Oasis

Taljai temple, Pune

One of the nice things about living in Sahakarnagar (in Pune) is that it is close to the Taljai hill. I go up there almost every day these days and I particularly like the Taljai temple. I have grown up in Sahakarnagar, so Taljai has been a big part of my life. It is just a tiny little hill and it is certainly not very high, but when I was small, it looked quite big. Even today, when I see a mountain, somewhere at the back of my mind, I compare it with the Taljai hill. Some day I hope to visit Kailash and I am sure that one of the first things that will come to my mind when I get there is that it seems much bigger than the Taljai hill.

I remember going up there when I was small. The wonderful forest that covers half of this hill was quite young then. It had just been planted a few years ago and the trees were still growing. The supposedly "haunted house" halfway up the hill used to excite me quite a lot, particularly when I was about five years old. I remember that even then I did not actually believe that it was haunted, but that I wanted to believe. There were two ways to go up - there were steps along one side of the hill, leading up up to the temple, and there was just a dirt road from another side.

Then years passed and the forest grew thicker. It soon became a very popular place to go for walks. When I was fifteen or so, it was one of the usual places to go to with friends. The haunted house was no longer haunted - it was just a place for young kids like us to hang out in. I can remember quite a few amusing and/or "meaningful" conversations that took place on its terrace. The forest had now turned into quite a convenient place to commit crimes. It was not considered a very safe place to be except in the early morning or in the evening when there would be a lot of people going there for walks.

Things have kept on changing. The dirt road has been replaced by a tar one, which is surprisingly well-maintained. The haunted house has almost fallen to pieces. There is a proper fence around the forest. The temple is no longer as tiny as it used to be. They have built concrete platforms around it for people to hang about. There is even some sort of a sports center that has come up right next to the temple. It has all become a little too convenient. Every morning and evening hundreds of people drive up to the temple in cars and on motorcycles and go for walks in the forest. There are places for people to sit and for children to play. Near the temple, there are all kinds of shops selling snacks and tea so that people can stuff their faces immediately after they have lost about half a pound by jogging or walking. The police are around quite regularly, so the place has become much safer (or so it seems anyway).

So, what is my point? Am I going to moan about how the place has lost its innocence and how much nicer it was in the past? Well, yes and no. There are times when I think that the place was nicer when it was a little more deserted. At the same time, it is really not all that bad. I can complain about how ugly the tar road is, but the fact is that it does make it easier to go up there, particularly during the monsoon months. And I cannot really say that the place is no longer beautiful. Yes, it has a little more structure to it now, it is not as "natural" as it used to be perhaps. But it is still beautiful in a way. The trees are still there and so is the sky. And while I do not particularly enjoy seeing all those motorcycles and cars, I have to admit that it is nice to see how happy and relaxed people seem up there. Yes, most of them are missing the true beauty of the place as they go around chatting about politics or listening to stupid Bollywood songs. But they are getting something out of it anyway. It can be seen on their faces.

The place is really an oasis in the middle of the city. Let's be honest - a city is a ghastly thing to behold, let alone live in. No, I do not have any right to criticize city life because I am very much a city person. I am sure I would not enjoy living in a village for too long, let alone living in the wild. But one must admit that even though we have grown used to, perhaps even dependent on the convenience of living together in large groups, we do look incredibly ugly while we do so. This lovely little place takes us away from the city for a while. No wonder people look relaxed up there. It is not just that they come close to nature by walking about in the forest. Even if there had been no trees, even if it had just been a desert, it would have still helped people relax. It is my theory that we all hate cities even though we depend on them. Somewhere in the back of our minds, we are aware of how ugly they are and it makes us happy to get away.  

Anyway, to conclude, here is a picture of the platform next to the temple. These days, I spend a lot of time sitting here.

I sit here and pretend to meditate.