Srinagar

Before starting let me clarify that Im not writing here about the famous city in J&K.Im writing about the quiet valley of Srinagar in the Garhwal hills.

Being in the field of education,Im pursuing B.Ed from IGNOU and my study centre is Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University.The B.Ed course is for two years and every year during the summer vacation we have to go to attend the teacher training workshop there.I've just returned after attending my final year workshop.

I don't know what is the meaning of Srinagar but based on what I interpreted during my 12+12 days visit I would call it 'the valley of clouds'...the clouds that come down the mountains to caress your face like a mother caresses her child.Perhaps Srinagar means 'a beautiful city'(sri+nagar=sundar+nagar i.e. a beautiful city).The valley is surrounded by mountains and the mighty Alaknanda river flows down towards Devprayag to merge with the Bhagirathi river and form the sacred Ganga river.I saw quite a few hanging bridges here and I must admit that I was a little scared to stand on the bridge and look down at the strong currents of the river.If I looked long at the river I felt as if the river is taking me along with itself...perhaps that is what is meant as 'being carried away'!

It seemed that the sun had to toil hard to climb up the mountain and announce the arrival of morning.The days were quite hot and humid and the nights were cool.The sun seemed in a hurry to go down the mountain in the evening just like the way the people work there.They wake up early in the morning and climb up or go down the mountain to get water from the taps near the roads or else they go to the bank of the river.I could still find stone houses there though most of the houses there are now made of concrete.

The people are honest,sincere and hardworking there.Perhaps the terrain made them hardworking or they realised that they have to toil hard to survive in the hills.Their local dialect is garhwali and the garhwali language also differed from village to village.These people realise the importance of environment conservation and have banned the use of polythenes.I found two types of dustbins-one for biodegradable wastes and another for non-biodegradable at some places.They have well preserved their culture and traditions.The hilly people worship various hill goddesses whose songs are sung in their folklores the most famous being Nanda Devi.I visited the Dhaari devi temple where the goddess reminded me of Goddess Kaali.This temple is situated at a small hilltop near the Alaknanda river.There is a Bhairavnath temple also and it is said that the worship is incomplete if we do not bow our heads before the diety here on the way back from Dhaari devi temple.I also visited the Kamleshwar Mahadev mandir which is a Shiv temple.Here the childless couples come and pray all night long holding a 'diya' in their hands and standing on one foot.It is said that their wish for a child gets fulfilled and the couple again visits the temple with their baby to take the blessing of the lord and tie a bell at the courtyard of the temple.I saw many small and medium sized bells tied in the courtyard.I even visited a gurudwaara there.The sikh pilgrims on their way to Hemkund Sahib stop here to take rest before resuming their journey.Its true that prayers work wonders in one's life and life is established on the foundation of faith.

Every morning brought wonderful natural sights before me and I was mesmerised.The valley of clouds would remain in memory as a treasure and I will surely come back to the lap of nature whenever I'll get a chance.I wrote a poem in Hindi that I would like to add here as a conclusion:-

Subah subah ka ramniya drishya
Oochey oochey parvat hare bhare
Neele aakash ke aanchal taley
Ishwar ka aashirvaad adrishya

Parvat par baadal ki parchhai
Kal-kal karti behti nadi
Prakriti ki adbhut paddyati
Har kan mein devi swayam samayi

Ambiya se ladey vriksh ki daali
Geeli mitti ka aakarshan
Baarish ki boondon ki chhan-chhan
Jahan tak nazar jaye bas haryaali

Har dharm ka sundar samaagam
Sahaj saral se log yahan
Bhagwaan karte hon vaas jahan
Devon aur bhakton ka sangam

Sadev bani rahey iski pehchaan
Alaknanda kinaare basaa hua
Har kan mein buzurgon ki dua
Srinagar ek sundar devsthaan