On to Jodphur

Jain Temple

Sundeep

Bells heard ringing 3 kilometers away

Making sandlewood and rose incense for temple

Ceremonial drums

Stand under this carving and make a wish and it will come true

Road scenes on way to Jodphur

White cow or Cow horse

What a long, long day yesterday was.  We left Udaipur at 10 and arrived in Jodphur at about 7:00.  I’ve taken many car trips longer than that in one day, but not over the kinds of roads we travelled along yesterday.   Our driver, Om, had a decent command of the English language which is rare among Indian drivers.  Om was happy to answer our questions along the way and stop so we could take photos.  While I was photographing a water wheel being driven by oxen, a group of young children approached Sam.  I took my photos and headed back toward the car.  They came over to me and by now I knew what to expect.  They had hopes that I would give them something.  When people want something from tourists, it seems they nearly always approach the woman.  I opened my purse and took out the box of wheat biscuits I had purchased the day before for just such an occasion. I could tell that Om had told the children to be polite and at first they were.  But once they realized I was willing to give them the entire package, their hands started grabbing at my hands and the oldest girl succeeded in wresting the package away from the others.  As we drove away, with their faces practically smooshed against our window, they continued to ask for whatever else we were willing to give them.

Our next photo op occurred when we spotted a group of monkeys perched on rocks along the side of the road and then another group a little later and another.  Om warned us that though they weren’t vicious, they might try to come in through the car windows.   On our third stop, while Sam was photographing them, they became more brazen and started approaching the car.  Om laughed at me when I got scared and ordered Sam to close his window, but when the monkeys jumped on first the hood, then the roof and then tried to get in through the window, Sam got his window closed just in time.  By then there were at least three monkeys on the hood and hanging from the roof,  staring in through the windows at us.

Along the way we stopped at Ranakapur, where we visited another Jain Temple We had to leave our shoes at the bottom of the temple stairs, as the cow being sacred in India, along with the monkey, elephant and several other animals, no leather could be worn into the temple.  I’ve been telling Sam he looks like he’s lost weight.  I love it when people tell me that, but he’s been defensive about it.  When he had to remove his leather belt yesterday and his pants started to slide down over his hips, I think he finally had to admit it was true.  He wrapped the scarf he brought back from Afghanistan around his pants and, fortunately it held them up. 

We climbed the steps to the temple and were immediately informed that we needed to pay to bring a camera into the temple.  Bringing a camera along, no matter where you go it seems, will always cost a bit more. Sam left to get a ticket for our camera and I waited and watched what was going on around me.  As soon as Sam returned, a young man, wrapped in swaddling cloths came up to us.  “I am Sundeep, the priest of the temple.  For 17 generations the men in my family have served as priests for this temple.  That is since 1496.”  As our good fortune would have it, given how many other people he could have approached, Sundeep  gave us a complete tour of the temple, which was built in the mid 1400’s.  It took 4,000 carvers nearly 30 years to complete the marble temple, which has over 1444 pillars, each one unique.

India countryside

How water gets carried from well

Family transporting firewood

Brick manufacturing workers

How milk gets delivered

Oxen irrigating fields

Sundeep explained that the Jains have separated from the Hindu religion due to their stricter belief in total non-violence.  They worship no god, but honor their, I think, 28 prophets. He said the reason the religion has not spread, as has Buddhism, is because the priests and monks cannot travel by motorized vehicle of any kind, making it difficult to gain followers outside of India, but they have 28 million followers in India.