‘In a thousand legends of the
gods, I could not tell thee about the glories of the Himalayas…just as the dew
is dried by the morning sun, so are the sins of mankind by the sight of the Himalayas’…
- The Skanda Purana -
They say the Himalayas are sacred to the Hindus…& Mount Kailash
is said to have taken shape millions of years ago during the early stages of
the formation of the Himalayan chain.
As said, Mount Kailash is sacred for these religions:
Hindus – Mount Kailash is known as abode of Lord Shiva and Goddess
Parvati, and known as the centre of
the universe…
Jains – Mt.
Ashtapada
Buddhists and Bonpas of Tibet
Mt. Kailash is geographically based significantly in a
remote south-west corner of Tibet, an astoundingly symmetrical 22,028 foot giant
pyramid with a diagonal gash visible on one of its faces. The peak that is Mt.
Kailash is mentioned as a 'compelling, dome-shaped peak, rising above a desolately
beautiful 13,000 ft plateau of rainbow-colored rocks'. Mt. Kailashis called Kang Rinpoche, or the ‘Precious
Mountain’ in Tibetan. There is a belief that poet-yogi, Milarepa (in the11th
Century,) was the only person to have set foot on its peak, and he accomplished
the feat by flying there or so the myth goes. Tibetans regard this mountain as
the expression of Mount Meru, “the navel
of the earth” where founder of the Bon religion, Tonpa Shenrab, is imagined
to have descended from heaven. The peak is an unbelievably awesome sight when
the early morning rays of the sun fall on it in a sparkling myriad of colours
of maroon, pink & gold; & during moonlit starry nights, the colors of
rusted gold that falls on its face is a spectacle of absolute bliss… ancient
Hindu scriptures say: doing a parikrama (walking around the mountain – about 53
km) wipes out a whole lifetime of multiple sins and one is freed from the cycle
of birth, death and rebirth. The 6,714m peak is believed to be the actual abode of Lord
Shiva – the omnipotent destroyer - & creator who is the center from which
mount kailash takes its universal importance for all Hindus in particular, and is
also the sacred seat of Adinath, the first of the Jains.
The odyssey to Mt. Kailash is a
vital & ‘must do’ pilgrimage for
millions of Buddhists and Hindus once in a lifetime, in addition to Jains and
also to Bonpos. For the faithful that make one circuit of the sacred Mt. Kailash
(54 km/32-mile) is said to be enough to wipe out all the sins of a whole
lifetime. However, eliminating all the sins of your
lifetimes is a giant task; the key sin wash-up requires 108 revolutions…&
bathing in the icy sapphire waters of Lake Mansarovar at the mountain's base is
said to wipe out the sins of innumerable lifetimes.
The circumference of Mansarovar is 90 Km, & its depth
is 90m; the total geographical area is 320 Sq. Km, at 14,950 ft above
sea level, & this makes this the highest and biggest freshwater lake in the
world which lies south of Mt. Kailash, the eastern lake of two in the region. A
ring of eight Buddhist monasteries once surrounded the quiet of the lake.
According to Hindu scriptures, the lake was first created in
the mind of the Lord Brahma after which it took its creation on Earth. Hence,
in Sanskrit it is called “Manas sarovara”, which is a combination of the words
manas (mind) and sarovara (lake).Also, as per scriptures, taking a dip in holy
lake brings purity to soul, and one who drinks water from the lake will find
himself in the Abode of Lord Shiva after death. He is believed to be cleansed
of all his sins committed over even a hundred lifetimes.
The water of the lake changes its color by the passing of
its water, which cannot be described nor can be captured by the best of cameras…or
so the myth goes…
Kailash and Manasarovar are identified in the holy Hindu
books of Skanda Purana, Vishnu Purana, Ramayana and Mahabharata. So the Kailash
Mansarovar yatra to a spiritual person can be about searching and discovering
God within himself, more than any place outside of the conscience. One
experience common to most pilgrims is the presence of God at every step you
take on this yatra!
And for those who love nature or the ardent adventurer; this
can be a place of eternal bliss. The yatra offers grasping mountain vistas and
other sacred sites on the Mt. Kailash trail.
The bottom-line of this yatra is: peace and
harmony throughout all society but first peace and harmony must be inside of
us! And above all, the great realization must be that – the purpose of this
human birth is to do “nishkam seva” or give true respect to every other living
creature on this mother of all planets…EARTH…
DO THE YATRA WITH ENCOUNTERS NEPAL…& RELEASE ALL OF
YOUR INNER DEMONS FOR THAT SPECIAL HAPPINESS…& CONTENTMENT OF A LIFETIME…
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