A Day at Bhopal

A couple of months back, while returning from an adventure trip to the forests of Satpura, I landed at Bhopal with a few hours to spare. I was all alone in a city I was visiting for the first time and for a change, I didn’t feel threatened by that realization. Instead, I felt a sudden urge to explore Bhopal on my own. I am no solo traveler and any past attempts to be one in India have almost landed me in trouble. Maybe, I chose the wrong places, or the wrong time, or maybe it was just plain bad luck. But then I let those thoughts pass and hailed a cab to show me around town. I was a little apprehensive at first, but the city opened up to me in no time and I had the time of my life roaming around. It was much more fun than spending an entire day at the airport.

My solo Bhopal escapade started with a majestic mosque called Moti Masjid, which seemed to be a smaller version of Delhi’s Jama Masjid. Built in 1860 by Sikander Begum, this mosque had an essence of a bygone era. I reached there at the time of prayers and my driver advised me to not venture inside. I am not sure what harm can a girl who loves these old buildings could bring, but he just didn’t let me go in. Because I wasn’t content just staring from the outside, I googled a little about it’s history and found that it’s creator, an empress called Sultana Begum was way ahead of her times and built many a roads and monuments. She visited the mosque without a customary veil and that to me, seems like a sign of how empowered she was, even in that era. It’s an irony that I was advised to stay away from the mosque, being a woman although it was built by a woman. But then, we moved a little further and found another mosque, as old and almost abandoned. It called me and I played along, clicking pictures while she posed like she got a visitor after ages.

I was kind of envious of that guy sitting on the edge. So, I perched myself as well to get an amazing view of the city from that angle. It was like losing myself in chaos. I could have sat there and stared all day, contemplating about the place, the history and how a sequence of events made me reach here, all by myself.

Next up on my agenda was The Tribal Museum which hosts a plethora of works as well as information about the various tribes that have been residing in Madhya Pradesh. I got a taste of the tribal culture when I visited Chhattisgarh last year and it left me spellbound. So, a visit to this heaven of information about various tribes was a natural step forward. The Tribal Museum is huge and one needs a good couple of hours to actually see the entire museum properly. I was in no rush, so I read through most of those bill boards placed around artifacts and came back with interesting nuggets of information. Coming up are selected pieces of tribal culture, because frankly, it was all too huge to cover in a single post.

Various tribes of the state have presence in the museum, in some form or the other. While they all have their unique factors, one thing that remains common among all of them is the way these tribals don’t worship Gods in the for of idols but in the form of elements of nature. Tribal communities don’t usually have idols of gods and goddesses and they are usually represented by peacock feather as it is considered as a kind of make-up of goddesses. Columns and pillars of gods are decorated with earthen colors on a high bamboo and adorned with peacock feathers by tying them to it with a piece of red cloth. The goddess is believed to dwell in these feathers during the holy days and spiritual festivals.

I found this very interesting display of all things iron, tridents, swords, rods and what not. It seemed to rise above like a ladder. A note displayed near it read that this structure called ‘Chougan‘ is a common sight in the Mandala region of Madhya Pradesh and represents the path to meet the divine. Not everyone can achieve nirvana and the hardships in the path are symbolized by the pointed edges of these iron swords and tridents. But when a pious soul attempts to walk this path, these hardships melt and the person doesn’t feel the pain of iron piercing into his/her body and continues the journey to reach heaven.

Moving further,this spellbinding sight of terracotta pots arranged in a pattern on a wall caught my attention. It looked so beautiful that I couldn’t have imagined the supernatural story behind them in wildest of imaginations. The Bhil Tribes have a tradition of offering these Ghumats or temporary terracotta houses to the spirits to reside in their homes. After making a picture of the departed soul with vermilion on the ground, the priests of the tribe offer this temporary abode to them, until they find a place to dwell in heaven. The tribals believe that their ancestors are still with them and are watching over them from outer space.

Jhabua district of  Madhya Pradesh has a very interesting tradition of worshiping the Baabdev or Rain-God twice a year on no-moon nights. Cocks, goat, vermilion, barley, local crop and terracotta figures of horses are offered to the deity for the well-being of the entire village community. The region doesn’t get much rainfall and the tribals struggle hard to fetch water and that’s why the God who brings water to this land is very sacred to these tribals and worshiped with all fanfare.

I found the Bhils most intriguing of all tribes. The tales that Tribal Museum unfolded about them were very interesting and I came back with a goal to get to know more about them. I found this interesting piece of stone somewhere in the museum which seemed to be telling a story. Turns out, this stone carved art form is more of a ritual to invoke the Horse God Pithora than just a carving. The significance of prayers lies in the belief that the Pithora is a source of happiness and prosperity of their families as well as the fertility of the earth. Usually, the Pithora is located outside the front wall of a Bhil house and it is worshiped for years to bring water and prosperity to the water scanty areas where these tribes dwell. The stone depicts a unique story, unique to the house and it differs from one to the other.

India can be easily called the land of temples. We can always find one, without even having to look for it. Even in the most unexpected of places, sighting a temple is not something unusual. But, have you ever seen a temple without a deity or a holy book? Well, the primitive tribe of Saharia which seem to have been influenced by Hindu culture, have a temple like structure but the structure is all there is. I wonder what would have been the logic behind this unusual approach but so far, I have failed to get any answers.

 

Questions about these tribes and how they exist in their native atmosphere even today, bothered me to an extent. I was torn between the extremes of if we are not giving these tribals a taste of civilization or if they are happy in their own cocoon and don’t want to be disturbed. I still don’t know the answers, and I continue to ponder about these people who haven’t seen civilization yet. Or, we have become new age slaves to machines and they are the ones who are really civilized. I don’t know…

Tribal Arts Museum at Bhopal moved me to such an extent that I came out only when it was time for them to close. It was evening already, and I wandered towards the huge lake in the middle of the city. Being a Sunday, it was crowded and I felt the whole city had gathered here. There were couples, there were families and there were aashiq aawaras. I found a quiet corner, far away from these merry-making people and sat there at a bench. A pretty sunset was about to happen, and for a change, I decided to just sit there and enjoy it rather than getting hyperactive with my camera.

And then suddenly, darkness took over the entire city. It was also time for me to leave for Delhi. I was back in the cab, watching the city go by. And then, I spotted a huge statue of Raja Bhoj of the “Kaha Raja Bhoj, Kaha Gangu Teli” fame. Turns out, the city of Bhopal is named after Raja Bhoj, which is also evident from the name of the airport.

Thank you, Bhopal. You were a sweetheart to give me my first solo experience. I am happy that it wasn’t the cliched Goa or McLeod Ganj but you. Thank you for making me believe that India is not so unsafe after all. The post cannot be complete without mentioning the generous cab driver who showed me around with a keen eye so that I go back home with happy memories of his home-town. Though I couldn’t see the entire city because I had just a few hours time, but I would definitely go back to this city of lakes someday.