40 days in Rishikesh

After spending a few days with Sam's family, we went to North India and spent a month in Rishikesh. We went there again after a month and spent another 10 days with a close friend from Austria who was visiting India. In total we spent 40 days in Rishikesh and we are sharing our wonderful experiences and memories from there.

Rishikesh, located in the foothills of the Himalayas in northern India is also known as the Yoga Capital of the world. It is a pilgrimage town and is regarded as one of the holiest places for Hindus. Hindu sages and saints have visited Rishikesh since ancient times to meditate in search of higher knowledge. Due to the religious and spiritual significance of the place, non-vegetarian food and alcohol are strictly prohibited in Rishikesh. The Ganges, one of the most sacred rivers to Hindus, flows through Rishikesh. Several temples, ancient and new, are along the banks of the Ganges. The city hosts the annual international yoga festival on the first week of March since 1989.

Ganges being one of the holiest rivers, is worshipped everyday using fire and is offered to one or more deities. Even though the exact date of its beginning is not known, it is known to have been performed everyday for 100s of years. The Ganga Aarti ceremony is performed with devotional music, fire, and offerings to the sacred river. We visited a few locations in Rishikesh to watch the Aarti. We visited Shatrughan Ghat many times and we have wonderful memories from there. Nora loved the chants and music and was happy to dance and play along with the music and beats.

Ganga Aarti being performed at Shatrughan Ghat 

Kathi and Nora watching Ganga Aarti at Shatrughan Ghat 

Ganga Aarti at Shatrughan Ghat 

View of Parmarth Niketan Ashram from Shatrughan Ghat

Ganges also is one of the few places in India where Hindus after they leave their bodies are cremated next to the river. We lived very close to the Ganges in Muni Ki Reti and it was an everyday thing for us to watch bodies being carried, final rites being performed and then the bodies being burned. It was a bit overwhelming in the beginning to see lifeless bodies being carried next to us or being burnt in front of us, but over time it became a common thing and didn't startle us much. It also helped us see it as part of everyone's life to take on a body and leave it at one point or the other.

Kathi and Nora watching the full-moon next to a cremation besides Ganges

Nora watching a lifeless body being prepared from cremation next to the Ganges

A typical scene next to the Ganges

Next of kin performing final rites during a cremation ceremony

Relatives of the person who passed away carrying wood for burning the body

A body being cremated in the evening next to the Ganges

Spiritual seekers of truth have been visiting Rishikesh for 1000s of years. Many noted saints, gurus, and spiritual leaders spent a lot of time in Rishikesh studying, teaching, and exploring their inner-selves. Being considered the yoga capital of the world, there are many Yoga schools old and new that offer Yoga teacher trainings, workshops, and yoga classes. Sam is a certified Yoga teacher under the Sivananda tradition. Sam got certified at the Sivananda Ashram in Austria. Swami Sivanada on whose name the Yoga schools were established in 1936, spent much of his life in Rishikesh. It was a wonderful experience for Sam to visit the place where the style of Yoga that he learned, practices, and teaches originated from.

A person deep in meditation next to the Ganges

Kathi and Nora watching students of a music school performing next to the Ganges during sunset

A devotee taking bath in almost zero degree water in the Ganges

A devotee offering water to the Ganges

River Ganges divides the town into two parts. There are two bridges that connect both sides of the town. Ram jhula built in 1986 and Laxman jhula built in 1929. The word 'Jhula' stands for bridge. These are not only famous tourist attractions but crossing these gives you a lot of insights into the diversity of Rishikesh. It is very common to find pedestrians, bicyclists, motorbike/scooter riders, cows, monkeys, goats, and other animals crossing the bridges together from one side to the other. These bridges are the only way to cross the river in the north-eastern part of Rishikesh. There is a beach next to Laxman jhula, and we visited it many times as Nora had a very good time playing in the sand and the water with the local kids and flower sellers.

Laxman Jhula

View of Laxman Jhula and the Ganges

Sunset at Ram Jhula

Nora playing with a puppy on a beach next to the Ganges 

Nora and Kathi having a fun moment in the Ganges

Kathi and Nora relaxing on a beach next to Ram Jhula

In Rishikesh, we stayed in a small studio apartment with Kitchen and it was just a few minutes walk to the river Ganges. Our hosts were a very friendly elder couple who made sure that we had everything we needed during our stay there. We had a small grocery shop and a vegetable/fruit stall within a minute walking distance from our apartment. The milkman came every morning on his motorbike and poured milk into the container which Nora was happy to carry everyday, pay the milkman and carry back the container. The milk was fresh and creamy, and we were able to make our own fresh Ghee with the milk butter we collected from the milk. We also learned how to make Rotis on pan and on fire. Our hosts took us to a nearby village where they showed us the land they recently acquired and asked us for suggestions to improve the place and offered us to stay there for free whenever we wish to come there.

Nora helping our host family water their plants

Nora riding the worker horse at our host family

Ram, that is the name of this boy who stayed with our hosts and became close to Nora while we were there

Street musicians in Haridwar

Ganga Aarti in Haridwar

Flower seller kids taking a break from their work and posing for photos

Nora playing with kids along the river

Kathi relaxing on a rock next to the Ganges while a Swami is passing by next to the cremations stands

Nora hugging a calf on the streets of Rishikesh

Another interesting incident happened, totally by chance, that helped us get more insights into the life of spiritual seekers in Rishikesh. Sam bumped into an orange robed Swami, an Ascetic person  (Sanyasi) who was staying in one of the apartments in the same building we were staying. Sam recognised him as someone he knew from the past. After a quick hello they recognised each other and he was a senior of Sam's at his university while they both were doing their masters' degrees, and they were also colleagues at a company they worked together at the same time. Now he has taken a new name and gave up his old life and all the material possessions and relationships he had from the past. His life is now about walking the path of god (Brahmacharya). It was wonderful for Sam and the Swami to meet each other after almost 17 years and catch up about university and work from the past. It was a pleasure to meet him. His aura was so calm and we invited him a few times to have a few meals with us and got to understand his journey and spirituality from a person who is on that path. We spent many hours delving into the discussion about the philosophy and spiritual paths of seekers in Rishikesh and in India. We are lucky to have met him and Nora also remembers dearly his warmth and aura.

Swami Abhayananda.

We also came across a family of three where the mother of the baby was from Tirol, the same region where Kathi grew up and the father was from India. It was nice to meet another family with similar racial background like ours and exchange our experiences traveling as a family. They had their own Yoga studio where they offered classes and teacher training courses for Indians and foreigners. We met them a few times and Nora had a nice time with their baby.

Nora walking with the baby of another couple we met next to Ram Jhula

Even though Rishikesh is one of the most visited place by tourists in India, it has maintained a sense of true village feel as it used to be centuries ago. Animals, humans, businesses, and nature lived in harmony in Rishikesh. Life and death was everywhere around us and it was received by everyone as a natural part of life. You see devotees, male and female, young and old, dressed and half-naked getting into the river with absolute devotion.

We feel lucky that we had the opportunity to stay and experience the life and the journeys of many people in Rishikesh and made a bit of our own journey along the way.