Dust on My Feet: Overland to London

Local transport in rural Uttar Pradesh

Day 6 Sat 31 May VARANASI – KHAJURAHO

Departure Time: 6am Tach Reading 132,230 Distance run 392kms

We first cross the Ganges by the road-rail bridge, then head west towards Mirzapur. Shortly after Mirzapur the countryside changes as we climb a small range of hills. Lunch stop will be at Rewa, then we drive on through Satna to Khajuraho.
Khajuraho is famous throughout the world as being the large temple complex of erotic sculptures

Kandariya Mahadev Temple & temple sculptures

These temples were built by the Chandela kings between 950 and 1150AD. The reason for this eroticism is obscure although it is thought to relate to a mystical Tantric cult where sex played an important role in their esoteric rites; where the Brahmin, or king spread his spiritual powers by way of intercourse with the women, much the same way as Rasputin did in the Court of the last Russian Tsar. Generally, the Hindu temple is also symbolic of the union between the earth (represented as a female) and the sky (represented as a male), as from this union all life springs. Eroticism in religious art in India is common on both Hindu and Buddhist temples and has its origins in earlier tribal cults of fertility. In Hinduism the temple represents the Cosmos, ‘where sky and earth embrace, and the marriage of Sky and Earth is re-enacted with the divine coupling of deities, or simply the love of ordinary mortals’ as represented in the Mithuna (sensuous couples amorously entwined) and Maithuna (couples in copulation or foreplay). [The Eye of Love in the Temple Sculptures of India by Richard Lannoy].

Erotic temple sculptures in Khajuraho

All the temples have small areas of erotic art, both inside and out, but most of the sculptures depict scenes from the lives of the Chandela kings and the gods. The temples are dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu and their consorts. About two or three kilometres from the main grouping of Temples is a complex of Jain temples. These are worth a visit, if you are looking for a late afternoon or evening stroll.

The Jain temple complex at Khajuraho

We are staying tonight in the Khajuraho Ashok Hotel.

Day 7 Sun 1 June KHAJURAHO – AGRA

Departune Time: 7am Tach reading 132,622 Distance run 398kms

Today we head through some interesting countryside as we drive towards Agra. The first

Once a common sight in India,
vultures around a dead water buffalo

major town we pass through is Jhansi, once the seat of a Maharajah whose queen, the Rani Lakshmi Bai, gained fame as a martyr against the British during the Indian Mutiny of 1857-8. The Rani was finally killed in action against the British during the final siege of Gwalior Fort in 1858. The Palace in which her room is a shrine to Indian Independence is at Orchha, just before Jhansi. Once past Khansi we will see from the road the interesting old palace at Datia and also several Jain Temples.

The fort at Datia from the road

The Jains, or Jaina, are a small sect which arose in the 6th century BC after the Mahavira (an older contemporary of Gautama Buddha) rejected the authority of the Hindu Vedas. Jainism has 24 immortal saints (Tirthankaras) and its philosophy is based on the sacredness of life; even regarding plants as the brethren of mankind and refusing to kill even the smallest insect. The staunchest devotees wear mouth masks to avoid damaging even the microbes of the air.

Gwalior Fort & the Jain statues

If we have time we will drive up to the great fort at Gwalior, one of the largest in India which is situated on the top of a hill overlooking Gwalior city and the surrounding countryside. On the road approaches to the fort are a number of fine Jain statues, cut into the cliff face. Some of these statues of Jain tirthankaras are up to almost 20 metres in height.

Many Indian states issued their own stamps

Before reaching Agra, we cross a rather dodgy pontoon bridge over the Chambal River - a new bridge is being constructed, the old having been swept away by the monsoon rains.

As it is only a couple of days after the full moon, we may be able to visit the Taj Mahal this evening. I will find out if it is open when we arrive at the Jaiwal Hotel.

The temporary pontoon bridge over the Chambal River

Comments from passengers: "India is the most unprivate place I know. The waiters love coming in when you’ve only ½ dressed; never before have we had to eat mangoes, guzzle drinks, or go to the toilets before an audience of hordes of staring Indians."

June 1 – a day of ironic events.

We stopped for lunch at a water hole – no water!

Our dream for air-conditioning came true when we watched the back window fall out – our cool air supply was more of a dust-storm!

Just when we thought Agra was going to to be 2 more hot hours away, we struck an oasis by the bridge and managed a quick dip – clothes and all.

Day 8 Mon 2 June AGRA

Departure time: 7.30am Tach reading 133,020 Distance run 38kms

The Red Fort on the banks of the Jumna River, Agra

This morning a guide will accompany us, first, to the Red Fort of Agra built by Moghul Emperor Akbar the Great in the latter half of the 16th century. Here the last three Great Moghuls – Jahangir, Shah Jehan and Aurangzeb held court, and it was in a room overlooking the Jumna River and in sight of the Taj, that Shah Jehan spent the last 7½ years of his life, a prisoner of his son, Aurangzeb. From here the aging Shah Jehan could see the Tomb of his beloved queen, Mumtaz Mahal, which is our next place of visit.

The Diwan-i-Aam, the Moghul hall of public audience, Agra Red Fort

The Taj Mahal is rightly regarded as the world’s most perfect building. Perfectly symmetrical and with exquisite inlay work, it is probably the world’s most famous building and I’ve never known anyone on the tours to be disappointed with. The first time I saw the Taj, 10 years ago, it was cold and raining but still looked magnificent. Mumtaz Mahal, Shah Jehan's favorite wife, died giving birth to her 14th child in 1631, aged just 38. It took her husband 22 years to complete the Mausoleum which now houses both of their bodies. Here the Moghul arts of architecture, marble-inlay and calligraphy, reaches perfection. 'Flowers were often used in Islamic and, in particular, Persian art and design as symbols of paradise. Persian poets described them as springing from the waters of paradise. Their use in the decoration of the Taj Mahal reinforced the message that the complex was intended to evoke an earthly paradise.' (Diana & Michael Preston - A Teardrop on the Cheek of Time: The Story of the Taj Mahal).

It is interesting to note that in the early 19th century, a British viceroy wanted to demolish the Taj and send the marble to England, but the cost of doing this was considered too high.

The incomparable Taj Mahal

After visiting the Taj, the rest of the day will be free to, perhaps, swim in the pool of the Hotel Clark Shiraz, or visit the Jaiwal Emporium marble shop and see the old ‘Maestro’ of inlay, 85 year-old Mian Naqi Uddin (born 1895), at work with his apprentices. This old man is considered to be the greatest living worker of inlay marble whose work has surpassed that in the Taj, upon which he worked in the 1920s, carrying out repairs to the dome. According to a magazine article on Mian Naqi Uddin from the 1970s: 'The maestro's forte is said to be the cornelian stone. Mian Naqi Uddin is reputed to be the only man alive to make a perfect rose motif from this stone, reputed to be the hardest of semi-precious gems. He received his training under the strict tutorship of his father, Wazir Badshah.'

Mian Naqi Uddin, exponent of the art of inlay & an example of his work

Across the Jumna River there is another beautiful tomb, often referred to as the ‘Baby-Taj’. This is the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah which pre-dates the Taj Mahal by 10 years. This tomb was commissioned by Nur Jahan, wife of the Moghul Emperor Jahangir, for her Persian father, Mirza Ghiyas Beg who had been given the title of Itmad-ud-Daulah (Pillar of the State) and who became Vizier in 1611, after Jahangir's marriage to Nur Jahan. Set in a traditional Moghul garden - symbolising Paradise, this tomb is a classic example of a domeless white-marble Moghul mausoleum which also boasts some fine marble inlay work.