Himalaya Travel Journey
Why Visit The Himalayas?
‘Him’ means snow and ‘Aalaya’ means house. If we think about these two words we will understand. Every one of us is occasionally on fire from anger, chaos, tension, problems, worries, and pain; as a result, restlessness, intolerance, anger, and instability are all like afire, and the only person who can put it out is through SADHANA. The extremely cold form of water is ice, also known as snow; this is the symbol of such coldness; the Himalayas, where you can experience both internal and external coldness, are the symbol of peace. Thus, the Himalayas have became ‘Sadhana Bhoomi’ and ‘Tapobhoomi’ over the ages, and have filled the whole Himalaya with divine energy. Whether it is ‘Bhagwan Adinath’ from Jainism, ‘Lord Buddha from Buddhism’, or ‘Mahadev/Shiva from Hinduism’, the Himalayas have always been liked by all. In contrast, there are other places where it is uncertain whether a SADHANA seeker can receive results. Being the Land of Gods and a proven land, it bears fruit right away, which may be why the Ashtapad (Kailash) mountain is still mysterious today. The Himalayas as a whole are filled with deep secrets.
Difficulties During Travel
Actually, hardship is an integral element of sadhana for a Sadhu (monk). The level of Sadhana will fluctuate depending on whether there
are challenges or not, and it will also differ depending on whether the seeker
is forced to accept a challenge.
We had no idea what challenges awaited us when we set out on this voyage, but some things have become evident, such as:
A Jain monk is depended on others for food as they are not allowed cook their own food as per the tradition; they can only consume ‘Sudha Swastika food’ from vegetarian householders. Although following this ritual is currently the biggest challenge for a Jain Monk, however, this ritual is required to be followed even in extreme conditions as well.
· Because a Jain monk always travels by foot, it can be quite difficult to make or obtain accommodations for each day’s journey, especially when the monk must go on extremely difficult routes like the Himalayas. These days, finding someone who can understand and make plans for stay, is very are at an unknown place where there is no bar for righteousness conditions/people.
· The most difficult part of the trip is having to walk on the highway; it requires extreme awareness to avoid traffic, fast-moving cars, trucks, and bikes.
· People who are not aware about Jain culture, many a time they make fun out of us. It’s a very common thing in Jain monk lives to take insults without responding.
Himalayan Yatra - Nepal Chapter
‘Jinaprabhasuri Maharasahebji’ is the author of the ‘Ashtapada Tirtha’ and ‘Vividh Tirtha Kalpa’, two ancient Jain texts. Maharasahebji has provided detailed and crucial information regarding the Pilgrimage.
He claims that the only way to see Ashtapada Mountain clearly is to ascend a high location close to Ayodhya. According to his description, this mountain is located 12 Yojanas (oneYojana = 12 km) in north direction of Ayodhya.
He has also used some other synonyms names of Ashtapada like Kailash, Dhavalgiri, Ratangiri, Haradra etc. Secondly, he has also clearly said that near Ashtapada, there is such a nayan ramya ‘Manasarovar’ where many jain labdhivant munis/monks meditated in past.
Another special thing is that ‘Jinaprabhasuri Maharasahebji’ was born in Ayodhya. This also proves that Kailash, Mansarovar and Ashtapada are the same place. According to Jain scriptures, the city of Ayodhya is said to be 9 yojanas wide and 12 yojanas long.
This means that Ayodhya existed till the foothills of Ashtapada. Where the people of Ayodhya used to go for entertainment very easily. If this is accepted then it proves length and widths of ancient Ayodhya extended very long which is in current geography know as Tibet, part of Nepal and Kailash Mansarovar of India.
There is a close relationship between these three countries, India, Tibet and Nepal. All these places were vihar bhumi of Adinath Prabhu. Majority of Ayodhya post partition went to Tibet and Nepal. However, all of these beliefs are based on the state of the nation in current geography. It is said that height of Adinath Prabhu was 500 Dhanush (Bows) (1 Bow = 4Hands).
The Yojana proof would have needed to be different back then. That is, 12 Yojanas X 9 Yojanas, cannot be stand true in current situation since, that was many years ago and people were taller than current days. If it is true that the ancient god Adinath lived in Ayodhya, then the entire Himalayan region, including Tibet, is said to be 2000 km by 500 km, wouldn’t have been big deal.
Jinaprabh Suri Ji born around 10th or 12th century. At that time, Tibet was part of India and during partition, most of the land went to Tibet and some to Nepal, with India remained some if it.
Relation of Muktinath tirtha and Adinath located in Nepal:
When we went to Muktinath by foot, we found some evidence there and on the way which made it clear that Muktinath of Nepal was a part of Ayodhya like Tibet and Prabhu Adinath and his group of saints had done sadhana there.
1) Gandaki has the first place among the oldest rivers of the world. It is said that the Shramana culture has emerged on the Gandaki River. A stone is found in this Gandaki which is very effective which is called Shaligram. This Shaligram is not found anywhere else.
2) Shaligram is worshiped considering it to be equal to Damodar i.e. Lord Vishnu which is a very sacred stone.
3) The origin of this Gandaki river is Damodar Kund, about 18,000 feet above it. Two rivers originate from it, one Brahmi and the other Shambhavi, which meet at Kagbeji place and form Gandaki.
4) Lord Vishnu has thousands of names, one of which is Adinath. Shambhavi is also synonymous with Sundari, that is, the family of the first Tirthankara Adinath Bhagwan in which Brahmi-Sundari are present and they did Sadhana there, hence due to the Sadhana done by these three near that Kund, the name of that Kund became Damodar Kund, which became like a father and Two rivers emerged from it which were named Brahmi-Sundari (Shambhavi).
5) It is said that the place from where hundreds of sages attained liberation was called Muktikshetra. Which was called from Beni to Muktinath and Damodar Kund. Such is the Hindu belief. Whoever believes this also reinforces the Jain belief. It is possible that Lord Adinath may have come here as "Muktinath" while wandering and along with him, hundreds of saints and sages were freed from death in every birth, that is, after attaining only knowledge, they attained salvation. Since then the name of these areas itself became Muktikshetra. Due to the passage of countless years, Jainism has become extinct and its name has been changed.
6) In a pilgrimage named Beni, it is said by Hindu monks that this is the place of worship of Pulast Rishi and Jainist Bharat Chakravarti. When we reached Beni Teerth, the Mahant there said that our old Mahants are being told that this Bharatchakravarti was a Jain. It is possible that Bharatchakravarti, after attaining Kevaljnana in Arisa Bhavan, may have wandered here for some time and came to Ashtapada. Because his city Vineeta city was also close to Ashtapada.
7) Kathmandu's Jain devotee and Jain historian Hulaschand Golchha also believed that Beni, Muktinath, all these were Jain pilgrimage sites but they disappeared due to the influence of time.
9) Even in Nepal, Pashupatinath still has a place in a temple complex named Agamghar, behind which there is a statue of a very ancient Jain Arihant Supreme Soul. There is also a statue of Arihant Prabhu in a place named Chaubar. Which is till famous by the name of Adinath. There is a big village in the Terai by the name of Birganj = Veerprabhu.
10) And because of that, when we reached Muktinath and meditated there for about two months, we also got clear indications that this is also a pilgrimage site among the places of worship of Adinath Prabhu.
11) There is another legend prevalent here that Pancham Shruta Kevali Acharya Bhagwant Bhadrabahu Maharajji, who had meditated for about 12 years in Nepal, is today's "Halesi Mahadev" Tirtha. But our own belief is that Bhadrabahu Swamiji had performed sadhana not only in Halesi but also in the area between Muktinath and Kailash which is today part of Lomang area of Nepal. During such sadhana, we got many indications. Which is today called Aparamustang.
12) There is so much purity in these places even today that it can give you experiences in a short time. And that is why we will not only have to have faith in the historians and the scriptures but we will also have to have equal faith in the saints, then perhaps we will come to know about our lost pilgrimages and secrets.