Monday, 20th August 2012 Stay at Manasa Sarovaram and Prepare for Kailash Parikram

This was another decisive day in our lives.  After the morning rituals our Badri and Kedar wanted to have a Havan performed to appease Kailash Natha for his blessings for all of us to complete the Parikram or circumambulation successfully.  Two of our Yathris or Members have serious stomach upset.   So all of us were worried as well as if any one of us had to stay back then it would have serious negative impact on our further trip.

By around eleven in the morning Kedar and his associates prepared a fire place or Homa Kund.  Normally Kedar used to perform the Homa or Havan with Mantras and Pujas according to Nepalese tradition.  But this time that they also wanted to recite the Shiva Ashtothara Satha Namavali or the One Hundred and Eight Names of Lord Shiva or Maheswara as a part of Havan.  I think this was the first time Earthbound Expeditions performed a recital of Shiva Ashtothara Satha Namavali along with the Havan but may continue in the future.

After lunch all of us went for a trekking.  This was also our final test to see our stamina to withstand the issues connected with high altitude.  We trekked about two thousand feet to an altitude of seventeen thousand feet above sea level.  The trekking as such was not hard as it was not a steep climb but then we visited a Buddhist temple in that area.  That temple was located on the top of a small rocky mountain of about one hundred feet or so with very steep climb.  Rather than the height there were no steps and the rock was smooth with no grips and so it was risky.  Even coming down was riskier.  But it is not essential to visit this temple for the Parikram.

But as a ritual most of the pilgrims visit there and pray for a smooth Parikram.  But for Buddhist pilgrims this may be mandatory as this is considered to be one of the most holy temples of Sri Buddha.  There is a priest in the temple.  The priest and the family live in a hut which is more like a temporary shed.  Most of the pilgrims come for Kailash Parikram normally used to have a Darsan here before they proceed for the Parikram.

We can see forms of Lord Ganesh, Lord Vishnu, Sri Buddha and other popular deities drawn with chalk or white paint or even icons carved in small rocks in the hills in open space as an evidence of nomadic living style of local Tibetans.  Please see one of the pictures below.

During dinner on that day Badri announced that we all passed test on trekking and all of us will be going for Kailash Parikram the next day morning after breakfast.  For the next three days we will be served with packed lunches but hot breakfasts were available in the mornings at the camp site or the guest house before starting our trek for Kailash Parikram.

This is our final trekking test before Kailash Parikram at Manasa Sarovaram

This is our final trekking test before Kailash Parikram at Manasa Sarovaram.  This is rocky hill at almost 17,000 feet above sea level.

See the form of Ganesh and Sri Buddha carved on the rock lying on the wayside

With Pankaj on the final and decisive trekking test near Mansarovar