How I learned about Mahavatar Babaji’s
Cave?
I think
it was during an online search for some information on I.T.
czar Steve Jobs last year (2012) that I had first heard of the book ‘Autobiography of a Yogi’. The mention of Steve Jobs having a copy of this book on his iPad and reading it once every year really made me sit up and pay attention. I soon
purchased a copy of the book for myself and I would not say I was transformed, but the book
did leave a deep impression on me. Especially the part narrating the
circumstances under which Shri Lahiri Mahasaya while on a posting with the
Railways in Ranikhet in Uttrakhand had his first meeting with Mahavatar Babaji
and subsequently got initiated to Kriya Yoga. This encounter of Shri Lahiri
Mahasaya with Mahavatar Babaji, the book reads, took place somewhere in a cave in the
mountains of Uttrakhand.
I was
quite intrigued by the mention of this cave and with the thought that there must
be many other such caves where saints lived, or perhaps still live, and
perform penance. I do not consider myself exactly a spiritual person, given my
leanings towards so many things worldly. I, however, was fascinated with the
idea of these evolved beings, and it provided fuel to the ongoing battle within me on
the concept of God - the outcome of this battle varies dramatically from one day to
another. It was here that the birth of the idea, of travelling to see this cave
in the mountains near Ranikhet in the state of Uttrakhand, took
place.
Like so
many other thoughts, ideas, resolutions, desires etc., this idea too, of visiting the
holy cave, found a comfortable place on the backburner while my life proceeded
in the more ‘pragmatic pursuits of the worldly objects.’
Chance landing on a YouTube video about Neem
Karoli Baba
It was
again an online search for something unrelated that led me to a YouTube video (Click for Link) of a
foreigner from the United States on his chance meeting with a saint in
Nainital, Uttrakhand, and how that meeting transformed his life. I, initially, was
dismissive and cynical given the increasing number of Godmen in India, and the
lofty claims made by them. As i write this, just a month back, a leading and prominent 'Godman' in
India was arrested on charges of sexual assault on a minor. A couple of weeks after his arrest,
2 more girls came forward and filed charges of sexual assault against the same Godman. So, my cynicism was justified. Also, I believed that
these foreigners are naive and gullible, and easily fall for anyone claiming to
be a spiritual being.
When I
researched some more on this saint, Neem Karoli Baba, and read about
him, I felt a strong inexplicable pull towards him, something very similar to
what Julia Roberts mentioned about him in an interview (Click for Link). I read the foreigner’s (better known as Baba Ram Dass) account of how he came to
India and what he did in the US prior to meeting Neem Karoli Baba. I visited the
website dedicated to
Neem Karoli Baba (Click for Link) and read more about the saint Neem Karoli Baba, his devotee Baba Ram Dass, and stories of many other devotees. After going
through a few teachings of Neem Karoli Baba and some of the experiences of his
devotees, I felt this inexplicable urge to read more and learn more about him,
an urge that stays till date.
Months before the actual travel
The
fact that both Mahavatar Babaji’s Cave (Click
for Google Map link) and Neem Karoli Baba’s Ashram (Kainchi Dham, Click
for Google Map Link) are in Uttrakhand got me thinking what if I had
good enough fortune of visiting both these places. I had just returned from my
travel to the United States (April 2013) and had time at hand to travel to both
these places. I again resorted to online search and gathered information on getting
to Babaji’s cave and Kainchi Dham from blogs, maps, and other sources. While I was glad that these places were not very far from
my hometown New Delhi, I kept putting the travel off for some reason or the
other, until one fine day when I finally decided to take action.
It was
on Monday, 7th October 2013, that I mustered up enough courage
to go to the Nizamuddin Railway Station in the afternoon and enquire about
availability of 1 train ticket from Delhi to Kathgodam Station (nearest to Nainital, about 40 Kms) for the night train. My already low expectations from the train booking system in
India kept me from feeling disappointed when i found out that there were no AC Class seats available. And they were unavailable for a week.
There was availability in General Class but as October is still quite hot, I
decided to not take this option. (There are reports in the media / news about scams
where Train tickets are bought in bulk by touts in collusion with the Railway
officials and the Police, and then sold in the Black market for a profit).
I
returned home thinking that perhaps the ‘Call’ is not there yet for me to make
this trip. Interestingly, before leaving for the Station I had packed my bag in
the anticipation that it would not be difficult to get 1 single ticket. I did not travel that day but I did not unpack my bag either.
Finally, getting to travel to Nainital
That same night, I searched online for AC / Deluxe Coaches from Delhi to Nainital and learned
about a few bus operators whose AC Coaches ply every night on the Delhi – Nainital
route. Next morning, on the 8th October 2013, Tuesday, I placed a
call to one of the operators King’s Holiday Tours and enquired about the
availability of seats on the night bus. I was told there was plenty of room and that I could pay directly at their office upon reaching the departure point in the
night at 9:30 PM.
I
checked online where this bus' departure point and the operator’s office was, and
what were the transport options for me to get there. The bus leaves from a point less than
100 meters from a Metro Train Station Rama Krishna Ashram Marg (perhaps the departure point being close to a Metro Station is strategic, from connectivity perspective). The operator’s
office was in a building nearby.
As
everything was falling in place, I decided to take this AC Coach and leave the same night for Nainital. I left my house at 7:30 PM and took the Metro Train for Rama Krishna Marg Ashram Station. I was at
the bus operator’s office by 8:30 PM and purchased 1 ticket for Nainital which costed me Rs
600.
At 9:30
PM, on 8th October 2013, we finally started our journey for Nainital from Delhi. I must mention that of all my bus travels in India, as far as my memory goes, this one has
to be the worst. This includes my travels in the cheapest (non–AC) State Roadways Buses of India. It is disheartening that in India we are still
to catch up on the idea that AC does not mean having a device in the bus that
cools or heats, it is about making the travel comfortable. The bus was very poorly maintained from inside and was stinking. The seats were not clean and were broken, the AC when turned on was on
full blast and after half an hour we were freezing inside the bus. The driver refused to turn
the AC off or lower the cooling when a couple of passengers complained. We had
to finally resort to taking out warm clothes from our bags to brave the
inclement cooling inside the bus. Further, the driver drove like he was carrying cargo
in the bus and not living human beings. At a few places, we were actually
thrown up in the air when the bus hit a pothole at high speed. Same for tight
turns on mountains, we were simply thrown from one end of the bus to the other every time
the bus made a sharp turn. By the time we reached Nainital, my whole body was sore, head
hurting, and I was feeling extremely nauseous.
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| The extremely sad Deluxe AC Coach from Delhi |
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| Metallic stairs in the path, Stinking Bus, Broken Seats |
Day 1 - Nainital
Surprisingly,
the AC Coach did not drop us at the Mall Road but at a secluded point about a
mile away from the Mall Road. As we sensed that the bus was going away from the Mall Road,
a few of us requested that the bus be stopped and we be allowed to get off. The
bus stopped and I, along with a few other passengers, disembarked. Despite the
physical and mental state I was in, breathing in the clean Nainital air
(cleaner than Delhi) and observing the early morning mist was nothing short of
blissful. I chose to not take a cab and walk the distance to the Hotel (about a mile or
less). Before leaving for Nainital, I had looked up online
for Hotels in Nainital and had decided on staying at Hotel Himalaya on the Nainital Mall Road. Though I
had not made the booking, I had called and managed to negotiate the room
tariff and had got a deal of Rs 1600/- a night. (One interesting observation, in India one always
finds a huge difference in the price quoted on the website or online and the
price quoted when a call is placed or a personal visit is made. The tariff quoted online for the same room
of Hotel Himalaya was Rs 2400/- a night, but when I called and offered Rs
1600/-, they agreed. I had a similar experience for the Bus Fare, the price
quoted on RedBus.in, an online aggregator like Amazon, was slightly higher but
when I called the Bus operator directly, I was charged less.)
The
hotel is situated right at the Mall Road and the view from my room was simply
spectacular. I felt the bathroom and bed were pedestrian but one learns to make
these adjustments when travelling budget. Thankfully, I was in time to be able
to a take hot water shower as the hot water runs till 11 AM only at the hotel. My hotel package did not include meals, so I decided to step out and have a
Cream Roll at the bakery I had walked by earlier while on my way to the hotel.
 |
| View of the lake at Nainital Mall Road from my Hotel Room |
Reaching Kainchi Dham
Kainchi
Dham (Neem Karoli Baba's Ashram) is 18 Kms from the Nainital Mall Road. I had also, earlier in Delhi, run
an online search on ways to get to Kainchi Dham from Nainital Mall Road and had
decided on renting a 2 wheeler. On the Mall Road, very close to Hotel Himalaya,
there is this two wheeler rental company by the name of Him Yatra Travels. I
went to their office and rented a gearless scootie for Rs 600 (for the entire
day) + the amount of petrol the vehicle consumes while i ride. The company tries to make
extra money by overcharging people on the fuel consumption. They quote higher
fuel consumption and make the client pay more. i.e.: For a distance of 36 Kms
(to and fro Kainchi Dham), the fuel consumed by the scootie would be under 1
Litre (around Rs 70). The scootie, from my experience, should run for
approximately 45 Kms on 1 litre of petrol. So, for a journey of 18 + 18 = 36
Kms, 1 Litre of petrol should be an ok deal, but the company, in their pursuit
of profit, claimed that the scootie would consume 2 Litres of petrol and I
should pay for 2 litres of petrol, about Rs 140. Knowing that many businesses
are not very honest and exaggerate these numbers, I offered to have the scootie
refueled upon my return. I asked them to help me and have the scootie filled up
and when I return, I will again have it filled up (that way, upon refuelling, i would pay only for the amount of fuel i actually used). The company did not like the
idea, but agreed reluctantly. (When I returned in the evening and got
the scootie refueled, after riding a distance of 40 Kms - I had ridden it a
little extra as I enjoyed riding in the mountains - .96 Litre of petrol was enough to fill the tank back
up. Not even one complete litre.)
Back to the two wheeler renting. After
agreeing on the fuel, i had to further give them a copy of my valid ID, an ID in original (they wanted my PAN Card but i managed to convince them to keep my Bank Debit Card), and some security amount,
I was good to take their vehicle and start my journey for Kainchi Dham – Baba Neem Karoli’s Ashram. As it
had been some time since I had ridden a two wheeler, i did not ride two wheelers much after selling my Thunderbird Motorbike 5 years ago, I was a little worried about my dexterity at
riding two wheelers. But, I was happy to see that i was still ok with riding two
wheelers. Riding in the mountains was quite an exhilarating experience, the
tranquility of the mountains, without the cacophony of horns, and other vehicles zipping
by at frantic pace make riding so much fun.
At
Kainchi Dham – Neem Karoli Baba’s Ashram
Not
too long into the ride, after one of the turns, the Orange coloured dome of
the temple of Baba Neem Karoli’s Ashram was visible in the distance. The temple was some distance
away but as it was further below in the valley
I had a clear view. I stopped to click a few pictures as this was my first
sighting of the temple. I resumed my journey and after a couple more turns, I
was at the entrance of the temple.
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| First sighting of the Ashram of Neem Karoli Baba at Kainchi Dham |
 |
| Neem Karoli Baba's Ashram at Kainchi Dham |
One has
to cross a small bridge to reach the final entrance to the Ashram. And right at
this entrance is a shoe rack where devotees keep their shoes. Next, in one of the rooms, there were devotees singing Bhajan. As I
proceeded ahead, in one of the rooms I saw idols of Lord Rama and Lord Hanuman. There is an open
yard in the middle of the Ashram compound and the place is largely open air, surrounded
by temple structures. In the corner, on the right hand side, I saw a room which I think houses Baba’s mortal remains from after the cremation. I had read that after Neem Karoli Baba passed away in Vrindavan, after the last rites, some of his mortal remains were brought to Kainchi Dham and kept here in this room.
This room is in the corner of the administrative block of the temple.
 |
| Picture of Neem Karoli Baba's Ashram from the entrance |
After
this, we have a room where Baba’s very lifelike idol is kept. I have always
found Baba’s all idols very lifelike, as if it was Baba himself sitting in
front of us. I sat still there for a couple of minutes before resuming my walk
in the temple. It was a wonderful feeling walking in the same complex where
once Neem Karoli Baba himself had walked. There was this sense of serenity and
calm about the whole place. On one of the walls I saw instructions on the decorum
to be maintained in the Ashram. I noticed a signboard
requesting devotees to not take pictures inside the temple complex, otherwise I
would have loved to capture the beautiful Ashram on my camera.
As I
was making my way towards the exit, one Ashram member summoned me and offered
me Prasad. After coming out of the Ashram, I took a few more pictures of the
Ashram from the road and started my journey back to the Nainital Mall Road. As I
had to pay for the scootie for the entire day and it was still early in the day, I chose to ride around a little
bit in the mountains around Kainchi Dham before going back. I was also
worried that should something happen to the scootie, I would be held responsible.
So, without venturing out for too long I returned to Nainital.
After completing all the paperwork with the two wheeler
rental company, I returned to my Hotel room and rested for a while. After an
hour or so, in the evening, I stepped out of the Hotel and went for a long
stroll along the famous Mall Road of Nainital. It was quite fascinating to
observe goods and services being offered for people from all across the spectrum. For the
affluent, there were fancy restaurants deploying large sign boards outside,
advertising the cuisine offered. It was very encouraging to find an outlet of
the popular American chain ‘Café Coffee
Day’ at the Mall Road. For the not affluent, there were these mobile coffee vendors
dotting the Mall Road. They carry the coffee maker in a small wooden case atop a bicycle and ride around. They also serve yummy Cream Rolls to go with the
coffee.
A Gurudwara, actually it was a Singh Sabha, caught my eye while walking and I turned in its direction. I did not go inside the Singh Sabha but walked in the Tibetan market around it. I was amazed with the range of items being sold by the enterprising Tibetans. From Squeeze balls to Blankets and Electronics to Momos. One thing I have noticed about the people from North East India, there dressing sense is impeccable. I have observed this in Delhi too, people who come to work from Manipur and Mizoram (North East) have a very good fashion sense, better than many of the local Delhiites. After walking for a while I felt tired and decided to retire to my Hotel Room. On my way back to the Hotel, I stopped at a Wine and Bar Shop and picked up a bottle of Beer (too bad on my part to be unable to recollect the name now. It was not a regular brand that we find in Delhi, that is why I am upset about forgetting its name). From another shop, I purchased 2 packets of Haldiram’s peanuts. Back in the Hotel room, I turned the News on and enjoyed the beer and the solitude. Not long after that I could find myself feeling heavy headed and slowly falling asleep. (Thank god the Television set had a remote that worked and I could turn the TV off from where I lay on the bed).
A Gurudwara, actually it was a Singh Sabha, caught my eye while walking and I turned in its direction. I did not go inside the Singh Sabha but walked in the Tibetan market around it. I was amazed with the range of items being sold by the enterprising Tibetans. From Squeeze balls to Blankets and Electronics to Momos. One thing I have noticed about the people from North East India, there dressing sense is impeccable. I have observed this in Delhi too, people who come to work from Manipur and Mizoram (North East) have a very good fashion sense, better than many of the local Delhiites. After walking for a while I felt tired and decided to retire to my Hotel Room. On my way back to the Hotel, I stopped at a Wine and Bar Shop and picked up a bottle of Beer (too bad on my part to be unable to recollect the name now. It was not a regular brand that we find in Delhi, that is why I am upset about forgetting its name). From another shop, I purchased 2 packets of Haldiram’s peanuts. Back in the Hotel room, I turned the News on and enjoyed the beer and the solitude. Not long after that I could find myself feeling heavy headed and slowly falling asleep. (Thank god the Television set had a remote that worked and I could turn the TV off from where I lay on the bed).
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| Lake at Nainital Mall Road at night |
Day 2 – Nainital to Kukuchina
The next day, I
managed to wake up before my normal waking up time. It was 10th
October 2013, Thursday and I was up at 5 AM, which was good as we had a long
day ahead of ourselves. Mahavatar Babaji’s Cave in Kukuchina is about 110 Kms
from where I was in Nainital. So, it was imperative that I made an early start
and covered maximum distance during the good part of the day. I quickly freshened
up and stepped out of the Hotel to enjoy an early morning walk in the pristine
beauty of pollution free Nainital. Surprisingly, as early as 5:50 AM, there
were considerable number of people outside: Taxi drivers, Bus Operators, Hawkers, Mobile Coffee sellers etc. I
also noticed a number of people out for some exercise and running. There were
some dog walkers too. I took the same track I had walked on last night. Upon reaching
one of the ‘exotic’ Mobile Coffee Vendors (exotic because I have not seen this in Delhi) I was too tempted to not try. So, succumbing to my craving, I ordered
for a coffee and a cream roll. Needless to say both were Yum. I reached the
same Gurudwara (Singh Sabha) road and noticed a mini-stadium right across the road. I
noticed dozens of youngsters playing Cricket and Hockey and some simply running. In
one corner of the stadium, there were girls practicing Hockey shots with their
male coach. I felt it was quite encouraging to see girls trying their hand at a
physically demanding sport. There was a beautiful mosque on one side of the
stadium and I could not resist the temptation of taking a few pictures.
 |
| Bus Stop at Nainital Mall Road |
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| Beautiful morning by the lake at Nainital |
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| Majestic Mosque |
 |
| Early morning callisthenics |
 |
| Taken from the mini stadium / play ground at the Mall Road |
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| Beautiful Nainital Mall Road |
After a
long walk, I returned to my Hotel Room and took a hot water shower. As I had to return to Delhi in the night, I packed my bag with all my belongings
so that I could Check Out of the Hotel. At about 8:20 AM, I reached the Hotel Reception and
asked for settling the bill. I was carrying my bag with me. As I had to rent
the motorbike again today, for the journey to Kukuchina and back, I requested
the Hotel to keep my bag with them and told them that I would collect the bag in the
evening when I came back to Nainital for the night bus to Delhi. The
Hotel staff took the bag and issued me a receipt for it. After making the
payment of Rs 1600/- to the Hotel, I headed for the two wheeler rental
company's office and was there in about 5 minutes. The owner was not there at
this time but one of the employees (who I was told stays there for the night)
had opened the office.
Seeing me again at their office and knowing my purpose (from the brief discussion yesterday), the employee placed a call to the owner Mr Bisht. As not every day is the same, today I felt a little change and rigidity in Mr Bisht’s approach. He said he would not only charge higher today, as I was renting a motorbike today and not the scootie, which was something I was fine with, but would also charge me extra for every hour i kept their vehicle starting 6 PM (Additional charges for the time i kept their vehicle after 6 PM).
Also, for fuel, Mr Bisht said he would not be able to extend the tank filling up approach today and that I will have to pay for the fuel basis the following calculation: 1 Litre of fuel for every 20 Kms, which would mean (Rs 72 * (220/20) Kms) = Rs 800). From my experience I know that motorbikes consume 1 Litre of fuel for every 40 Kms (in city conditions). While these were mountains and motorbikes cannot be ridden fast, there is no constant stopping too, which increases the fuel consumption. I would have still been ok with a more reasonable approach like 40 Kms for every Litre, that way the fuel total would come to about Rs 400. But, Mr Bisht did not budge. This, on top of the fact that yesterday I had paid whole day rental for using the scootie for just 2 hours. It was not about the money but feeling disappointed by such mindset, I decided to not rent the motorbike from Him Yatra Travels today.
As I walked out of their office, I was wondering which other motorbike rental company I could go to. As I reached the Bus Stop on the Mall Road, I approached a Cab driver who had a fairly new car (a comfortable Maruti Wagon-R, not the usual small Maruti Alto). I enquired from him about charges for getting me to Dunagiri and back to Nainital, he replied Rs 2400. When i enquired about Volvo Coaches going from Nainital to Delhi, he mentioned that I could get Volvos from Haldwani (from the foothill) and not from Nainital. As Volvos are low floor buses, they do not ply on Nainital route because of its steep climbs and sharp turns. Like some switch turned on in my mind, I asked how much would he charge to drop me at Haldwani (40 Kms from Nainital – in the opposite direction of the cave). Nainital to the Dunagiri Cave and dropping at Haldwani, he said he would charge Rs 2700. I tried negotiating a little but that is not my strength and I agreed on Rs 2700 for dropping me to Haldwani after visiting Kukuchina. Before leaving for Kukuchina, we made a quick stop at the Hotel and picked up my bag, I would not be returning for the bag now. As we made our way through the winding roads of Uttrakhand, I was busy making a mental note of the amount I would end up spending. Taking the cab had definitely doubled this particular expenditure of getting to the cave, but I would not have to worry about the risks of riding a two wheeler and returning it in the evening. Plus, now I had a ride till Haldwani which is in the plains and I could travel back in a comfortable Volvo on my return journey to Delhi.
Seeing me again at their office and knowing my purpose (from the brief discussion yesterday), the employee placed a call to the owner Mr Bisht. As not every day is the same, today I felt a little change and rigidity in Mr Bisht’s approach. He said he would not only charge higher today, as I was renting a motorbike today and not the scootie, which was something I was fine with, but would also charge me extra for every hour i kept their vehicle starting 6 PM (Additional charges for the time i kept their vehicle after 6 PM).
Also, for fuel, Mr Bisht said he would not be able to extend the tank filling up approach today and that I will have to pay for the fuel basis the following calculation: 1 Litre of fuel for every 20 Kms, which would mean (Rs 72 * (220/20) Kms) = Rs 800). From my experience I know that motorbikes consume 1 Litre of fuel for every 40 Kms (in city conditions). While these were mountains and motorbikes cannot be ridden fast, there is no constant stopping too, which increases the fuel consumption. I would have still been ok with a more reasonable approach like 40 Kms for every Litre, that way the fuel total would come to about Rs 400. But, Mr Bisht did not budge. This, on top of the fact that yesterday I had paid whole day rental for using the scootie for just 2 hours. It was not about the money but feeling disappointed by such mindset, I decided to not rent the motorbike from Him Yatra Travels today.
As I walked out of their office, I was wondering which other motorbike rental company I could go to. As I reached the Bus Stop on the Mall Road, I approached a Cab driver who had a fairly new car (a comfortable Maruti Wagon-R, not the usual small Maruti Alto). I enquired from him about charges for getting me to Dunagiri and back to Nainital, he replied Rs 2400. When i enquired about Volvo Coaches going from Nainital to Delhi, he mentioned that I could get Volvos from Haldwani (from the foothill) and not from Nainital. As Volvos are low floor buses, they do not ply on Nainital route because of its steep climbs and sharp turns. Like some switch turned on in my mind, I asked how much would he charge to drop me at Haldwani (40 Kms from Nainital – in the opposite direction of the cave). Nainital to the Dunagiri Cave and dropping at Haldwani, he said he would charge Rs 2700. I tried negotiating a little but that is not my strength and I agreed on Rs 2700 for dropping me to Haldwani after visiting Kukuchina. Before leaving for Kukuchina, we made a quick stop at the Hotel and picked up my bag, I would not be returning for the bag now. As we made our way through the winding roads of Uttrakhand, I was busy making a mental note of the amount I would end up spending. Taking the cab had definitely doubled this particular expenditure of getting to the cave, but I would not have to worry about the risks of riding a two wheeler and returning it in the evening. Plus, now I had a ride till Haldwani which is in the plains and I could travel back in a comfortable Volvo on my return journey to Delhi.
Enroute Mahavatar Babaji’s Cave
The path
from Nainital to Dunagiri goes through Ranikhet is very beautiful. Mountains
and green vegetation in whichever direction one looks at. There
was absolute silence and no signs of human beings around. This tranquility was quite inviting and i found myself battling
with the thought of someday giving up my city life for the mountains. Back on
our journey, as we reached Ranikhet, we crossed a couple of Army checkpoints as
this area is under Army control. I was, in parallel, tracking our progress on
the Google App on my phone. This app has been my companion on many trips now
and I resort to it even in city, when I lose track of the directions.
Dwarahat
comes after Ranikhet and has some very beautiful views of
the mountains and green trees. After crossing Dwarahat, we finally reached
Dunagiri. The Dunagiri temple is a big attraction among devotees and upon
reaching this point, I noticed a stream of devotees purchasing prayer items
from the vendors dotting the road leading to the temple. After this, the road turns to the
right as we continue on our journey to Kukuchina. We noticed a milestone on the right indicating
5 Kms for Kukuchina, the final point on this road. Not too long after this, the road in front of us came to an end and
upon looking sideways, I saw Joshi Restaurant (Click for Google Map Link) and its owner, the young Mr Joshi.
Senior Mr Joshi passed away some years back and his son now manages the restaurant. He greets cave
visitors with the same warmth and hospitality as senior Mr Joshi. Noticing our car stop, Mr Joshi
did not need any further hints about our purpose of visit and rushed towards us
with a broad smile on his face.
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| Joshi Restaurant at Kukuchina, Uttrakhand (Right opposite the restaurant, in the mountains, is Mahavatar Babaji's Cave) |
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| Young Mr Joshi |
I
mentioned to Mr Joshi the purpose of my visit and the fact that I had read
about his restaurant, his father, and also about his father's passing away on blogs of fellow Cave travellers. Mr Joshi
seemed to be aware of his restaurant featuring on the net. I enquired from him
about visitors and mentioned to him that he was quite fortunate to be living so
close to Mahavatar Babaji’s Cave. Actually, the cave is situated in the
mountain right opposite Mr Joshi’s restaurant.
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| Mountain housing Mahavatar Babaji's Cave, right opposite Joshi Restaurant |
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| View of the mountains from Joshi Restaurant |
We chatted briefly and, as it
was lunch time 1:00 PM and we were tired, I requested for Maggi for myself and
the cab driver Ramesh. The distance I had covered so far, 300 Kms Delhi to Nainital and 110 Kms from Nainital to Kukuchina. While Mr Joshi was busy
preparing Maggi, I enjoyed the beautiful view of the mountains around us and
felt glad to be finally so close to the cave. I noticed a black Dog in front of
the Dhaba. I had read on some blogs that he sometimes guides devotees, who walk to
the cave, on their way back from the cave. I offered a few buns from Mr Joshi’s
shop to the Dog who, given the pace with which he consumed them, was quite
famished.
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| Hungry Friendly Dog :) |
Soon, Mr Joshi arrived with the
sumptuous Maggi and I had an opportunity to chat with him while I ate my
Maggi. He narrated stories of people, over the years, coming from all parts of
the world to visit the cave. He narrated story of a point down the hill where
one of the Pandavas Bhim engaged in a fight with someone thousands of years
ago. Mr Joshi also mentioned that he had built rooms for people who come
to visit the cave, to rest and stay. He showed me the register he maintains
where some visitors make entries about their experience. I could have chatted
the whole day with Mr Joshi and would have loved to hear stories from him on
Babaji, Neem Karoli Baba and other saints, but I was worried that if there was a sudden change in the weather, I would lose out on my opportunity of visiting the cave.
After
settling the bill with Mr Joshi, we proceeded, on car, on the final unpaved
stretch to the cave. This stretch is some 3 Kms and is quite narrow. On some
parts, it has concrete slabs, some parts have gravel and some have just mud. There
were no sign boards on this road and we were worried about losing our path or going
ahead and missing the trek starting point (the final stretch to the cave is a 20 minute trek). I had read about the boards put up by the
Yogoda Satsang Society (YSS) and kept looking for them. Finally, after we
reached a water stream we saw that the road did not go any further and it was here that we saw the first board indicating towards the cave.
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| Final stretch (unpaved) before the cave |
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| Water Stream right before the Trek's starting point |
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| First board and the Trek Starting Point |
The Trek to the Cave
Glad
and relieved, we parked the car next to the water stream and began our trek. The path is well formed now, I guess a result of years of travelling by
devotees, but it is slippery in parts. In some parts, it is quite steep. As this was the middle of the jungle, the calm around
us coupled with the trees and mountains made it an experience to cherish. I was
getting tired with the climb but the adrenalin kept me going. There was this amazing sense of
adventure too about this place, walking in the middle of the jungle away from
civilization. The winding path to the
cave just did not seem to end and at every turn I prayed to god that it was the
last. At one turn, I saw a gentleman standing quietly on the path, alone in the
middle of this jungle. I smiled at him, did a quick Pranaam, and pressed on. The
cab driver Ramesh behind me told me that the stranger had gestured towards a
steeper climb which was a shortcut and would get us to the cave faster. For
two reasons, I did not want to follow the advice: i) I wanted to take the normal,
longer path (as this was like a pilgrimage :)) and, ii) My fear of losing track of the path and getting lost. But, Ramesh was insistent and took the path with the steeper
climb. I did not want to follow but reluctantly agreed. Being not the normal route, this path did not
have those indicator boards and I was quite worried and kept an eye out for the
elusive board. After a few minutes, I saw one board right ahead of me. I was
overjoyed, as I was, thankfully, not lost.
After some more walking, I saw the Smriti Bhawan emerge from behind the trees
and the path. I was exhausted at this point and could feel my heart throb heavily.
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| One of the many indicative boards on the Trek |
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| Path on the Trek |
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| Trek to the Cave |
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| Trek continued |
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| The stranger who directed us to the cave shortcut |
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| Babaji Smriti Bhawan |
A note for fellow cave travellers, this
climb is a little demanding and not very easy, so please people with any heart condition or
any other physical ailment, be extra cautious and come prepared. Doing this
climb might be extremely difficult and if your body does not permit you, you might
be ok not attempting.
I
wanted to take some rest at this point at Babaji Smriti Bhawan, but as I had read that the cave is just a couple of
minutes from the Smriti Bhawan, I did not want to stop now. A devotee dressed
in yellow / orange attire appeared at the Smriti Bhawan entrance and mentioned
that the cave is just a few minutes away. This did provide my fast depleting energy
reservoir some boost and we carried on without stopping. After a few more beautiful stretches, we reached that final bend, which, I had seen in the videos,
is the point from where the final steps to the cave start. And soon thereafter, we were
at the entrance of the cave. The devotee back at the Smriti Bhawan had told us that the cave door was not locked (I had read online that the cave door is sometimes locked and someone
in the village keeps the key with him. I did not know at what time the cave is
kept locked, so I had asked the devotee at Smriti Bhawan about the lock).
The cave door had a latch on but that is all. With folded hands and millions of thanks in my heart, I undid the latch and opened the cave door. I felt ecstatic to have made it to the cave and it was quite beautiful to finally step inside the cave and see it in real life (after seeing it only on the net). It took us about 20 minutes to complete the entire trek (I am saying this from making note of the time stamps on my pictures in the computer, from the time when I took the first picture of the board in the beginning and the time on the pictures I took inside the cave). I noticed that a part of the cave was plastered and sealed off, perhaps there was a further path ahead but the cave management felt it was best to keep that part out of bounds. The cave felt cooler than the temperature outside and there was a sweet smell of incense in the air. The moment I sat still, I started sweating profusely, a result of the steep climb and the layers of clothing I had on me. I had a T-Shirt, Sweat shirt, and a heavy Jacket on me. I took the Jacket and the Sweat shirt off and it felt quite better. Shortly thereafter, we could hear raindrops outside. Ramesh was quite worried about his car getting stuck in the soft earth on the unpaved path and we had to make a hurried exit from the Cave, without stopping at the Smriti Bhawan. In about 10 minutes, we were back at the car and began our return journey. We stopped briefly at Joshi Restaurant and thanked Mr Joshi for his kind hospitality and guidance.
The cave door had a latch on but that is all. With folded hands and millions of thanks in my heart, I undid the latch and opened the cave door. I felt ecstatic to have made it to the cave and it was quite beautiful to finally step inside the cave and see it in real life (after seeing it only on the net). It took us about 20 minutes to complete the entire trek (I am saying this from making note of the time stamps on my pictures in the computer, from the time when I took the first picture of the board in the beginning and the time on the pictures I took inside the cave). I noticed that a part of the cave was plastered and sealed off, perhaps there was a further path ahead but the cave management felt it was best to keep that part out of bounds. The cave felt cooler than the temperature outside and there was a sweet smell of incense in the air. The moment I sat still, I started sweating profusely, a result of the steep climb and the layers of clothing I had on me. I had a T-Shirt, Sweat shirt, and a heavy Jacket on me. I took the Jacket and the Sweat shirt off and it felt quite better. Shortly thereafter, we could hear raindrops outside. Ramesh was quite worried about his car getting stuck in the soft earth on the unpaved path and we had to make a hurried exit from the Cave, without stopping at the Smriti Bhawan. In about 10 minutes, we were back at the car and began our return journey. We stopped briefly at Joshi Restaurant and thanked Mr Joshi for his kind hospitality and guidance.
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| Final steps right before Mahavatar Babaji's Cave |
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| Entrance - Mahavatar Babaji's Cave |
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| Mahavatar Babaji Cave pictures |
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| Mahavatar Babaji Cave pictures |
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| Mahavatar Babaji Cave pictures |
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| Mahavatar Babaji Cave pictures |
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| View of the mountains from the Trek while returning |
Last leg of the journey – drive to
Haldwani
We had decided
earlier that I will directly go to Haldwani, and
not Nainital. Haldwani is about 40
Kms ahead of Nainital, but a bypass could directly take us to Haldwani from Kukuchina without having to cross Nainital. At about 2:30 PM, we started from Kukuchina and began our drive for
Haldwani. We crossed the same path we had come on: Kukuchina to
Dunagiri to Dwarahat to Ranikhet. We stopped for some refreshments around 4:30
PM, at a place called Uprari, as the cab driver Ramesh was feeling a little
sleepy and wanted to break for Tea. I took some pictures of the beautiful
mountains around, and of some plantations the owner of the Refreshment shop had
grown. He showed me some Guavas that he had grown. I could see plants laden with Amla aka
Gooseberry and took a couple of pictures.
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| Beautiful view at Uprari |
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| Gooseberry plantation at Uprari |
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| View of the valley from Uprari |
We started one last time for our
destination Haldwani, from Uprari. Somewhere from Bhuwali we took the turn which would take
us directly to Haldwani, bypassing Nainital. As we reached the plains, I could
feel the weather getting a little warmer. It was wonderful to see establishments
like McDonalds, Dominos’ etc. open up in Tier 2, 3 cities (Haldwani) of India. At about 7:15
PM, I was at the Haldwani Bus Stop and bid adieu to Ramesh. For his entire day’s
effort, and the extra 16 odd Kms that he had to drive (I had told him that I have
to go to Dunagiri, but Kukuchina was 5 Kms further and the drive to the cave was
another 3 Kms), I finally paid Ramesh Rs 3000 (He asked to be paid that amount and
as I was thrilled to have been able to visit the cave, I did not think too much
about paying him little extra, if that made him happy).
Haldwani Bus Stop
I had
no inkling that it would be a full-fledged Bus Stop at Haldwani, just like I.S.B.T.
in New Delhi. There were a number of buses preparing to commence their journey
to various parts of India: Dehradun, Delhi, Kullu etc. I approached the ticket counter
and enquired about the Volvo Bus plying on the Delhi route. The gentleman at the
counter told me that the Volvo for Delhi starts at 8:30 PM. I
asked him how much time does the coach take to reach Delhi, to which he
answered, about 8 hours. It was still 7:20 PM and I enquired if there was an
earlier bus, he mentioned there was a Deluxe AC Bus leaving in a short while, but
fresh from my recent ordeal in a Deluxe AC bus, I decided to travel by Volvo and wait another hour. I purchased the Volvo ticket which costed Rs 600. In the 1 hour that I had, I walked around
a little bit in the Haldwani Market before finally boarding the Volvo at around 8:15
PM.
Returning to Delhi
I was sceptical about the condition of the Volvo Bus, as I had once travelled in a
very messed up, shabby Volvo coach, as well. Thankfully, this Volvo was quite
new and very well maintained, both inside and outside. We started sharp at 8:30
PM and made slow progress with some stops in between, on our journey to Anand
Vihar Bus Stop (the final disembarking point in Delhi). The Volvo ride was
the exact opposite of what I had experienced on my way to Nainital. The driver
drove in a very controlled manner and the cooling inside was maintained at a very
comfortable temperature. The distance from Haldwani to Delhi is 275 Kms and we
took 8 hours to cover it, reaching Delhi at 4:30 AM the next morning, Friday,
11th October 2013. I could not help but think that in a state-of-the-art Volvo, can we not cover
this distance a little faster from the current average speed of about 35 Kms
Per Hour. Anyway, I do not want to jinx it as the Volvo was driven quite well
and I could manage to catch a good amount of sleep. I was absolutely not fatigued
when I disembarked at Anand Vihar in Delhi in the morning.
The
Volvo dropped us right next to the Metro Train point at Anand Vihar Bus Stop, but
as the Metro Train is not operational before 6:00 AM, I had to take an auto-rickshaw. It took us some 45 minutes to reach home from Anand Vihar Bus Stop. I had to pay night charges for the
auto-rickshaw and the ride till my house in South Delhi costed Rs 320. By the
grace of Babaji, this turned out to be quite a memorable trip.
