HIMALAYA: THROUGH THE LENS OF A SADHU

HIMALAYA: THROUGH THE LENS OF A SADHU

  A book review by B. John Zavrel

Shivalinga peak--a beacon for the faithful. Circumambulating the Shivalinga's base (12-15 km) is unusually arduous and time consuming.
  If one is lucky enough to visit the Himalayas, the longing to return to the 'Home of the Snow' will never leave him.
In the same way, if one by chance comes across the new book "HIMALAYA: Through the Lens of a Sadhu" by the sage-photographer Swami Sundaranand, he too will be left breathless by the magnificent photography of the beauty of the Himalayas. And the burning desire to visit them in person will never go away ...
The Himalayas are the highest mountains in the world. But for Indians, they symbolize a spiritual eternity, a precious link with the ancient ages, and much more. Hindu mythology and fascinating religious traditions are interwoven with the history of the Himalayas. For many Hindus, the Himalayas constitute the 'ultimate destination', a repository of their deep religious faith.
And it is from the Himalayan glaciers that the river Ganga, the holiest of all rivers in India, rises and cuts its path through the valleys of stunning beauty and marvellously chiselled gorges before it enters the plains. Gangotri and Gomukh, the source of the Ganga, along with Yamunotri, Kedarnath and Badrinath form the four most important pilgrimage centres of the Garhwal Himalayas. Hundreds of other noteworthy shrines are located elsewhere in the Himalayan heights, among them also the Tarkeshwar Shrine, where one of the greatest yogis of our time, Swami Rama of the Himalayas, attained enlightenment.
This monumental work contains more than 425 photographs covering the fascinating faces and moods of the Himalayas, as they stretch from west to east. Most of the photographs were taken after months of privation, great patience, perilous climbing and hard trekking in the hostile and inhospitable terrain of the Himalayas.
The text is based on first-hand experiences, observations and long years of living in the Himalayas. Together and independently, the photographs and the text highlight the sublime beauty and magnificence of the Himalayas. At the same time, they mirror basic issues and concerns about the decline of religious values, mismanagement of the ancient shrines, unsustainable growth in population, and the dilemmas linked to development of modern tourism which is jeopardizing the tenuous ecological balance of the Himalayan region.

So who is this sage-photographer who put together this magnificent work of art?
The sage-photographer: Swami Sundaranand. Feet so restless, they long to reach the abode of Ganga.
At first glance, Swami Sundaranand appears to be simply a saffron-clad sadhu. Actually he is a yogi, ascetic, trekker, mountaineer, photographer, naturalist and ecologist, all rolled into one. He took the vow of renunciation 55 years ago. Since then he has lived at Gangotri, 10,300 ft above sea level in the Garhwal Himalaya, in a small cottage bequeathed to him by his guru, Swami Tapovanam Maharaj -- a very learned poet, author, traveler and recluse.
In the solitude of the towering mountains, he has spent a major part of his life engaged in meditation. The beauty and splendor of the Himalaya in all its dimensions appealed to his artistic inclinations, and his love for nature induced him to pick up something very unusual for a sadhu -- a camera. He began taking photographs of Himalayan peaks, valleys, alpine meadows, glaciers, lakes, flora and fauna, and the cultural life of the people inhabiting the Himalayas, capturing them if different seasons, different stages and different moods. Free from the fear of death, he took hair-raising risks and ventured with his camera where few people had ever stepped, and in the process, became known as the 'Clicking Swami".
Over the years he took more than 50,000 photographs and added to his stock of rare transparencies. Sadly, he was swindled out of many of them by unscrupulous men.
Swami Sundaranand is a fountain of knowledge. He quotes extensively from the scriptures in pure Sanskrit when presenting his slide-shows. He has held several one-man exhibitions of his photographs and innumerable slide-shows in many cities. Over the years, he got rave reviews both in India and abroad.


The book "Himalaya: Through the Lens of a Sadhu" can be ordered from the author at: Tapovan Kuti, Gangotri, District Uttarkashi - 249 193, Uttaranchal, India. Telephone (91) 013 772 22 31.
Or order from the distributor: Systems Vision, A-199, Okhla Phase-1, New Delhi 110 020, India. Telephone (91) 681 1195, fax (91) 681 2018, e-mail: svision@vsnl.com

The temple and hot water springs at Yamunotri--the source of the river Yamuna. In the background are the snow-covered peaks of Bandarpoonch massif.
 
Jogin mountain and its image in the crystal clear waters of Kedar Taal.



Brahmakamals on target: the author reflecting on the best way of capturing their fragnant magnificence while on the way to Roopkund.



Thalaisagar peak--known earlier as Patang Pithon--looks like molten gold at sunset.



Nobody can surpass Nature as a designer. Himalayan butterflies are its best examples.



Shops selling articles of worship on the final stretch to Kedarnath temple. Kedar, Keerti, Meru and Sumeru peaks overlook the temple.


The Nandadevi Raj procession as it passes through a valley of flowers and the heights of Homkund (17,0000 ft). In the background is the mountain range of Kumari Pass.
 
Only one of its kind in the world: naturally formed Shivalinga of snow at the holy cave of Amarnath in Jammu & Kashmir. Several thousand pilgrims undertake the hazardous journey every year--not everyone makes it.
 

Ornaments sculpted by a master craftsman. Goddess Parvati in Lingaraj temple at Bhubaneshwar, Orissa.


  The book "Himalaya: Through the Lens of a Sadhu" can be ordered from the author at: Tapovan Kuti, Gangotri, District Uttarkashi - 249 193, Uttaranchal, India. Telephone (91) 013 772 22 31.
Or order from the distributor: Systems Vision, A-199, Okhla Phase-1, New Delhi 110 020, India. Telephone (91) 681 1195, fax (91) 681 2018, e-mail: svision@vsnl.com

Photographs copyright Swami Sundaranand