Day 47 (23 July): The Oneness of Everything
Today marks the halfway point of my trip which is hard to believe since it feels like I have been traveling for such a long time already.
Today, I drove with Arnab’s father to some temples north of the city. The first one we went to was a Ramakrishna one. Ramakrishna was a guy who believed in the oneness and similarity of all religions. The building had Islamic, Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist features to reflect this. Meditation is the main way of showing faith. The other temple we saw is where Lord Ramakrishna first practiced, but is a Hindu temple that celebrates Kali (the wife of Shiva) whom Calcutta is named after. It had to be the busiest religious site I have ever seen with three hour lines to get to the main alter and to put down a donation. Both temples were right next to the Ganges (considered a holy river by Hindus) which spills out into the Bay of Bengal just south of Calcutta. This means that at both locations people were ‘bathing’ in one of the most polluted rivers I have ever seen.
From there we had lunch at a Chinese restaurant on Park Street and went to the Marble Palace. The Marble Palace belonged to a former Raj and is built completely with Marble and had a huge collection of European style marble statues and paintings. It is interesting to see how British or European the Rajs would try to act despite being Indians. It was actually a far more impressive interior to a Palace than anything I've seen in Europe.
Upon returning to Arnab’s house we had a great dinner that Arnab’s mother made including my favorite dish in India so far that is a Bengali specialty: mustard-coconut prawns. Afterwards, a sampled another couple of Bengali sweets since the region is known for its deserts.
After that we went out to see the city under lights at night, including a stroll through a recently built park with fountains that light up different colors at night.
Observations:
1) Ramakrishna’s teachings in the US are know as the Self Realization Fellowship. So now I know where the Self-Realization Fellowship Complex in Cardiff, California nearby where I lived in San Diego comes from. I also know why the nearby surf-break is called Swami’s.
2) Lenin alive and well. We drove past a statue of Lenin today that was still in tip-top shape. This is a reflection of West Bengal being run by a Communist government.
3) Chinese presence in West Bengal. This seems to be higher than elsewhere that I’ve been in India and Chinese food seems to be a local favorite.
4) Border issues. Apparently, Calcutta has a lot of migrant, illegal workers who come over from Bangladesh everyday, illegally crossing the border to work for lower wages than local Indians will, particularly in service industries. This seems much like the San Diego-Tijuana relationship, although its probably much easier to slip across the India-Bangladesh border.
5) According to Arnab’s mother, the few slums that there are in Calcutta relative to other places in India are actually quite classy and most people even have TVs in their ramshackle, metal siding and plastic tarp homes.
6) For some reason, holy places tend to be equated with dirty surroundings in India.
7) The Indian reaction to the London bombings is an interesting one. Having tenuous relations with Pakistan to begin with, they act unsurprised that Pakistanis are the suspected culprits.
8) I seem to have done quite well on this trip so far at avoiding both rain and terrorist attacks. Everywhere that I have been in India it has stopped raining just before I arrived and started raining near my departure time. Since I am leaving tomorrow, it started raining this evening. Also, I was in London on the Tube several weeks before those attacks and in Kusadasi, Turkey on a mini-bus several weeks before those attacks. Lets hope this trend of avoiding problems perpetuates.
Today, I drove with Arnab’s father to some temples north of the city. The first one we went to was a Ramakrishna one. Ramakrishna was a guy who believed in the oneness and similarity of all religions. The building had Islamic, Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist features to reflect this. Meditation is the main way of showing faith. The other temple we saw is where Lord Ramakrishna first practiced, but is a Hindu temple that celebrates Kali (the wife of Shiva) whom Calcutta is named after. It had to be the busiest religious site I have ever seen with three hour lines to get to the main alter and to put down a donation. Both temples were right next to the Ganges (considered a holy river by Hindus) which spills out into the Bay of Bengal just south of Calcutta. This means that at both locations people were ‘bathing’ in one of the most polluted rivers I have ever seen.
From there we had lunch at a Chinese restaurant on Park Street and went to the Marble Palace. The Marble Palace belonged to a former Raj and is built completely with Marble and had a huge collection of European style marble statues and paintings. It is interesting to see how British or European the Rajs would try to act despite being Indians. It was actually a far more impressive interior to a Palace than anything I've seen in Europe.
Upon returning to Arnab’s house we had a great dinner that Arnab’s mother made including my favorite dish in India so far that is a Bengali specialty: mustard-coconut prawns. Afterwards, a sampled another couple of Bengali sweets since the region is known for its deserts.
After that we went out to see the city under lights at night, including a stroll through a recently built park with fountains that light up different colors at night.
Observations:
1) Ramakrishna’s teachings in the US are know as the Self Realization Fellowship. So now I know where the Self-Realization Fellowship Complex in Cardiff, California nearby where I lived in San Diego comes from. I also know why the nearby surf-break is called Swami’s.
2) Lenin alive and well. We drove past a statue of Lenin today that was still in tip-top shape. This is a reflection of West Bengal being run by a Communist government.
3) Chinese presence in West Bengal. This seems to be higher than elsewhere that I’ve been in India and Chinese food seems to be a local favorite.
4) Border issues. Apparently, Calcutta has a lot of migrant, illegal workers who come over from Bangladesh everyday, illegally crossing the border to work for lower wages than local Indians will, particularly in service industries. This seems much like the San Diego-Tijuana relationship, although its probably much easier to slip across the India-Bangladesh border.
5) According to Arnab’s mother, the few slums that there are in Calcutta relative to other places in India are actually quite classy and most people even have TVs in their ramshackle, metal siding and plastic tarp homes.
6) For some reason, holy places tend to be equated with dirty surroundings in India.
7) The Indian reaction to the London bombings is an interesting one. Having tenuous relations with Pakistan to begin with, they act unsurprised that Pakistanis are the suspected culprits.
8) I seem to have done quite well on this trip so far at avoiding both rain and terrorist attacks. Everywhere that I have been in India it has stopped raining just before I arrived and started raining near my departure time. Since I am leaving tomorrow, it started raining this evening. Also, I was in London on the Tube several weeks before those attacks and in Kusadasi, Turkey on a mini-bus several weeks before those attacks. Lets hope this trend of avoiding problems perpetuates.
posted by Traveling Brian at 6:36 AM
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