Sadhhus Re-Visited

I have always been interested in religious rituals.  Living in Southeast Asia gives me opportunities as well as easy access to rituals and celebrations that I would never have within the United States.

Here in Northeastern Thailand, I am able to travel easily and economically to places where Buddhist, Hindu, Animist rituals are still performed as part of the local people's life.  My quest to observe and photograph unique religious practices has me to Malaysia and taken my wife along with me to Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Bhutan, Nepal as well as of course all across Thailand.

I am impressed with people who truly practice their faith.  They demonstrate their faith not through their words but by their actions and example.  It is this type of commitment that I wish to see and to try to understand.

It seems to me that there is a trait that we all share in this world no matter who we are or where we live.  There seems to me a premoral need for all people to have answers and to understand this world.  Since the earliest days of mankind the answers and understanding came from religion.  In more modern times, for many people, the answers as well as understanding have come from science.  Perhaps science is but another belief system like another religion that fills the need of mankind.

Last November, I encountered some Sadhhus - Hindu holy men.  I observed and photographed them at Pashupatinath, a Hindu holy site just outside of Kathmandu, Nepal.

 https://hale-worldphotography.blogspot.com/2018/06/sadhhus.html

 As I prepare for every trip that we take, I had developed a list of goals and expectations for my return trip to Upper Mustang with my wife.  Although the ostensive purpose of our journey was to attend the Yartung Festival in Lo Manthang, I had goals that were related to visiting Kathmandu and the Hindu holy site of Muktinath.

For our August trip, one of my goals was to photograph some Sadhhus other than the resident Sadhhus of Pashupatinath Temple.  I was hoping to photograph some, in my opinion,"real",  Sadhhus.

Sadhhus Arriving at Muktinath

After attending the Yartung Festival, we stopped by at Muktinath on our way to Jomsom.  On my previous journey in November, we had stopped at Muktinath but manged to get only one-half way up to the temple - one of the difficulties that you can encounter when traveling in a group, no matter its' size.  This time with just my wife, our guide and myself along with the cooler temperatures of monsoon season (along with the mud) we made it all the way up to the temple.

After visiting the courtyard for a while, I noticed some people entering from the stairway - Sadhhus!

From our guide, we learned that the band of four Sadhhus had walked over from India - quite a journey!

Sadhus are Hindu Holy Men - ascetics - men who abstain from pleasure, comfort and self-indulgence as a form of spiritual discipline. They can be of any caste. They have renounced material possessions, the comforts of life and family ties to concentrate on discipline, self control, and religious study.  They rely upon the generosity of others for their food.  They are considered by Hindus to be representatives of the gods.

Like other Hindu as well as Buddhist pilgrims to Muktinath, the Sadhhus came to receive blessings.

In the courtyard of the temple there are two walls  up against the mountainside that form a 90 degree corner.  From the face of the walls, there are 108 waterspouts in the form of bull heads.  Fresh mountain water flows from each of the heads. The spouts are known as "Dhara" (water spouts) and this part of the temple is called "Muktidhara" (Liberation Water-spouts).  Pilgrims gain blessings by walking or showering in the free flowing holy water.  Some pilgrims capture some of the water in their palm and then toss the water over their head in a purification ritual.  Some pilgrims collect the holy water in containers including plastic recycled water bottles to take the holy water home for people unable to make the pilgrimage.

 

A Sadhhu Taking A Shower at Muktidhara

The water that flows down the mountainside feeding the 108 water-spouts, a very significant number in Hinduism as well as Buddhism, feeds the Kali Gangaki a very holy river in Nepal since it forms the left tributary of the Ganges River in India.  For Hindus water is very significant in their rituals and beliefs.  There are 7 holy rivers in India with the Ganges being one of the most important.

A Sadhhu Pilgrim Bathes at Muktidhara

A Sadhhu - a wandering ascetic from India

Two of the Sadhhus that we encountered at Muktinath, showered at the 108 water-spouts.  The other Sadhhus waded in the 2 nearby Kunda (water ponds).  The two ponds are actually man made pools at the entrance to the courtyard and are named for Goddess Laxmi and Goddess Saraswati.  The kunda contain holy water from the mountain springs.  It is believed that a dip in their water can wash away negative karma.  I saw one layperson actually immerse himself in the pond.  From the speed and reaction to the water, it was very apparent that the water was very cold.  Later, I tested it with my hand it seemed to be around 10C (52F).

The Sadhhus did not immerse themselves in the ponds.  A Policeman or security guard came by and seemed to prevent them from taking a complete plunge like the layman had done before his arrival.  He allowed them to stand along the edge or to climb down one step into the pond to access water with their hands.  They took some water and rubbed it on their legs, their neck, their face and their head.

Sadhhus Leaving Muktinath temple.

On our way out of the temple, we stopped at the Jwalamai Temple (Goddess of Fire). My wife and our guide enter and spent some time while I explored the area outside.  After a while the four Sadhhus appeared and enter the shrine while we were leaving.

We headed back down the trail and steps leading back to the village of Ranipauwa.  Shortly, I realized that the band of Saddhus were trailing us.  I told my wife to pull off to the side and to allow them to pass.  As they passed I informed them in English and through pantomime that I was too old, and that my ankles and knees were not all that good.  The Sadhhus stopped and individually chanted while rubbing my ankles, legs and knees!  After giving me their blessings, they proceeded on their way down the mountain.  We continued on our way behind them - me with renewed vigor, less distress and greater confidence in my joints.

We later passed them and bid our final goodbyes to them as they were shopping for shaligrams at a street side stand in the village of  Ranipauwa.

Sadhhus Shopping for Shaligrams

Our encounters with Sadhhus on this journey was not over.

Upon our return to Kathmandu, we spent a couple days to tour the city and environs.  This included a return to Pashupatinath temple near the international airport.  I wanted to return to the temple for several reasons.  I wanted to witness  the Arati Ceremony in the early evening, witness open air cremations alongside the Bagmati River, and deliver some photographs to the Sadhhus that I had encountered last November.

Old friends?

We arrived at the temple complex around 4:45 PM.  We walked through the entrance and after a very short walk, we encountered several Sadhhus relaxing on a stone bench  alongside the Bagmati River.  I recognized a couple of them from my previous visit.  I approached them to give them their photographs.  As I approached they broke out into large smiles and quite animated - they had recognized me.  I introduced Duang to them and they graciously posed with her so that I could take "her" photograph(s).  These were the Sadhhus that I did not fully "appreciate" on my last visit.  I had written about that encounter ...

"Were these real Sadhhus, true holy men?  Were these real Sadhhus or were they more like cosplayers or as real as a tiger is a tiger that lives in a zoo cage?  I don't know.  It is not for me to say.

Paraphrasing Paul Simon's lyrics in "The Boxer" ... "a man believes what he wants to believe and disregards the rest""

The circumstances of the previous encounter were quite different from this encounter.  In November, they were located on the hillside among the shrines to Shiva overlooking the ghats.  It was very hot morning and they were surrounded by hordes of tourists.  For this encounter it was early evening with no tourists and quite temperate climate.  The Sadhhus were very relaxed and it came into my mind that they were kind of like guys relaxing at the end of their shift at some manufacturing facility.

  
The above Sadhhu spoke fairly good English.  He pulled out a full sized newspaper page and showed it to us.  He was telling us that he was famous all around the world.  The two page newspaper article had two photos of him  and was about him.  I looked at the newspaper article and saw that it was in a language that I had never seen before.  I then asked him if the newspaper was from Bosnia?  He was shocked and asked how did I know?  I could not explain for this was not the first time in my life that I have said things that ended up being true for which I had no rationale or explanation.  I looked at him and then gave him a knowing look as I raised my hands and touched my temples with my fingertips while gently closing my eyes. He seemed to appreciate and understand.

I learned from a Sadhhu, that one of the Sadhhus that I had a print for had returned to India.  I gave him the photograph and told him that I was giving him the print as a memory of his friend who had returned to India.

We spent a very enjoyable time speaking with the help of our guide who translated as necessary with the "off-the-clock" Sadhhus.  It was a very special time and I was very pleased for Duang to share in this experience.

We left the Sadhhus to continue our exploring of the area.  We ended up on the hillside near the Shiva shrines.  There we encountered several more Sadhhus, some familiar, congregating near a fairly large building.  Sadhhus used to live in many of the Shiva shrines.  From our guide we learned that the temple authorities now have the Sadhhus bed down in this centralized location rather than inside the individual shrines scattered about the hill side.

A Familiar Face

It was a completely different and definitely more enjoyable experience meeting the Sadhhus of Pashupatinath during this trip than the previous trip last November.

I have a little different opinion of these Sadhhus and definitely a greater understanding of them now.  This seems only logical since I have written a few times why I often go to certain locales more than once. - " You go the first time to learn and only on subsequent visits do you start to understand".

My goal to photograph some Sadhhus, "real" Sadhhus  at that, had been realized, realized beyond my expectations.  There had been some memorable experiences that gave me and my wife a little more understanding of some remarkable people that we share this world and life with.