It was the summer of 2009, when I had visited Manikaran for the very first time as a child and the effect it left was that of a perfect hermitage retreat which is still the same for me! Manikaran is five kilometers ahead of Kasol, on the banks of the Parvati river in Himachal Pradesh. It is a holy town both for Hindus and Sikhs. One will find Lord Shiva’s temple which has a very interesting history as to how that place came into existence. The Gurudwara is the main highlight attracting Sikh pilgrims from all over India.
Though most of the temples and gurudwaras have been developed and better amenities have been provided to pilgrims, the feel and the sanity of the place is still like it was before. The market place that once sold swords, guns and knives got upgraded to shops selling everything from hiking gears to Bob Marley tees to wooden artifacts and the new built in cafes selling espresso to loads of foreigners visiting the place.The natural hot water springs originating from the mountains and the rapidity of the river are wonders that needs to be seen and felt to understand why I call this place a ‘Hermit’s Retreat’. .
This time I could only stay for 2 days. On the first day I was assigned to do seva at the Mattress depot and then at the Langar kitchen. The best part is you feel like working and doing everything you are asked to irrespective of who you are or what you are, there is always a sense of satisfaction this Seva gives you. During my service, I ended up making friends with other boys and since all of them were Punjabis I could brush up on my Punjabi too.
The kirtan in the evenings at the main Gurudwara creates an atmosphere such that one would not want to leave the place.What most of the people, especially tourists miss is to see the wonderful nightlife Manikaran offers. After our seva and dinner, the boys and I went for a walk and then sat by a hot water spring listening to Punjabi songs and talked. It’s wonderful to see how places bonds people form different whereabouts, walks and classes. This is one of the reasons why you should solo travel because ‘its not the places you get to see rather meet the real person inside you with the new perspective it gives you.’
Maan Singh a guy from Amritsar, a close friend I made and several conversations with him was something out of the world.
Overall, this time the way I interpreted the place was completely different than what I had 8 years ago and it will always be one of the places in my checklist for hermitage.
So well written! Definitely makes me want to visit the place.