The name Himalayas brings up many images. Of course Mount Everest comes immediately to mind. But there’s more to this range of mountains that stretches from Pakistan in the west across India, Bhutan and Nepal before ending in China. Tibetan Buddhism also has an association with the region, although China swallowed Tibet itself in 1950. Within
Articles Tagged India
GODDESS GANGA
There I was, trying to write a scene in my fictionalized biography of the Pandita Ramabai, and failing. At this point in the story, Rama is nine years old. It’s hard to write from a child’s perspective. The family is in Varanasi, the holiest city in India. Pilgrims and tourists daily arrive in great numbers.
PHOTOGRAPHIC MEMORIES
Once upon a time, people went on vacations and took something called “slides.” Shortly after they returned home, these now knowledgeable former tourists rushed to develop the slides so they could invite friends, acquaintances, and the occasional unlucky stranger to join them for light refreshments and a “slide show.” The host loaded slides into a
FLIGHT TO ANOTHER WORLD
After 3 weeks in Agra, it was time to leave on Saturday. So I took a few last pictures of my host’s upscale, professional neighborhood. Gated homes for doctors and lawyers, a temple, the occasional cow in the common area, and, first seen on the day of departure, donkeys near the improvisational housing across the
ROAD TO YAMUNA RIVER
My Agra host lives in a very nice neighborhood on the western side of Agra. Usually, when we get to the main road, we turn right. This takes us into the town and its traffic. The other day we turned left. In moments we were in a countryside of wheat fields, cattle, and goats, driving
GETTING SETTLED IN AGRA
Time is strange here in Agra — that feeling that you just got here but have always been here. We are especially fortunate on this visit, because we are staying with friends. this allows us to experience patterns of regular life in a professional Indian household. The first thing I’ve learned is that the home
AH, INDIA
Sunday I arrived at Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi for my fourth visit to India. I am constantly drawn back to this place of chaos and contrast, and relish the chance to see the world from a perspective so different I cannot adequately describe it. Today’s blog features a few interesting sights on the
ELLORA CAVES – SITE OF RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE
The Ellora Caves are eighteen miles northwest of Aurangabad, a small town in the Indian state of Maharashtria. Like the Ajanta Caves, the Ellora Caves are carved from a sheer vertical rock face. Unlike Ajanta, Ellora represents a more tolerant age during the Gupta period. At Ellora, Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain devotees coexisted and created
PILGRIMAGE TO THE AJANTA CAVES
It was a beautiful day in Augrangabad, India. The early morning was pleasantly warm. At mid-morning we neared the day’s temperature of 40∘ Centegrade – which is roughly 110∘ Fahrenheit for those of us who have yet to switch to metric. Either way, it was very warm. But, as the saying goes: “At least it
MONKEY BUSINESS AT PENCH NATIONAL PARK, INDIA, OR, CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH THE COMMON LANGUR MONKEY
Namaste – I’m glad to be with you again. As you may know from my few Facebook postings, I’ve been in India for three and a half weeks. I have lots of stories to tell. I would have told them sooner, but 1.) Internet connection was not always the best, and 2.) I was doing
