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2023 - The Year That Was

Places impact you for a variety of reasons. And the same place impacts different people in different ways. This is especially true when it comes to spiritual experiences, where every single person’s experience is unique. And personally, every spiritual experience is unique, the same person can have different deeply spiritual experiences at different places, at different times. This thought has emerged because of my own experiences over the years, but especially so this year, with different and unique experiences at various places I have visited recently. I began this year with a visit to Baroda (Vadodara) with friends. It was meant to be a relaxed trip, a touristy trip, with our sons. We enjoyed ourselves to the hilt, but the highlight of that trip was a visit to the Lakulisha temple at Pavagadh. It was the iconography of the temple that I connected with, and I spent a few hours simply lost in the details of the figures carved around the temple. There was an indefinable connect with

Kumbhalgarh - A glimpse into the past

My last few posts have been about my trip to Kumbhalgarh, and I have written in detail, probably more than required, about my experiences there. I felt that my posts were much too long to qualify as a travelogue, and be of use to people who might like to visit the places I have mentioned. I am, therefore making a fresh effort to write about my trip, this time in brief, giving the relevant details, but nothing more. I hope this literary effort is of use to all of you.

Nestled among the mighty Aravallis are many forts of the Rajputs, each one greater than the other, each one relating a story of its own, a story which is part history, part legend, but which gives each of these forts its own unique identity. The Kumbhalgarh fort in Rajasmand district of Rajasthan is one such fort which has its own story to tell.


Kumbhalgarh Fort


Kumbhalgarh is about 90 km from both, Udaipur as well as Falna. We took the Ranakpur express from Mumbai to Falna, and a cab from the Falna station to Kumbhalgarh. The 2 ½ hours drive took us through lush green fields and rocky mountains welcoming us to a part of Rajasthan we had never seen before.




Our destination was the Club Mahindra Resort, 5 Km from the fort. The other options for accommodation near the fort are ‘The Aodhi’, a favorite with foreign tourists, ‘The Dera Tented Resort’, which offers variety and adventure in the form of luxurious tents, the ‘Kumbhal Castle’, and the ‘Tiger Valley Resort’.


A View of the wall of Kumbhalgarh Fort

The Kumbhalgarh fort was built by Rana Kumbha to defend his kingdom from the Mughal invaders, and the USP of the fort is its 36 km – long wall, said to be the second largest after the Great Wall of China. However, the fort wasn’t the first structure to be built at this place. In ancient times, it was the capital of a Jain king, who built about 300 temples at this place. Rana Kumbha added to this and at the peak of its fame, the fort had a total of 360 temples within its walls, 300 of Jains, and 60 of Hindu gods. Today, few of these are left, fewer with idols inside. Of these, the Neelkanth Mahadeo Temple has pride of place, having been the chosen deity of Rana Kumbha. The 5 feet high Shivaling in this temple was personally cared for by the king who, it is said, towered over the lingam at 8 feet. Ironically, it was while he was praying to this idol that he was stabbed in the back by his own son, who, again ironically, was the father of the great Maharana Pratap.


The idol of Neelkanth Mahadeo


The fort itself is very impressive, and one can spend hours roaming over the vast area, if only there was someone to guide us. As it is, the only effort the government is making to popularize the fort is in the form of a sound and light show, as part of which, the fort is lit up every evening between 7:30 and 8:00PM. This is really a very beautiful sight, one which every visitor must look forward to. The palace, at the highest point of the fort is however, not all that impressive, or rather, unlike what one expects of a Rajasthan Palace. This palace, in fact, is the birthplace of Maharana Pratap, and deserves a lot more care and maintenance.

A View of the Palace

Rana Kumbha was well known, not only for his valour, but also for his large-heartedness, his generosity, as well as righteousness. Kumbhalgarh abounds with legends connected to him, and when one hears these legends from the mouths of the locals who make up for the scarcity of guides, one can actually imagine the great man who made this difficult terrain his home, and feel his presence lingering around……

Rana Kumbha

There are quite a lot of places to visit around Kumbhalgarh-


The Kumbhalgarh Wildlife Sanctuary (5 Km) – The Jungle safari is a must for nature lovers. Don’t have great expectations with regard to animals, and you won’t be disappointed.






The Parshuram Mahadeo Temple (20Kms) – A Cave temple approachable from Falna as well as Kumbhalgarh, it involves a 1 ¼ Km trek to the cave where Lord Shiva blessed Sage Parshuram. Water permanently trickling down on a natural Shivaling is a wonder of nature. This temple is a must-visit for those who are spiritually inclined, as well as those who aren’t.





The Ranakpur Jain Temples (50 Kms) - Architectural wonders!



Mucchal Mahavir (25Kms) – Jain temple

Ganesh Temple (Ghanerao) (25Kms) – Life-size statues of Lord Ganesha and his consorts Riddhi and Siddhi.








Haldighati (25 Km), Nathdwara (50 Km), and Udaipur (90 Km) are also easily accessible from Kumbhalgarh.

Links to my other posts on Kumbhalgarh








Comments

  1. Anu,

    Nice pics - generally speaking readers like short posts - becuz most of them skim while reading.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Very nice post, keep the good work on and on.

    r u a writer or a poet.
    Regards

    ReplyDelete
  3. neither a writer nor a poet... just a person who tries to look out for interesting things wherever i go.....

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great post..brought back memories..we didnt go to the wildlife sanctuary..glad your son loves the camera

    ReplyDelete
  5. hi Anu,
    we are also developing the another resort at kumbhalgarh, we have named it Forest as we are based in mumbai and when we have travelled the kumbhalgarh i liked it so much that i planned the resort here. www.greenwish.in

    ReplyDelete
  6. There's so much to see in Rajasthan!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks Anuradha for the beautiful log. Very helpful and detailed information.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Anu,
    we are planing holidays in kumbhalgarh next week. I hope this information will be benefitial for us. THANKS

    ReplyDelete

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