The wings and the shades

You are that spring blossomed tree

On whose tender branches I rest

All day long attended to her flute

Often my flight carries me to a distant call

Soon I come flapping as you send the wind

Purblinded by the fragrance I remembered most

And I tell you the stories of distant Kingdoms

While you cudddled me with words of wisdom

Frightened for the river was flowing turbulent

And the wind storming the north

But i must fly for that all I had Known

There you shook me off from the branches violently

While I watched patiently from the banks of that estuary

The storm calmed and the feathered found its lap

The spring blossomed tree wanted to have his nest 

But solitary he was always eyes at the horizon

At times she got breathless chasing him away

He could never get far,kept coming back

Forever Again 

(Sept 2016) Thanamir :The legends of the apple tree and the doorways to Mt Saramati

     

            On the frontiers of Indo Myanmar border, clutching its claws on the mighty mountain ranges of Nagaland there lies the unique creation of mother nature, the Thanamir village. The lush green village is located in Kiphire district at the base of the highest mountain of Nagaland i.e. Mt. Saramati and serves as last stop for trekkers attempting to Summit Mt Saramati. We arrived there after hours of travel from Pungro  town through serpentine muddy roads enjoying the light brown scenes of the corn cultivations all along the length of the road. As we arrived in the village we were welcomed by the ingenuous villagers and allowed us to stay in the village guest house . The village guest house was one storeyed traditional house shaped out of wood and it looked majestic from inside as well as outside. We were stationed at first storey and through the small wooden windows we can see the small towns of Kiphire district playing hide and seek beneath the clouds and the mighty ranges near Saramati on the side.

Thanamir village is famous for its apple cultivation and also known as the Apple village. In order to promote apple cultivation and tourism the village hosts the Apple festival every year. We were given a tour of the village by the local guide and villagers and we tasted apples and collected fresh vegetables for our meal .We roamed the entire village and people were so kind and innocent that sometimes it become hard to believe that such a rich cultural heritage exist so far into the borders.At times our companions tried to clicked the photos of the lovely children playing around and to our utter surprise,they ran away hither and dither and thus we had fun chasing and playing with these innocent little creatures who did not have much exposure to cameras and modern equipments.

This part of the world is inhabited by the Yimchunger and Konyak tribe. Thanamir village is a colony of thatched houses with a centrally located community field , vegetable gardens at the backyards of each house ,mithuns grazing the field.The villagers still embraced in their hearts century old traditions and customs guarding them against erosion from the influence of modern human civilizations.The ancient colony has numerous houses whose wooden walls are lined with hundreds of skulls of wild animals hunted down since ages.From skulls wild mithun to musk dear to squirrels and many of them which I had no idea the wall stood as a museum of proud hunting traditions.The elders of the village roam around wearing hats with pointing hornbill beaks and feathers.There is a morung located downhill in the village  which housed a traditional Naga log drum.The log drums are integrals elements of Naga village culture .All announcement of village meetings, news of any inhabitants death or warnings of any external danger are given through the medium of log Drums and accordingly the residents respond.The drum is curved out of a single mammoth log and its inside is made hollow.There are several dumbbell shaped wooden pieces and villagers beat on the faces of the log with definite repetitive patterns and the combine sound resonates through the village.Out of inquisitiveness we started beating its face with rhythm and it was real fun.

Since Thanamir is known as apple village ,the story of its cultivation is worth mentioning.During the first half of 1980’s Assam rifle stationed a check post in the village.One of the village resident Youngphukhiung befriended a Nepali Jawan named Naik and gifted him wild boar meat .Naik then handed him four Kashmiri apples .Yim planted three seeds in his backyard and soon a sapling grew and in 1984 the tree bore the first apple .This tree is still there in the village and is known as “Mother apple Tree”.We went near that blessed tree which was fenced .It was old and weak but nevertheless still bore fruits

  Wildlife conservation has gained momentum here and the age old horned skulls of animals hunted by the forefathers of the village inhabitants are still show cased and serve as proud belonging of a hunting clan.

The insulated fine finished wooden structure of the village kept was warm.We spread our mattress over the floors of first storey and the sounds of foot steps over the wooden slabs constantly reminded us of our remoteness from the usual concrete confinements. Through the window the sparkling lights of the distant villages  over the towering mountains looked like tiny constellations in silent dark sky of kiphire.Far east there was the summit of Mt saramati guarded by extremely dense forests of rhododendrons and the next we shall be climbing over her body hoping that she shall accept us in her tranquil couch.

Thanamir is also the second LED village in Nagaland after its neighboring village Fakim .They are making use of natural light, paint interior white to reduce need for lighting, use energy efficient CFL, LED and solar charged lights instead of tungsten bulb, switch off lights when not in use and spreading this message to family, friends and relatives.

Though thanamir serves as base camp for Mt saramati and hosts apple festival there are more places of amzing wonder near the village which we promised to visit in near future.from the tales ,stories and informations gathered from the guides these are some of the places :

Fakim Wildlife Santuary  in the eastern hills close to the Myanmar rises to almost 3000 meters and receives heavy rainfall in June- July every year  housing various flora- fauna, avifauna and plants, many of which have a medicinal value.  

Tizu River with its beautiful soft white sand, flows into the Irrawaddy River in Myanmar snaking between Pungro and Meluri Sub-divisions is an ideal location for anglers.

Limestone Caves in Mimi, Salomi and Khongjiri;

Giant rock bee honey harvesting near Mimi and Khonjiri villages;  

 kholar festival at Pungro . 

The serpentine muddy road from pungro ,the light brown corn fields adjacent to the road ,the green mushroom like dense forest in the jungle and the mighty saramati mountain on the frontier shall be imprinted in our hearts as long as we stay exist.

(14 AUG 2017) SANGTI VALLEY- A SYMBOL OF PEACE AND SERENITY

              It was about 10.30 pm at night and suddenly a call came.My friend on the other side said that they have decided to go arunachal and wheather I would be able to go.Unable to resist the temptation of arunachal I accepted the proposal and took out my small car and headed for club where 3 of my friends were waiting. I had no spare tire and heading for arunachal at this time of intense landslide and thunder showers would be real stupid without it.So we went to anirban’s place and while he diverted his mother’s attention we stole the spare tire from his car and headed for our destination.Nitu drove the whole night and in morning when his eyes were at the threshold of shutting down I took to the steering wheel.At about 7,30am we reached balipara and had breakfast and waited for the studio and xerox shop to open.We procuered our passport photos and photocopied our documents and headed for Bhalukpong where we shall apply for our ILP for arunachal at 10.00.At about 10.30 am our permit was ready and with renewed vigor we headed uphill.

We drove ahead below the shades of forest trees on either side ,occasionally getting the glimpse of kameng river running down and Nameri wildlife sanctuary on both sides.From distant the mountains called us queued one behind the other.The local langurs criss crossed our paths ,jumping from one tree to another.Light drizzles made the weather  shady with clouds running in the wind forming various imaginary shapes.We crossed tipi and witnessed the force of water leaped from peaks of the mountains forming numerous waterfalls.Out of them the Lumum falls shaped out majestically splashing out its water jets at our face as we haulted to come closer to it.

Finally the road detoriated and eroded patches with heaps of landslide mud on either side slowed down our march.at some points the streams dissected the road violently and our car being a smal light weak medium shivered with fear of being washed downhill but bravely it passed with occasional hiccups.But the most problematic was the heaps of mud and the car would stop, cry out loud with the wheel spinning vigorously and we had to push with our might,our face and clothes splashed with dirt.finally at about 6.30 we reached Dirang.

We hopped into the hotel and the next morning a local boy took us to a nearby village .the whole dirang town was visible like a hamlet of tranquil inhabitants.The dirang monastery sood imposingly at the distant,pine trees towered the sky,clouds putting a veil over the peaks.The prayer flags spoke of the serene existence.The Dirang river passed the town with settlements on its bank.

We packed up and headed for our much awaited destination of sangti valley.Through the serpentine muddy paths we climbed altitude passing through the alpine forest with fruits gardens all around the slopes of the mountain.One striking feature of the vegetation was the large presence of cannabis trees all around reminding me of parvati valley.Finally we reached the regional Sheep breeding farm and enquired if we can stay there on which a person told us to wait and he will send Daju or elder brother in Nepali.

 Daju came to the farm and took us to an elevated Assam type cottage.The house was majestic with several rooms and kitchen and he told that it was ours for that day making us elated.The regional sheep breeding farm was a large area nestled on the inclined slope of the mountains.There were pigs rearing fields and ponds.The whole slopes of the mountains were doted by thousands of sheeps  grazing on fresh alpine grasses .The farm has a plot where there are rows of pear trees and all of them were loaded with fruits .with greed for freshly plucked pear,we started plucking ,shaking,jumping and in a matter of time their were plenty and we ate till our belly was full.On the other side of the road the cultivations of corn dominated the topography.

The sangti village has a total population of 630. There are about 155 houses in the Village. With an altitude of about 1500 m, the winters here are cold and dry. The landscape is that of a wide, open valley with paddy fields, some of which are marshy along the river on one side. The Morpa community which inhabits this area are mainly Buddhists and also followers of the ancient animist tradition. Rituals involving sacrifice are still prevalent amongst the animists. Agriculture is one of the occupations practiced by the villagers, in which most agriculturalists grow paddy and maize. Besides this, horticulture, rearing of hens, sheep, cows, goats, pigs and horses is also practiced.

We followed the sangti river upstream and at the location where the road passes over a spectacularly located steel bridge,we decided put our camps.On the banks of the sangti river on an open wide grassland we sat circling enjoying the silence of the valley.The clouds covered the peaks of the mountains,the river rushed down with thunder and on the distant horizon mountains guarded the valley taking in its arms numerous apple gardens.The pine trees towered to the sky and we immersed ourselves I the cold waters of the river trying to keep our bodies afloat. Soon we lost the count of time,totally emptied our minds from the usual existence.it was now a shanty valley or a valley of peace. After some time few men with hunting rifles approached us,bedazzled to see us lost in the beauty of the valley.One of them invited us to his house as a guest and we reciprocated by promising to visit him.

We wandered around the village overjoyed to see their peaceful existence.There were prayer wheels after regular intervals and we stopped at each of them and turned the wheels hoping to get the blessings of Buddha.Pomegranate trees stood firmly along the length of the road .The kiwi fruit gardens with small cottages in between made us wanting for them but there was still time for their harvesting.

This open valley has been an ideal habitat for the wintering black-necked crane, now an endangered species. These birds have been regularly visiting this valley since the early 1950s. It is an ideal breeding ground for these avian visitors and the marshy lowlands act as a good source of food supply for them. The black-necked cranes arrive towards the end of November or early December and leave the area by early February.

Back at the Breeding farm cottage daju dined our meal.He was extremely proficient in cooking.Late at night we went out searching for Letro,the man who invited us at the banks of santi earlier in the day.We soon found his homestay and people there rushed to call him.It was an one storied cottage .below in the kitchen a lady was preparing wine from freshly fermented corn,a specialty of this valley.Letro came and took us upstairs and we were amazed to see the arrangements .there were wooden sofas positioned in a rectangular way ,wooden railings that would have provided a view to a stream below if it was day time.He entertained us with his funny tales and future plans to make this valley a travelling hotspot.there were mithun meat,local corn wine,local chutneys and Letro’s humourous company.our bodies were flying with the influence fresh corn wines and we laughed loudly in each other’s funny tales. Letro told us that this was on of the place which hosted a famous travel series kalki’s great escape in which Kalki Koechlin and her father documented the amazing places of arunachal and the sangti episode was shot in this house.We were amazed by his humble nature.We bade him farewell and asked how can we pay him for his hospitality and delicious food and wine.He pointed us to a room in the home stay and told us jokingly that the father daughter duo after battles of wine drinking will lay in that room laughing and high on the local strong wines. I also suddenly realized that we are also very high probably on the clouds of sangti but I had no wish to come down.We  bade him farewell and asked him how we can pay him for his hospitality,on which replied “kitna doge?? Ek laakh??” and continued laughing loudly.

The next morning with heavy heart we said good by  to the valley of peace promising to return soon.

THE SEARCH FOR ABSOLUTE FREEDOM

Sitting on the edge of the cliff with his eyes gazing above on the starry universe ,his inner soul gets wet wit divine joyous tears just to feel the fact that he is a part of that vast majestic mystic shining existence.And he peeks down below and can see the city in silence with bright blocks of lights stacked above one another, flocks of human running across the street,childrens playing in the distant just to realize how infinitesimally small each activity and things feels when compared to the beautiful vastness he witnessed above. He now wants to meet the angel of freedom ,absolute freedom and wishes some sort of spaceship shall carry him into the vastness though it was not possible.Slowly with the bright visions of the vastness his eyes closes down and  lifts him from the cliff ,then to the space and to the stars leaving behind his mortal shell.

   The idea of absolute freedom seems to be of vague to me. As freedom cannot be measured in degree but can only be realized on comparative terms, the idea becomes subjective. Our outward material existence can never attain absolute freedom and a try to do so shall result in chaos and conflict with other people’s idea of freedom. Hence restrictions which are a summation of all those conflicting domains are imposed leaving behind only those freedoms which do not infringe on other people’s freedom. Freedom as such can be thought in its absolute state but can never be practiced in its absoluteness.

            On the contrary a deep reflection on inner soul perhaps gives a ray of hope that such a state can truly be achieved. I had a firm believe that what becomes of a human being is a result of circumstances and environments through which he has been exposed to and there is no escape from that. But gradually it became clear that a person is also influenced by how his inner core is coping up with circumstance and environment.

            We perceive every idea, thoughts, things and beings through our eyes and minds by means of sensation and feeling that can only be seen through ourselves and we may actually never know the elements in its entirety or it may be different in the eyes of another human. The idea of every essential elements like happiness, sorrows , suffering, excitement etc in outward material existence is comparative and hence absolute state cannot be achieved but in inner spiritual world these may attain absolute state as inner happiness ,sorrows and all are practices and processes that   can only be perceived if we open bare our bodily existence.

            There is always an objective representation of an idea ,feelings, emotions etc. and in modern civilization every idea or feeling is more and more represented by an object or thing. Hence the ideas, feelings, emotions etc like objects become comparative and considering the vastness of material existence in this world, the domain of comparison becomes larger and larger.

            A well built cottage in some parts of the world may be an objective representation of well being, success, luxury, happiness etc. and similarly a massive bungalow in another part of the urban world may reflect the same. The environment , surroundings and circumstances around these two contrasting living blocks throws upon a state of objective comparison on the eyes of the inhabitants and in comparative degree based on the benchmark of existing housing block in the surrounding the idea of success, happiness etc is perceived. Now though the building blocks may be of huge contrast but a study on the inhabitants will show that the fulfillment of purpose does not differ greatly as their objective representation. In fact and ironically the sensation of happiness may be more in the cottage blocks as the degree of comparison is limited in that surrounding whereas the comparitive element in that urban space are changing frequently and going into vastness. But in both the cases there is never a state of absoluteness in freedom of happiness, suffering ,emotion etc as these ideas precedes objects or things.

            In our journey towards absolute freedom it is perfectly clear that the outer bodily existence can only attain and cherish certain freedoms bestowed upon them by the authority through carefull study of conflicts of interest. Now for a human being to attain absolute freedom the doors of inner spiritual world has to be opened .

            To realize what absolute freedom may look like it shall be necessary to create a situation where a human being is robbed of all his freedoms for an indefinite time such that now his only aim will be to survive ,a state of primitive existence and survival where he has to fight for his hunger . A originally primitive man shall survive ,learn and adapt to the situation and shall carry on. But a modern man will soon get tired out and attain a state of shock.For modern man the idea of future and hope plays a vital role for survival and their very absence will make his present existence meaningless. Thus his inner self will die before his outward existence.

            In such conditions when man is robbed off from his freedom till an indefinite time, the only escape will be shedding his bodily existence and flowing ahead through his inner conscious and spirit and a contemplation of actual soul of happiness and suffering. The happiness and suffering that has been in existence since eternity but in course of earth history being separated from man’s soul by constantly assigning them a value derived from objects. Now through his inner world illuminated man does not need any material representation to any emotion and thus diminishing material competition ,he can now directly touch the souls of happiness ,suffering ,excitement, grief ,madness ,trance etc. His life now transforms into a purpose where he question his existence, finds answer to them, creates meaning and finds freedom through his new created meanings, virtues and conscious.

Bishnu rabha graffiti

Bishnu Rabha was a pioneer of Assamese art and culture inspiring thousands of youth with his poetic verses. It was on this note that I decided to draw his graffiti on my interior wall.

CALL OF THE DZUKOU

Storms of water running downstream over the slippery aged rocks stacked from ancient times by the natural villagers through the green rainforest swept aside the conventional world throwing us to a different parallel universe. Dzukou meaning “cold water “ in Angami-Mao language of  Nagaland plunges into the heart for a trip into a vast silent world. The Nepali uncle of the shop at the bottom of the hill who provided great hospitality last time was somewhat hazy to remember but as I reminded him he became bright and greeted back. I asked him a small utensil where we can cook food which he provided with joy. Thus we started our climb with backpacks amidst the vocals of the welcoming birds. The first 2km can be accessed by car though the newly traced road was bumpy, full of rocks and boulders but the brother driver took the pain to drive us there.

 Dzukou is nearly 20 km from Kohima, the state capital Of Nagaland and its entry is from Zakhama village .One can also enter from Viswema village next to Zakhama. With each step climb the familiar illogical pains of the world bubbled out from mind and soul and made us closer to the creator step by step. The first half of the climb gave a spectacular view of the adjacent hill composed of grasslands where tall trees were absent with uniform green grasses making it look like a vertical green playground.

The path grew darker, trees became more crowded ,sounds of mechanical world became distant ,vocals of aerial elements became dominant and unknowingly we plunged into the dungeons of nature. Incessant rain made the thousand leaves shine made numerous tiny streams creating natural melodious sounds. The stairways made by stacking nearby rocks were evident of the tedious effort put on by the villagers from time immemorial on which nature also helped by asking the mighty trees to spread along its roots to provide natural stairs. Kokil and Hirok as always were merrily laughing often making pranks and it should be mentioned that Hirok shocked me by suddenly coming to station with backpacks and his presence made the trail more fun. Walk by walk we grew closer to heavenly elements ,our mind was bathing in serene enlightenment and confrontation with the mighty phenomenon of nature that has been existence since millions of years. After an hour walk we reached the first makeshift camp. It was two roomed abandoned cottage used by travellers to take rest or shade from rain. The inner room had a naked wooden bed and places to light fire. We encountered some local travellers and they wished us luck .

We departed from there and the next half was steeper than the earlier. Powered by the monsoon the stream dissecting the trail tried to swept our feet and we carefully crossed them feeling its coolness that travelled from bare foot to the brains .

Finally we reached the second makeshift camp .We halted for a necessary joint that could take us more deep into the nature. The camp was just a shade with wooden logs scattered here and there.

The next uphill climb was very steep and we toiled and crawled up hoping that the top was near and to our utter dismay everybody coming downhill telling us we are almost atop only to see another chunk of vertical hill above us. Suddenly we saw tunnel of light tearing down amidst the wood .Hirok was ahead and screamed that we have reached upon which I hastened my way above and emerged from the darkness into vast silent valley dotted with small hills one adjacent to other. Kokil followed and we sat at the nearby rocks .The cold breezes slapped our faces silencing and forcing us to feel ,hear, smell the millions of joys, sorrows ,emotions and pains, the healings of the world that had been trapped in the valley. From there it was a track downward through the light green tall grasses and we could see the guest house at a distant.

Reaching there we unstrapped our backpacks on the open varandahs, mind rejoiced by the laughter and songs of the inmates there. They caretakers asked us to put our tents nearby but we asked whether we can put our tents on the valley where flowers blossomed ,on which he plainly refused. It was understandable because the majestic flower beds will be disturbed by the presence of human existence and waste. The valley of flowers can be accessed walking without putting tents there so decided to go by the caretaker’s words and thus showed the place where we can put up our camp which was in near vicinity of the guest house. The guest house had the provision of dorms and we noticed that large group of local tribes shall come there and stay for considerable times and enjoy singing and dancing staying at the dorms. Nevertheless we were not happy with the space for provided for camping as it was too near to the guest house and hence crowded and perhaps the caretaker noticed our discomfort and allowed us to put up the tent on the helipad at the distant.it was a perfect place and was located away from the crowd and also atop a separate hillock. Merrily we rushed to the spot and put our tent and then started enjoying, discussing and laughing within our tent.

As it was raining outside there was no possibility of lighting fire to cook food and it was already dark ,so we ordered food which is costly but justiciable owing to the fact that raw materials have to be carried on back from bottom of hill. The striking sound of rain over the skin of tent, the rushing breeze oscillating the walls of tents, the sound of the whirling wind and distant animals and the realization of the vast green valley made the night sit on a cloud nine. The morning was grand and resounding and we looked at the cosmic valley with its patches of small naturally gardened hillocks at the distant with stretches of white dzukou lily waving back to us. All the travellers were passing by us from the guest house towards the valley and they took notice of our camp ,often posing photos with it. We had morning tea and all the groups were singing and dancing their traditional folk dance .There are separate compartments or shades where people or groups can cook food and utensils are provided by the caretakers in exchange of a humble some of money. We head out to the valley and were lost, bewildered amongst the dwarf bamboo trees which looks like grassland from distant and patches of white lily now so close even to smell them.

The Dzukou river flowed in a zig zag way down h valley over some cave structures nearby. The cave or rock structures are an interesting place to camp and nearby plains have several graveyards of local elderly Angami people immaculately positioned giving a feeling that their soul still plays there. The river forms the boundary of Nagaland and Manipur though the Angamis refuse to accept the territory of Manipur.

The distant hillocks provide a superb camping ground each better than the other while the Dzukou river waving its hand nad giving goodbye before its starts its journey towards Peren district.