Excellent, Good, Bad & Ugly

MALWAN-CHIVLA-TARKARLI PART-II

The Konkan coastline is abundantly blessed with many rivers and rivulets, cascading down the hilly Sahyadri range and meeting the sea at various points. Although richly endowed with virginal natural beauty and teaming with plant and animal ecosystems with great biodiversity- a veritable nature lover's paradise, these rivers were a challenge to travel and communication for the inhabitants of Konkan. In order to cross these rivers, they had to travel arduously to a convenient jetty point near the mouth of the river, called in the local language as Tar (तर). They had to wait patiently, sometimes for hours, for high tide to come in when the river becomes navigable by by row boats. The boatmen who steered these canoes across, were called the Taris. The village on the south side of Karli river, takes the name of the river itself and is called Karli. The village on the north side, that is the one which you reach on crossing the "Tar", with the help of the "Taris"(तारी ), is so aptly called Tarkarli (तारकर्ली).

These were the thoughts floating in my mind when we left Parule towards Malwan and Tarkarli. We crossed the seemingly barren land called Chipi, where a new international airport is coming up. I am using the word "seemingly" on purpose. To the eyes of the hotel-to-hotel-hopping modern-day tourist, it may appear as nothing but a wasteland, where nothing grows except some wild grass, that too not more than a foot tall. During day time, if you look carefully, you may spot few snakes and vultures. But come to this place at night, the place packed with all kinds of fauna like the Dadar railway station. The wild boars, mongoose, toddy-cats, rabbits, scorpions and umpteen kinds of desert animals frequent this place. Besides this area is a great aquifer, charging the perennial wells in Parule, Walawal, Korjai and Karli.

Having buried the disturbing thoughts of desert creatures of Chipi, waiting to be attacked by the monstrous aeroplanes and its minions of modern world aficionados, we came to the bridge over Karli river and stopped to appreciate the magnificent view on either side.

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We lost the track of time just looking at the islands with swaying coconut trees, small boats plying with fishermen and tourists, schools and schools of small fish swimming in sunlit crystal clear water and content men at the other end of fishing lines oblivious to our humdrum daily grind.

It was second day of Holi and as we approached Malwan, gangs of urchins, their faces covered with all kinds of color powders, were hanging around street corners, stopping vehicles and extracting ransom for promise of un-ugly behavior. Mal-ware of Malwan!
Our first stop was Jay Ganesh Mandir of Kalnirnay fame Jayant Salgaokar. This exquisitely built temple has the Ganesh idol made of resplendent pure gold.

The ceiling of the Sabhamandap are adorned by eight watercolor pictures depicting the Ashtavinayaks, revered throughout Maharashtra. Two stately elephants in radiating white are guarding its entrance. The temple is east facing and constructed in such a way that for ten days around 14th of January the rays of rising Sun fall directly on the golden Ganesh idol, exploding the inner sanctum in all brilliance.

Next halt was Chiwla beach. This crescent shaped beach is very convenient for the residents of Malwan and affords a great view of Sarjekot and Talashil peninsula on its right. But if you turn your eyesight towards left you will be taken aback by the big eyesore of a bungalow constructed by the "you-know-who" minister. Looking at its extension in to the sea, you can't help thinking that it probably flouts the CRZ regulations of Saudi Arabia also.

When we had planned visiting Rock Garden of Malwan, I had images of Chandigarh's Rock Garden at the back of my mind. But this one turned out to be a pleasant surprise, a garden on the rocks by the sea!

It is very beautifully laid out, without moving or cutting the original rocks, so we encountered many solid rocks jutting out on the foot-walk between the flowering plants. As you cross the garden and walk towards the sea, you are awed by the contours and hues of the basalt as well as volcanic rocks.

On a platform within few feet from the sea, there is a high seat in the shape of a throne of an Emperor.


On the adjacent ledge, the rocks had taken the shape of king size beds and the crystal clear water was gently lapping on their surface not more than six inches deep. The air was warm, but the water was super cool and I had a strong urge to take off all my clothes and recline on one of those wonderfully crafted sea-beds and let the water caress my entire body with its cool hands.

See also http://powaitech.blogspot.com/2011/04/blog-post.html

River,Ocean,Setting Sun & Supermoon

KARLI RIVER PART 3




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Having reached Korjai jetty we realized that the Sun was going down very fast. We moved along the left side of the bank of Karli river, searching for a better view. That is when we chanced up on Anand Sarang’s picturesque riverside holiday home. From the lawns of this place the view of setting Sun on that very part of the horizon, between the landmass of Korjai on left and Devbaug peninsula on the right, where the large hearted Karli spreads its arms wide and gives up her own identity to become Arabian Ocean, is something to experience and treasure.

This Korjai jetty was the only way to travel to Devbaug and Malvan crossing the river by boat, few years back, till the Chipi bridge was built. Even now, the villagers of Korjai and Devbaug use the canoe to commute between their villages.

On the right side of the jetty there is an undulating river walk. This river walk running alongside Karli river is of bright brick red color of the Konkan soil. On its right are salty marshes, with pools and poodles of saline water, trapped at the time of high tide. These salt water pools are in themselves another complete universe full of its own kind of flora and fauna.

Riverwalk

The sun was disappearing like a red hot ball in to the deep underbelly of the ocean, majestic cranes with their streamlined bodies were flying westward in a V formation to roost for the night, The Super moon ( Holi evening) having come up on the eastern horizon was throwing the gauntlet to any light show on this earth to try and compete with him, the waters of the rising tide were stealthily creeping up the steps of the jetty and we decided to beat our retreat back, having totally surrendered our souls to the mysterious Karli River Goddess.

Super Moon on 19th March 2001

तोरा, ओवळा आणि पांडवांची देवळा

KARLI RIVER PART 2:
Mangoes, Bakula and Ancient temples

On the way back from Karli jetty up the hilly slope, we noticed some men harvesting raw mangoes from the wild mango trees. These raw mangoes (TORA) are in great demand all over India for pickles and chutneys. When the raw mango fruits are plucked, the gummy juice secreting from their severed stems, fills the air with a kind of pungent scintillating aroma, which activates that secret center in our brain’s sensory nervous system, which generates an intense overpowering craving for these raw fruits, which is not satiated till all the glands in your mouth, esophagus and stomach in contact with them.


Two men perched dangerously on tall branches of the well spread tree were plucking these fruits with native contraption, made of a long bamboo pole and pouch of a net called as Goke or Shibali in local tongue.
At a junction of roads on way from Karli to Korjai, we made a halt to appreciate a couple of beautiful Bakul trees. The lovely evergreen Bakul (Ovalaa) with its shiny, thick, narrow, pointed leaves is famous for its tiny cream colored flowers, which fill the night air with its delicious heady aroma. And next day when they fall to the ground, they retain their odor for many days, that has inspired the popular saying “True friendship lasts like the scent of Maulsari (Bakul)”.



Next to the Bakul tree was the famous Madhuca Latifolia tree, commonly known as Mahwa or Mahua. The flowers are edible and attract the birds. The heady wine made from the flowers is also well known.
Before going down to the Korjai Jetty, we took a left turn in the hills. The road was very narrow. On the left a steep hill with thick jungle of thorny corinda ( करवंद ) bushes, teak & badam trees, on right a sheer fall in to the coconut and betel nut palm tops leading down to the slow flowing water of Karli river a few yards further down. Path was dotted with tiled village homes whose gardens were adorned with many creepers and vegetable plants. We stopped at a projecting view point, soaking in the swaying palms, sleepy little islands in the river, white cranes deeply lost in their trance of meditation, diving kingfishers plucking off the unsuspecting gullible tiny fish and intoxicating fragrance of Son-chamfa.


We came upon some ancient caves now covered with a roof called as “ पांडवकालीन शिवमंदिर”. Climbing down the steps leading to this temple, branches of big Bakul tree were brushing our heads. We spotted some fruits in ripe yellow color and tasted a few. The temple was simply built, however, without in any way disturbing the historic caves and and its artefacts. There was a newly built jetty in front of the temple and view of the river and that of Tarkarli on the opposite side was magnificent.

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तस्मै श्री गुरवे नम: ॥

In the kingdom of Nostalgia – तारी मास्तर

Last month I took some time off and paid a visit to my birth place, Vengurla. It was just a casual visit, sauntering lazily through the town and recollecting the nostalgic moments of my childhood and school days. We had reached a non-descript one story building on the Main Road, with sloping tiled roof, with facade of wooden ribs and a tall compound wall made of lateritic stone. “That’s my school, my primary school!” I said to my wife, recollecting about the days, when I was in 7^th standard.

The floodgate of my memories burst open. Once upon a time, I was running across the street to reach the school in time before the bell stopped ringing, singing hoarsely with the chorus the “Geetai” by Vinoba Bhave, squatting barefooted on the floor cross-legged & writing down on a stone slate, playing mischief during the study breaks. But the most intense and moving memory of all was that of Tari Sir.

Tari Sir was the headmaster of School No. 3, a primary Marathi medium school of Vengurla. He was known as a very stern and disciplinarian headmaster. Let alone students, even the other teaching staff was afraid of him. Initially, while talking to him I could not raise my eyes from my twiddling toes and it took me a couple of months to discover the divine qualities of this gem of a man.

Those days, during the academic year of 7^th standard, there used to be a competitive examination, passing which with good marks; one could avail of a scholarship for next four years of schooling. I was selected with five other students from this school, to appear for this examination and Tari Sir had taken upon himself to coach and prepare the aspirants. Coaching had to be carried out without disturbing the normal hours, spending extra time at school. That is the time I discovered the excellent personality of Tari Sir. Loving, caring, encouraging and completely dedicated to the welfare of his wards.

After a tiring day spent in teaching and administering the school, Tari Sir would teach us for long hours with a smile on his face, kindling our interest in solving difficult sums and understanding nuances of literature. When we were tired with fatigue, he would look up enthusiastically and ask, “Shall we play cricket?” We would jump up in affirmation and close all the doors and windows of the school building. The building was actually a single huge room, demarcated by chalk marks into separate class divisions. With a stack old slates serving as stumps, he would take guard with a worn out old bat and ask one of us to bowl underhand, with a tennis ball. Many a times, I have glanced up at the photograph of Mahatma Gandhi adorning the wall, with suspicion that there was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes and amused smile on his face.

At that young age, we would get famished in no time during our coaching time. Tari Sir quickly comprehended our problem. He disposed off the old magazines and newspapers, which had been donated to the school and with that money he would buy some snacks for us. Whenever I reflect back on those days, I ask myself, why was this man with a family and home of his own was going out of his way to care so much for us, who would be out of the school anyway the very next year!

The scholarship examinations were to be held in Winter and the test centre was at Savantwadi, about 30 kilometers from our town. The number of students had come down to three, including me. We would have to travel to Savantwadi and stay there 2/3 days, during that period. Parents of the students concerned were not inclined to go out of town and advised us to forget about the test. Not to be undone, Tari Sir applied for a leave of absence from the school and accompanied us to Savantwadi. He booked a room in a lodge, to be shared by four of us.

He would teach us till late night, get up early to get us all prepared clean and bright and take us for breakfast. He would then accompany us to the test centre, bidding Good Luck. When we would finish answering the morning test paper and come out of the exam hall, we would see him waiting there for us, with a hot lunch-box and four plates, lest we waste our valuable time. Over the lunch, he would join us in a quick recap of the next test questions. As we went back again, we would see his figure walking away taking the empty lunch-box. Once again after the afternoon test, we would see his smiling figure, waiting for us, to take us back to the lodge.

During my career, I have come across many teachers, some of them with multiple PhDs and research papers to their credit, some whose portraits are adorning the entrance halls of renowned institutions, but if you ask me who is the best teacher I had, from the bottom of my heart I would say, TARI SIR!

Such unselfish dedication, such genuine feeling of responsibility for the students and most of all such positive attitude to take on any hardship for their sake, I am yet to come across on this planet...... तस्मै श्री गुरवे नम: ॥

Adinarayan, Crabs, Oysters and Alexandrian Laurel

KARLI RIVER PART 1:
Adinarayan, Crabs, Oysters and Alexandrian Laurel

In the afternoon, we started with a visit to the Adinanarayan temple nearby. This is a temple of Sun God and one of the few Sun temples in India, dedicated to this primordial source of energy. This temple deity is a family deity of Kudaldeshkar community, one of the categories of Gaud Saraswat Brahmins in India.


This temple, although renovated in the recent past, has still preserved some parts of the ancient wood carvings, which were part of the Sabhamandap in the old temple. Lord Adinarayan in his majestic form oversees his devotees in stern but protective gaze, in the form of black stone statue.
It is a tradition in Indian temples that whenever these temples are renovated and old idols are replaced with new ones, with pomp and ceremony, accompanied by chanting of Mantras, the old idols are taken out in procession and installed at base of a Pipal tree (Sacred Fig) in the same compound.

This temple is no exception and one can see the historically important centuries old stone idols can be seen on a concrete pedestal at the base of Pipal tree nearby. This particular Pipal tree is very interesting. Although we cannot guess its age, it must be at least 200 years old, it had many different creepers growing on it, with some strange multicolour berries.


We proceeded towards Karli jetty in the western direction, a downward winding path lined up on both sides by a wild variety of tall mango trees. Karli jetty at the end of the Karli village overlooks the wide river basin, meeting the Arabian Sea. On the opposite side is Devbaug, the cocoa-nut tree dense peninsula, separating the river from the Sea.

It was a low tide at the jetty and the amphibian creatures from the backwater were having their day out, on the marshy slopes of the river bank. Of all those crawling life forms, one standing out in particular, was the “Single Pincer Crab”. There were several colonies of this crustacean at this place. They were in various sizes and colours. A variety of amphibian fish (Shevta) was also seen hopping around like a miniature version of walrus, in a few millimetre deep water and slush.

Single Pincer Crab

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As we were engrossed observing these fauna, Bhayya had vanished somewhere and he resurfaced grinning and holding a transparent jar filled with some dumpling like lumps floating in sea water.
KALWA! He cried out with glee, indicating that he has managed to obtain the best delicacy (Rock oysters), and my saliva glands went in to super drive. I gave a loving glance to the would-be gastronomical delights and held on to the jar tightly for the rest of the journey, lest the water may spill out and the creatures die a premature death!
At Karli jetty a number of Undee trees (Calophyllum inophyllum, Alexandrian Laurel) were thriving in the saline atmosphere, laden with abundant Undee fruits.

These fruits yield a kind of thick greenish oil when dried, which burns very slowly providing a completely smokeless light. In the olden days, the local people used to carry torches (Mashals) soaked in Undee oil, when travelling at night in the dark jungles of Konkan region. A few ounces of this oil, soaked up on the torches, would last the entire night. What an eco-friendly torch, a real gift from Mother Nature!

Undee Tree & Fruits

BIRTHDAY BASH AT DOLPHIN'S BAY

HOLI - March 19, 2011
I woke up feeling very cold and with a thought at the back of my mind that the air conditioner must be set properly. Then I realized that it was the air which was naturally chill and we were not in Thane but snuggled up in the lap of the nature in Konkan.
There was a light mist outside and ribbons of blue smoke were rising from Mangalore tile rooftops of small houses, peeping out of the green vegetation. Only sounds audible were the strange multitudes of sweet tweets the birds were greeting each other. A large, shiny and beautiful spider, straight out of Harry Potter stories, tried to spook me in front of the basin mirror, but slunk away after smelling my polluted breath.
Hey! I am turning 60 years old today, as per Hindu calendar! As I was reflecting as to what possible useful meaning the number 60 has, except for the bar tender, Chitra surprised me with an amazing greeting card. I wonder how she manages to discover such meaningful cards for these occasions!



Breakfast was something like a dream come true. Crisp and aromatic Thalipeeth with freshly made soft mounds of butter! And a taste-bud-tantalizing pickle. made of seasoned Amla.

With a sumptuous breakfast down our throats and with ambiguous expectations in our hearts, we ventured out for our Beach & Botany tour in a Suzuki Omni. A few hundred meters down the road, we halted to collect fresh Bakul (Mimusops elengi) flowers. The large Bakul tree was full of bloom and its delicious heady aroma had percolated in the surroundings. Next to the Bakul was an interesting palm tree, called as भेरलो माड in Konkani and as सुरमाड in Marathi. Its decorative fronds are used for preparation of flower bouquets ands its bark is used to make eco-friendly big and wide water channels for gardens.
Passing by the side of Adinarayan temple, we crossed the sleepy Parule Market, a bunch of deserted shops just coming out of coma.The climb through the hills towards Bhogwe was littered with many interesting trees and shrubs and Our host and guide Bhayya Samant was a avid Botany enthusiast and an expert on local flora.



Before the road starts its downward winding journey towards Bhogwe beach, there is spot which may be easily overlooked in the anxiety to rush to the beach. But when we stopped here and looked through branches of trees, we were mesmerized by the spell binding view.

On the right is the aerial view of the confluence of Karli river, Arabian sea and the backwater, as if the Devbaug peninsula, the Kanyakumari of Malvan has been brought from heaven and placed there besides Tarkarli beach. On the left are the pearly sands of Bhogwe beach, disappearing into the jagged rocks of Nivti fort. I am sure, if the great saint poet Tukaram had a glimpse of this spot, he would have summarily dismissed the idea of going bodily to heaven and stayed here eternally.
After rolling down the road to Bhogwe jetty, we spotted the boatmen dutifully waiting for our arrival. Digambar and his friend greeted us with warm smiles. After a short walk on the sand climbed aboard a small boat beached in the surf.

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The outboard engine sputtered to life and we were a short distance in the sea soaking in the view of the sun, surf, sand and the swaying palms and Lo! We gaped at two tiny torpedo-like objects jumping out from our starboard side. The dolphins were heartily greeting us on this auspicious day of Holi. It was a pair, frolicking in the morning sun, eating the tiny fish for breakfast and disappearing again beneath the water. And as if by some magic, they started multiplying. Further down there were four of them, then six, and again eight to ten. Somewhere at this point of time we stopped keeping the count and in our hearts thanked the Almighty for sending down to us this day a whole school of the most wonderful creatures in the sea.
On one side the Bhogwe beach was rolling its royal carpet of lightening white, further down the Nivti fort, relic of sea battles and sentinel protector for Sindhudurg fort, was baring his sharp and jagged teeth.


Between the jagged rocks of Nivti fort, we noticed a secret tiny inaccessible beach with an alcove formed by jutting rocks to create a super cool mysterious retreat, fit enough for the secret affairs of some billionaire Casanova or another secret entrance to Phantom’s Skull Cave.

Our boatmen spotted a fishing boat out at sea, pulling its catch and they looked at us with those mischievous question marks on their faces (Are you folks game for a detour?). Our answer was an unequivocal YES!


Cruising near the fishing boat, we noticed the green, blue and red floaters delineating the area of the net and our boat crew skilfully manoeuvred our boat skirting the net and came alongside the fishing boat. I grabbed the side of the fishing boat and jumped on it like a seafaring pirate who has been forcibly kept away for decades. The fresh catch of Mackerel and other silvery fish was rolling its eyes through the dark red coloured net while gasping for its last breath. The fishermen greeted us warmly and offered some fresh fish for us to take home with us.
WE ARE NOT ECONOMICALLY WEAK! Came a sharp shout from an unassuming figure in the corner, when I offered a tip to buy them a cup of tea. This millionaire entrepreneur was squatting in a corner of the boat, stitching a broken net with his bare hands. Our boatmen informed us that he is a sea-lord, who owns many such boats, has landed property, a fish distribution business and also builds boats for other fisher folk. It was really heart warming to see this generation of sons of the soil venturing out on their own and not running after white collar jobs.
On our backward journey, we entered the Karli backwaters and cruised closer to the Devbaug peninsula, whose fabulous view we had earlier seen from hill top. This sandwiched long strip of land between on one side the deep blue Arabian sea and on the other side the greenish steady flow of Karli river, was looking like a handsome bare leg of an Angel, who was trapped in the act of taking his leap towards the heaven.



The narrow strip beach between river and sea on our left, nearly the size of a cricket pitch, slowly merged in to swaying palms of Devbaug. Sleepy fishing village with boats moored near the jetty slowly gave way to a tourist resort with houseboats and speedboats as we progressed in to the Karli River. Up ahead we could see a large natural island in the river, thick with vegetation. On our right the sloping green hills of Karli and Korjai villages were cuddling up with the placid flow of the river.
Just as we took the U-turn for our return journey, we saw the “Tsunami Island”. This sand mass the size of a tennis court suddenly appeared in the middle of the river mouth after 2004 tsunami, which hit the east coast of India. Now it is a tourist attraction with few shacks serving hot/cold beverages and snacks to the tourists who set foot on this island. To our misfortune, it was high tide now and the island was submerged by knee-deep water.


One young liveried attendant, looking after forlornly at his snack counters. He appeared like a young sea pirate, punished for some petty crime and abandoned at this place to rue his misdemeanours.

ARISE ...... O BHARAT

We have all watched with utmost horror, the blatant terrorist killings in Mumbai on 26/11. We have been shouting hoarse in condemnation and repeating endlessly that we shall not allow such hideous acts again. We shall hunt the perpetrators and destroy them along with their roots.

We have the naked proof in front of our eyes as to who are the villains, who are their supporters and who are their financiers. Even after all this, we are afraid of taking immediate and fitting action.

We are muttering all kinds of veiled threats and hoping against hope that somebody else will do our bidding and protect us.

This pathetic situation reminds me of what our great saint Dnyneshwar has said in Dnyaneshwari, his epic poetic interpretation of Gita.

जात्यन्धा लागे पिसे
मग ते सैरा वैरा धावे जैसे
तुझे शहाणपण तैसे
दिसतसे

Your so-called wise bickering at this situation appears to me like the state of a blind man who has gone insane and is running helter-skelter.

What are we really afraid of? Are we so scared of these brainwashed fundamentalists or their Pakistani stooges? Dnyaneshwar very aptly describes this situation.

सिंहासी झोंबे कोल्हा
ऐसा अपाडु आथि कां जाहला
परी तो त्वां साच केला
आजि एथ

Is it so fearfully unthinkable, if a lowly jackal attacks a lion? Your actions speak as if you believe so!

Why are we so much pondering over what is diplomatically proper and what is not? Whom are we trying to protect? The very same enemies, who are supporting these cowardly acts.

हां गा तूं जाणता
तरी विचारिसि का आता
सांगे झुंजावेळे सदयता
उचित कायी

You know the answers very well! Then why are you not taking the proper
course? In war there is no place for such kindly considerations.

Are we intimidated by nuclear war and its consequences? It is not in our control to avoid this result. On the other hand, by delaying we can only make it more gruesome and devastating! Our resolve must remain firm at such times!

ह्रुदयाचे ढिलेपण
एथ निकयासि नव्हे कारण
हे संग्रामी पतन जाण
क्षत्रियासी

This weakness of resolve, will it result in any good? NEVER! It will undoubtedly lead to fall from grace for the real YOU!

A stitch in time saves nine.

ARISE ………. O BHARAT