The Streets of Vrindavan

The cold air did not give up ruffling my hair into knots. The auto did not seem to be willing to compromise on the speed. Wrapped in three layers of warm clothing I was enjoying the feel of my cold cheeks. We entered the town which seemed like one main road. The main eateries and shops seem to lie on this one road. The rest of the town was hidden in the lanes and by lanes off the main road. Having set foot on this holy land I embarked upon the adventure of wandering through the streets yet again.....

Walking through the lane leading to the Banke Bihariji Mandir... sadhus and rishis in their discoloured saffron and white robes with dread locked hair chanting as they walked along, what is their purpose in life...I can't help but wonder...not that I am certain of my own purpose here on earth but at the cost of sounding foolishly proud- I have a job, a family, friends and I am happy...period....but what goal do they live for. How can they do without worldly possessions? Are they truly happy? Stray dogs trotting ahead of us with an air of confidence, bet they know every turn and secret passage in these narrow lanes. Men, women and children, mostly pilgrims I'm guessing walking by chattering and chanting. Every devotee goes back with a different experience...and to each the experience is a cherished one, I presume.....

'Radhe Radhe' we greet the walkers in these streets. Many throng this mandir...many jostle to receive the 'prasad' and many crane their necks and bodies to get a glimpse of the god whose eyes speak to each one present there. Every human present in the mandir feels that the god is looking at him. I felt the same. The belief is that one has to look into the eyes of Bihariji and talk to him and pray. I stretched out my hand too to present the garland of marigold to be offered to god and yet again for the prasad, i craned my neck too to get a view of the lord. Just this act of offereing a garland forms a bond between the almighty and the self. I felt at peace. The hundreds present were chanting and praying, for once people were in a wave of unison. A lone voice singing praises of the lord, melodious by itslef. One goes out of the mandir feeling blessed. I gave a bit of my prasad to the first stray dog I saw, he seemed a bit lost with a tiny girl trying to shoo him away when he wasn't even interested in her. God bless him and people like him who don't even know what they are being blamed/punished for.........

Walking out into another street I see the rows of sweets, ladoos being sold as offerings. The shops selling colourful attire for the murtis of ladoo gopalji that one takes home and palces at the mandir at home. I took one too...

As we walked out, a young boy told me to remove my specs. The monkeys have a fancy for eye glasses. I glanced up and sure enough there were hoard of monkeys and their extended families perched on the roof tops. Was that little monkey eyeing me?! Go eye all those sweets please...!

The streets are crowded and the buldings through which these lanes meander go unnoticed. old and dirty, I wonder what they are used for now...what history do they conceal....Short of time and without someone who could tell me about them I trudged along.....leaving the brick lanes behind and a number of lanes unexplored.....