The Language of Love

21^st February, 2014: Today, there are celebrations of International Mother Language Day across the world.  It was an opportunity to join Sunil to MCCS, to see him address the students of classes IX and XI, and the teachers on the need to develop a Palliative Care Forum for North Bengal. He explained about the way to love people who were suffering from cancer, old age and other terminal diseases. For doctors, any patient is treated for the disease or suffering, but in Palliative Care, it is all about going towards death with friends around you, trying to keep you happy on your last journey. This is what only one can do voluntarily, and today we need more volunteers in this society.

When Prince Siddhartha realized that suffering and death are obvious once you are born, he left his palace in search of the path, which can take you through the journey of life with more happiness and peace. He sat under the Bodhi Tree and as the world says he achieved Nirvana, an enlightenment through which He shows the path of Peace and Happiness in this world even today as Buddha. Recently, as a part of the Green Circuit Team we had gone to explore the Nirvana Trails of Lord Buddha under the leadership of Deepak, an old friend from Nalanda from the UNDP Rural Tourism days. Ajoy, the President of ACT was helping with the audio-visual documentation, supported by Sayantan.

After His Enlightenment, Lord Buddha arrived at the village called Jethian (Jesthivan). The news of the Enlightenment of Buddha as one of the Greatest teachers of all times was already in awareness, and the then King Bimbhisara at Rajgir (Rajgriha) heard about his arrival and reached Jethian with his entire court and army to receive the Teacher. He requested Lord Buddha to give him the Diksha (accept him as his disciple or student) and then took Him to Rajgir, where He accepted to stay at Venuvan. This was the first royal patronage, which was later recognized by Emperor Ashoka, who spread Buddha’s Teachings as the Dhamma, way of life. Even the Great Buddhist Scholar and Chinese Pilgrim, Xuang Xang mentions spending 02 years at this blessed village of Jethian.

The people living in Jethian today, had migrated from Sambhalgarh in Rajasthan and are proud to be called the ‘citizens of the first village of Enlightened Buddha’. Though their basic livelihoods is mainly dependent on cattle rearing and to some extend on agriculture, yet the hospitality of these people living below the poverty line is amazing. The entire area with adjoining villages is a mine for Buddhist Treasures, wherever you dig, there are remains of temples, statues, plaques and more. From the time of Ashoka to the Pala Kings, it seems there was hardly any place in Asia which was not influenced by the Teachings of Buddha, specially blessed was the Magadha Landscape with East and Northeast India.

The Green Circuit team had village meetings and initiated the process of Homestays and Village Tourism at Jethian. The adjoining villages were also visited, and the Heritage Protection Teams in the villages were motivated and the village collections were also documented by Ajoy. Finally, we reached the Cave, where Lord Buddha had meditated, close to a village called Aer. All the villages still live as if in the 18^th century, traditional livelihood and happy communities. The road connectivity has improved in the past few years and mobile user numbers have taken over toilet user numbers. Also lot of the forests, which were sources of water have vanished. Scarcity of water, fuel-wood, livelihood opportunities and empowerment have forced the youth to leave the villages.

Lord Buddha, who has showed the path of happiness by living with nature, the places where we have his footsteps calls for the return of nature and this can only happen through volunteers of love. Volunteers who can create compassionate destinations, through their acts to mankind, nature and heritage. Volunteers who are not torn apart by the worries of climate change and degrading social values, but are ready to learn from traditions and help the citizens of this world to be part of the sustainable development in villages are already going ahead. Like the old routes from Nalanda, the volunteers from the sacred landscape of Magadha will be connected to Silk Route and Sea Route Destinations across the Indian Himalaya, India’s Northeast, the Eastern and Western coasts, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and Myanmar. The opportunity lies by connecting The Green Circuit Team at ITB, Berlin during 1^st and 2^nd week of March, 2014.

Present, Past and Future at Pelling Chautare

It has been quite some months that I have not contributed to Chautare blog. The major reason being the call to visit the Chautare activities. Yesterday was the last day of the Pelling Winter Festival and like many others I too was a part of the event, catching up with friends who have been instrumental in creating this destination and friends who are part of this destination. Tshering Wangdi, the President of the organizers, PTDA (Pelling Tourism Development Association) in his own humorous way said that this was the age of mobile and internet. This was followed by his joke “a son took his father, who was suffering physically for quite some time to see the doctor. When the doctor asked the son about what had happened with his father, the son replied that he did not know what had happened, but his father was in the vibration mode”.

The discussions at the Chautare continued when Didi said “you know Raj, your today is the reflection of yesterday, and your path for the future”. It was more than 20 years back that Help Tourism with me as a part of the team had become a part of the Pelling Chautare. The starting was the formation of PTDA, which was followed by the 1^st Ecotourism workshop in India being organized at Pelling. I still remember Nandita Jain, who addressed the workshop then and all of us locally pledged that we would go by the ecotourism guidelines. Only 02 weeks back, Nava Nalanda Mahavihara in collaboration and guidance from Help Tourism, and supported by PTDA organized the Bauddha Mahotsava at Pelling. This was the first of its kind of event, which set the guidelines for Living Buddhism. The major points which were agreed upon here was to enhance the role of monasteries to lead the way of sustainable development for the societies around them and to propose the UN and other concerned International communities to declare the Buddha Purnima as the International Day for Compassion, Peace and Tolerance.

There is hardly any documentation on Pelling, it is believed that the area was dominated by the Limboo community, who till date follow Biodivinity as their religion, and when the wise men from Tibet arrived here, they included the local faith in Buddhism and hence Mt.Khangchendzonga remains to be the Guardian Deity of Sikkim and Darjeeling Hills as a whole. Even the Bhutanese King had taken occupation of this place, the ruins of the Dzong can still be found in the Pelling Senior Secondary School compound, which was established in 1966. The Gorkha King also regularly eyed on this area, which made the Sikkim King shift his 2^nd capital from here, further east. The 04 major monasteries of Sikkim: Pemayangtse, Tashiding, Dubdi and Sangachoeling are in West Sikkim. Tashiding, which is believed to be the seat of power, is at the heart of Sikkim and the spiritual centre of the entire agrarian society of the East Himalayan region. The Pemayangtse Monastery is the only Sikkimese religious hub of the only one of its kind. Once Nathula is opened for the purpose of Spiritual Tourism, Pelling with West Sikkim will again be the centre for Spiritual Tourism in the East Himalayan region.

This is a dream come true, sooner or later, but many of us may not live to see it happen. I often miss Pokhar Kaka in my Pelling Chautare, who did not live to see this day of Pelling, but I am sure that he had dreamt it. I try and sit down in a lazy winter afternoon, trying to stitch a new quilt, the old cotton is finished, but I cannot throw away... will you bring some new cotton for me in this new year so that I can live another winter.

Dooars Diary: Central Duars ECO-FEST

Sitting on elephants back and meeting on lazy mornings, the organizers decided that they would stick to the old British spelling ‘DUARS’. The Central Duars ECO-FEST, as the organizers have said will be organized on the same date every year, starting with 14^th to 19^th November in 2013. The major aim goal of the festival will be to highlight the natural and cultural diversity of Central Dooars and confirm community participation in conservation. Hospitality owners, eco-guides, taxi drivers and NGOs are the direct stakeholders in this festival, who seek the support of participation of visitors in this festival. Other than the regular forest based nature activities, there will be cultural shows with tribal dances, music and local food. Adventure programs like river walks, treks, bicycle trails and rock climbing will rock the show. Seminars and training programs for better networking in conservation and livelihood will be the highlights of the festival. 

Mujnai Tea Estate, the 1807 tea garden, which had almost died, has been brought back to life by the young and energetic manager Kaushik Das. One of the oldest and best Tea Estate of Central Dooars, once owned by the Nawabs of Jalpaiguri, Majnai’s landscape is extraordinary. Kaushik is preparing his tea garden to be a part of the festival in a big way. Watchtower, sunset point, tea processing and wildlife tracking will be his strengths. He showed the tracks of wild elephants criss-crossing his tea estate almost every night. He is planning to do a night safari in his tea garden, early morning peacock trail and a nighthalt for the adventurous at the watch tower.

Several new experiential hospitality organizations are creating new units, whereas the old ones are renovating their infrastructure. New and interesting local food menus are being planned. Several of the ACT members are busy in creating new activities for the well meaning travellers. The festival will see local football matches, whose finals will be played during the festival days. There will be interesting film shows and presentations. Traditional lifestyle of the people of Dooars will be part of the hospitality during the festival, with the options of staying with local people. Cultural exchanges and cooking classes are part of the activities

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Dooars Diary

This small town of Siliguri of our childhood days, in the last almost hundred years, from maybe a Himalayan riverine area grew into a bustling city, the shopping lungs of 03 countries and 03 states of India’s Northeast, the headquarters of North Bengal. If you happen to travel North from here to some of the higher areas, you will see several riverine dry beds running through the city, most prominently, a noticeable one through the Uttorayon and City Centre Mall. Within Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary, it is walkable distance between the Mahananda River and legendary River Teesta. The interesting fact is that Mahananda meets the Ganga, wheras Teesta meets the Brahmaputra.

All these Himalayan rivers which meet the Brahmaputra, form a very interesting landscape in the foothills of Sikkim, West Bengal and Bhutan known as the DOOARS. In the past these would be dense forests interrupted by markets and residential areas, whose names would end with ‘BARI’ or ‘GURI’ or ‘HAAT’, some even well fortified areas with good drainage facilities. Following up the trade through the large rivers, traders in the past would travel north towards the Silk Route in the Himalaya through these smaller rivers. After the last navigable points, the goods had to be carried on human back or horse back or elephant back.

With the British, the roads and rail developed. Human beings became the dominant factors of the Dooars eco-system. Tea Estates replaced forests. Forests and the dominant wildlife habitats have been reduced to Reserve Forests, Wildlife Sanctuaries and National Parks. The era of post British India period has seen large settlements of Defense Colonies as the region was torn into countries with strict borders, controlled from the faraway capitals. Trade was badly affected, and the once economically affluent areas gradually went below the poverty line. The traces of the rich and wild nature, the tea culture and the diverse communities of different origins remained.

Compared to Darjeeling, tourism in Dooars is a very recent development. Tourists now combine Sikkim and Darjeeling Hills with Dooars, the main highlight being the National Parks and Sanctuaries. Often visitors miss to trace the remains of the pre British period, a happening which could not be buried with modern development. The Bengal Dooars, between the River Teesta and River Diana may be considered as Western Dooars, and between River Diana to River Sankosh as Central Dooars. The tea clubs of western Dooars and central Dooars are good indicators for the same. The rest upto Tezpur is Assam Dooars, where most of the landscape is in the Bodoland administrative division. Beyond Tezpur, further east is dominated by the Brahmaputra Headwater zone, the largest known fresh water capital of the world.

Messengers of Peace in India’s Northeast – Part 02

Binita (name changed) in a remote village from the small market place of the big Monastery, Tashiding was difficult to reach. Her Grandparents wanted to marry off the 14 years old girl to a rather rich man in Nepal, belonging to the same caste. Her mother did not agree as she had faced the burden of bearing children at an early age. The mother and daughter were running a small temporary shop at Tashiding during the festival of Bumchu. This is the biggest festival of the East Himalaya agrarian society which attracts pilgrims and believers from across Bhutan, Nepal and Darjeeling Hills. It was after the festival that we went with them to their village, to reach them with their left over and belongings from the temporary tea shop to their village. It is here that we learnt that the mother and daughter did not agree as the Government of Sikkim not only looked after her education, but she was eligible to all facilities free from the Government till the time she studied and even for her motherhood and child care after the age of 23.

Unlike the rest of India, where the family mother and daughter had to fight against an age old social system for marriage of a girl child, here there was the most innovative system built in by the good policies of the Sikkim Government. There were more surprises when the Sikkim Chief Minister, Shri.Pawan Chamling had come to inaugurate 03 days MCCS Gitanjali Mango Festival and ACT Rural Tourism Mart at Siliguri during 7^th of June, 2013 and announced his next program to launch the ‘Pavitra Kranti’, a revolution from the sacred land where the quality of life for the Sikkimese Indian has been confirmed to be the best in the country. Also the Peace factor, which is the prime jewel in tourism development, has been rewarded number of times.

The concept of Pavitra Kranti which Shri.Chamling launched at the 3^rd MCCS Gitanjali Mango Festival at Siliguri, he explained that it is his dream to make the life of every Sikkimese Indian to be Pavitra in all terms, in his words “ecotourism and organic farming is the way of life in a Sikkim Village, the Forest Department has confirmed zero tree felling and zero cattle  grazing in Protected Area of Sikkim, killing of any wild animal or use of diclofenac and pesticides has been stopped, through conservation of nature and deep rooted traditions combined with good medical treatment, we have achieved some of our goals”. He further added “through the concept of Khangchendzonga Region International Ecotourism Park, I wish to spread this sacred green revolution to the entire region covered under this landscape”.

Sikkim Tourism History

In page 60 of the Sikkim Darbar Gazette, it mentions the entry conditions to Sikkim as per the Darbar of the Maharaja of Sikkim. Great secret journeys were then taken up by several Pundits, which is the only authentic record of the landscape of the Himalayan Kingdoms, Sikkim and Tibet. Several English people did take up such journeys but their record was specific to the opportunities of financial wealth and a very western documentation of the then Governance of the Kingdoms. 

NOTIFICATION

- Any person who needs a permit for entry into Tibet and makes an unauthorised entry through Sikkim is liable to simple imprisonment which may extend up to one month or fine of Rs. 500/- or both. Any person assisting such a person to make an unauthorised entry whether personally permitted to do so with or without a permit is liable to similar punishment.

J. S. LALL, ICS

 7.8.1950

Dewan, Sikkim State

For the purpose of tourism, the first Foreign group consisting of US citizens, under the leadership of Donnel Ferguson made it to Sikkim in 1954.

Sikkim became a part of India in 1975 and tourism was thought about sometimes in 1985, almost a century after Darjeeling. In the early days of tourism, Darjeeling played a major role, as a few Foreign groups did day visit Gangtok from Darjeeling. Gradually, overnight and 02 nights halt at Gangtok became a trend in the late 80s. The Hotel Managers of Tashi Delek, Norkhill, Mayur etc went on Christmas picnic to Tsomgo Lake. This was the time when I said that let us make this a day excursion for visitors to Gangtok, so that the number of nighthalts increases. There was not much of a permit procedure, with friends and tourists, I often made it to Tsomgo lake, Kupup Lake and Memencho Lake. I remember spending some full moon nights at Tsomgo Lake with army friends to see if the legend lives, ‘the King and Queen of Sikkim visited the Lake on horseback on a certain full moon night, a golden temple would rise from the waters of the holy Lake’. I still remember some of the numbers of the first Maruti Vans on MG Marg, SK-04 0016..0019..0021...all of them were owner driven taxis, the other day I met Kailash Daju at Bagdogra, both of us became nostalgic...Sikkim has been my first love in tourism, it still continues.