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| one of my tuk tuk drivers throughout my stay in Delhi... |
There I was, at a gas station somewhere in between Colorado and California in the desert of Arizona. I was holding and looking at a statue of the Indian god Ganesha, the elephant headed god of new beginnings; patron of arts and sciences; remover of obstacles. The henna tattoo I had received on my left hand the week prior at the wedding celebration in New Delhi was slowly fading, but was still there, reminding me of the magic I had just experienced not long before this trip across the US. It was a funny coincidence that I was scrambling to get a few souvenirs from India the day before I had left. I wound up getting 2 of the same little wooden statues, of Ganesha, one regular wood, and one sandalwood. 2 statues of the god of new beginnings...
I remember getting up my last day there in New Delhi. Manu had to leave early as his flight back to Spain left in the afternoon. It was most of our last day before we all went back to whatever corner of the earth we came from. I remember looking at my itinerary and seeing that my flight didn't leave until the next day at 3 or so. I recalled not having a room booked for this extra day I was going to need to stay and began to panic. So I had booked an extra night at this luxurious place, the Leela. While looking at my itinerary and time of my flight, it had occurred to me that I in fact left at 3 in the morning, which technically was the next day and not the next day as in afternoon. So I did not need to book a room for this night (after already having booked the room for the night). So like a fool, I had to request a refund and reveal to them that I made the mistake of thinking my flight was at 3 the next day in the afternoon rather than 3 that night in the morning. They understood and promptly processed a refund for me in cash rather than back on my card.
It was me and maybe a handful of people left over, while the rest of the party from the wedding had taken off. I was excited that I would have the whole day with which to do as I pleased with. Most of the other nights we were there, there were events scheduled and planned almost every night, leaving little time to get out and explore, as I like to do. So it was myself and 2 friends from Ukraine that kind of went out exploring as their flights also didn't leave until the following day.
We 3 had made an attempt at going to see the Akshardam a few days prior. Entry closed at 6pm, and we wound up showing up at literally 610 and were denied entry a few days before so we decided we would go and give it another shot on this evening. In the mean time we would find some places to hang out and eat and burn time. I very fondly remember our tuk tuk driver. Of all the experiences I had in India, I will never forget riding in the tuk tuks. I fell in love with it, almost like a ride at an amusement park, but far more thrilling and the operators only added to the mystery and excitement of it all. He offered to be our driver for the day and I asked him about taking me to the airport later that night, much later. He had a lot of personality and was not shy. I very much so enjoyed his company during our adventures throughout the day.
I remember wanting some souvenirs, so we asked him to take us to some shops that would have good deals. I told him I wanted little statues of gods, like I had collected in Greece. While I was in
Greece I had collected statues and pots of the Greek gods. It is a funny coincidence that when I was a child, I loved wrestling and WWF and WCW. I would collect the little wrestler toys all the time of sting, and Scott Hall, and Kevin Nash and others. 20+ years down the road, I'm still collecting little toys but of gods now from around the world and my trips.
On the way into New Delhi to go souvenir hunting and grab some food, my friends and I were on the highway, and all of a sudden we seen an elephant in the street. Like it was a car, in a lane, but it was an elephant!!! We asked the tuk tuk driver, 'Is that seriously an elephant in the road parading like its a vehicle?' Coming from the United States and especially Los Angeles and that insanely huge and chaotic freeway system, it was quite mind boggling to see some of the things I had seen on the major roads in New Delhi. I had seen groups of men carrying things almost like trailers, I had seen horses, tuk tuks, motorcycles, mopeds, cars, trucks, vans, all in the lanes of traffic. On this, my last day, to see an elephant at the last moments navigating through the city could not be a coincidence. Surely, it was fate, it had to be.
Initially, we were just going to take pictures of the elephant and its driver as it passed on the freeway, as we stopped and pulled to the side at the advisement of the tuk tuk driver. He then asked if we wanted a picture with it and stopped the elephant by waving down the driver on top of its head. They exchanged words in what I assume was the Hindi language and before you know it he was asking us if we wanted to go for a ride on it! My mind was blown. I had never rode any animal before, not a horse, not a big dog as a child or anything, so I admittedly was a little unsure and apprehensive. There was room for only 2 so my good friend Artem said to me to go with his girlfriend for the ride and he would film with the mobile phones and take pictures. I obliged and attempted to mount this huge animal. I was worried thinking it might not like me getting on it and try to shake me off. Not the case, but I still had difficulty trying to mount it as it took me a few attempts.
After falling off the creature a couple times, I successfully got on top with my female friend from Ukraine. It was quite a magical experience as we rode the creature for probably 300 yards or so and took an exit to a smaller street. As all this was going on, traffic was stopped or being stopped behind the elephant and horns were going off non stop. Some of the bystanders and drivers were taking pictures and enamored, while others seemed to be mad and honked at us, as if it would make the elephant all of a sudden go from 5 miles an hour to 50. Artem was on the side street recording and taking pictures as me and our friend Aliona were on this majestic creature, experiencing the ride of a lifetime, for me anyways. A purely magical experience. It made me think of the phrase 'only in America' but in this instance, 'only in India'. Just imagine going down interstate 10, or I-5, or the 405 or 605 in Los Angeles during rush hour and seeing an elephant pass by amongst the cars...
After riding this majestic creature for a bit, we were back off in the tuk tuk to search for souvenirs in the city. We came to some spots by his recommendation. They were more expensive than I assumed they might be. We tried a few different places. I wound up getting a few Indian shawls and a couple of statues of Vishnu and Ganesha and postcards. Time was running out as evening began to fall. Riding around in the tuk tuk, as became my favorite thing to do in India, I watched as the horizon began to swallow the sun. As I had the night prior on the way to the wedding in a taxi, I had become sad knowing that this moment in time was coming to an end. I had become all to familiar with the process of closure when these types of trips and events come to an end.
To me, in most of what I've learned in my personal studies and experiences, and certainly not by indoctrination in the western academic systems, life is linear and not cyclical. No two points in the space time continuum are the same. All moments in time are all unique in and of themselves, even if you try to replicate them as best you possibly can. Several several times throughout my life and trips I have had to make peace with this realization, knowing that a moment like this or that will never happen again. But then you learn to appreciate that they happened in the first place and move forward hoping for the next one like it or better.
I really have to tell you and emphasize the fun I had on tuk tuks in India. I likened them to a carnival ride and had a blast every single time I got on one, albeit you never knew if you would be involved in an accident because of the chaotic style of the freeways and roads paired with the drivers and their styles. Every tuk tuk driver was different. I had one that was silent and hardly spoke, and another who would not stop speaking. In the back of one of these 3 wheeled little vehicles was room for at least 1 and max 3 smaller people and a lifetimes worth of stories and adventures around the city.
As the sun set, my friends from Ukraine and I, 3 in total, decided to give the Akshardaam another try. This is the biggest Hindu temple in the world and is situated in New Delhi. We had tried a few nights before but didn't make the time strict time limit to get in, but here we were again, after having dusted it off ready to try again. This time we did get there on time. It took nearly 2 hours in line, because it was easily one of, if not the biggest line of people I had ever seen in my life
There we were, my 2 Ukrainian friends and I, at the divine abode of god, also known as the Akshardaham. There are few, if any, places on earth that I had seen before that could rival the majesty and perfection and awe that this edifice did. Only one or two places come to mind that I have had the privilege of seeing in person in all the world that could possibly be in the same conversation as the Akshardaham; one being the Vatican and the Giovanni Laterno in Rome, Italy and the Sagrada Familia cathedral in Barcelona Spain. As all things hold their own unique beauty, I cant say that one is better than the other in any regard, but the feeling you get inside when the windows to your soul behold the majesty that these places display divinely and impeccably can not be described in any language, but only possibly in vibration, like the butterflies you get when you fall in love the first time, or you get your first kiss, or you commit your first act that calls for a consequence.
Just as I had been when at St Peters Basilica in Rome, so to was I overwhelmed and in a borderline state of shock that I was seeing what I was seeing. The architecture was mind blowing. All around the outside were elephants and intricate scenes of animals, gods and man. If carved by hand, this is one of the world's most majestic marvels to ever behold. On the inside, and clearly visible from the outside with the right angle toward the door was a giant golden statue of Swaminarayan, a yogi believed to be the personification of God himself. This place was a divine place of peace, worship, culture, history, and excited every one of the senses. It held true to the meaning of its name, the abode of the almighty God.
After having walked through, we were presented with the possibility of watching the light show in the court outside. Another display that was truly captivating and majestic in it's very own right. It was an indescribable display of light, water, lasers, actors and music that grabbed the soul. There are not very many words to describe this show so I won't attempt to, you have to see it for yourself. Everything about this site was so divine and made me think of the saying common in India upon meeting someone new, 'namaste' as I learned while there, that divine spark within all men, women, and children that at times gets buried and hidden by whatever means. That divine spark, divine light was on full display here in this edifice, in the water show, in the tuk tuk drivers, in the architecture, in the history, in the culture, in the wedding ceremonies, in the clothing, in the animals, in the food and in everything. This adventure on the last half day in Delhi was the cherry on top, almost as if India herself was sending me off with one last special memory and souvenir for the mind. Magic...
By the end of this show, it was getting late. I had to be to the airport 3 hours before my flight back to Los Angeles. It was already 9 or 10 by the time we got back to our personal tuk tuk driver.So I had a few hours to burn as this magical journey came to a close. I wanted to see my friend more, as I had seen him and hung out with him very little while there during his special day and ceremony. I also understood my place there and didn't push it. I was beyond happy for my friend and so honored that he invited me. He treated me and saw to it that I was treated better than I ever had been in my life on a trip. I also lack words for my gratitude for my friend Shashanks presence in my life, it can not be overstated. We met in Madrid through my friend Manu and got close and spent a lot of time together on the weekends there. I hope to repay him one day and make a trip on my own back to his country to visit him and his wife.
The faithful and animated tuk tuk driver that had chauffeured us around all day on this last day was there waiting for us, just as he said, a few hours after he dropped us off at Akshardham. An awesome guy he was and certainly reliable and very friendly.I mentioned to him that I had to go to the airport and be there by midnight and he passionately volunteered to be there to take me there also at that time. He took us to the hotel that my friends from Ukraine had rented for the night prior to them leaving the following day back to Kiev. We socialized and talked and had some drinks as the sand from the top of the hourglass ran almost out for our time here in New Delhi. My friends all took off to grab some dinner and invited me and I kindly declined as I was hoping to get maybe an hour of sleep in before I had to go to the airport.
I went back to the Leela hotel where we stayed the whole week to catch a taxi that had been arranged for me to go to the airport. I also met up with my friend for a quick bite and said to him my goodbyes. This was it. This magical chapter was coming to a close. As I was sitting down having a soda and my last bite to eat in India, it had occurred to me that the hotel had booked a taxi for me which was recommended with the luggage I had and it would get me there much faster than a tuk tuk. It was almost time to catch this taxi after I finished eating with my friend Chao. I had, at the last moment, remembered that our faithful tuk tuk driver wanted to take me and said he would be waiting for me around 10 in the evening outside of the hotel. Oh man, poor guy, I had totally forgot that I had told him this.
I know that the poor guy probably doesn't make a whole lot of money driving his tuk tuks. I also knew that he probably had a family back home that waited for him each night after work, that depended on him. I could have been wrong but those were my base assumptions. What I got to know about him on this day that he carried out his duty as being basically our personal chauffeur, was that he was a good kind person with a good heart and good spirit. The last thing that I knew, was that I could not leave him hanging, as he agreed to be outside waiting for me around that time, late in the evening, away from his family or possibly other duties when he could have been driving around other people making money for him and his family.
The taxi was already at the hotel waiting for me. I told them to give me 5 more minutes, as I had to go look for my tuk tuk driver. For the life of me, I do not recall his name, but I will never forget this man. As I went around front of the hotel, sure enough, there he was, waiting for me. I felt like shit having to inform him that I had to take a taxi instead of one last tuk tuk ride with him. I could see he was sad, as he was looking forward to this trip to the airport and back.
I had already prepared what I had hoped would be a remedy for this dilemma for the poor guy. I had quite a bit of rupees left that I was unable to spend before I left. I usually collect currency from whatever country I visit that is foreign to the American dollar, for souvenirs. I had a 2000 rupee bill which was about 25, maybe 30 dollars. When we negotiated the price for taking me to the airport earlier he said he would do it for 1000 rupees, which is about 15 dollars. I tried to at least double it for him to cover the time he waited, and paid for the trip to the airport that I wound up not being able to take with him. So I gave that to him, in hopes that it would suffice for him being a faithful and honorable man and tuk tuk driver all day, and for my mistake of forgetting about him. Karma.
Throughout my time in India, I had learned very much about namaste, the divine spark inside everyone, and this honorable man especially had that, as I told him that when I departed from him to catch my taxi. It was certainly an honor to know him and the divinity within him and if God permit by some miraculous chance, I might have him again as my tuk tuk driver at a future visit to India. The main reason that I wanted to make it right with him, as I saw his sadness upon my breaking the news to him, was KARMA. When I gave him that money, he smiled, we chatted briefly, exchanged namastes, and I had hoped it would be enough to help him and his family as I knew a lot may have been on hold as he honorably held firm to his earlier commitment to getting me to the airport. Karma is a very real thing, and being in India, it couldn't have been made more evident to me.
Upon my return to the U.S., I had a lot of change going on. Within a week of my return, I had to move out of my place, I wasn't happy at my job, and I wasn't happy with my situation or setting anymore. Something inside of me changed in my short time in India. Something that made me OK with trying to make my light shine a little brighter, and not settling for less and dimming it on account of something or someone else. I spontaneously made a decision one night, as my truck was full of my belongings from my move. I didn't really know where I was going to move, what the future held, or what direction I might take. I did know, however, that as had become the most common theme in my life, that change was on the horizon yet again.
As I glanced at my little statues of the elephant headed Ganesha that sat on my dashboard of my truck under the mirror, I remembered that he was the god of intellect and wisdom, the remover of obstacles and the god of new beginnings. It was about midnight, and I had just dropped off a futon at one of my good friends house' as I tried to ditch any extra weight I did not need as I would venture onto the unknown yet again. I remembered the incredibly unforgettable beautiful time I had in India, and it was almost as if Ganesha himself whispered to me at this moment, "Go".
Off I went, at midnight that night, my truck full of my shit. From the snow capped cold mountains of Colorado in early December, I parted yet again. Off to the long dry cool deserts of Arizona and California I drove this night. "OK", I spoke aloud almost responding to Ganesha, "here we go." Off to a new beginning, as all obstacles had been cleared to make way for this decision to be made easily. My light, my spark, would grow, and it was almost purely through and by my time and experiences in India, the karma, and the magic...
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| poor elephant... |
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