beautiful palaces constructed by different kings and most of them are museums,
hotels and even residences of the royalty at present. Hence an excellent
maintenance! Amar Vilas is the most
conspicuous starting point with the highest view points of the complex. Well,
we don’t have much interest in the museums as we have been moving around in one
of the biggest museums of the world since a fortnight; the what’s-not-there
RAJASTHAN!
 |
| Towards Private Residences |
 |
| Private Residence |
We, leisurely, pleasurably stroll along, enjoying the pleasant,
excellently maintained bright premises, full of contented tourists; till we
reach an isolated Chhatri (canopy) on
the lake side.
 |
| View from the Chhatri |
 |
| Palace Side |
 |
| Lake Palace |
Here we relax in the cool breeze, enjoying almost 360-degree views
of the lake, from its arches! Soon we are on the way back and reach the Jagdish
Chowk (the temple area), enjoy Masala
Chai and taking an auto-rikshaw, go to Doodh
Talia (Lake
of Milk) a garden around
a lake, which again is also a sunset point; but we miss the sunset without any
regret! The lake before us was just a dusky beauty!
 |
| Dusky Beauty.... |
We had a
wonderful time and soon bid good-bye to Rajasthan, definite to respond to its
call, “Kesaria Baalam Aao Ni Padharo Mhare Des”, again!
Raja Ram Atre
rajaram.atre@gmail.com
