Surrounded by green colossal hills, I sat on a rock of the Panorama Point in Matheran. As far as my senses allowed, all I could see was hills, valleys and fields, blithe fully wearing an endless green scarf, patterned with the most novel designs that might inspire the greatest painters and writers. All I could hear was tranquillising silence, a sound unparalleled, surpassing any earthly musical note. All I could smell was the tantalizing aroma of the blending earth, water and air, the fragrance of wet soil. All I could feel was a soothing gust, caressing my skin gently. If only I had wings to fly along with it, through the valley. The blue sky was adorned with patches of white and grey clouds, some of them swaying away with the wind, across the conclave of the gigantic hills, while the other resting on one of the green slopes, like tired travellers. Yonder was another cluster of clouds, pouring rain on a comparatively less formidable terrain. Now that… was a rare sight. Watching the pouring clouds from a higher altitude felt like… well I have no words for this. I am a rain-lover, but I have always been at the receiving end of the rain. This sight made me fall in love with it all over again.
The idyllic scenery entranced me. Even though I was out in open, it gave me privacy like I had never had before. I had ‘my moment’, a moment when I connected with the nature; a moment that rendered all other thoughts away but one that inadvertently appeared in my mind, ‘Ahambrahma Asmi’. In that moment, I was so connected with the surrounding life that it seemed like same energy flowed through all of us, me, the trees, the hills, the streams, the wind, and the clouds… all of us. It seemed as if everything had come to life and that they were all nothing but me. I heard my heartbeat reverberating in the whole valley. For a short while, I felt the presence of the Divine. It was truly a spiritually moment. I figured out why the saints of India escaped to the mountains for meditation. I wanted to spare a few minutes to meditate there, but the time constraints of our trip didn’t allow me to do that. We were a group of eight friends there, but to my surprise, the members of an otherwise chatty group disintegrated to find their own rock to sit in silence for some time. I am sure they found their moment too.
For all of us, who live in the chaotic conurbations, time passes by very fast and every moment leaves a noisy scar on our life; noise, of cell phone ringtones, keyboard taping, doorbells, relentless arguments, meetings, celebrations, traffic jams, television, iPods etc. And when we need some privacy, we go inside a four walled shell, which suffocates our inner self further. It might be of some help but I can bet it’s not as curative as an escape to the nature, which recharges our senses and gives us an ambience to introspect, thus renovates us. One such trip a month can prove to be therapeutic like nothing else.
How I wish I had means to retreat to this place anytime I wanted. But to earn those ‘means’, I realized that I will have to go back to my city-jungle and slog. So here I am, back on my office chair, sulking about the confined cubicle, laden with nostalgia of one of my best trips and trying to capture that amazing experience into this article, so that whenever I’d read it, I will be reminded of that awe-inspiring moment and the company of the wonderful gang which made this trip worthwhile.
The idyllic scenery entranced me. Even though I was out in open, it gave me privacy like I had never had before. I had ‘my moment’, a moment when I connected with the nature; a moment that rendered all other thoughts away but one that inadvertently appeared in my mind, ‘Ahambrahma Asmi’. In that moment, I was so connected with the surrounding life that it seemed like same energy flowed through all of us, me, the trees, the hills, the streams, the wind, and the clouds… all of us. It seemed as if everything had come to life and that they were all nothing but me. I heard my heartbeat reverberating in the whole valley. For a short while, I felt the presence of the Divine. It was truly a spiritually moment. I figured out why the saints of India escaped to the mountains for meditation. I wanted to spare a few minutes to meditate there, but the time constraints of our trip didn’t allow me to do that. We were a group of eight friends there, but to my surprise, the members of an otherwise chatty group disintegrated to find their own rock to sit in silence for some time. I am sure they found their moment too.
For all of us, who live in the chaotic conurbations, time passes by very fast and every moment leaves a noisy scar on our life; noise, of cell phone ringtones, keyboard taping, doorbells, relentless arguments, meetings, celebrations, traffic jams, television, iPods etc. And when we need some privacy, we go inside a four walled shell, which suffocates our inner self further. It might be of some help but I can bet it’s not as curative as an escape to the nature, which recharges our senses and gives us an ambience to introspect, thus renovates us. One such trip a month can prove to be therapeutic like nothing else.
How I wish I had means to retreat to this place anytime I wanted. But to earn those ‘means’, I realized that I will have to go back to my city-jungle and slog. So here I am, back on my office chair, sulking about the confined cubicle, laden with nostalgia of one of my best trips and trying to capture that amazing experience into this article, so that whenever I’d read it, I will be reminded of that awe-inspiring moment and the company of the wonderful gang which made this trip worthwhile.
