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
On the occasion of Earth Day, I am sharing with you, some of my images from Dandeli, in Karnataka.
Not too long ago, Dandeli was at the heart of the mining operation. The land was rich in iron ore, and the place was dotted with iron mines, and, as the forest was cleared, with paper mills. Soon, the forest started disappearing, and the the mighty Kali River became a trickle.
Thankfully, the people woke up, and efforts began, to reclaim the land and restore it to its former glory. That was just over a decade ago, and this lush greenery is proof enough, that it has indeed worked.
The forest is back, and is today a protected area, the Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary. While the big cats have indeed returned, it is the Malabar Pied Hornbill which is the pride of this forest. These birds need the forest to survive, and are thus the best indicators of the health of the forest. That we saw flocks and flocks of them wherever we went in Dandeli, can only speak volumes about the effects of conservation.
On this Earth Day, let us hope that we are able to preserve what is left of our beautiful planet... for ourselves, as well as our children.
I visited Dandeli in Jan 2014 on an invite from Dandeli.com a website which helps promote tourism in an environment friendly manner in the area.
Your blogs are always so intereseting such excellent photos! Thanks for sharing. Ruth K.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Ruth!
DeleteI have been to Dandeli and it is indeed a beautiful place
ReplyDeletegood to hear that, Rathina Sankari! Its really a beautiful place.
DeleteYou get such great pictures of birds. I really enjoy seeing the native species that you photograph during your travels. Thanks for such an interesting blog! I always look forward to your posts.
ReplyDeleteThank you, so much, Natalie!
DeleteWonderful captures from Dandeli.
ReplyDelete