My journey to the abode of God: Kailash-Manasarovar Yatra Adi Shankaracharya, towards the end of his incarnation, went to Kedarnath. Kedarnath, the northern most of the jyotirlingas, is nestled in the snow clad Himalayas. Tradition has it that Adi Shankara disappeared from sight at Kedarnath. Madhaviya Shankara Vijayam portrays this incident thus: “There came a concourse of Rishis and Devas with Brahma as their head to lead the incarnate aspect of Shiva back to his pristine state in Shivaloka. The divine bull Nandi came and stood before him. To the chorus of hymns, rain of Kalpaka flowers, the great Sanyasin mounting the back of Nandi with Brahma supporting him transformed himself into real form as the great Shiva and attained to his divine abode, Kailasha.” In Hindu Mythology, Mount Kailash is considered the abode of Lord Shiva and Lake Manasarovar the form of Devi Parvati. In this holy place, we worship nature - pure and untouched. There is a certain aura about this lake and mountain that separates them from all others. It is said in the Vedas that Kailash is a place for Gods to enjoy. The beauty at this place cannot be expressed in words. Till we sight Kailash, every snow capped mountain catches our eye and we are left in awe; but Mount Kailash, once sighted, diminishes every other mountain and alone stands majestically, in all glory. The only equal to Kailash’s beauty is Lake Manasarovar. The Kailash Yatra is one of the most difficult land journeys on earth. For one to successfully accomplish this yatra, physical fitness and tremendous will power are essential. By road, it takes four days to reach Manasarovar and Kailash, traveling approximately nine to ten hours each day. DAY 1 We started journey at 5:30 AM Indian Standard Time (IST). It is a six-hour journey by bus from Katmandu to Kodari (the village at the Nepalese border). After Nepalese border formalities, we crossed the Friendship Bridge by foot. We then reached the Chinese border post where they checked our visas. Simultaneously, they held out thermometers to check each of our body temperatures. We then got into the land cruisers (accommodating 4 passengers each) and started journey. At Zhang Mu, we completed the immigration formalities and started for Nyalam. Nyalam is at an altitude of 14,000 feet and this is the place where we can see how our body responds to the changes in altitude. It is very common for people to experience headaches, vomiting or nose bleeding. All these are symptoms of AMS (Acute Mountain Sickness). Diamox tablets are quite useful as they assist your heart in adapting to the altitude. That evening, after checking into our lodge, I took a stroll around. It was cold and I put on my down jacket. There was a Chinese Telecom booth nearby from where we called home. DAY 2 We were to stay in Nyalam this day. We did not have the facility to have a shower. The water was freezing cold in the taps but we could get hot water for brushing teeth. DAY 3 The roads on the Nyalam-Saga stretch were definitely the worst and this doubled the strain and tedium we felt. We started from Nyalam at 6:00 AM IST. The drive was very long and consisted of infinite ups and downs. It felt like the wildest roller-coaster ride I had experienced. The roads are very narrow and the drivers must have 100% control over the vehicles. If he loses his concentration for one millisecond, then God help us. On the way to Saga, we crossed Pikutso Lake. A little later, we saw an amazing landscape around us. We were standing on desert sand with no sign of greenery. There was a river flowing in full rage nearby and beyond that was a complete range of snow-capped mountains. Just before reaching Saga, we crossed the Brahmaputra River. In Saga, we were to stay in the Post Hotel. Here, the toilets were only ground dug pits and they were not clean. However, there was a five-star hotel nearby and we booked a room for the night, mainly because we were badly in need of a shower. DAY 4 We started our journey from Saga to Paryang at 6:55 am IST. The distance to be covered was only about 185 km but there were 15-minute halts every 1 or 2 hours and these slowed down our progress. To add to our woes, one of our tires got punctured on the way. We finally reached Paryang (altitude 15,000 feet) at 3:00 pm IST. We lodged at Tashi Hotel. It was very comfortable except for the toilets, but here we had no alternative. All the buildings were actually mud houses. It was very cold at night. DAY 5 We were finally headed for Manasarovar. We could not sight the lake or the mountain for a long time. At about 3:30 PM, we climbed a small plateau and we finally had Darshan of the sacred lake. However, Kailash was well hidden behind the clouds and we did not get to see the mountain. This was a very emotional moment for all the yatris. Many people performed sashtanga namaskaram in the direction of Mount Kailash, and had tears in their eyes. The place was completely quiet and serene. It was a sunny day. For a long time, we were trying to figure out where Kailash was, and eventually gave up. All our eyes were on the lake. It was massive and I could feel a certain divinity emanating from it. We then proceeded in our vehicles to the banks of the lake. We were to camp here. The tents (accommodating two people each) were pitched. We were a bit cramped inside the tent. We slept in our sleeping bags that night. DAY 6 All the yatris took bath in the Lake Manasarovar and we performed Rudrabhishekam, Rudra Homam and Sri Vidya Navavarna Homam on the banks of the lake. Many of us were starting to feel disappointed, as we had not gotten Darshan of Kailash yet. Following lunch, we started our Parikrama (circumambulation) of Manasarovar. About five minutes after we started, the clouds around Kailash suddenly cleared and what a sight it was! Mt. Kailash stood right in front of us and we were taken by surprise. The scenery was now complete. Seeing Kailash and Manasarovar together sent a thrill through my veins. We crossed several streams during the Manasarovar Parikrama and we stopped and collected a few small pebbles (called murthams). These are said to be ancient sages who attained the boon to be at Kailash forever; even today, they are supposed to be chanting Om Namah Shivaya constantly within themselves. We all felt energized after the morning’s prayers, and chanted Lalitha Sahasranamam in the car during this journey. After the Parikrama, we proceeded directly to Darchen. From here, we got our closest yet darshan of Kailash. The formation of snow on the black mountain was in such a way that it looked like a person meditating with closed eyes! I just did not have the heart to take my eyes off the mount. In the evening, we packed essential items like medicines, dry fruits and energy bars in our backpacks in preparation for the Kailash Parikrama. During the Parikrama, the weather is extremely unpredictable. It could be scorching hot, rainy, snowy and cloudy all in a day’s time. There is no shelter you can expect during the walk. Horses and porters are available and they can be booked in advance. Of the 28 people in my group, 17 people could do the Parikrama. Of these 17, only 5 opted for a horse while all others desired to complete it by walk. But, the Parikrama cannot be completed entirely on a horse. There are places where the path is so rugged that the horse simply cannot carry a passenger. So, any yatri undertaking the Parikrama should have full confidence in their physical fitness. The distance covered by foot is 52 km, and we reach an altitude of 19,500 feet. I am sure all the yatris who were undertaking the Parikrama from our group were perfectly aware of what awaited them at this stage. That night before going to sleep, I closed my eyes and pictured mount Kailash. DAY 7 At 8:00 AM IST, we left the hotel. We were driven in our vehicles to the starting point of the Parikrama where we met our porters, horses etc. In the morning, the sky was clear and we had a wonderful Darshan of Kailash. I decided to do the Parikrama by walk. As soon as we started, there was a small hill and I found this first climb difficult. The first day’s route consisted of numerous ups and downs that were not very steep. Overall, I felt it was good preparation for the next day’s rigorous trekking. During the walk, I saw a Tibetan doing their version of Parikrama, called the kora. They follow the same route and they cover the whole distance by repeated sashtanga namaskaram! Throughout the day’s trek, we had constant Darshan of Kailash on our right-hand side. We covered 18 of the 52 km that day and we camped at DeraPuk at night. A bed in a mud house for 40 Yuan was available for the night and we rented these right away. DAY 8 This day’s hike is the longest of the three days, covering a distance of 28 km.