Tagging along with the foliagers, we rattled on to the obscure village Ajiveli, about 60 kms from Pune.
This is a place where you literally get down to earth and walk through mud. The meandering unpaved road to the forest is a delight. You will get to see real architectural masterpieces. I saw these amazing ants nest. One on the ground, constructed like a fort and another on a tree, constructed like a pagoda. And with mud!
This is a place where you literally get down to earth and walk through mud. The meandering unpaved road to the forest is a delight. You will get to see real architectural masterpieces. I saw these amazing ants nest. One on the ground, constructed like a fort and another on a tree, constructed like a pagoda. And with mud!
Slushy trek led us to the Devrai – a dense sacred forest, dedicated to local deities or tree spirits.
Sitting in a/c rooms, on cushioned chairs, we forget our very beginnings as we plan to garner more material resources, completely forgetting how we plunder the very earth that has sheltered us. The experience of sitting on a wet, glistening rock, right in a dense jungle (where the sun rays tries to squirms in through the tall trees that forms a canopy of sort, as if protecting the earth from evil spirits), and listening to running water, I tell you, this is the best music I have ever heard!
The villagers ensure that not a single leaf or a twig is taken from this forest. It is believed that any sort of violation will offend the local deity and could cause calamities.
To connect with nature is an humbling experience. Everything that we require is provided by nature. Including the mechanism to fight the much threatening diseases. Yet, we clamor for stuffs to make our life easier.
There is a strong reason behind every belief and practices. Labeling such beliefs as superstitions, is not completely correct. The villagers believe it is bad karma if, even, a tiny dried leaf is taken from this Devrai. I don't want to analyse this belief. For this belief ensures a balanced ecology, conducive for healthy co-existence of all living creatures.
Sitting in a/c rooms, on cushioned chairs, we forget our very beginnings as we plan to garner more material resources, completely forgetting how we plunder the very earth that has sheltered us. The experience of sitting on a wet, glistening rock, right in a dense jungle (where the sun rays tries to squirms in through the tall trees that forms a canopy of sort, as if protecting the earth from evil spirits), and listening to running water, I tell you, this is the best music I have ever heard!
2 comments:
Magical!
The photos and the accompanying script - beautiful!
a very crisp & interesting article ..
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