Attitudes Are Hard to Change

I wrote a short "tweet" version on this subject at "India Tweets" and I felt this needs to be elaborated further.

In recent times, we have attempted to enact a law that is quite revolutionary. That of reserving 33% of electoral seats for women. It is not a simple straight forward piece of legislation and like many of our other laws, this too will have many "ifs" and "buts" that could dilute many good intentions. This has also seen a rare unanimity between the three major and influential political formations in the country which have supported this change.

In a decidedly male dominated society and that goes for politics too, this is a paradigm shifting event. One may debate on the usefulness of this piece of legislation or feel that we did not require a law and our intent could be demonstrated just by ensuring more women candidates in the fray. These are valid observations and one may not have convincing arguments to the contrary except that much can be done but does it ever get done???

Initial opposition soon snowballed into a fierce "no-holds barred" filibustering, nay street fight. A couple of political formations saw this as a great affront to their cultural leanings. The stridency of this opposition surprised many but an astute observer would find that this was entirely along expected lines and should not  surprise any one. After all, the idea of a woman boss is still quite distasteful to many.

This experience highlights something basic. Any law or element of compulsion that has to do with some action (or its absence) results in high compliance...e.g., compliance to tax rules, laws to ensure public order and against misbehaviour or laws against crime.....do deter many. This is not to argue that crime is wiped out but these laws have a "deterence" effect and we see reasonably high level of compliance.

There can be no law to ensure change in attitudes. Laws abolished untouchability many years back but its practice is widespread. In some places, it is brazen and in many cases it is subtle. We have not changed from within and are gulity of practising discrimination in one form or other.

The uplift of women and giving primacy to their health, education, status, legal protection, legal rights, access to opportunities....has been a very contentious issue in our society for the last century or so. Every change has had to be brought in the face of very stiff opposition. I can easily site the example of banning polygamy amongst Hindus had raised temperatures in the early fifties. (Sad, though, it did not cover all Indian women). Extending property rights to women of the family was another issue that raised the heckles of many. 

Now we have the Women's Reservation Bill. I am not sure the efficacy of this piece of legislation as there is every likelihood of women from existing political interests will be pushed forward and there will be much back seat driving. Just a little more than a decade back Rabri Devi managed her kitchen cabinet with Lalu Prasad Yadav being the master puppeteer.

Yet, there is hope. Process of evolution is always slow and when it comes to attitudes and cultural mores, it would require generational shifts. Legislation can have a "nudge here - nudge there" effect and hopefully society moves in the desired direction.One must not expect any dramatic change from this law and we must view this effort as a facilitator of some social reform, the fruits of which may be seen by our future generations.

It is, however, upto us (the present generation),  to ensure that a change in society is brought about and we emphasise on human values and a liberal culture.

A Movement Gone Awry

We all agree that our Indian society has a long history stretching perhaps to the dawn of mankind  and its ancient and glorious culture served as the embellishment. 

Over the years the vibrancy began losing its intensity and came to be subdued and over many centuries it became dormant. It could have gone extinct but it survived and in the process developed many warts The process of degeneration was so slow that it could hardly be noticed. Years of invasion, wars, foreign rule, oppression for over ten centuries had its effect.

Come independence and it was expected that with a new dawn, many multifold rigidities of our society would somehow just vanish like clouds on a windy day. There was plenty of idealism fuelling our society then. Sadly though, feudal mored were not to disappear without a fight. They strengthened their hold over privileges and we started having teeming masses who were no better than they were under some cruel jagirdar or a despotic king who lived to oppress his subjects.

Anger found an outlet in some of the poorest parts of the country and the struggle began for a more equal society. This was the revolution that began at the grassroots. The emotional appeal was strong. The proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow was a dream to die for.

It underwent a metamorphosis many a time and the revolution against injustice came to be called Naxalism or Maoist rebels as we know now and many avatars in between. Along  with this, I suspect, was lost the original goal and message. 

It was more violence for the sake of it. Violence to change society is as unattainable as was Alexander's quest to conquer the whole world. It seems more for power to the group leaders. Civilian, police and military casualties are more like trophies. Now comes the latest admission by women revolutionaries of rampant sexual exploitation and the picture is complete.

Do we see any difference between the despotic king or cruel jagirdars and these uniformed and armed "revolutionaries".

If you have read George Orwell's "Animal Farm".......you would know that equals have now become "First amongst equals". A movement that has gone horribly awry and has fostered violence and  social divide. It is here that lies a great tragedy of modern India.

Suicidal Tendencies in Children - A Perspective.

Taking my discussion, on this new challenge in our society, further, I thought it necessary to examine this phenomenon a little further. This development has its roots, amongst others, in the rapid change our society has undergone and how our lives have changed on the last two decades.

This period is most relevant as the children opting for suicide were born during this time.We may have made tremendous strides in making more money or ensuring a mobile phone for one out of every  two Indians, expanding economic opportunities or have improved our so-called "standards of living". However, in this race, we seem to achieved whatever at a very high cost. The moot question is whether, we as  a society have regressed.

It seems that the stakes have suddenly been upped and it appears that in this life's race, the winner takes it all.
Everybody loves winners and there is a certain glamour attached to these "success stories". Media also does it bit by highlighting crazy placement salaries of a few students from premier engineering and management institutes. All this raises expectations of both students and parents.

Whilst this is not the case in reality, we often fail to recognise that there is no free lunch  in life. Each one has to always pay a price and often that is not visible. It is good to aspire and work hard towards one goal and there is absolutely no harm in that. One does not plan to fail but what happens if  the student,  inspite of best  efforts, is unable to get through. It is at this stage emotional balance of both parents and their children is called into play.

That failure in an exam is not a measure of that child's worth should be understood and clearly communicated and demonstrated through thoughts, words and deeds. That failure is not the end of life and instead can be  a stepping stone for renewed efforts should be drilled in no uncertain terms.

Most students are not suicidal but it is impossible to predict who could be overwhelmed at any point of time and who would take steps towards the edge.

It is possible for a child to equip itself against the uncertainties of life and attain a semblance of emotional balance if their education process begins early - both at home and in school. This pre-supposes that our teachers have the right approach and training and parents have the maturity to be mentors, friends and of course de-stressed parents.


Is this expecting too much???  Can we achieve this state??? If yes, then what needs to be done??? Is this over simplification of the problem??? Do we understand the compulsions of those for whom good education is a passport to a better life away from their daily drudgery???

There are many unanswered questions. It is important that these are discussed in public domain and there is awareness. It may help someone.

Children Commiting Suicide - A New Challenge

All of a sudden newspapers are full of reports about children, mostly teens and young adults taking their own lives. I am not sure whether this was a regular occurance earlier and it is only now this is getting prominence, or this is a new problem which we as a society are facing.

The reasons for commiting suicide vary from the predictable to the bizzare. One has heard of teens taking their lives due to failure in exams, or rejection in love but suicide on grounds of loneliness, lack of preparation for exams, not being permitted to learn dancing...are certainly new and confounding. One suicide case certainly bordered on the bizzare. The child wanted to meet and be close to her deceased father.

Every loss of a young life is tragic and shatters the family involved. Life moves on and the family would eventually get on with their lives and time the great healer will fill these wounds. The question here is why does this happen?

Let me try and understand our existing circumstances and put things in perspective. I cannot claim deep understanding of teen affairs but I base my understanding on my observations of my daughters and their friends. I would ike to believe that this would be as contemporary as it gets.

I would believe that parents have a critical role to play. Grand-parents, cousins, uncles/ aunts and immediate  circle of relatives form an important protective and supportive circle around. Friends are an important  social support system. Apart from these teachers do also play an important role.

One clear advantage of having an active social network of relatives and friends is the emotional support that one can draw from them. A sharp rebuke or a scolding from a  teacher is eased by parents or friends. Hurt after a fight with a sibling can be balmed by a friend or relative and so on. The funny part is we draw on this well of comfort / support all the time but never realise it.

A teen yet to fully develop emotional balance gets the comfort and strength to face many such reverses of life. This "on-demand" availability of the "soft touch" so to say has helped many a teen (including us back then) in handling the various pains of growing up.

It is time we acknowledge that many children in our society do not have an adequate support system around them. This may be a result of many factors but modern life is certainly a big contributor. Let me try and present gaps that have developed in our lives and the dangers they pose.

I would like my blogger friends ti share their their thoughts on what they think about this new problem surfacing in our lives.

Wheel of Time Marches On

This is the ultimate truth that we live through but often realise a little late in life. This is the relentless march of time through the ages.

There is an element of mystery as our limited human comprehension cannot estimate its commencement or its possible end. The time dimension gets even more warped when we add the space dimension to it.  Its span encompasses a nano second to billions of light years. This is where distance is measured as the quantum of time light takes to bridge that vast cosmic void.  

Coming to a more earthly level, passage of time represents those years flying by, it denotes our ageing, change, progress or otherwise. We gave ourselves a calendar to make sense of this circular movement of time. 

This brings us to the three dimensions of past, present and the future.  We go through these dimensions with a firm eye on the future hoping for a brighter tomorrow. Wise men have always counselled us that we make our own future. It is said, we should take care of the present and future automatically takes care of itself. Our today reflects the way we lived yesterday. We are often wont to repeat our mistakes and live as we did yesterday, thus condemning our tomorrow.

Is it not time that we break this vicious cycle and break free of such enslaving patterns? Come on....let us consciously endeavour to usher in a different tomorrow.

On this day as the year 2009 is on verge of becoming history, let us create 2010 and the years beyond, a different world. I wish every one the very best and urge them to create a golden future for themselves.

Undertake a Fast unto Death - Get a State

We have seen this shameful spectacle of K Chandrasekhara Rao going in a fast-unto-death and statehood for Telangana has been accepted. This is commerce at its worst. Go on a fast unto death and get a state in return. This is a fantastic bargain for the political class.

Are we going to see a renewed balkanisation of our country. A concept of an united India having braved many odss in its six decade old journey faces yet another crisis. I feared the worst as our unscrupulous political class would go to any extent if they sense a chance to further their interests. This is our worst nightmare come true. Suddenly, everyone seems to have a grievance or two and statehood seems to be the only solution.

Telangana has 119 representatives in the Andhra assembly. I find it very difficult to believe that for the last fifty five years these MLAs and 11/12 MPs never worked or could not work for the development of Telangana. M Chenna Reddy, a Telangana leader was the Chief Minister of the state and should one believe that he was powerless in this respect and could do nothing for the region. Now, with statehood being considered, is it possible that this political class can weave their magic and a backward region would suddemly become developed.

Gorkhaland in West Bengal has been the first off the block. The later has been vocal and violent to get their goals. They have an autonomous arrangement within the states of West Bengal. If backwardness is the criteria then every district in West Bengal should be asking for statehood.

Vidarbha, an arid part of the Maharashtra has been poor and backward for many decades. It shot to fame due to its poor farmers committing suicides. If the politicians from Western Maharashtra were enriching themselves, what were the Vidarbha representatives doing. Could they not further the interests of that region. They were voted to do that in the first place.

Carve out

UP into Bundelkhand, Harit Pradesh and Purvanchal.....

AP further into Rayalseema and coastal Andhra,

Karnataka into Mysore, Coastal Karnataka and Belgaum-Hubli-Dharwar and Bijapur / Bidar into separate states,

Maharashtra into Mumbai as UT, Konkan, Western Mah, Khandesh, Marathwada and Vidarbha....

MP, Rajasthan, Bihar (whatever is left of it), Tamil Nadu also have undeveloped areas. 

 

It took the genius of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and his tireless assisstant Mr Menon to put all apples in one basket. The genius of our current politicians seems to break the country back into the original 550 fiefdoms.

Jharkhand has been a complete disaster and we are seeing the manifestations. Chattisgarh has been battling the Naxals and Uttarakhand has not made any great impact either way.

This is a dangerous trend and must be put down by national level parties at the earliest. Congress has made its move and is looking very foolish now.

The contributing factors of poor governance, lack of transparency, massive corruption, ineffectiveness of our political representatives need to be tackled with more citizen activism. There are other ways to do all this. Claiming and getting statehoods is clearly not one of them.

Our Work Ethic - A Critical Look

It was interesting to come across profound philosophy with such practical overtones from two diverse streams of thought from two very different civilisations, so to say, and yet be so similar.

As I reflected on this, it dawned on me that this knowledge needs to be spread far and wide as we in India suffer from a very poor work ethic.

Those of you who need to interact with municipal authorities or any government agency or department , on a regular or one-off basis, will have borne the brunt of a callous and inefficient administration. Things just do not move. Let us take a peek into the minds of the officialdom and see this problem at close quarters. Go back and remember when you applied for a passport, driving license, birth or death certificate or had to apply for your parents' pension or withdraw your provident fund on retirement. The malaise runs deeper and applies  even to departments which have no interaction with outsiders.

This is a subject that has no end and one can keep waxing eloquent about our shortcomings. In this post, I will steer clear of all discussion on corruption and focus on a widely prevalent poor or absent work ethic seen in most government / municipal departments.

We see this affliction manifest in many ways. I have listed some that are easily visible for anyone to see.

• Procrastinating,
• Not attending to work at all and keep it pending,
• Poor punctuality,
  
• Spend much time in gossip, office politics, back-biting and frequent refreshment breaks,
• Wherever there is interaction with members of public - be surly, do not co-operate, mislead or keep raising new doubts or queries every time the person comes to get work done, expect monetary benefits are just some of the few qualities on display,
• Antiquated administrative rules and proceedures and lack of basic housekeeping and poor hygiene factors, and many others that my blogger friends could point out based on their personal experience.
  

Is this lack of motivation only attributable to salaries / benefits? or is there more to it?

I sense a complete lack of pride in the job they are supposed to do. There is complete abdication of responsibility and duty is considered as a burden. If one complains or higher authority seeks to discipline then there is a revolt and a "devil-may-care" attitude. Fresh blood infused also catches on and become part of the system.

Negativity spreads fast, becomes a habit and soon becomes a way of life.

What could possibly have contributed to this state of affairs??

Eternal India - Secret of Work

A while ago, before embarking on the trip to Kailash-Mansarovar, I had written two posts based on some inspired writings and sayings of Swami Vivekanand. The first one - "I am a Voice without a Form" and the next "Eternal India - A Woman's Place in our Society".

My last post was on Khalil Gibran's piece on Rest and Passion. This talks about the need to balance reason and caution on one hand with passion on the other. Both are seen as necessary in appropriate proportion to be of use to any person. Gibran was a Lebanese-American and was influenced by Syrian (his native) and American (adopted) cultures.

I happened to chance Swami Vivekananda's thoughts, amongst others, on "Secret of Work". Let us see how the Orient sees this. Is it in contrast to what the Occidental believes or do they mean the same thing?

Swamiji was always asked about the presence of passion in work. Let us see his view and then understand it.

"I find it is not true. The less passion there is, the better we work. The calmer we are, better is it for us, and more the amount of work we can do.When we let loose our feelings, we waste so much energy, shatter our nerves, disturb our minds and accomplish very little work."

"The energy which ought to have gone out as work is spent as mere feeling, which counts for nothing. It is only when the mind is calm and collected that the whole of its energy is spent doing good work."

This view puts a lots of emphasis on a cool and collected mind. This state, if and when achieved, is a superior state and best output is achieved then. The conflict that arises is whether the "western" view is the right way or this thought prevails. Are they different, or, both mean the same thing, but say it differently.

On reflection it was clear. Passion in Swamiji's context meant feverishness, restlessness, anger, hatred or something done with an intention to take revenge, and, these had to be rightly rejected. They had no place at all in our thought process. A cool and collected mind inclued a pleasant outlook, interest, enthusiasm and a positive approach. A sort of energy without the negative attachments. A calm and a collected mind has all these qualities and any work done with this turns out to be superlative.

There is no difference in the two thought streams.

I can vouch for this having observed that the day we are relaxed and calm we have a great day at office and the day we are irritable (whatever be the cause) or overly excited, we come a complete cropper. I never imagined that our ancient wise men had thought of such practical philosophy applicable in this day and age.

Rest in Reason and Move in Passion

I happened to leaf through a collection of Kahlil Gibran's writings and came across this small chapter on Reason and Passion in his famous book "The Prophet".

Let me reproduce a few lines from this exceptionally brilliant exposition.
 

"Your soul is oftentimes a battlefield, upon which your reason and your judgment wage war against your passion and appetite."...........

"Your reason and your passion are the rudder and the sails of your seafaring soul. If either your sails or your rudder be broken, you can but toss and drift, or else be held at standstill in mid-seas."

"For reason ruling alone, is a force confining, and passion unattended, is a flame that burns to its own destruction."............

Therefore let your soul exalt your reason to the height of passion that it may sing;.....And let it direct your passion with reason........................ 

These words were penned by the Lebanese-American author in the early twenties of the last century.


These words potray the perpetual dilemma people face in their lives. Should they be cautious or  hasty, conservative or aggressive? move with deliberation or dive headlong?....

More often than not we ourselves or many others we observe in life, have chosen one over the other and paid a heavy price.  Infact, both have an equal place in our lives.

For reason and judgment without any enthusiasm and action is plain and simple day dreaming. Management jargon typifies this behaviour as "Paralysis by Analysis". The end result is missed opportunities and immense frustration.

Similarly, excitement, passion and enthusiasm without proper thought, planning or direction leads to energy wasted and often poor or zero output again leading to fatigue and frustration.

What is called for is a happy mix of both ingredients....K Gibran says..."I would have you consider your judgment and your passion even as you would two loved guests in your house." 

Is this practically possible in our normal daily lives or is this another of those utopian goals that many a "self-help" book lay out.

A state of mind where the passion and action is solely focussed on the task at hand guided by reason and judgment giving rise to perfect action and passion leading reason to challenge existing boundaries and establishing new benchmarks giving rise to change, progress and new discoveries.

I happily discovered that the purpose of yoga is to make all this and more achievable in our lives. What do you have to say......my dear friends???

Violence - A Virulent Cancer in our Society

Many blogs have waxed eloquent during the Domestic Violence Awareness month. These posts have been written with a lot of feeling and treat this serious problem with a lot of sensitivity and objectivity.

Instances of domestic violence can be gory and one can empathise with the victims living through hell every day of their life.

Activism and retaliation is widely advocated as a means of regaining some sanity in life and a means to lead, hopefully, a normal life. The moot question here is how many would actually take the desperate step of moving out. It may seem so very logical for a distant bystander but does this hold true for the victim and thereby hangs a tale of all silent sufferers.

This phenomenon that has assumed gigantic proportions in our modern day society (not just Indian but I can say for many countries around the world). Psychological counselling is touted as one possible solution but in reality and unfortunately this has very negative connotations here. Further, this sort of help is not easily accessible and it does not come cheap either.

Domestic violence should not be seen only in a physical dimension. It can be mental torture and emotional violence too. Many a time a sense of terror pervades the atmosphere along with physical violence. Unfortunately, violence finds an outlet only against our near-n-dear ones and those weaker than us.

If we look around carefully, there is plenty of repressed violence in us. We seem to be "Highly Inflammable" and ignite at the slightest provocation. Just a small divert - Have you seen the road rage that boils over in the event of a minor collision or the savagery displayed following some minor altercation in a Mumbai local train. Those who give in to such outbursts are not always the "poor" or "lower strata" as we pompously would like to say. They seem economically prosperous, well educated and seemingly very normal. Many others would just bottle up and bang the person who opens the door in the evening.

This build-up in us is the result of so many frustrations that we face in daily life, the stress that we generate and absorb, the struggle to be successful, the battle to survive, the violence that we absorb from sources "stronger" than us sometime for long years of our life and in many cases from childhood, the problems of addictions and its negative impact on family relationships.

This may seem over-simplified (believe me this is not a justification) but the fact is we keep on accumulating garbage over the years till an outlet is found. Usually, this outlet is in the form of violence and abuse in the safe confines of our own homes.

So, what is the solution and how do we go about spreading it on? Is there a standardised answer? Will public shame or punishment help or only aggravate? ........there are so many questions and I am afraid not many have a straight answer.

This is just looking at the perpetrator of violence. It is scary to think about the victims. The unending mystery is why do these victims continue to absorb their daily dose of abuse? I shudder as I try to imagine their life but just cannot fathom their compulsions.

I always believe that our education has only made us literates and never has it taught us about life and how to handle its many ups and downs. We have low EQs and are emotionally and spiritually bankrupt.

Till we are at peace within ourselves, no amount of external help or social activism can help. Social activism may stop one type of incidents but give rise to far more dangerous alternatives. Anything that is achieved out of compulsion or fear could ricochet back with deadly effect.

So what do we do????.....

Back on Track

What began as a casual approach to writing a travelogue (for the first time) eventually turned out to be a twenty eight post magnum opus spread over almost two months. (I keep discovering myself).

Once I started writing, I felt the need to share many details and it just kept increasing. I never this series would extend so long. I must acknowledge the encouragement and appreciation shown by my blogger friends through this series.

In the meantime, the world has continued its relentless march onwards and I am trying to get back on track of regular and routine life. This period has seen its usual share of bomb blasts, audacious attacks, inane debates, foreign policy gaffes, border intrusions and tit-for-tat war of words, controversies on the Games-2010, floods and destruction, festivals and holidays galore and ofcourse elections.

Such a lot to write on or comment on other blogs. It is time to put thinking caps on, shake of the writers block (especially after a long series) and come back on track. I did make time to write a guest post on "India Retold" discussing the political situation in Maharashtra. Now let me ponder over what should I write on.....(Suggestions welcome).

Kailash Mansarovar Yatra - Tips for the Wanderers II

Going forward........

Preparations: Physical fitness is always welcome and more so at those heights. It would be preferable if you can work out and build stamina for atleast six months before the yatra. Long walks with packed backpacks will help give you some idea of the effort. I used to walk for an hour or so but discontinued after monsoons commenced in Mumbai. Other than this, I had not undertaken anything special. I confess this left me out of sorts on the trip would have welcomed some more physical strength.

There is nothing one can do to counter high altitude problems. The body has to get used to high altitudes and it will take a couple of days. Taking medicines and following common sense precautions should do the trick. One has to have patience and a positive attitude as the body acclimatises.


Packing: This is the classic dilemma. What to pack and what not. Most websites give a low down on what items to pack.

The Nepali agency gives each yatri a down jacket. This is perfectly adequate. One can carry fleece jackets, a couple of sweaters, head caps that will adequately cover the ears, muffler for the neck should be adequate. Thermal inners may replace a t-shirt but you tend to sweat in the afternoons and that may make it a little uncomfortable. Socks and plenty of inner wear makes sense. We tend to err on the side of caution and overpack. One realises that most of the stuff has to be let behind at the parikrama point as you are permitted to carry just one backpack then.

It is important that our entire stuff is carried in two medium sized duffel bags. It is advisable not t carry your stuff in a suitcase. At the commencement, each yatri is given a huge dufffel bag. One can just dump in these smaller bags in the bigger duffel bag. You will not be permitted to dump your suitcase in the larger duffel bag.

You may want to pack a few sweets-chocolates, dry fruits and "namkeen" snacks and carry with you.

Time to visit: May and June will be cold but yatris can experience snow. July is dry but it is also peak season and could get crowded. August is peaceful with fewer groups crossing over but one may get rains. There are groups crossing over till September but I understand the major Indian invasion is in June and July and this tapers down later.

Communication: Mobile connectivity is available at all the halting spots, except during the three day parikrama. It can be horribly expensive if you use Indian sim cards. I used my Vodafone connection and was slammed with a Rs. 9000/- bill. Will make a lot of sense to buy a local sim card or use local telephones to call India. Puts an automatic brake on long conversations and daily updates.

Electricity: Generator power is available from 9.00 pm to mid-night at the smaller spots. At Nyalam and Saga one has supply through the day. You could buy a cheap local multi plug point connector and the entire group can charge their mobiles and camera batteries. We do not need adaptors in China.

Camera: A very valuable addition to our baggage. I carried a Panasonic - Lumix FZ28 with three memory cards 1X8GB and 2X2GB. A digicam with spare memory cards and a spare battery is more than adequate. One may carry a separate video camera but it can become heavy and can become a burden during the parikrama.


Caveat: After the crossover, except at Saga Hotel, one will face problems with toilets. At certain spots like Mansarovar, Darchen and Zulthulpuk, the great outdoors may be a good option. Not a place or time to be squeamish. One has to learn to adjust to the available facilities and like true yatris take these inconveniences in one's stride. There is no other choice.

I end this series on my trip to Kailash Mansarovar. I thank all of you who have read these posts and seen photographs uploaded. I thank you for your encouraging comments and suggestions to convert this series into a book. I hope all this and more comes true. It is my hope that many of you who hav been with me through this blog journey may want to undertake a yatra themselves. I would encourage them to plan and go ahead with their dream journey and see for themselves the wonder that God has created for us.

Kailash Mansarovar Yatra - Tips for the Wanderer

Safely back at sea level, I look back at the yatra and feel that whole thing was a fantastic dream. Today, it seems so unreal as I wrote all those posts sharing my experience with you all.

I am not sure what my reaction would be if my friends were to plan a trip again next year. However, one thing is certain and I would be much better prepared. Probably, would also try and customise the route to some extent and be a bit more adventurous.

Let me go over some of the points that need to be kept in mind whilst you plan your trip.

Tour Agency: Very important. The agency needs to be up on all aspects of the tour and should have adequate sherpa staff to accompany the group. All Indian agents eventually tie up with Nepali agencies. Our Nepali tour agent was Richa Tours (www.richatour.com).


Visa: Various Indian agents get enquiries for Kailash Mansarovar tours. They just collect the details and forward them to Nepali agents. These Nepali agents then apply for an entry permit with the Tibetan Tourist Authority for each group of yatris. The TTA then directly communicates with their embassies in New Delhi or Kathmandu as the case may be.

Indian yatris have to apply for the entry visa at the Chinese embassy at New Delhi. will issue a group visa on a separate sheet of paper. Nothing is stamped on our passports. (This has nothing to do with recent controversies).

The Chinese embassy will start processing visas only after the entry permit has been received from TTA. This can be nerve racking at times. We were to depart on Thursday 30th July night (a day late) and the entry permit was received only on 27th July and visas issued on 29th July. Too close for comfort.

Those travelling from other countries will have to pick their visa at Kathmandu and it is advisable to reach a few days prior to the scheduled date.


Cost: The tour cost is around Indian Rs. 75,000 or thereabouts. This may increase next year. These charges are Kathmandu - Tibet - Kathmandu. One has to add travel costs from your place of residence to Kathmandu and back.


Foreign Currency: Indian rupee is also the currency for trade and commerce in Nepal and the exchange rate is fixed at INR 1 = NR 1.60. Please keep in mind Rs.500/- and Rs.1,000/- notes are not accepted in Nepal for the fear of fake notes.

Chinese Yuan...We bought CY in Mumbai. Rates are better in India. You can change INR for CY at Kathmandu or at Kodari, the border town. Rates will be higher and there will be no choice to shop around.

How much CY to carry? One does not need to spend on food or any other item on the tour. One may keep buying bottled water or an occasional soft drink. The main expenses are for the pony, porter and tips. Pony costs CY 1000 for three days of the parikrama and a porter CY550. Those who are fit may skip the pony but it makes sense to hire a porter for your backpack. You can then be free with just the camera on you. Being light helps walk comfortably. The pony that I had to hire just for the climb up Dolma La cost me CY300.

I guess it makes sense taking about CY2000 to take care of all contingencies. This does not include shopping. I recommend that shopping may be avoided.

The remaining part, and the last of this series appears tomorrow.

Photo Corner: Dolma La Pass and Onwards

These photographs were taken by Mr. Raju Joshi from Mumbai. He completed the yatra about a month before us. I did not have my camera during the climb.


A side view of the Kailash Northern face.

A steep climb with boulders liberally strewn across.

A gentle slope after that steep climb.

Another angle. The valley is known as Kukker Valley.

A long long trudge straight and then up we go.















Another long climb up after we turned the corner.














Sheer rock and snow up there.














Now nearing the top - just a vey sharp climb up.













One more view of the task at hand.

What it looks like from the top....dizzying to say the least.

The final hump before the Dolma La pass.

A small piece of flat land at the top before we begin our descent to the top. Ponies are available upto this point. We have to climb down the sharp descent.

Gauri Kund - Goddess Parvati's private space and also said to be Lord Ganesha's place of birth.

Overcast sky....a complete whiteout.














A view of the descent route.














Frozen river.....a small glacier.














The long descent.

Yatris on their way down. Those you see with hats on are Bons who do the parikrama walking anti-clockwise.

Return Journey...back to Kathmandu

The return journey had to retrace our steps all the 800 kms back spread over four days. We had to take the same Base Camp - Paryang - Saga - Nyalam - Kodari - Kathmandu route.

It was a test of patience as these four days back to Kathmandu seemed almost like eternity. There was a sense of satisfaction as we drove back. The cold and high altitude stopped bothering us and we moved around like locals. There was a deep sense of satisfaction at having achieved what was said to be the remotest location and an arduous trip.

We were very relaxed and our sherpas dished out some amazing goodies at meal times. Our appetite returned and every one of us had more than our fill. I guess some of the kilos shed were regained before we touched Kathmandu.

We stopped at different spots and relaxed. Lunch was at some picturesque spot and we took ages to complete it. One day it was near a small brook with plenty of fish. These fishes shared a part of our lunch. They probably got their year's feed that afternoon.

It was a wonderful experience and now stays on as a special memory.

I would like to end this rather long series with a last post with tips on prior preparations, packing and costs.