Paradise Here: Kashmir Chronicles – Part II

As naturally blessed as the Indian peninsular is, one part of India, one could say, is blessed more than any other and that is our crowning glory—Kashmir. Kashmir, a land that was once the pinnacle of wisdom and erudition; a place named after Rishi Kashyap and home to goddess Sharada, the goddess of knowledge and learning, over time became one of human conflict, violence and bloodshed. Terrorists usurped this paradise and made it a haven for all things anti-national. With the abrogation of Article 370 things are changing and how! The movement I put the word out that I’m organizing a retreat in Kashmir, I got flooded with calls of interest. In no time, we had a group ready and were on a plane bound for Srinagar, the capital of the state.I booked us into a beautiful hotel by the Dal Lake. As we drove towards the hotel there were audible gasps at the beauty of the Dal Lake and the snowy mountains behind it. Our hotel too was equally beautiful—it was opulent and regal, each room felt like a royal suite despite the prices being super reasonable.We put our luggage away and met on the roof top for our ice breaking and yoga session. The air was cold and crisp, with hardly any crows flying around. The floor was clean without the layer of dust we all expect to find in many other Indian cities. I chose not to play music as we practiced, and it was one of the most beautiful classes we had. As we ended our practice with shavasana, we all opened our eyes to the sun’s rays bouncing off the snowy mountains – it was an incredible sight to behold..The next morning, we planned to visit Shankaracharya Hill and the temple on top. The exact date and year of the construction of the temple is not clear to anyone. The most vital information regarding its history is given by an ancient historian named Kalhana in his book Rajatarangini, about the legendary kings of Kashmir and Northwest India.According to Rajtarangini, the King Gopaditya built the temple on the hill as a shrine to Jyeshtheshvara, around 371 BCE. Auriel Stein, who translated Rajtarangni in English, writes that the superstructure is from a more recent date but places the base and the stairs as much older – which means many many kings after Gopaditya would have helped to renovate and take care of the temple.Kashmiri Pandits strongly believe that in 8th century CE, the temple was visited by Adi Shankara, the foremost Advaitin philosopher and preacher, and has ever since been associated with him.Regardless of who built it, the temple and the hill offer visitors a picturesque and a magnificent view of the vast Dal Lake, houseboats and surrounding areas from one side and the snow-clad mountains, habitation of South Kashmir and dense forests from the other sides..History is Philosophy teaching by example.Thucydides