The Bird’s-eye view – Badami

In my previous blog, I highlighted that the journey is as important as the destination. Here, I’m trying to express that, the experiences the culture of a place offers is more important than the destination itself. I am talking about India as a whole than just sticking to the place I visited. Badami belongs to the Northern part of Karnataka state which is in the south of India. I am mentioning this to specify how culture, cuisine, tradition, the appearance of people, and even the accent of the same state language, “Kannada” change if you just cross a few 100's of km within the same state. Badami, Aihole, Pattadakalu has such a vast history; that I do not want to get into it as it would become a history lesson. Moreover, I cannot give justice to facts and background as it would require a certified historian or a guide. So, I would like to speak about funny incidents my friends and I encountered and want to narrate the glory of this place in the past and compare it with current situations. Having lived abroad for more than a year now, I have understood that people of other nationalities are curious about our land and culture. This takes me by surprise, and I want to compare what they think about current India to what actual India is.

India is well known for many things, mainly for its diversity and rich culture. Of course, not to forget the mouth-watering spicy food. The variety is what makes India special. As I mentioned earlier, I have been living on foreign land for a while now and the funniest part for me is to make others understand how we have multiple languages in the same country, and they are in no way similar to one another. My friends and colleagues abroad were surprised when I said that I could speak to two different people who are Indians, in completely different languages and the chances are very slim for those two(Indians) to understand both the languages, especially if one is from north and other from the southern part of India. Further, I don’t want to start about the west and eastern part of India which makes things even more complicated. Well, this is nothing to do with the places I visited but I would like to set a base for further related content in this blog. 

My friends and I did a two-day trip to Badami, Aihole, Pattadakal starting from Bangalore using public transport. Travelling in a car would have been much convenient however, there is no scarcity for public transport. We stayed for a night in Badami, which is the main town and commuted to other places from there. Aihole and Pattadakal are around 35 km and 20 km respectively from Badami. We hired an auto for a day which is called “Tom-Tom” by locals to travel from our hotel to other places within Badami and the next day we hired a jeep to cover Aihole and Pattadakal. The inn we stayed at is government accommodation which is well maintained with the best hotel for food as well. Food was a bit pricey, however, they were tasty and hygienic. We did not pre-book either auto or jeep as it was just outside the hotel. But I suggest it is better to look into pre-bookings if you are visiting in peak season which is March to July. Also, one should remember it involves a lot of walking within caves and other places if they are accompanied with kids or elderly. I was delighted to visit in September as it was not too hot, and the weather was very pleasant. I cannot imagine walking in summer which would reach 35 to 40 degrees.  

Pillars of Kalyani - Banashankari Temple

Our 1^st stop was at the ancient Banashankari temple of 7th century AD. I loved the surrounding of the temple more than the temple itself. It has a beautiful man-made pond which is called "Kalyani" in Kannada, surrounded with brilliantly sculpted tall pillars. One of the things I love the most about historic places is these magnificent stone sculptures and elevated pillars. One can wonder how much time and effort is required to build them. Also, the skills required and attention to detail are the wow factors. My friends and I were thrilled at the sight of this spot and clicked as many pictures as possible. We just hoped there was a little water in the pond. Our photo session ended when we realised earthworms crawling around and we were all barefooted..!!!!

Banashankari is a goddess and wife of Lord Shiva. In our Hindu culture, goddesses are considered more powerful than a male deity and are known to eradicate evil according to mythology. The irony is today women are not safe in India. I feel sad sometimes how people worship the goddess and call her "Shakti" whereas, right inside their homes, a woman would be subjected to domestic violence, humiliation or the worst case, mental and physical abuse. Even today, many women must fight and struggle to get their basic rights of education and to choose a career of their own. It’s just not my view but the world knows the situation in India through social media and mass media how women are abused and feel no safer either inside her own house or outside. This situation for women in India is what real India stands for. In an ideal Indian society, women are worshipped. The lord Shiva portrays an incarnation of Ardha Naresshwara, symbolising the equality between man and woman to show the symbiotic relationship that there is no Shiva without Shakti and the other way around. Balance is maintained. I remember explaining to my friends how in the country I live in now, I feel safe to take a cab in the middle of the night or even walk alone when it's dark. Further, women are not forced to get married just because they have crossed the legal age to get married. Instead, they are encouraged to choose the path they love. I wish I could feel the same in India too.

Saying all this, I am fortunate to have the best family I could wish for and the finest male friends. To add, my travel partners on this trip were my 3 male pals whom I know for more than 5 years now. I feel safe with them and I am proud to say that my buddies are well behaved. All the men that I am close to like my brother, cousins, father, and all my male friends are one of a kind. I feel blessed as I have never been treated poorly and when I feel lost and helpless these are the ones who jump into the matter to give a helping hand. This is authentic India and I pray that all women in India get support as I did. Just to remember, our land has produced heroic women like Oobava, Channamma, Lakshmi Bai and many more. If they were mistreated, they would have never created history.

Resuming about our trip, now a day’s tourism has become a trend and folks try local cuisines to get the essence of that place. Many foreigners prefer local houses to stay instead of a hotel so that they experience the way of life of that location. Therefore, we could see that the locals are used to visitors, and they see that as a business opportunity. I agree it is a good thing to improve the economy and standard of living for that place. But, few locals push tourists and make them feel like never to go back again. Our group experienced this as well. When we were clicking pictures near Kalyani, a woman pursued us continuously to sell us a local cuisine "Jollad Roti, Palya and buttermilk". We decided to purchase buttermilk after some time and politely conveyed that to her so that she wouldn’t follow us everywhere. But she kept on insisting us to buy food as she had not sold a single plate that day. We took pity on her and thought of buying the food and giving it to a handicapped who was in a wheelchair as we weren’t hungry to try it ourselves. However, things became weird when she pushed us to buy more for that handicap even though that person did not want more and kept on stating that that's enough. Though we were furious, we politely left the place and decided not to interact with local people thereafter.

Nevertheless, I’m not trying to highlight the unpleasant events here or judging that woman. To that woman, selling a plate of her food is for her livelihood. It is a shame that people are still suffering from poverty and lack of education. Their income depends on tourists and they just don't want to miss that opportunity of selling anything for that matter, not just-food. I got this through my personal experience when I use to work as a sales representative just for my survival on a distant land away from home. I used to knock every door just to reach my daily target. There is no concept of right and wrong when we do it to lead our lives, as life is not straightforward for everyone. Personally, the thing that hit me most is, how prosperously this very own land of ours once sold gold and diamonds on streets while today, people are struggling to sell a plate of food for livelihood.

One of the factors I would expect in India to change is to provide dignity of labour. When someone does certain jobs on foreign land, it is not considered as humiliating, but the same job is considered embarrassing in India. For example, few individuals consider working as a waiter/waitress, cab/auto drivers, the delivery person to be less dignified. In contrast, people would be ready to do those jobs abroad for survival. People should respect every job and treat every person as a human being. When I think about these issues, I feel the reason could be due to the standard of living in India which causes this kind of difference. A certain job is considered as less honourable, as these careers fetch less income, even though it is physically challenging. And certain professions are funded more and considered noble. However, in other countries, every profession is respected and well rewarded if not treated equally. In India, while people are leaning towards westernization, why not adopt this culture of living and let live by respecting every profession. 

Badami Cave temple

Coming back, our next stop was Badami cave temples, Agastya lake, and Badami fort. The marvellous Badami cave temples are a group of 4 caves together which is of 6^th century. And, the architecture belongs to Chalukaya’s period. Here, one gets to encounter ancient inscriptions, stone carvings and various mythological stories of Hindu gods and goddesses. Also, there are essences of Jainism and Mahavira's disciples who are called Tirthankaras. These gorgeous sculptures are mind-blowing and depict how gifted our ancestors were. The view of Agastya lake from the top of the cave is breath-taking. My friends and I were so excited and wanted to click 100's of pictures, but then we realized it's best to capture all of them in our memory. I can't stop thinking about the patterns on monolith rocks which are standing strong and magnificent for 1000's of years. That cool air, brushing my face and making my hair fly gave me more satisfaction and peace of mind than driving an expensive car. Next, we headed towards Badami fort where many Sandalwood (Kannada film industry) movies were shot. It took almost half a day to explore the complete fort. Those stone steps, narrow paths in between the rocks, small ponds here and there gave me an adrenaline rush. Our group felt like we were on some expedition and someone was waiting with a medal once we reached the top. We started running, chasing each other like kids, capturing those moments on our phones and making funny videos.

Dashavatara

Cave Temple 1

Tirthankaras

Agastya Lake

By the time we reached on top of the fort, we were so tired and started looking for a short cut to get down. We asked one of the security persons and he guided us to the path down which seemed a bit unexplored. Still, we took our leap of faith. The funniest part is my phobia for snakes evokes when I see a bushy path. I tried to convince my friends not to take that path, but they are like any other guys trying to be adventures. When we do such things, I remember horror movie’s characters trying to portray as brave end up in troubles. Just to get rid of my fear I tuned it into humour and started making fun of their bravery. Finally, one of my friends held my hand so that I would not concentrate much on my fear for snakes and we made it to the bottom. This was the funniest and cherishable moment for me. Once we got down, we were at the entrance of the Agastya lake which is stretched vast and clean across the Badami caves and Bhuthanatha temple. The view of the caves from this spot looked more mesmerizing than ever when that sandstone shined bright, bathed in twilight.

Badami Fort Temple

Badami Fort

Badami Fort

Concluding all this, I cannot ignore how all these places were well protected and maintained by the Karnataka government. They have done amazing work which has to be appreciated. But sadly, the thing which strikes more in the situation of the local people. This place is rich with history and filled with tourists. However, people are still poor and struggling to get even a basic facility like sanitation. We crossed a locality where people were washing clothes, cleaning vessels, pigs running around on streets. It is an irony this locality is right next to Badami caves which is one of the heritage of India. I decided to write this blog then, to portray the situation of this place which was once flourished. I pray that India reaches a position where poverty, illiteracy, and the unhygienic environment is eradicated. People of India should give importance to such issues and come together than fighting based on languages, boarder, religion, caste and silly things like movies. Additionally, the government should also focus on improving the locality and lifestyle of people living in this region rather than just focusing on the main tourist stops. We cannot forget the fact that the neighbourhood is a part of tourism.

Bhutanatha Temple