There was comfort enough in the room. Looking outside, I could see a slice of the Himalayan slope with ancient trees, plants and shrubs. Right beneath my room was the noise and
mess that surrounds a public rest room with bathing and toilet facilities.
The ritual of unpacking began here when I took out a new white T-shirt and a loose pair of light blue cotton pants that I planned to wear that day — clothes that made me really feel comfortable and at home.
Fresh after a warm shower, I went down to have my breakfast in the basement of the same building — of toast with a spread of butter and jam and a cup of hot tea. I was browsing through the publications of Swami Omkarananda, bags in cotton and jute, incense sticks for the three main diseases of the body classified by Ayurveda — vata, pitta and kapha — clothes and other items. I bought a book Women Saints of the World by Swami Omkarananda.
Since that day in Rishikesh, I travel light. I carry just my backpack with a few essentials and valuables, and keep walking with no particular agenda till I get back to my room at night or during the day to catch a few winks.
I walked down to the ghat near the Omkarananda Ganga Sadan. Children and adults from different parts of the country were frolicking in the quiet waters of the Ganga. I sat on the steps for a while and then resumed my walk on the soft sands of
the river bank. A ferry had just arrived to take another batch of around 20 people to the other bank of the Ganga, moving parallel to the Ram Jhula . I paid Rs 8 and got a round trip.
There was still some time for the other passengers to gather. Little boys and girls were selling tiny round light-brown coloured wheat balls in leaf cups for
Rs 5. It was food for the fish in the river. I bought a cup and began dropping those balls one by one in the shallow end. The fish big and small were swift.
Touching the Ganga, which Adi Sankara describes as Devi Dravamayi — or a liquid goddess, has always fascinated me. I never miss an opportunity to dip myself in her waters or just play with her. My boat reached the other side in barely five minutes and I walked down the crowded road lined by Ghats and ashrams. There were several shops selling books on yoga and music CDs, and tour-booking counters.
I stopped at a small shop, and before asking the shopkeeper the route to Bhoothnath temple, I ordered a bottle of mango juice. It is a technique I adopt to ask for directions — buy something and start a conversation with the store keeper.