in bits and pieces
June 2008
Mansaram Ka Dhabba
Peerah, National High Way no. 1A
Jammu & Kashmir
I was standing straight when I took this photo.
Backdoor entry to Mansaram Ka Dhabba
The place is renowned for its Rajma Chawal that come doused in pure Desi Ghee – Kidney bean with rice doused in clarified butter.
Kidney bean from Jammu are quite popular all over India…thanks to the millions who visit pilgrim town of Katra every year to visit the cave of Vaishno Devi
If areas around Indian railway tracks (at least in the north) are the dominion of Shahi Dawakhana and Hakeem Sahib, then area around Indian roadways are the dominion of Dr. Bengali. Why the roads? Is it the truckers and the soldiers? Maybe. More baffling is the question why the areas around railway tracks? Is it the coach drivers? Anyway…
In Jammu city you are more likely to see ads for and expect help from Dr. Malhotra. But, the area along the highway to Kashmir is again under the monopoly of Dr. Bengali. Advertisements offering guaranteed cure for unmentionable diseases and unlimited power over unforgivable weaknesses appear all along the road to Kashmir. All along the road their limp message, effective design, snazzy coloring and generous appointment hours(actually a whole day) with the “Dr” hardly change. The frequency of their occurrence is rather high around Udhampur district. Here you can’t look away from them as almost every third shop has these ads promoting sex clinics(?) painted on their walls.
What I didn’t expect was to see these ads in Kashmir valley. However, I came across them even along the way to Gulmarg.
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Earlier cross posted at my other blog
(Click to enlarge)
(Originally posted long ago on my other blog
You may enjoy these photographs of Kashmir in a video presentation also!)
‘who has not heard of the vale of Cashmere,
With its roses the brightest that earth ever gave,
Its temples, and grottos, and fountains as clear,
As the love-lighted eyes that hang over their wave.’
— Popular lines from Thomas Moore’s poem Lalla Rookh
For a man who never visited Kashmir, Thomas Moore certainly had a clear image of the fabled Kashmir. He saw Kashmir through writings of other writer who had seen Kashmir. A generation later people were to be enticed by the images captured by the photographers traveling through the ‘happy Valley’ Kashmir.
This collage comprises of some of these very images and few of the oldest photographs of Kashmir.
About the Photographs:
Starting from Top Right, the photographs in first row are by Samuel Bourne, who visited Kashmir in 1864.
Found these three photographs here at harappa.com
The next two rows of photograph are by Fred Bremner
He writes:
“I arrived at Soonamarg, top of the Valley, early in November, when their happened to be a fall of snow, and interesting were the pictures which I obtained there. Soonamurg is at an elevation of 8,000 feet and some years ago it was looked upon as the resort for a residence of several months, and many were the Europeans who used to camp in and around the meadow.”
(Forty Years, pg. 52)
“Passing through the Jhelum Valley and river the steep mountain sides are clad with pine, deodar and other trees of stalwart height, and in the depths of the valley below, some 3,000 feet, the river winds its tortuous way, just as the road winds through the mountains as far as the river below and rising again to the summit of a few thousand feet – their eye may sometimes rest on a figure slowly gliding through mid-air with no apparent support whatever. Coming to close quarters one sees a crossing by rope bridges. It is a curious way of engineering these people have. One of the bridges is merely a single rope made of tough twisted cowhide and secured at both banks of the river. The passenger is seated in a small suspended cradle. He then lets himself go and his own impetus carries him fully half-way over and he is pulled across the remaining distance by a smaller guiding rope.”
“Leaving the city one cannot do better than be rowed up to the Dhal Lake, which is aid to be one of the most beautiful spots in Kashmir. . .. Entering the Dhal Lake, which measures about 4 miles by 2 1/2, one cannot help but admire the works of nature which are depicted in a variety of beautiful ways in the stillness of the water combined with mirror-like reflections of the mountain ridges.”
(Forty Years, pp. 48-49)
“The stillness and clearness of Dhal Lake make it comparatively easy to catch fish with the aid of a spear instead of by rod and line. Boatmen are the class with whom visitors to Kashmir come most intimately in contact. They are said to claim Noah as their ancestor, and certain it is that if they did not borrow the pattern of their boats from Noah’s Ark, Noah must have borrowed the pattern from them! Families live permanently on the boats, and they all have their little cooking places on board, and an enormous wooden pestle and mortar with which women and very often children pound the rice or grain.”
(Forty Years, pg. 48).
Next six rows of photographs are by John Burke and appear in the book From Kashmir to Kabul: The Photographs of John Burke
The next bunch of photographs are mostly uncredited:
Found it at Kamat.com
Back of the card reads – Printed: Views of India Series Printed in Saxony
Another set of Photographs by John Burke
Gateway of enclosure, (once a Hindu temple) of Zein-ul-ab-ud-din’s Tomb, in Srinagar. Probable date A.D. 400 to 500 (?), 1868. John Burke. Oriental and India Office Collection. British Library. Photograph of the gateway and enclosure of Zain-ul-abidin’s tomb at Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, taken by John Burke in 1868. This photograph is reproduced in Henry Hardy Cole’s Archaeological Survey of India report, ‘Illustrations of Ancient Buildings in Kashmir’ (1869), when Cole wrote, ‘In the Panels of the Gateways, there is proof that buildings had previously existed, in which columns play a part…The break in the roof is also remarkable as occurring in conjunction with the simplicity of the enclosing wall, and indicates, I think, that the Gateway is probably more modern than the wall, and may perhaps have been set up by the Mahomedans out of some of the materials of other ruined temples of which a quantity lies strewn all over Srinagar.’ Zain-ul-abidin (ruled 1421-72) was one of Kashmir’s greatest rulers from its Islamic period, under whose reign it enjoyed peace and prosperity and progress in the arts. His father Sikandar has been tainted in Kashmiri history as Butshikan or idol-breaker, but Zain-ul-abidin was tolerant towards his Hindu subjects. The fertile valley of Kashmir offered a retreat from the crossroads of Asia in the high Himalayas, and developed its own distinctive architecture. Buddhism was established here from the 3rd century BC but was eclipsed by the 8th century AD by the flourishing Hindu Vaishnava and Shaiva cults. Kashmir finally became a great centre of the Shaiva religion and philosophy and a seat of Sanskrit learning and literature. By the 14th century Kashmir came under Islamic rule. Most of its early temples were sacked in the 15th century and their remains were sometimes incorporated in later Islamic monuments. The tomb of the mother of Zain-ul-abidin was built in c.1430 on the foundations of an old Hindu temple, and was decorated with glazed tiles. Immediately to the north of this building is an enclosing wall and gateway made of Hindu materials, which contains a number of tombs, one of which is said to preserve the remains of the Sultan himself.
Found these photographs here at Harappa.com
Rest of the photographs are uncredited*
The oldest temple in Kashmir, both in appearance and according to
tradition, is that upon the hill of “Takt i Suliman,” or Solomon’s
Throne. It stands 1,000 feet above the plain, and commands a view of
the greater part of Kashmir.The situation is a noble one, and must have been amongst the first
throughout the whole valley which was selected as the position of
a temple. Its erection is ascribed to Jaloka, the son of Asoka,
who reigned about 220 B.C.The plan of the temple is octagonal, each side being fifteen feet in
length. It is approached by a flight of eighteen steps, eight feet
in width, and inclosed between two sloping walls. Its height cannot
now be ascertained, as the present roof is a modern plastered dome,
which was probably built since the occupation of the country by the
Sikhs. The walls are eight feet thick, which I consider one of the
strongest proofs of the great antiquity of the building.
From: Diary of a Pedestrian in Cashmere and Thibet by William Henry Knight
Not without a reason was Srinagar called the ‘Venice of the East’
The Mar canal formed an interesting waterway meandering through the city. Wherever the back waters of the Dal lake flowed through the city, it was known as the Mar canal deriving its name from the beautiful Marsar. The major portion of the water of the Dal lake came from the Marsar lake situated beyond the Harwan water reservoir. There was a network of Mar canals flowing through the city. An interesting clustering existed along the canals, some of the houses belonged to the rich merchants, as can be deciphered from the scale and magnificance of the buildings along the waterway. The canal has since been filled up to form a road. An interesting feature here is the row of shops along the bridge which formed an interesting walking experience across the canal. The shops appear to project out along the length of the bridge, as can be seen, with the help of timber columns resting on the banks on both sides. At Sekhi dafar there was an interesting streetscape. It was probably an important street within the cluster along the waterway. There was a row of shops on the ground floor of the houses along the street. The houses overlooked the waterway on one side and the street on the of the houses along the street. The houses overlooked the waterway on one side and the street on the other.
Read more here
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The pictures (towards the end) having the watermark India Pictures are from the website IndiaPictures
. *Most of these photographs were taken by famous photographer Ram Chand Mehta for Royal Geographical Society in 1930 and 1940s.
Also thanks to those that I may have missed!
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Hari Parbat Temple
Stairs and entrance to the temple
Window with a view
Temple Rooms
View of Srinagar city from Hari Parbat
The Temple
The Goddess: Sharika Bhagwati, Chakrishwar
Return to Godhead
Lights
view from the window
Lone Singer
Empty Hawan Kund
view to the right: Old Durrani fort
No haer here
Created this video using these images of Hari Parbat
and
The reason they are directed here:
and
Both these posts do not offer whta people are actually directed here looking for. Most people looking for beautiful kashmiri girls actually stay on the fable page for maximum 34 secs before they hop on to some other hyperlink.
So…
I am going to offer some more of what no one is looking for:
Taken at Pari Mahal, June 2008
A photographer’s complete set up for the tourists and visitors to dress up like an authentic Kashmiri.there are dresses for man, women, girls, boys and children. Hmmm…those head gears for men look a bit suspect.
A photographer’s display album. Lucky few get featured here. A memento for posterity. You were in Kashmir and look Oooh…so much like a real Kashmiri.
June, 2008:
Zeestha Devi temple at Zeethyar ( Zeeth’yar/Jaishthethwar Shrine) in interior Srinagar at the foothills of Zabarwan mountain range. Earlier, one had to trek to this far off spot. But, now one can easily drive right up to the steps that lead to it.
Zeestha Devi Temple Spring.
Unlike, Khir Bhawani spring, the water here is stagnant and needs to be cleaned frequently. And unlike Khir Bhawani Shrine and like the Chakrishwar temple atop Hari Parbat, meat -(particularly tcharvan (fried Liver) with Taher(turmeric yellowed rice), can be consumed here.
Zeestha Devi. A lot of pandit families used to take Taher–charvan here. Government, circumventing few rules, on the initiative of a few pandit high officers, has recently built beautiful guesthouses on the slopes surrounding the temple.These guest houses are run by a trust. When I visited the place, it being a hindu, Indian tourist season – Summer, there were also a few non-kashmiri vendors selling Kehwa and frying thin Luchis in oil.
Gods, old and new, under the tree.
Shiv temple at Zeethyar against the back drop of Zabarwan hills.
A dense forest covers the nearby slopes and is home to a number of wild animals. A cousin of mine visited the place in 2001 and witnessed a very funny scene: A BSF guard on duty near the gate was regaining consciousness after having suffered a fear induced fainting attack. Moments ago, he had been approached by a leopard.
This Shiv Ling was earlier located at Ganpatyar temple and was moved to Zeeth Ya’r in around 1988. Most people remember it as Shiv-ling with a crack.
An old habit of picking gor-da’yel (some sort of local citrus fruit) from the wild trees near the entrance to shrine. Gor-da’yel are meant to be consumed after cooking. We took a lot of them and did cook and ate them later.
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All Photographs taken by me in June, 2008.
Photograph: June 2008
Presently, there are plans to modify/ beautify the central marble structure inside the spring. The basic design (above in the image) has been finalized. The project has been sponsored by Capt. Kapil Raina and family.
The first marble structure inside the spring was built by the Dogra ruler Maharaja Pratap Singh and it was completed in 1920s. Before this marble structure was created there was only a mulberry tree.
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November, 2008
Update:
Dr. Karan Singh, who is the Trustee of the Dharmarth Trust – that looks after the affairs of this shrine and many other Pandit shrines of Kashmir – has refused this proposal. Because of the antiquity of the present design, he thought Pandit community won’t be happy with the New look.
Dr. Karan Singh was appointed the Sole Trustee of the Dharmarth Trust in January 1959.
An Old Photograph of Hari Parbat (Chakreshwar) that hangs inside one of the buildings to the left of the central structure. Probable date of the photograph: 1920s. The township surrounding the temple was originally created by the Mughal Emperor Akbar who setup this new township as his base here after his successful conquest of Kashmir in 1585.
Today this area is heavily congested and most of the old pathways lost to human in-habitation. Our parents and grandparents may have circumvent the hillock in their time at their pace but this is not a possibility for us anymore.
Photograph taken at the location in June 2008.
Old Photograph of central deities at Tulamulla (Kheer Bhawani). Probably taken in the late 1930s.
This photograph adores one of the sides of the structure inside the spring.
Photograph taken at the location in June, 2008
The Spring that Changes Colors
During my visit the waters of the spring was milky white.
In 1886 Walter Lawrence, the British Settlement Commissioner for land, noted during his visit to the spring that its color was having a violet tinge.
(Made an entry of it at the wiki along with the entry about the proposed new look of the central temple)
28/10/2007
Jammu
I had gone to attend a dear cousin brother’s wedding. On the night of his yajnopavit (sacred thread) ceremony someone mentioned that in a nearby hall, hosting guests of some other wedding, there is an old lady dressed in traditional Kashmiri pandit costume.
I went to that hall along with a cousin sister and took these photographs using her camera. It felt odd as I went there uninvited. People, mostly woman, were sitting in the hall forming their own mini groups. The old lady was sitting in a corner all dressed. I walked up to her, said ‘namaskar‘ and gave her a hug – touching the feet of elders is not the protocol among pandits, at least not yet. I asked her if I could take some photos of her. For her age, the lady was surprisingly shape minded and cheerful. She was kind enough to let me take her photographs. No, in fact she was delighted.
I went back and showed the photographs around. Everyone was delighted. In the 90s this ‘sighting’ would have been nothing special, but in this millennium, it was almost a miracle. It got people taking about old days. I remember many times being told stories of grand old pandit ladies who, during kabali raid of 1947, asked their families to leave them behind on road as they didn’t want to slow down their families while they were fleeing from murdering horde of Muslim tribal people and Pakistani soldiers.
In 90s, people remembered old ladies who had never been out of kashmir and then suddenly ‘post-migration’ found themselves in Jummu. Many of them, traveling in local buses – ‘meta’dors‘ or ‘muk’bus‘, would often ask the conductor to drop them off to their home, but on being asked, would give their address as some place in kashmir. The conductor, invariably some dugur boy, dugur kot not yet out of his teens, would yell, “Mata’yee,” his voice getting drowned in film music blarring from a pair of speakers kept under the seat next to the door, “aa yammu hai!” Amused and laughing, to the rest of the passengers and to the rest of the world in general, he would ask, “Ku’dru aa gaye yara ay kashmiri!”
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The picture on left titled ‘A Panditani [Hindu] Kashmir’ was taken in 1900 by famous photographer Fred Bremner. Just like the lady in the photographs above, the woman in left photograph is wearing tarang (head dress), pheran (traditional kashmiri gown) and athoor/dejhoor(in the ears).
Read more about traditional Kashmir pandit dress at ikashmir
For more old photographs of Kashmir check this
