An Unexpected Musical Evening In Guwahati

Last saturday night (12 September), unexpectedly, I found myself at an amazing music concert of retro classical rock. This post is about the unplanned musical surprises of the rich cultural life of Guwahati (Assam, India)

The picture above has Danius Marak, the lead singer of Adam's Apple, from that music concert. Adam's Apple is a rock music group from Darjeeling (West Bengal, India) that had won the Hornbill Rock Music festival in Nagaland in 2014.

WONDERING ABOUT SRIMANTA SHANKAR DEV & BISWAKARMA

Let me start by explaining how I found myself at the rock music concert.

I knew that  2 important dates related to one of the most important cultural and religious icon of Assam, Srimanta Shankar Dev are close - 15th is his birth anniversary and on 23th, his death anniversary. In addition, on 18 September, there will be Biswakarma Puja, an important day in the religious calendar of the north-east. I wanted to know if any special events were planned at Kalakshetra, one of the most important cultural hubs of Guwahati.

Though it was a day of Assam Bandh (strike), Kalakshetra was open. The person at the ticket office was very helpful. He told me that no cultural events were planned in Kalakshetra in this period and next big cultural event would be in October 2015 during the Durga Puja festivities. On my way back, on an impulse I decided to go and visit Shilpagram, that is located close to Kalakshetra.

SHILPAGRAM CRAFTS VILLAGE

Shilpagram (literally "Village of crafts") is on Aurobindo path, just before Kalakshetra. Apart from Shilpagram, on the same road there are the Assam Film Museum, the state music school and the Guwahati Aurobindo centre. The film museum did not seem to be functioning and its gate was locked. Saturday was also the weekly closure day for Aurobindo centre. However, Shilpagram was open and no ticket was required for entering on that evening.

"At 6 PM, there is some music festival", the guard outside Shilpagram had told me. It was only 4.30 PM, and my first reaction was that I did not want to wait there till 6 PM for the music programme.

So I entered thinking that I would quickly visit and see what kind of things were there. It is used as a venue for holding handicrafts fairs and exhibitions. Since no fair or exhibition were going on yesterday, there was not much to see except for some buildings representing a few tribes.

These buildings were decorated in traditional ways, but they were all closed and empty. In one garden, a statue of someone was placed under a tree but I had no idea of who he was.

RETRO CLASSIC ROCK MUSIC CONCERT

The sound of music was coming from the park at the centre of Shilpagram where a stage had been set-up. A young guy was sleeping there on a plastic sheet next to the stage, in spite of the loud vibrating sound of drums and guitars.

It reminded me of my early days in India, when I could sleep in the middle of noise, lights, chaos and confusion, and not like now, when the slightest thing wakes me up or keeps me awake!

On the stage, a group from Diphu called the "Celestial Sphere" was rehearsing. Their vocalist had a nice voice. Behind them, a banner showed the name of the event - a "Retroactive Classic Rock Revival" music concert sponsored by Cafe Hendrix of Guwahati.

I listened to Celestial Sphere for some time and then decided to visit a few handicrafts shops around the park.

SWARAJ KANTI SORCAR'S BHAJANS

In one handicraft shop of Shilpagram I met Mr. Swaraj Kanti Sorcar, who had an Assamese prayer book open before him and was slowly singing a hymn. His voice attracted me and I stopped there to listen to him.

"What are you singing? Your voice is very nice", I told him when he finished the hymn.

"My voice was much better when I was younger", he said proudly and brought out a drum with a cord. He sang me another of his prayer songs for me, this time accompanied with music from his drum and the tinkles of small brass bells fixed to the end of a cord that stretched between the drum and his fingers. It was a song about Krishna, though I could not understand all the words. And it was amazing listening to him.

That drum with stretched cord is called Bagoli (since it is held in the underarm or "Bagol") or Khamen.

I was reminded of some Baul singers that I had heard at Kamakhaya temple during Ambubashi festival. Simple songs and music, and a voice filled with emotions that go straight to the heart.

After his songs, I sat with him for some time, listening to his stories about his life. Meeting Mr Sorcar warmed my heart. While we were talking, some other group had come to do the rehearsal on the stage. Sounds of their music filled the whole place. It was a throbbing and pulsating sound, while the lead singer had a raw voice. I said good bye to Mr Sorcar, as I wanted to check this group.

They were "Adam's Apple" from Darjeeling. I loved their music and decided that I wanted to stay there and to listen to them properly during the concert.

BEAUTIFUL EVENING SKY AND THE SCHOOL GIRLS

There was still more than half an hour for the start of the concert. The sky covered with clouds had turned first orange and then red. There were not many persons there to listen to the music concert.

I decided to take another walk around Shilpagram. In one corner I came across a group of high school girls, all dressed up. They had just had their cultural function in the auditorium and were now waiting for refreshments.

They were happy to pose for me for some pictures, proud to show off their beautiful costumes.

2 SQUARES

The concert was started by a group called 2 Squares from Guwahati. Their lead vocalist Gregory Sarma sang beautifully and with wonderful energy. The guitarist and the guy on drums were great. In some ways Sarma's performance reminded me of Robbie Williams.

Among the groups that I had watched that evening, I liked this group most. (I am not sure if I am doing any favour to this group by writing it since rock groups having white-haired elderly persons as their admirers do not sound very exciting!)

I did not know any of the songs they did, probably they were not retro enough for me, but it was difficult to stand still during this part of the concert.

I am really surprised that this group does not have its own page on Google Plus or Facebook. Gregory Sarma has been part of some popular groups like Nakshatra, Faith and the Beat Route. He came back to Guwahati earlier this year and has started this new group, 2 Square. Anyway I am sure that they are going to get a good fan following.

S.K.D.

The lead vocalist of this group is one of the historical figures of rock music in Guwahati, active for the last 30 years. They had a female co-vocalist, a girl with a nice warm voice. They sang more retro songs including “Run to me” by Bryan Adams, that I could identify.

Even the SKD does not seem to have a Facebook page or a website. I searched on internet, but I have been unable to find the names of the components of this group.

ECLIPSE

Eclipse is another all-guys group. It is a historical group from Guwahati that was started in 2004. Its members are Kundal Goswami (Vocals) Rahul Kaushik (Bass) Sumit Baruah (Guitar) Rakesh Baro (Keyboard) Mrinmoy Edwin Singha (Drums).

They are going to come out with a second CD soon and they sang two unreleased songs from this new album titled "Clandestine Resurrection". Their first album had a very poetic name, "A mouthful of moonlight".

Their music is good, Kundal their lead vocalist, and the musicians are great and the group has a good energy. In my personal classification, they were number two in this evening’s groups.

All their songs were great but I enjoyed most their version of the retro number of the Queen, “I want to be free”, because it made me relive my young days.

CELESTIAL SPHERE

Celestial Sphere group is from Diphu in Korbi Anglong. From the reaction of the audience this seemed to be a very popular group. The members of this group are: Thengchum on Guitar, Lumar on Guitar, Edwardo on the Bass Guitar,  Bendang Toshi on Drums while Dr Aleena Terangpai is the vocalist. This group is considered as among the top 50 emerging rock groups in India.

Aleena, their vocalist has a good voice and the guitarists were great. By the time the Celestial Sphere came, I was wondering if any of the groups would have anything in terms of fusion music? I feel that it is great to sing retro songs from US/UK singers but if you are a north-east group, it would be nice if occasionally you also add to your music something that represents your own culture and music, to root it to this land and moment.

Celestial Sphere must have heard my wish, so they had one Korbi Anglong song in their repertoire. Its refrain sounded like “Say, say”. You can hear this song on their Sennheiser profile page.

ADAM'S APPLES

Like I wrote earlier, Adam's Apple are the winners of Hornbill festival 2014. The members of this young group from Darjeeling are: Danius Marak (vocalist), Praggya Lama (Guitar), Sawan Chettri (Bass), Anil Pradhan (Keyboards) and Ushang Bomzom (Drums, battery) - BTW, I think that Bomzom is a wonderful name for someone who likes to play drums! Danius is the new vocalist for this group I was told.

It was the music of this group that had hooked me and made me stay there to listen to this music concert. However by the time they came, I had a slight headache and my hips and knees were hurting, so I was wondering if it was time for me to start my walk for going home.

Danius, the lead vocalist of this group looked like a teenage Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones. The two guitarists, Praggya and Sawan, also looked very charismatic. The sound of their first song started with a raw energy-filled scream. However, something happened to the electrical system and the group was suddenly soundless.

They smiled and waited patiently while the problem was resolved. They restarted and once again, not even one minute into their song, the electrical system failed again.

I thought that it was kind of a divine sign for me to leave. I still had to do a three km walk to my home, and I had no idea what to do for my dinner. So reluctantly, I left the music concert.

CONCLUSIONS

The whole evening was a wonderful experience, probably because it was so unexpected. From the event poster, I have seen that there were 2 more groups in the programme after Adam’s Apple – Still Waters from Gangtok and Spreading Roots from Guwahati. I am sorry that I missed them.

I had never been to a proper rock music concert before. Before this experience, if anybody had asked me, I would have said that I don’t like rock music concerts, that they are just too loud and noisy for me. This concert was indeed noisy and loud. Yet I discovered that I enjoyed it. That the strumming of electrical guitar and bass can give me a high. That the raw screams make my feet feel like dancing.

This experience also made me aware that I am a photography-junkie. I loved the music and the collective experience of being part of a group that is swaying to music. But I loved even more, looking through the lens of my camera and framing pictures of the concert. People who were there as parts of the groups, if you wish to receive your pictures in high resolution (obviously free of cost) do let know - it will be a pleasure and an honour.

Compared to the quality of the groups, and considering that it was a free entry event, I think that the audience there was very limited. This concert certainly merited a much larger group of people in the audience. I hope that next time, they will publicise such events better.

I think that some of the pictures that I have clicked in this are wonderful, many are a little blurred and abstract, almost like poetry.

Let me close this post with another beautiful picture of this memorable unexpected musical evening from Guwahati. This picture was taken while we were waiting for he concert to start and the sky had started to turn red.

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Note: A few days after writing this post, the hard-disk of my computer, where I had downloaded the pictures of that evening, broke and I lost all the beautiful images of that evening. The images used in this post are the only ones that remained for me to remember that evening.

Guwahati City Walks - Kamakhaya Temple & Nilachal Hill

Garbhagriha (literally the Uterus, the most sacred part of the temple) hosting the sacred shrine to the goddess in an underground cave, has a black coloured sloping stone roof. It is at a lower level, and is the oldest and the most beautiful part of the temple. Its outer walls are covered by sculptures, some of them exquisitely carved into stone. The eastern wall of this building hosts a vermilion coloured Ganesha statue where pilgrims stop to pray and to try to affix a coin on its surface - if your coin sticks, it means that your wish will be granted.

The remaining three buildings are at entrance level so you do not need to negotiate any stairs. Beyond the main temple, up across some stairs, you can also visit a small sacred pond divided into 2 parts, with another small temple. Often people sit around on the stairs for an overview of the temple complex.

The building at the western end is connected to a covered passage going around the sacred pond, where persons wishing to visit the Garbhagriha can wait in a queue. Persons willing to pay can enter the Garbhabriha from other entrances, without waiting in the long queue.




Brahmins dressed in red clothes wait all around the temple looking for clients for different religious ceremonies such as Shradha (rituals for salvation of souls of dead family members) and goat-sacrifice. The monetary part of the temple visit and rituals can seem very in-your-face, but if you are not in a hurry, you can focus on appreciating the spiritual aspect of Shakti-worship.





Visiting the Garbhagriha: The underground cave of Garbhagriha can be visited only by Hindus. Even if you do not wish to visit it, you can still walk all around the temple, appreciate the different prayer spots and temples located around, and may be, sit down at a calm spot to meditate.

I did visit the Garbhagriha of Kamakhaya temple once, a few years ago. A narrow dark path cut into a rock takes you down to a cave, where a small spring bathes a yoni (vagina) shaped rock surface. The water of the spring, naturally mixed with an iron compound, and has a blood like red tinge. Thus the journey to the inner sanctum can be seen as a metaphorical journey back to the womb of the mother goddess, followed by rebirth.

I am claustrophobic, and thus found the walk through the narrow rocky passage a little terrifying. I remember the darkness on the stairs, persons behind pushing, kneeling down in a dark barely lit cave, quickly touching the wet stone while a priest had chanted some mantra and given me a spoon of that water to drink. It was all over in a few minutes.

I know persons who find spirituality in the experience of visiting the underground cave. I did not have any such feelings.

Shoes and cameras: Outside the temple, you need to remove your shoes. You can leave them with one of the shops near the temple gate for a few rupees. However, on festival days when it can be very crowded, it will be better to leave your shoes away from the temple and walk bare feet, since finding a safe place near the temple is difficult.

Unfortunately the management board of this famous temple has not made proper arrangements for collection of visitors' shoes and sometimes people can steal your shoes left outside (it happened to me the last time I was there - and there are no footwear shops on the hill!).

You can go inside the main temple gate with your camera, but you are not allowed to take any bags with you (not even the camera bags) – so make sure to leave your bags in some safe place before reaching the temple. Photography is possible everywhere in the outer areas of the temple but not in the inner parts and certainly not in the inner sanctum, Garbhagriha.

SCULPTURES OF KAMAKHAYA TEMPLE

An Assamese researcher Mousumi Deka has written a nice article about the sculptures of Kamakhaya temple (Sculptures of Kamakhaya temple: An aesthetic view, in International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, Volume 3, October 2013).

Inside the temple, it is usually crowded and difficult to look at the statues properly. An opportunity to see some of the inner sculptures comes with annual Ambubashi festival when they are placed outside for worship (an example is in the image below).

Kamakhaya temple is the most well-known site of Guwahati. It's deity represents Shakti, the feminine power. Pilgrims and tourists both visit it. This walking tour of Guwahati explains when and how to visit this temple.

Hinduism has 2 broad groups of worship-paths (along with innumerable lesser groups, each with its own philosophy and ideas that flow like streams into Hinduism) - Bhakti Marg or the path of devotion linked to Vaishnavism (cult of Vishnu); and the Tantrik marg or the path of rituals including sexual rituals and chanting of sacred words (mantra), linked to Shaivism (cult of Shiva). Kamakhaya temple is linked to the Tantrik path of worship.

The two paths, Bhakti and Tantrik, are not mutually exclusive - there is often intermingling between the two. Thus, Kamakhaya temple includes many references to Vaishnavism.

REACHING KAMAKHAYA TEMPLE

The temple is located near the top of Nilachal hill (Nil = Blue, Achal = immovable or mountain) in the south-eastern part of Guwahati, close to the southern bank of Brahmaputra river. You can start the walk at the base of the Nilachal hill, at a place called “Kamakhaya gate” on the A.T. Road, close to the Kamakhaya railway station (a small and new railway station; the main railway station of Guwahati is at Paltan Bazar, a few kilometres to the west).

Nilachal hill is supposed to be only 160 metres high and from the Kamakhaya gate, the temple is only 2 km away - yet it can be a difficult climb, especially on a hot and humid summer day. You can take a shared taxi from the gate to the temple. Another convenient option is to take the special Kamakhaya city bus near Nehru Park in Uzan Bazar, not far from the main Guwahati railway station.

There many other temples on Nilachal hill, on the way to Kamakhaya. Thus, after the Kamakhaya visit, you can walk down to visit them. This will also give you an opportunity to look at the green hills surrounding Guwahati and have panoramic views of the city.

MYTHS AND STORIES RELATED TO NILACHAL HILL & KAMAKHAYA TEMPLE

Hinduism brings together different streams of ideas, stories and philosophies, including those that are clearly contradictory. One such dominant stream of ideas is linked to the figure of Shiva, the god of death and destruction. Shiva is also Neelkantha, the god with a blue throat (blue is a poison of the world that Shiva holds in his throat to safeguard the universe). Shiva’s abode is in Himalayan mountains. His consort Shakti (Power), also known as Gauri, Sati or Parvati, is the daughter of Himalaya. While snakes (Nag) live wrapped around Shiva's neck, his companions include the Naga people. Thus, Shiva and Shakti represent the culture of north-east mountains in Hinduism. Nilachal hill, or the blue hill, represents Shiva himself.

Shiva and Shakti cults are very strong in the north-east. These cults revolve mainly around phallus (Shiva linga) but occasionally, also around the female genitals (Yoni), and celebrate sexuality as a primordial creative force of nature.

Shakti cults are about different forms of feminine powers – as mother, as fighter, as giver of wealth, as protector of knowledge, as giver of joy, and as the face of destruction. The North-east of India has a rich calendar of festivals linked to the celebration of different forms of Shakti - such as the festivals of Kali, Durga and Saraswati.

Goddess Kamakhaya of Guwahati is another form of Shakti that links to the female sexuality and fertility. One of the stories of Kamakhaya is about Sati, the daughter of Himalaya and Shiva’s wife.

Story of Sati and Shiva: Sati was the daughter of the mountain king Daksh. She fell in love with Shiva, whose followers were drunkards, pot-smokers and an unruly lot. Daksh did not like Shiva but Sati insisted on getting married to him. Once Daksh organized an important religious ceremony but did not invite his son-in-law. Sati angry with her father, decided to commit suicide by jumping in the sacred fires. Shiva grief stricken, first destroyed the mountains and then, holding his wife’s dead body, wandered all over the land. Parts of dead Sati’s body fell away during these wanderings. Her yoni (genitals) fell on Nilachal hill, where the Kamakhaya temple was built.

According to the other stories, Nilachal hill is the site where Shiva mates with his consort, Shakti. Thus Kamakhaya temple celebrates the sexual union of Shiva and Shakti, and is considered an ideal place for pursuing Tantrik powers.

There are other myths and stories linked to Nilachal hills, such as the stories of Narakasur and the stories of the love-god, Kamadev.

The Narakasur stories are about an Asur king who lived in this region. He fell in love with princess Kamakhaya of Nilachal hills and wanted to marry her. The princess did not want to marry him but did not wish to offend him. So she laid down her condition: “Make steps from the base of the hill to the top in one night and I will marry you”. Narakasur used all his strength to make the steps and was making very good progress. The princess was afraid that he would finish them and marry her, so decided to play a trick. She asked a rooster to start crowing. Naraksur, when he heard the rooster, thought that it was already morning and that he had not been able to fulfil princess’ condition, gave up. BTW, there are unfinished steps near Kamakhaya that are shown to the tourists as the proof for this story. 

The Kamadev stories: Kamadev is the god of love in Hinduism. His name literally means the "god of desire". In the stories, he is accompanied by his consort Rati (sexuality) and a friend, Vasant, the goddess of spring. Kamadev was supposed to be born on the Nilachal hill and gave the old name of "Kamrup" to  Guwahati. Still today, the district of which Guwahati is a part, is called Kamrup.

The ancient myths of female sexuality related to Kamakhaya are omnipresent in some present-day beliefs where the women of the north-east region of India are sometimes described as “magicians” who can turn stranger men into sheep and keep them as their slaves, not letting them go back to their homes.

KAMAKHAYA TEMPLE

A wooden passage connects the Kamakhaya parking place/bus stop to the path going towards the temple. The whole passage is also lined with shops selling prayer materials and other trinkets. Along the passage sit many sadhu (ascetics in orange clothes) and beggars, who usually ask for alms from persons coming back from the temple visit.

The temple is placed along an east-to-west axis, starting with the Garbhagriha near the gate, followed by other three inter-connected buildings. The fourth building is the site for the animal sacrifices (black goats). The image below has been taken from the western end and shows the first 3 buildings of the temple.

The sculptures on the external walls can be divided into 4 groups - sacred figures, daily life figures, plants and animal figures and geometric designs. Many sacred sculptures are in eastern style found in eastern part of India (in the states of Odisha, Bengal and Assam).

The male sacred figures include different representations of Shiva, especially those in which he is shown as the destroyer of the world (Bhairava). The female sacred figures are different representations of Shakti – such as Gauri (nubile girl), Uma (an adolescent girl becoming aware of her own body and its desires, symbolized by a hand-held mirror), Bhuvaneshwari holding a Veena (a music instrument) in her hands and as Kamakhaya (a woman in control of her sexuality).

Sculptures with Kamakhaya representations where the goddess freely expresses her sexuality, are sometimes partly covered (like in the image below).

The sculptures representing daily life include a beautiful depiction of a mother breast feeding her baby (in the image below).

AMBUBASHI FESTIVAL

The annual Ambubashi festival is celebrated in June and usually coincides with the arrival of the monsoon rains. This festival celebrates the menstruation of Kamakhaya and the renewal of her fertility cycle. For three days the doors of Garbhagriha are closed while huge crowds of persons gather outside the temple to sing, dance and pray. On the fourth day when the temple doors are opened, there are huge crowds to visit and pray to the goddess.

Ambubashi period is considered especially important for those who believe in Tantrik way of worship. Thus, tantrik sadhu (ascetics, wearing orange or red or black clothes) come out from their isolation in the mountains to visit the temple and to conduct special prayer ceremonies (in the image below).

Baul singers who are wandering minstrels, singing about love of nature, freedom and humanity, represent a syncretic tradition of the north-east. They include Vaishnav Hindu sadhu and Muslim Sufi saints, and are a very heterogeneous group. Groups of Bauls also gather at Kamakhaya during the Ambubashi time (two Baul singers in the images below).

Thousands of pilgrims come to Guwahati for Ambubashi and the government organises free camps to host them. Free transport is also organised for pilgrims from Kamakhaya gate to the temple. A huge fair with hundreds of village shops is held near Kamakhaya temple on this occasion.

Though Guwahati can be impossibly hot and humid in that period, Ambubashi is one of the best times to visit Kamakhaya temple and Nilachal hill. Personally, I think that the opportunity to listen to the different Baul singers lost in their mystic trance is the best part of Ambubashi.

OTHER PLACES TO VISIT ON NILACHAL HILL

Nilachal hill has five Shiva temples – Siddheshwar, Kameshwar, Kotilinga, Aghor and Amratkeswar.

Siddheshawar temple in front of the parking place of Kamakhaya is one of the ancient temples of this region. It has some beautiful sculptures, probably dating back to medieval period. This temple is under Archaeological Survey of India. Unfortunately there are uncontrolled constructions all around this temple, that tower above the temple and deface its ancient beauty.

Tara temple with stairs going up near the entry gate of Kamakhaya temple is another small, but beautiful ancient building. As with Siddheshwara temple, here also uncontrolled constructions of multi-story concrete buildings around the temple, disturb its ambiance.

Bhairava temple near the base of Nilachal hill and Bagala temple near Kamakhaya are both known for their importance in Tantrik worship. If you follow the main road going up beyond the Kamakhaya temple, you can see the entrance to the Bagala temple.

If you will continue climbing the hill beyond Bagala temple, you will reach the top of Nilachal hill with the Bhuvaneshwari temple.

From here you can see a panorama of Guwahati city as well as the river Brahmaputra with its white sandy beaches below the hill. Across the river, on the other side, on a clear day you can also see the new buildings of Guwahati IIT.

CONCLUSIONS

Hiking up from the base of the Nilachal hill to Kamakhaya temple requires stamina and preparation. It is easier to take a state bus or a shared taxi to the temple and then walk around. However, at the end of the visit you can walk down and visit the other temples that line this road.

I like this tradition of acknowledging and respecting the female sexuality of Kamakhaya. This walk is a great way to understand and appreciate some of the complexities of Hinduism.

Unfortunately the management of Kamakhaya temple has not been able to provide basic services like a proper place for depositing shoes and bags. Even worse, uncontrolled constructions have spoiled many of the ancient temples near Kamakhaya.

Not withstanding this neglect, it is the simple faith of sadhus, Baul singers and ordinary pilgrims from far away places that will touch your heart during the Kamakhaya visit, especially during the annual Ambubashi festival.

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Guwahati City Walks – Basistha temple

Finally I am ready to start with my Guwahati city walks – discovering this city through easy walking tours. For the first Guwahati tour I have chosen a simple and beautiful city temple located at the base of a hill and surrounded by a lush green forest – the Basistha temple.

Situated at the base of verdant hills, close to a waterfall, this walk will also give you an opportunity to admire nature as well as the art of young students from Guwahati.

It is an easy walk, though depending upon the season, Guwahati can be a little hot and humid. So keep an umbrella or a hat with you, along with a bottle of water. And we are ready to go!

REACHING BASISTHA TEMPLE

The Basistha temple is at the south-western edge of Guwahati. The road near the state government secretariat in Dispur (Last Gate road), passing through Beltola and Basistha chariali, will take you to this temple located at the base of a hill.

The temple is connected by frequent city buses that pass on the main A.T. and G. S. roads. Just make sure that you take a bus that clearly specifies “Basistha temple” (in case of doubt, ask the bus conductors before boarding it). This is important as some of the buses terminate near Natun Bazar of Basistha, around 2 km before the temple. The bus going to the temple will drop you in the square right in front of it.

If you prefer, you can also take an auto or a taxi. Considering the difficulties of negotiating reasonable fares with the Guwahati auto drivers, personally I would suggest that you opt for a taxi – the city now has radio taxis such as Prime cabs and Green cabs that are convenient. In the end, you will pay slightly more or the same as the auto fare, but at least you won’t need to negotiate with some rude and sometimes, aggressive persons!

The area map below shows the places to visit during this walking tour.

WHO WAS BASISTHA

Guru Basistha was one of the original sapta-rishis, the 7 spiritual gurus described as authors of the Rigveda. He gave his name to the Basistha (Vashishtha) clan. These 7 gurus as supposed to be the 7 stars that make the Great Bear constellation that connects to the Pole star.

In north India, he is known as Guru Vashishtha. In the north-east of India, “v” is pronounced as “b” and “s” is pronounced as “sh”, leading to the apparent change in name.

There are many stories linked to Guru Basistha. The most well-known story has him as the teacher of young princes of Ayodhya in Ramayana, Ram and Lakshman.

Linked to his role as the teacher of Rama is his book “Vashishtha Yoga”, that deals mainly with the meditation part of Yoga. This book is supposed to contain his lessons to Rama about understanding the world reality, and the nature of consciousness and creation. This book explains the importance of achieving shanti (peace), proper vichar (thoughts), santosh (satisfaction) and satsang (good company).

He is also known for another book, “Vashishtha Samhita”, a treatise on “electoral astrology” dealing with the identification of the most auspicious time (mahurat) for carrying out different activities such as marriages and journeys.

Different stories credited to Basistha are probably about different persons from the Basistha clan over a period of time, each of whom had taken the title of Guru Basistha. I think that the apparent contradictions of these stories that show him in different periods of time and link him to stories in different parts of India are an example of “fractal nature” of Indian way of thinking (as explained by Harpreet Singh) and as explained by Professor Diane Ecke in her book “India: a sacred geography”.

For example, a story has him as the son of gods Mitra Varuna. Mitra and Varuna were two ancient Indo-European deities or perhaps two names of the same deity, that are mentioned in Rigveda. Ruins of ancient temples to Mitra from the Pre-Christian era, when his cult was associated with the figure of a bull, are found in Rome. Another story calls him the the Manas (human) son of god Brahma, the creator of universe for Hindus. His name also appears in some Buddhist texts such as Vinaya Pitaka.

However temples and cults to Guru Basistha are not very common in other parts of India and are certainly not as popular, as they are in Assam. For example, the popular folk theatre of Assam called Bhaona, practiced around the island of Majuli, gives a lot of importance to guru Basistha in enacting the story of Ramayana.

1 BASISTHA TEMPLE COMPLEX

The temple is placed at the base of a hill, where Basistha river passes over boulders creating different waterfalls. The temple includes different buildings.

A red temple in typical Assamese style is located at a higher level, while closer to the river, there is a temple that carries different Ganesha statues on the outer walls.

Across the river there is a sacred shrine under a tree, a small shrine to Shiva and on another small hill, a Manasha Devi temple with the story of Behula and Lakhinder.

The whole area is full of monkeys and small animals like squirrels, that seem to live together with humans without any problems.

In the rainy season, the streams of water crashing on the big dark boulders and the small waterfalls make it a wonderful place to observe nature. A simple shaking bridge over the stream usually has the monkeys jumping playfully on the ropes.

In the grounds around the stream, you can observe people conducting ritual ceremonies for the dead family members such as pinda-daan in the water or getting the head shaved after the rituals, while monkeys wait to snatch the prayer flowers and sweets.

Upstream, above another small bridge over the gushing waters takes you to an area where there are built numerous shiva-lingas in the stream. I have heard about the trek to a village on the hill beyond this point to an ancient cave, but I have yet to do it!

Local folklore says that the temple in this place goes back to many centuries, to the times of Ahom kings. However, the present day temple buildings do not look very old.

THE SQUARE OUTSIDE THE TEMPLE

In the square outside the temple, a series of charming shacks have women selling traditional packets containing flowers, incense, coconut etc. for the temple prayers.

The square where the buses stop is full of small shops selling souvenirs. This is also the place where they build elaborate house like bamboo and hay structures for the traditional Assamese festivals like Bihu.

On specific days linked to the traditional festivals, this space gets full of shops and visitors.

2 ARTS COLLEGE OF GUWAHATI

If you walk from the temple towards the city you will see the simple building of the city Fine Arts College on your left, with hostels at the top of a hill.

If you have time, take a look at the grounds of the art college as they have different examples of the sculptures and other art materials by the students.

Personally, it was absolutely wonderful to discover and visit these grounds and see some of the sculptures, many of them covered with dust, making this place look like an ancient archaeological site.

Across the road, in front of the college gate, when I visited it, there was an absolutely amazing cloth-sculpture with goddesses Durga and Kali, in vivid rust and earth colours.

MORE PLACES TO SEE IN THE AREA

Further down from the arts college, on the left you will see the Botanical Gardens (3) of Guwahati on another hill. The gardens are closed to the public and I have no idea when and if they will be reopened. Old boards in the garden show a long list of different trees and plants present in it. Old benches and paths seem to indicate that at some time in the past these gardens were functioning.

If you search for "botanical gardens of Guwahati" on internet, you will only find the mention of botanical gardens inside the city zoo while there is nothing about these botanical gardens of Basistha. I think that renovating and opening these botanical gardens will be a good step for increasing the places to visit in this part of Guwahati.

The small road (not shown in the Google map above) in front of the closed Botanical Gardens leads to the Shanti Sadhana ashram (4) where spiritual retreats and events are organised. However, I did not go inside to find out more about this Ashram, so I can’t provide more information about them.

Across the road from the Botanical garden, down an escarpment, is a tiny but charming Hanuman temple in a simple hut where women from surrounding areas gather for prayers and kirtan (singing of hymns) on Tuesdays.

If you continue on the road towards the city, on the left side you will see the Indian army camp and the army base hospital. The army camp also has a couple of prayer places, including a south-Indian Hindu temple and a Sikh gurudwara.

Across the road from the Army base hospital, there is a well-known Blind school and the office of Assam State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities. Here on the side of the road, you can take the bus or an auto to go back to the city.

A REQUEST

Unfortunately, Guwahati does not have a tradition of keeping garbage collection boxes in such tourist places. Probably that is why people visiting this temple throw away their garbage in the river or leave it wherever they can. The river shows signs of this careless behaviour, especially on festival days when it is crowded.

Though it can be equally ugly, at least the organic garbage goes back to the mother earth or monkeys take it away. However, plastic bags and aluminium foil wrappers remain there forever. So please do take care of your garbage and if possible consider using paper bags or disposable clay cups (and in the process, give work to the potters of the city).

There is a big black coloured garbage collection container in the square outside the temple, please use that.

CONCLUSIONS

I loved visiting Basistha temple very much because it brought together an encounter with the sacred traditions of Assam, as well as with natural beauty and art. The places described in this post are quite close to each other, so once you have reached Basistha temple, it is easy to walk around and visit all of them.

If you are visiting Guwahati, do keep a couple of hours to visit this beautiful place.

I hope to go back to Basistha temple some time soon to complete the village trek on the hill and to see for myself the Basistha cave. May be I will be lucky and see some elephants as well. If I do, I will tell you about it!

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