Gods and Goddesses of Nainital

https://twitter.com/BEAUTIFULPlCS/status/634690181459800064/photo/1 The most heavenly parts of our lovely planet in my experience have involved the following features They are located near or within mountain areas that have sufficient level or very gradually sloped ground for habitation Are green and   include both large areas of trees as well as open grassland and some rocky areas, The portion with trees have a lush undergrowth so not much soil is visible Have bodies of fresh water such as lakes, streams etc. Has a habitation that is not too dense and buildings that are no higher than four stories, most less so that lifts are not required Have a climate that is not too harsh for any significant portion of the year so that one may live without air-conditioners or central heating but just some clothing and minimal local environmental control such as a room heater or a fan. Are sufficiently pr...

Himalayan Cannabis   “Compassionate people are geniuses in the art of living, more necessary to the dignity, security and joy of living than discoverers of knowledge” Albert Einstein “Those who seek joy and dignity through an attainment of wealth devoid of goodness and compassion lose both and drive themselves to the top of a mountain of misery and the edge of an abyss” Ashok M. https://www.whaxy.com/news/himalaya-marijuana   Cannabis is presently an illegal substance in India . It was not so in the past and there is much history and mythology associated with substance. names of God in Himalayan and sub – Himalayan regions is Shiv or Shiva. Many Himalayan sages have meditated on the Infinite Lord known as Shiva. Shiva because of His infinity can have no form, but devotees have personified him in numerous and varied forms the most famous being  the dancing Shiva or Shiva Natraja, as the creator of life, the Shiv Linga and as a meditating sag...

  A Boat Race on Nainital Lake B oat races on the Nainital Lake are celebrated events of Nainital for more than a century now. Here is an old classical photo of one shared by a friend Harish Bhatt on Facebook. It was originally a black and white picture but has been retouched with digital color by this blogger. Nainital is best described as a blue lake surrounded by lush green hills of oaks and pine and undergrowth of ferns and sweet wild flowers with mountain springs and snow covered peaks, the abode of the goddess Naini Mata when not resting in the snow white peaks of Nanda Devi with her sister Sunanda Devi. May Nainital be protected from the ravages of human lust and greed, may the goddess not be compelled again to wash the town and its people into the lake once again as she did more than a hundred years ago but instead grant them heavenly peace, contentment and tranquility filled with beauty, and may Nainital forever remain the place from where a cry f...

Image source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cannabis_ruderalis_%28wild_marijuana,_habitus%29.jpg Although cannabis is presently an IILEGAL substance in India, around much of Nainital district as well as adjoining districts of Tehri Garwhal and   Almora, wild cannabis of a good variety grows freely as a wild herb. For millenniums the herb was used by local persons and herbalists for many purposes from medicinal to meditation and from recreational to a relaxant. Then somewhere far away in USA in 1930’s it was made illegal. It is said although not proven that it was because of commercial interests of Du Pont that had come up with new fiber nylon and that another produced from hemp a taller variety of the plant was a competition.  In the ensuing years, other far more powerful commercial interests from the legal and illegal drug industries appear to have developed to keep it illegal. So powerful were these interests that it seems even research was made near ...

The lake in Nainital town, there are several more in the surrounding Nainital District. Jai Naini Mata ki     Scroll down to towards the end of the post for the recipe of drink A n ancient highly revered Sanskrit book, the Rig Veda describes the powerful Soma drink obtained from the god amongst plants called Soma. This plant appears to have become extinct from the Himalayas some three thousand years ago perhaps due to over harvesting, grazing and ancient climate change around the time the ancient Saraswati River began to disappear from the Indus valley. Ever since then many attempts have been made to search for it and many proposals of alternative substances made, several narcotic, intoxicating or psychedelic. But the heavenly Soma was none of these. It was neither intoxicating nor psychedelic but made warriors alert and strong for battle and others full of happiness, wisdom and poetry. The best thing is that compounds in the drink appear to retard or stop aging ...

Naini Mata, Goddess of Nainital A new edition of the book – Naini Mata, Goddess of Nainital -  is available with amazon and several other outlets. This book describes the spiritual philosophy surrounding the Mother Goddess of Nainital from a modern scientific perspective. This wonderful little book describes the philosophy surrounding the goddess of Nainital, a beautiful district in the Himalayas. The book explains the spiritual philosophy behind the worship of the Mother Goddess as well as much other Himalayan spirituality from a modern perspective. This book is as scientific as it is spiritual. The book includes a highly thought provoking section on creation that is backed by modern scientific findings, especially the origin of humans on earth and their relationship with gods and goddesses. The book is available in both print and kindle electronic versions. The latter can be downloaded in minutes. The book is an excellent introduction to the spiritual philosophy emana...

The Lion by Amit K. Dand Since ancient times the Lion has been a constant companion of the goddess, Jai Mata ki, across various cultures of the world, including at Nainital. Here is a lovely shot of one by Amit K. Dand. You can find many other lovely photos by him at https://twitter.com/psphot1