In search of Saraswati…

(Written, Wednesday, July 9th.)

That was weird.  My new roomy at Shirley’s, Harsharn, just pulled out a card from her wallet that was given to her by some stranger, coming out of a bank, nearby the orphanage she’s volunteering in.

On one side of the card is a picture of three elderly, spiritual-looking folks, sitting cross-legged – 2 male, 1 female.  On the other side of the card is a photo of an ashram on the banks of some lake or river, somewhere in Northern India.  Harsharn didn’t tell me this.  I happened to recognize the photo as I’d seen it just this past Sunday, in the grounds of a small ashram in Bangalore.

 

I had wandered into this ashram after having left Shirley’s place in Tippasandra approximately an hour and a half beforehand, at 6.30am.  I was pretty tired, my hip was sore and I had no idea where I was, which didn’t bother me as there’s always an auto going by (one of the many Indian conveniences).  This probably comes as no surprise to those who know me and are quite familiar with my “wandering and getting lost” behavior.  One of my best” wandering and getting lost” episodes was when I went running in the Hamptons while on a visit with my parents.  I had no phone and no idea where I was.  I stopped at a gas station on a main road and waited for several minutes before Mum and Dad miraculously turned up in their rental car.

Anyway, on Sunday morning I had intended to walk from Shirley’s house to the Lalbagh Botanical Gardens.  However, I was drastically taken off course thanks to a few “exploratory” turns.

When I entered the grounds of the ashram, I checked out the notice board (meditation and yoga schedule, “tuition teachers needed” ad, etc.), took down the details of the ashram as a text message (which I accidentally deleted afterwards, thanks to my pedantic cleanliness streak), then removed my shoes to walk around what seemed more like a gathering hall than a temple, set amidst a very well-kept and lush green garden with two huge statues in each corner – one of Shiva and the other of…not quite sure.

As I walked around the hall, I observed the various pictures and photos adorning the inside rim of the hall’s veranda.  Upon completing my circle, I noticed one photo in particular – the photo of the ashram on Harsharn’s card.  At the time, I admired its setting and location; spacious, green, and right on the banks of some lake or river.

I left the ashram’s grounds and took an auto to the India Coffee House on MG Rd. for breakfast; a Masala Dosa and chai (yum).  I entertained thoughts of coming back to the ashram later that afternoon for a meditation class.  However, given my early-morning walk, I was pretty buggered by the afternoon and thought I’d probably fall asleep if I was to go.

I didn’t think about the ashram again, until Harsharn showed me the card.  Now I’m a little spooked.  Maybe it’s a sign.  Maybe THIS is the ashram I should be visiting.  I do want to visit an ashram while I’m in India, but I’ve been a little confused by the various options available.

(Written, Friday, July 11th.)

I walked back to the small ashram before work this morning.  It’s actually the Vivekananda Ashrama on Swami Vivekananda Road, and is connected to the Ramakrishna Math/Mission/Order.  (Shirley and her husband, John, helped me figure out exactly where I’d been on Sunday morning, thanks to my description of what I’d passed and what I’d seen.  It seems I made a huge circle and was nowhere near the Lalbagh Botanical Gardens.)

Once again I found the photo of the ashram on the inside rim of the hall’s verandah that’s also on the card Harsharn gave me.  The ashram in the photo is actually in Belur Math, Calcutta, and is considered to be the “headquarters” of the Ramakrishna Order.  I took a video of the Belur Math photo and the Vivekananda Ashrama grounds to show Harsharn once I got home.

And guess what?  The symbol for the Ramakrishna Order is a swan.  I think I’ll have to check the Order out in further detail and maybe even visit the headquarters in Belur Math, even if it’s only for a “look, see”.

On another completely separate note…

It seems that far too much has happened since I last wrote to actually go into detail about it all now.  All good, all eye-opening.

I’ll write more about what happened this past week, tomorrow, before I head off to Pondicherry for the weekend and Bastille Day (Monday) with some of the other volunteers, including the new French girls.  Pondicherry (or Pon-dish-errrr-ee, as the French girls say) is a French colonial town on India’s mid-East coast; close to Chennai.

Tags: Travel

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