बनारस के अनगिन छुपे हुए रंग

बनारस कई ज़ाहिर वजहों से एक अद्भुत शहर रहा है । कहते हैं कि ये बस घूमने नहीं बल्कि महसूस करने की नगरी है । मेरा भी इस शहर का सफ़र कई मायनों में ख़ास रहा ।बहरहाल इस सफ़र में सबसे ख़ूबसूरत और दिलचस्प अध्याय तब जुड़ा जब मुलाक़ात "भोमे निषाद" जी से हुई । 

दरअसल पिछली शाम के "बोट राइड" में एक सुरीली आवाज़ पड़ी थी कानों में जब एक नाव बगल से आगे निकली थी, मानो कोई नाविक गुनगुनाता हुआ नाव चला रहा हो । उस आवाज़ का असर कुछ यूँ हुआ कि अगले दिन निकल पड़े हम (मैं और मेरा एक दोस्त) अस्सी घाट की ओर उस सुरीली आवाज़ की तलाश में । पूछने पे ये मालूम हुआ कि वाक़ई एक शख़्स है ऐसा जो निषाद घाट के आस पास कहीं नाव चलाता है । संयोगवश इनसे मुलाक़ात भी हो पाई । मिलने पे ज़ाहिर हुआ कि जितना सोचा था उससे कई गुना ज़ियादा सुरीली थी ये आवाज़ । बस फिर क्या था - शाम का वक़्त, ठंडी मदमस्त हवाएं, बोट राइड और अद्भुत संगीत का दौर।

ख़ुद के लिखे हुए गानों को ख़ुद ही धुन भी देकर गा रहा था ये शख़्स । उन गानों के बोल में एक सार था, धुन में एक शांति और इनकी आवाज़ में एक विलक्षण आकर्षण । एक-दो गानों में ही दिल में स्थान बना लिया था इन्होंने जैसे । इनको सुनना एक अविस्मरणीय, अद्भुत और अलौकिक अनुभव रहा जो शायद कई बार बनारस गए पर्यटकों के हिस्से भी नहीं आया होगा । 

हालांकि इनसे मिलकर बस एक बात का अफसोस और गहरा ज़रूर हो गया कि भारत में कला की वाक़ई कोई क़द्र नहीं वरना ऐसी प्रतिभाएं बहुत ख्याति के हक़दार हैं, ख़ैर । मिलिए बनारस के इस छुपे हुए बेहद ख़ूबसूरत रंग से जो आपके मन पर अमिट छाप छोड़ जाएगा ।

PS: Other videos could not be uploaded since blogger doesn't permit a file size of more than 100 mb.

©Both the text and the photographs are protected works of the author Bibhuti Bhushan Mishra. They can not be published, reproduced, adapted or otherwise dealt with without the prior permission of the author.

दशाश्वमेध घाट - बनारस

बनारस का दशाश्वमेध घाट ऐतिहासिक और धार्मिक, दोनो ही दृष्टिकोण से दिलचस्प व महत्वपूर्ण रहा है । इसके नामकरण के पीछे भी एक इतिहास है जिसमें एक से अधिक विचारधाराएँ हैं ।  एक विचारधारा के अनुसार ब्रम्हा ने इसे भगवान शिव के स्वागत में बनवाया था, वहीं दूसरी विचारधारा ये कहती है की ब्रम्हा ने दशाश्वमेध यजना के दौरान यहीं पर दस अश्वों की बली दी थी और इसलिए इस घाट का नाम दशाश्वमेध पड़ा । ख़ैर, काशीविश्वनाथ मंदिर से निकट स्थित इस घाट के वर्तमान रूप का निर्माण 1748 ईसवी में पेशवा बाला जी राव ने किया जिसे बाद में 1774 ईसवी में महारानी अहिल्याबाई होलकर ने पुनर्निर्मित किया । 

इस घाट का महत्व वर्तमान परिपेक्ष्य में ये है कि यहाँ रोज़ शाम "गंगा आरती" का प्रदर्शन होता है जिसमें गंगा नदी को प्रार्थना अर्पित की जाती जाती है । लगभग 45 मिनट तक चलने वाली यह विलक्षण प्रस्तुति निसंदेह एक मनमोहक और मनोरम दृश्य होता है । गंगोत्री सेवा समिति के प्रधान पुजारी के नेतृत्व में वेद और उपनिषद के कुछ छात्रों द्वारा इस अद्भुत अनुष्ठान का प्रदर्शन किया जाता है । एक समान पोशाक से सुसज्जित ये पुजारी, हाथों में दीप, भव्य पीतल का लैंप इत्यादि लिए आरती का प्रदर्शन करते हैं । उसी समय नेपथ्य से आती सांगीतिक मंत्रोच्चारण की ध्वनि, धूप-अगरबत्तियों की खुशबू और बीच बीच में शंखनाद की आवाज़ एक साथ वातावरण में घुलने से आनंद परमानंद में परिवर्तित हो जाता है।

आरती के दौरान प्रयोग किये जाने वाले पीतल लैंप की तस्वीर

  आरती के दौरान हो रहे शंखनाद की तस्वीर 

हर दिन हज़ारों के तादाद में आये हुए लोग इसके प्रत्यक्ष-द्रष्टा बनते हैं जिसमें लोगों का एक समूह नदी के किनारे बोट पर बैठ कर भी इस आरती का आनंद ले रहा होता है । इस विराट प्रदर्शन का साक्ष्य बनना वास्तव में एक आनंददायक अनुभव रहा ।

हज़ारों के तादाद में आये हुए लोग

बोट पर बैठ कर आरती देख रहे लोग

©Both the text and photographs are protected works of the author Bibhuti Bhushan Mishra. They can not be published, reproduced, adapted or otherwise dealt with without the prior permission of the author.

                

The Rock Garden of Chandigarh

Rock Garden is the ne plus ultra of ingenuity in all sense of interpretation of the word. Its founder Nek Chand, a government official started the garden in his spare time by collecting materials from demolition sites around the city. He started recycling all those scraps and different kinds of wastes for example - bottles, glasses, bangles, tiles, ceramic pots, sinks, electrical waste, broken pipes etc and conjured up this exquisite garden from this scrap of leftovers. It consists of man-made interlinked waterfalls and many other sculptures completely built of industrial and home waste and thrown-away items.

                 

Photographs of sculptures made of scraps, home and industrial waste or other throw-away items.

                 

Another interesting fact about the place is that the whole work was illegal, but Chand was able to hide it for 18 years before it was discovered by the authorities in 1975 since it was a government-designated no-build zone, classified as a conservation area since 1902. There were chances of its demolition but he received the backing of the public sentiments and the place was inaugurated as a public space in the year 1976.

The Rock Garden is still made out of those recycled materials and is definitely a feast for the eyes. It is visited by over 5,000 people daily, with more than 12 million visitors since its inception. 

This garden manifests an exemplary form of art and certainly the place is unique of its kind. Visit to the place was an incredible experience !

©Both the text and photographs are protected works of the author Bibhuti Bhushan Mishra. They can not be published, reproduced, adapted or otherwise dealt with without the prior permission of the author.

Non-obstante clause : Ubiquitous in society

   A door that is closed for a class of people

Non-obstante clause : Ubiquitous in society

Non-obstante clause is a phrase used in legislative drafting and can be identified by the use of the word "notwithstanding" in a statute or an act. It basically gives an overriding effect to a law or a provision to the absolute exclusion of anything contrary or otherwise mentioned elsewhere. Thereby it creates a hierarchy amongst the various organs and machineries of the government working simultaneously at their respective places  which is a requirement for proper functioning of the various government machineries.

Now, not going by the most literal interpretation of the word the way and the purpose for which it is used in statutes if we instead go into the inner current of the term it carries a connotation of dominance of a particular group or "class" to the complete exclusion of another co-existing in the same arena. This essence of the "non obstante" or "notwithstanding" clause I feel could be visibly and palpably felt in common parlance as well. If we look around and minutely observe our society we will come across numerous instances of it. A glaring example could be of domination of rich persons resulting in absolute prejudice of poor section of the society. Another citation could be of preferential treatment accorded to a person on account of their age, race, caste, creed, gender or because of any other such reason amounting to total exclusion of another within the social hierarchy of the society. An example may also be extracted from corporate houses where higher management personnel run roughshod over petty workers of the organisation as a matter of common practice, popularly marked by this clichéd phrase, “the boss is always right”.

Although our Constitution expressly confers on us “The Right to Equality” but social reality is still a far cry from such conferment. So, with not much effort we can find and quote manifold cases where overriding rights are bestowed on a particular class of people but, unlike our Constitution, they are not based on any rationale or a well-founded claim. 

Moreover, it is even more unfortunate that unlike the Constitution and/or interpretation of statutes in common parlance we have seldom felt a need to develop, recognize and most importantly practise any doctrine, rule or custom which would come to substantial dilution of these draconian and essentially discriminative practices. Consequently, the clause is so well entrenched and pervasive that by now it has become an inalienable and inevitable part of our society or let me better say the very trait of it.

Despite all the woes, I can see a very gradual change in our societal set-up. I can see a feeble and flickering light emerging from very behind the darkness and I hope to see my optimism turning into reality someday !

     A light emerging from behind the darkness !

©Both the text and photographs are protected works of the author Bibhuti Bhushan Mishra. They can not be published, reproduced, adapted or otherwise dealt with without the prior permission of the author.

"Recreation" : A bird's-eye view

                       

This may be cliched but is true nevertheless that "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy". Apart from relying on this old adage right away, even if we otherwise ponder over the question that is it that deep down somewhere we irresistibly crave for an escape from the mundane humdrum of life? Is it true that we often yearn for it that there should be something more in this life for all of us other than the everyday monotony? The answer to these questions in all likelihood would fetch a unanimous "Yes", I shouldn't wonder. That is from where the concept of "recreation" flows. 

It is an essential element of human biology and psychology. I do not believe in the connotation of leisure confined to merely as a spare time not being consumed by necessities of living and is only intended to aid our primary work of economic survival as well as social and physiological needs through the process of rejuvenation rather I see it as an opportunity to contemplate those aspects of life which we tend to ignore in our mechanised and predetermined daily affair. Thus, leisure and recreation are indispensable and ideally inalienable facets of human existence. 

The purpose of embedding festivals in almost all the religions may supposedly be based on the philosophy of nothing but recreation. However, rigidity in the manner of its observance by setting a benchmark again creates a repetitive pattern and thereby refuting the fundamental ethos of recreation. Besides, if we talk of modern days recreational activities there also acute commercialization along with aggressive marketing tactics have brought about a uniformity in this sector eventually ending up creating an apparent paradox in itself yet again. 

So, it has become even more crucial in the modern world to understand and interpret the word in its true sense as market forces are dominantly making its interpretation the way they find lucrative. They are shrinking its dimensions by gradually taking it away from the natural means and substituting in the place all artificial modes or ways of recreation. The cornerstone of infusion of this change is playing with our psychology. Resultantly we have altered the definition of recreation in our minds and now for us, it is necessarily and exclusively in the forms it is being portrayed nowadays, for instance, suggestion of new gaming apps on our play store, advertisement of new adventure parks opened in the city etc. 

But, believe me, the more close you are to nature the more refreshed and agile you feel, for example, sitting idle for hours on a mountain hill, spending time aimlessly on a river bank or a beach, strolling in a park breathing some fresh air etc. These may not look fancy and sound captivating on the face of it but actually are wonderful means of recreation. This conception got reiterated and re-established in my mind when I took this boat ride after quite a long time. It was soothing, serene and tranquil beyond all imaginations. The boat drifting at a particular pace with cold brisk breeze hitting the face and the body at regular intervals was filling the heart with ecstasy, delight and charm. It was in fact like a meditation which blew the cobwebs from my brain for good and the remainder left is sufficiently capable and palpable to keep me refreshed and reinvigorated for long!

©Both the text and photographs are protected works of the author Bibhuti Bhushan Mishra. They can not be published, reproduced, adapted or otherwise dealt with without the prior permission of the author.