India Visit 2009

Benares Blog - 12 Mar 09

Day 3 in Benares and I am starting to feel like my feet are back on the ground again – the
spacey exhaustion of jetlag starting to fade. It is spring here and the ancient bunyan tree at Tulsi
Ghat is bursting into life. After coming here for 17 years there is a natural sense of home and
familiarity, underpinned by the evident changes - everyone is one year older. The first noticeable
difference is that a whole new ghat has been constructed south of Assi Ghat (previously the
most southerly ghat). A clear indicator of rapidly expanding urban sprawl.

I begin writing to you from an internet café at Assi - sitting on the roof of the café sipping on a
mocha surrounded by the gentle chat of western seekers. Angela discovered the café during her
8 month stay last year.

It has been nearly 18 months since we were last in Benares for the 25th Anniversary
celebrations in November 2008. Since then the world has changed and so the focus of our early
conversations with Mahantji have been on these changes.
What has happened with the Clean Ganga Campaign?
What is happening in the wider world?
What does this mean for the work of the Sankat Mochan Foundation (SMF)?

Our days start to settle into their own rhythm. Arising early with the dawn for quiet time with the
River (Darshan). Dawn in Benares has a beauty that needs to be seen to be believed.

We gather at 8am for breakfast and a morning check-in then head down to the office to check-in
with Australia.

Our morning meeting with Mahantji begins at 11am – after he has completed his morning puja (3
hours of spiritual practices and meditations including a holy dip in Gangaji). Dr VB Mishra, or
Mahantji as he is affectionately known, is Founder and President of the Sankat Mochan
Foundation. He is also retired professor of hydrological engineering, Mahant (head) of the Sankat
Mochan Temple and keeper of the tradition of Tulsidasji (one of the most important spiritual
traditions in northern India).

We dive into rambling dialogue - freely ranging between deep matters of the heart, the potential
benefits of the carbon capture technology of AIWPS (the sewage treatment technology the
SMF have campaigned for since 1997 and are now charged with implementing in Benares by the
Government of India) and the searching for answers to the deeper questions we ask about the
future needs and directions for Swatcha Ganga Abhiyan (Clean Ganga Campaign).

Around 2pm we adjourn for lunch and a little free time before we once again meet with Mahantji
for a further 3 hour session late in the afternoon - by the end of which our bodies are feeling like it
is 1.30am and time to rest. Once we get past this jetlag, we will also take evening trips to Temple.

Yesterday I ran through a brief Pulse of the Planet presentation with Mahantji – briefly updating
him on the state of the planet – climate change, peak oil, peak food, water crisis, global financial
crisis. Like many others, he was deeply shocked by the information and we talked at length
about the process of moving from overwhelm to passionate action. We also talked about our
need to understand what all of this meant for our work for Gangaji.

This dialogue dug fertile ground for creative thinking and for the next 2 hours we bounced off
each other and new strategies started to emerge … potential for a youth leadership program like
Youth LEAD; the importance of facilitating inclusive and diverse participation; making Tulsi Ghat
climate friendly; and the ever present big question – how can the SMF grow to carry this huge
new responsibility of implementing the design and construction of AIWPS (Advanced Integrated
Wastewater Ponding System) for sewage treatment and resource reclamation.

Yesterday was the Festival of Holi. For the morning up until midday young boys roamed the
streets raging attacks with coloured water accompanied by much laughter and squealing. Most
of us kept a low profile – except for Angela who took on the local children in a very wet and
colourful charge (see photos). In the evening many came to share their greetings with powdered
colour. It was a beautiful scene as a full moon shone bright on Gangaji.

So for now we will continue our evening dialogue. I will have to get back to you about AIWPS,
Darshan, Puja and Tulsidasji.

Namaste,
Sueji