Siva Sailadarshanam by G.S. Radhakrishnan is more than a travelogue about his trip to Kailas Manasarovar; it is also a meditation on spirituality. The opportunity to visit Kailas presented itself in 2009. Couldn’t the amount spent on the trip, many asked, be used for a more ‘worthwhile’ trip, say to Europe? But the Senior Scientist with the Naval Physical and Oceanographic Laboratory (NPOL) was firm on his decision.
Even after four years the memories are still vivid and the experience fresh. Writing a book was never part of the plan, Radhakrishnan says. His brother, an author, encouraged him, “he pushed me to put my experience into words.”
During the journey he had scribbled ‘memories’ which he referred to while writing . It took time deciding how he wanted to work his book out. He didn’t want it to be another travelogue because several have been written on the yatra . More than describing the route, which others have delved into, Radhakrishnan documents the interaction between the fellow travellers, “of how people from different States and mindsets come together as a family, a team.” He credits the Government of India, Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam Limited (KMVN) and the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) for the smooth conduct of the yatra.
The writing of the book was not without hitch. “I would write intermittently, finally in 2012-13 I got down to seriously writing it.” The book was published by Sadhana, an imprint of DC Books. The attempt was to write about the experience in terms that extended beyond the tourist’s catalogue of experiences. “It is to do with how I perceived the trip on a spiritual level. It goes beyond what meets the eye, the obvious…in such close proximity to nature; away from the hustle and bustle I had plenty of time for contemplation. During the trip I realised that there is more to life than a life of senses. It upped my ‘spiritual quotient’.”
He has visited several spiritual sites such as Dakshineshwar, Belur Mutt, Ajmer Sharif, Kumbh, Haridwar, Ujjain and others, places which he considers, ‘centres of man-making’. To enhance the book’s spiritual quotient he has peppered the narrative with quotes and references from spiritual texts.
He writes of singing Kailasa shailadrinaatha , naatha kayithozhaam kayithozhaam ninn paadam , from the film Kumarasambhavam as he climbed. Nuggets such as this, descriptions of the path, the vegetation and the life of the pilgrims on the trip add an extra element to the narrative. A descriptive word picture emerges in our minds as we read the book.
The trip, a 225 km trek, took 18 days. Of the 31 people all except three people opted for porters and ponies to make the climb. Radhakrishnan along with two others opted to make the climb with just porters.
The route the 31 member team took was the traditional route via Kumaon, Tibet and on to Kailas Manasarovar. There are three routes to Kailas Manasarovar – the ‘official’ route which is the ancient/traditional via Uttaranchal crossing Indo-Tibet border (via Lipulekh pass) the route Radhakrishnan took; a motorable road via Kathmandu and Tibet to the base camp of Kailas and a third route, motorable, via Nathula pass in Sikkim to Tibet, till base camp of Kailas.
The decision to foot it was based on advice from M.K. Ramachandran, whom Radhakrishnan met as part of preparations for the yatra. Ramachandran is one of the few people who has visited Panch Kailas (the five peaks) - Kailas Manasarovar, Adi Kailas, Kailas Kinnaur, Shrikant Mahadev Kailas and Manimahesh Kailas.
“For the first time traveller the climb is tough. At 17,500 feet above sea level, the air is thin and oxygen levels low. It requires will power but I wanted to do the yatra on foot,” he says. Added to the perils of the terrain was a landslide, the travellers had no choice but walk around it and that added extra kilometres to the trek. Unfortunately during this circuitous trek, a fellow traveller died as his pony slipped and fell.
Although this was his first trip to Kailas Manasarovar, he had already been to Badrinath, Vaishno Devi and Amarnath. This was a first for him in every sense, especially in terms of the challenge involved. He prepared for the yatra with a passion, readying himself physically for the trials his body would have to face.
“I started yoga and used to walk, especially up slopes, in order to build stamina and endurance,” he says. The preparation stood him in good stead. Be it the climb, the lack of oxygen, the treacherous path – each was a trial but, he says, failure was never an option. This particular trip opened his eyes to the lives the porters and their families lead. “Even for us the camps are cramped, these porters (Kumaoni and Tibetans) do not have proper facilities to rest or even stay warm. I hope the KMVN does something for them.”
With NPOL for the last 28 years, the 51-year-old says he loves travelling. He has travelled extensively across India; treks extensively as part of the Cochin Adventure Foundation. He lives in Kochi with his wife Sindhu and children.
The tough climb
The trip, a 225 km trek, took 18 days. Of the 31 people all except three opted for porters and ponies to make the climb. Radhakrishnan along with two others opted to make the climb with just porters. There are three routes to Kailas Manasarovar – the ‘official’ route which is the ancient/traditional via Uttaranchal crossing Indo-Tibet border (via Lipulekh pass) the route Radhakrishnan took; a motorable road via Kathmandu and Tibet to the base camp of Kailas and a third route, motorable, via Nathula pass in Sikkim to Tibet, till base camp of Kailas.
