Dharma Boutique Adventures

More Vrindavan pics, 2

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 16:33:00 +0000

The last round of Vraja photos...

The Hare Krishna on chanting walkabout near the MVT Guest House, viewed through my rickshaw wala's windshield

Small child doing the pump-n-fill at the local water source

Barefeet immersed in the results of the day's unexpected April downpour

Pretty nice pooch perch!

Cows and bhaktas roaming the back streets of Vrindavan

More Vrindavan pics, 1

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 11 Apr 2009 15:56:00 +0000

1:25 a.m., Thursday April 9th, 2009
New Delhi, India

A few more parting shots of Vraja…

A sweeping rooftop view of the sacred Yamuna River (just to the right of the white spires) snaking through the town of Vrindavan

Me enjoying an unseasonal April downpour in the bazaar

Man selling devotional items, including some of Shyamdas' translations, in front of a temple in Jatipura

Flags waving atop the Sri Nathji Temple, Jatipura

Madhusudan ji showing Maharaji's son, Dharma Narayan, his iPhone

Leaving Vrindavan

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 05:54:00 +0000

9:25 a.m., Wednesday April 8th, 2009
Vrindavan, India

Now this is an unusual and wonderful farewell from Maha Vraja: a major thunder and lightning storm sweeping over Vrindavan right now as I write on our last morning. Not sure I’ve ever really seen anything like this here in the Jan-April months—a refreshing change of pace from the dust and swelter I’ve been slowly acclimating to.

It’s true I want to stay here in India and enjoy the incomparable devotional lusciousness that is still so alive here even in this ever-modernizing culture, but one thing I will clearly relish being home is the cool clean air that surrounds my sweet country home. No more relentless dust and diesel, that will be a boon to my lungs.

But meanwhile, it is truly amazing here! Wandering around the sacred Govardhan Hill near Jatipura over the last several afternoons with Shyamdas (and whomever else is drawn into the lila) reveals little gems every day. Two nights ago, it was a ramble along the inner path with a young and sparkling-voiced young singer from Nathdwara, Coco Pandit, who sang along much of the walk with us, including a luscious half hour within an ancient small temple on top of the Hill. The natural resonance in that small stone space enveloped our tiny satsang in reverberant rapture, while pilgrims occasionally wandered in and prostrated themselves before the resident deity.

Last night, it was Panditji (Shyamdas’ old Sanskrit pandit buddy) meeting, engaging in friendly discourse and ultimately bursting into spontaneous song with an ancient sadhu who has been living in a tiny stone room just off the Govardhan Hill for who knows how long, maybe 40-50 years. Different schools and practices, but as Shyamdas said, their respective journeys into their own sadhanas have opened their minds and allowed them to meet on a high and sweet level. A treat to witness, in the sunset gloaming of the Govardhan Hill.

And now, the morning of my last day in Vrindavan is here, and within 8 hours, I will be in car rattling my way back into Delhi. One more very full day of sourcing a few straggler items and gifts for friends will be followed by an attempt to find Neem Karoli Baba’s elusive North Delhi temple, which I’ve never been to. Then its time for the midnight flyer back to New York.

Sigh. Another journey draws to a close…

Govardhan lila

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 02:56:00 +0000

8:20 a.m., Saturday April 4th, 2009
Vrindavan, India

Yesterday we managed to miss Siddhi Ma darshan at Neem Karoli Baba’s ashram (too late; will try again today), but later we enjoyed a nice afternoon barefoot stroll around a portion of the Govardhan Hill near Jatipura, said to be the most-circumambulated sacred hill in the world. Walked with Shyamdas and Sridhar, Sara and Marjon, Mohan and Govind. Always a pleasure to feel the dust of Vraja in one’s toes.

Here’s some pics…

Radhe Radhe

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 05:14:00 +0000

11:30 p.m., Thursday April 2nd, 2009
Vrindavan, India

Maharaj ji's son, Dharma Narayan, speaking with Shyamdas at the ashram in Vrindavan

Radhe Shyam! A fine day here in Vrindavan: began with a slow morning at MVT and a quick check of e-mail at the webjoint across the way. A cycle rickshaw wala took us down the road and in for some morning shopping for textiles and wearables down at the Loi Bazaar. After an afternoon shower and freshen up, Shyamdas and Tulsi came by and picked up Shridhar and Marjon (sp?) and Sara and myself and we all went to visit the Neem Karoli Baba ashram.

Siddhi Ma is there for a couple weeks but she was laying low so we did not have darshan with her. Hung out in various sweet nooks there, and then we all had a nice group hang for a while with NKB’s son who lives over in a corner room downstairs. After a few minutes Sara was even able to set up our hi-def video scene and we captured a relaxed and extended conversation with Dharma Narayana and Shyamdas, SD offering a running translation. Mostly a conversation about Maharaj ji and various aspects of what Dharma Narayana saw and experienced being in the role of his son in that whole lila. Sweet time, and great video score. Also met another sweetheart member of the satsang, JR (Jai Ram), who got swept up in our afternoon adventures and so we got a chance to vibe in a bit.

Then we doubled back for a major celebration inside the grounds of the MVT complex, navigating hundreds of Hare Krishna devotees in the midst of a chanting frenzy, staying long enough to be ready to go.

The evening was topped off by a visit to Kesi ghat where another member of the extended satsang has been renovating a 200 year old haveli/temple trip on the banks of the sacred Yamuna River here in Vrindavan central. Amazing spot, stone steps down to the river, epic stone architecture, great restoration, with a wonderful sounding main courtyard that has fine acoustics for an evening kirtan chant. I’d heard about this project last year, it was cool to see it so far along tonight. I’d actually been to this same spot off the river on my first week in India back in 1998, it kindled an old memory…

Tomorrow, the lila continues.

The view from my mala wala's shop, looking onto the passing parade

Breakfast of Champions

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 03:34:00 +0000

9:15 a.m., Tuesday March 31st, 2009
New Delhi

Gotta say, these heaping bowls of fresh mangos (‘mangoes’?) and pomegranates are a superb way to begin the culinary day! Truly a breakfast of champions—sorry Wheaties!

Drill, baby, drill!

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 17:49:00 +0000

11:11 p.m., Monday March 30th, 2009
New Delhi

Sara arrived a couple nights ago and I’ve not written since. Suddenly life seems busier than ever. She just today got some dental work done (an implant/tooth replacement) here in Delhi, at a fraction of the cost in the USSA even including the airfare etc. Bizarro-world. She’s been a trooper, even with the mandated prescription for post-surgical ice cream (Royal Alphonso-flavored, courtesy of the Saravana Bhavan restaurant down the road.

Dialects

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 18:07:00 +0000

11:30 p.m., Thor’s day March 26rd, 2009
New Delhi

It’s so easy and natural, it happens in a blur of acclimation. My language goes local to make easier my communications with people with often limited or unconventional approaches to English comp. Sara’s been noticing it in our phone conversations. Perfect example tonight speaking with Kamal here at Abracadabra:

Me: Kamal ji, do you know if anyone is going to be checking into Room 3 in the next few days?

Kamal, with cocked head and quizzical look: Eh?

Me, pointing to the room: Room 3, tomorrow, coming, anyone?

Kamal, understanding: Oh, no, no one…

Grinding On

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 05:57:00 +0000

11 a.m., Wednesday March 23rd, 2009
New Delhi

The Marwari opium seller of Meherangarh Fort

Can’t say these have been the most inspiring of days. (Though there’s been a few moments.) I quasi-tweaked my back in Jaipur—just one of those funny movements where I felt a sheath of muscle in my mid/upper back suddenly tense and contract and serve notice that any more bad moves would likely result in a number of days of supinity.

I’ve managed OK since then, but the other day it kept reminding me it was still here, waiting to go on strike and this encouraging me into a more relaxed pace than is my usual here in the Delhi grind pit. A steady diet of ibuprofen has also been on the menu—and where’s that opium-dishing Marwari guard when I need him? Understandably righteous ideology notwithstanding, there’s a time and place for painkillers, it turns out. I’m not quite there, but I think I’m within sight.

Anyway, it’s all moving in slow motion, and allowing myself liberal time to take rest in my AC room here at the Abracadabra guest house (downstairs room 7, for those keeping score at home) seems to be an integral part of sanity.

On the other hand, the prospect of hitting the streets in search of Green Tara, old statuary and maybe a harmonium, is keeping my head in the game…

Mrs. Sharma supervising the cutting of a vintage Gudri blanket into its new life: a one-of-a-kind party jacket

Au Revoir, Rajasthan. Bon Soir, Delhi!

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 19:41:00 +0000

Midnight, Monday morning March 23rd, 2009
Freshly arrived back in New Delhi

Every nerve in my body is so vacant and numb,
I can’t even remember what it was I came here to get away from.
Don’t even hear the murmur of a prayer
It’s not dark yet, but it’s getting there.
Bob Dylan

Can’t say I’ve been looking forward to the return to Delhi. I actually really enjoy many elements here—mostly, the people I work with and my little circuit in town. But man, the air, and the noise.

I remember my first visit here: 1998, before they switched the massive bus fleet and many of the little motor rickshaws over to CNG—the largest compressed natural gas fleet in the world, or so it is proclaimed. The air was demonstrably worse then, amazingly—but still, it’s heinous today. Landing here a few (impossibly long) weeks ago, I got clobbered pronto by the assault. I hope I’m more acclimated now. (Hm, or do I?) Time will shortly tell.

For now, though, I’m just happy to be alive, after running the gauntlet of the Jaipur-Delhi highway. Phew. One tiny little sardine can car with no apparent shock absorption, a driver kept waiting too long by my day running late, the sunset rush out through the canyons between the Jal Mahal and the Amber Fort and the starkly bloated carcass of a massive water buffalo, an after dark tire blowout remedied by pausing in full traffic along the far lane on the Highway of Doom to change to a tire with wire mesh showing through it’s last shreds of rubber: stir and swallow whole, no chaser.

So, it’s good to be here, in one fleshy piece!

I heard the news today. Oh, boy.

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 19:34:00 +0000

Sunday 1 a.m., March 22nd, 2009

Fires in Jodhpur. The other day I posted a photo of a cow ambling through the Sardar Market in Jodhpur; 2 days later a fire raged through that old market and destroyed 40—50 market stalls—a good portion of the area. Also, same day another fire destroyed at least one old furniture warehouse; I called to check with Mahendra and Gopal ji and confirmed that none of my people were hurt, but still—bad news for the Jodhpuris.

The Ides of March were unkind to those folks.

Dhrupad Festival of Classical Indian Music

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 19:25:00 +0000

Wednesday 2:05 p.m., March 18th, 2009
Jaipur Rajasthan

At last night’s Dhrupad Festival of classical Indian music, I was blessed to hear some outstanding pakhawaj drumming by two excellent players: Mohan Sharma (the teacher of my friends Vasant and Tulsi), and Devaki Nandan, a man Shyamdas described as possibly the finest pakhawaj player in all of India (which is to say, the world). I recorded it, and did a little bit of wide open snaffling on video as well, which I’ll post either to the blog (if the generally atrocious upload experience ever improves) or on the Dharma site later after my return to the land of clean air. Great stuff!

Interestingly, the instruments most associated with Indian music in the west, tabla and sitar (and more recently harmonium), are considered modern devices and not suitable for a classical music event like I just attended. So here it was more about the sarod, sarangi, pakhawaj, the veena—some of these instruments have so many strings in so many places, I’m not sure I could ever even learn to tune them! But man, they sound amazing, trance-inducing in their magnificence…

(still no pics uploading, sigh)

Escape from Sun City

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 19:22:00 +0000

Tuesday 8:45 a.m., March 17th, 2009
Back in Jaipur Rajasthan

(still no photos uploading...)

Groggily awakening from the warehouse-cruising stupor of recent days, and recovering from last night’s hair-raising ride down what passes for the Jodhpur-Jaipur highway.

I’ve generally appreciated my driver Ram’s acumen behind the wheel, and yesterday’s 5:30 p.m. departure started well—making good time, safely. But come darkness, I have to say I had my first ever sense in India that I’d rather be behind the wheel myself—which is a sort of deathwish. But Ram had this habit of gunning the accelerator and then slamming down on the brakes just milliseconds before whatever speed bump or cow or vehicle was coming our way—a couple of times it through me off the back seat; I had to remain sort of tensed and at the ready to stiff-arm the seat in front of me to avoid losing my teeth on any given sudden jerk. Man, after a few hours, I wanted out.

But on to better things.

These next couple days Jaipur is hosting a Dhrupad Festival of classical Indian music; Shyamdas and Tulsi arrived last night, Vasant is here with his pakhawaj teacher Sri Mohan Sharma ji. It should be a fun break from the buying action.

I have much work left to do in Jaipur, but I’m hoping I can both get it done and relax with friends here for a few days…

Meherangarh Fort

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 18:59:00 +0000

March 16th, 2009
Jodhpur Rajasthan

(late-posted, and with no photos, due to India interwebs issues: haven't been able to upload pics for almost a week, from multiple venues, sigh.)

I’m not the biggest old fort guy, I guess, but Jodhpur’s Meherangarah Fort had some fairly spectacular elements to it. Some photos [not] here. Oddly enough, I was even offered a dollop of opium by one of the Marwari guards—go figure!

Wish I had more time to explore, but 1.5 hours later, I was heading back for the final day of furniture work. Next time…

Going All In

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:26:00 +0000

Sunday night 8 p.m., March 15th, 2009

OK, I’m about to leap off a precipice I’ve been previously intending to avoid.

Isn’t it funny, that moment where we just change our intention? We used to want that, but now we realize or simply decide ‘you know, I want this other outcome instead.’

I had come here thinking my buying was to be very limited and circumspect, mostly here to stoke working relationships and try to reconnect a bit with the deeper Indian bhava, or elevated devotional mood.

Meanwhile, I’m about to leap. I’ve found so much amazing old furniture and gonzo architectural elements these last days, and at such good prices, that I’ve now passed the shipping cost threshold—now, it’s cheaper for me to partially fill my own small container rather than ship LCL, where I fill only a part of a container that’s shared with a whole bunch of other random folks’ stuff too.

You can fit about 26-28 cbm (cubic meters) in a 20-foot container; the way the expenses work out anything over 10 cbm or so and you’re saving money versus an LCL deal. So, having hit probably 12-14 cbm, I reckon hey, I’m already saving money using my own box. In fact, anything else I throw in the box is, in one sense of mathematics, shipping for free (aside from customs duties etc.). In that sense, shouldn’t one be thinking to stuff that puppy with as much cbm as one can possible get away with? Like, even jamming another 15 cbm would be the ticket, right? Why, with that kind of space, one could buy another whole heap of pillars, doors, carved stone or wooden window sets or big furniture or who knows what all—and the relative cost for shipping would creep closer, on average, to less and less.

This is dangerous thinking.

First of all, I’m allergic to racking up credit card bills I’m not sure when (or how) I’ll pay off. Second, I’m already pushing my comfort threshold—and we’re talking suddenly about throwing another 10 or 20 grand at this situation, potentially. Seems imprudent, at best. In the face of this worst-in-a-lifetime economy? Unwise, even. Besides, where am I going to put all this cargo? My barn? Yeah, right.

And yet. Extenuating circumstances:
a) The USD is kicking tail on the rupee, more so than I’ve ever personally experienced. My dollar goes 10-20% farther this year than the last couple years. Seriously good for buying.
b) The suddenly quiet international shipping realm has, due to the worldwide economic slowdown, lowered shipping expenses somewhat.
c) The poor lost, empty ½ of the container. Empty! Seems rash, impudent even, to leave it so. I can hear the cries even now: “Cost efficiency! Boldness! Investment in history! Huzzah!” etc.
d) My barn! Surely we could make a little room…

Maybe I’m just flushed with enthusiasm, entheos, the sacred fervor that leads men to make wholly unwise decisions based on an ineffable and certainly unprovable underlying sense of how the universe is both structured and unfolding in this particular moment. Could be the fumes of India are getting to me, roiling my brainwaves. Could just be sh*t for brains.

But I’m seriously thinking of taking all the good work of the last 3-4 days and doubling down: buying as much in the next 6 hour day as I’ve bought the entire trip to date. Worst case, I trade a credit card balance for a barnful of vintage Rajasthani windows, arches, columns and architectural components. That’s a sucker’s bet if I ever saw one.

The Circus is in Town

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:22:00 +0000

March 15th, 2009

Wish I could go, with posters like these.

Beware the Ides of March, dude

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 15:11:00 +0000

Sardar Market, Jodhpur

March 15th, 2009

"It takes less than death to kill a man."

That's my random quote of the day. Seems halfway appropriate for the Ides of March…

Haul, 2

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 17:43:00 +0000

OK, a few more dusty yard shots of the last couple days' work...

Photos of The Haul

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 17:30:00 +0000

Sat 14th 11:11 p.m.

This stuff has a way of looking even better in another month or two when it's cleaned up and somehow shows up in New England...

Working It

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 16:52:00 +0000

Saturday night 10 p.m., March 14, 2009

A focused day of exploring a second network of furniture , smalls and architectural pieces, then regrouping to sift through and refine yesterday’s sprawling collection of almost 100 pieces: benches, cabinets, temples, funky little vintage wooden Japanese noisemakers (?), Ganga-Yamuna ritual water pots, small stone archways and insets, ceramic candle holders, a killer collection of vintage sandalwood combs (wider and thinner spaced teeth on either side)…

Tomorrow is my day to finish up all my work here in Jodhpur, before hopping a ride either back to Jaipur or onwards to Nathdwara. Rest I hope is coming soon, as I barely slept a handful of fitfull hours sleep last night; I was tuckered by noon.

Theme of the photo day: architectural elements. I bought the piece that you see here with Gopal ji (in center) and 2 others standing in it.

Wow

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 17:41:00 +0000

10:10 p.m. Friday the 13th, 2009

Color me wowed. Spent the better part of a 10-hour day marauding through aisle after aisle of new, reproduction and antique furniture and odds and ends with my new best friend Gopal ji, rocking through several warehouses just jammed to the pigeon-dwelling rafters with large and small old cabinets, temples, architectural pillars and panels, old Bollywood posters, gazillions of framed devotional lithographs (be still, my beating heart!), old cigarette tins and various Raj-pop bric-a-brac—total overstim. Outrageous!

I do it all again tomorrow, with another family. Now all I have to do is create some additional buying budget so I can stuff more of a container than I otherwise would be dreaming of…

Need one o' these?

Part of the repair department

Bollywood!

No Wonder

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 17:26:00 +0000

Friday the 13th of March, 2009
Jodhpur, Rajasthan

No freaking wonder I got respiratory/chest problems upon arrival in Delhi: this little TV news screen capture says it all. The air pollution index (however they measure that) is off the charts in Delhi! Blasting past “unhealthy,” cruising easily beyond “alert” and well into “warning” en route to “emergency” levels—yikes!

I’m still getting over the head gunk from early in the trip; soon I’ll be one of those travelers you see wearing a big fat cloth mask all the time to keep at least the big chunks out of my lungs as I do my time on the streets…

A few more Jodhpur photos

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 03:01:00 +0000

Friday the 13th, 2009
Here’s some more images from yesterday’s sunset ramble through the 500-year old city of Jodhpur, Rajasthan.

We're on the Road to Jodhpur--I'll Take That Ride

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:33:00 +0000

Sunset view from Jodhpur's Meherangarh fort

Ram Ram!

Thursday evening, 9:11 p.m. March 12, 2009
Jodhpur, Rajasthan

Woke early enough to catch the 8 a.m darshan at Govind Devji with Rajuji, then caught my ride across the sweltering Rajasthani desert country to Jodhpur, a roughly 6 hour drive that we undertook during the heat of the day. The “A/C car” was blowing something more like regular air than conditioned, but it was enough to make it survivable. I can barley contemplate what summer is like around these parts: it’s pretty much “spring” here now, bearing more than a passing resemblance to August in New England. This kind of weather puts me close to my crankiness threshold, for sure—but at least it’s not humid. In fact, it’s a wonder that they can grow as much green plant material in this dry environment as they do.

Jodhpur seems to have some pretty nice elements in place: the old city is full of amazing and decomposing architectural nuggets stacked along windy lanes tiny enough to permit no cars, and in my evening stroll after dropping off my stuff at the guest house, I encountered no end of smiling children wanting to have their pictures taken, tribal family life taking place among the various families living nose-to-nose on the steep hillside in the long sunset shadow of the Meherangarh fort—an impressive array of stone battlements built upon rock indeed. Not sure why, but the theme of blue-wash over the stone homes is hard to miss and easy to enjoy, especially in the dusky afterglow.

Any day’s a good day when being escorted by a driver named Ram, and I’ll be happy to have Ram’s help in the next couple days, as I mix the pleasure of exploring new territory with the business of hunting down folks who’ve been described to me as some of this town’s best antique furniture purveyors, in a town famous for old furniture and architectural elements. We’ll see what I find…

Dusk glows on the western face of the Meherangarh fort

The safety of the spare tire, or, life is cheap on the roads of India!

Garlands

noreply@blogger.com (Adam) — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 16:21:00 +0000

Fresh garland flowers abound in the Govind Devji realm...

Garland wala at entrance to Govind Devji temple, Jaipur

Load of garland flowers freshly delivered to the garland makers

The author, fresh from darshan