First Weekend in Delhi

So today I hired a cab and decided to go see some sights of the many sights Delhi has to offer. My first stop was Qutb Minar, the tallest brick minaret in the world, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Construction began in 1193, with subsequent rulers adding additional stories to it. Since I arrived early in the morning, I was one of the few people here. While I appreciated the architecture and its significance, what I really relished was the open space and tranquility. This was the time I have been in India (including my previous two week trip) where I really felt at peace.

Following this, I went for a brief visit of India Gate, which is very much a mini Arc de Triomphe to honour India's fallen soldiers.

Next I went to Akshardham. I read that this was a recently built temple, so I wasn't quite expecting much.... they don't build temples like they used to, when slave labour was in abundance. So I was totally blown away when I arrived at the complex. Everything about this place is over-the-top, starting with security, which was tighter than anything I have ever seen at any airport; you had you check your cell phones, cameras, lighters, handbags, backpacks; basically everything except the clothes on your back, at the entrance. So unfortunately I don't have any photos of the place.

The main temple was also over-the-top, decorated inside and out with hand carved sandstone. I'm sure they probably used dremmel tools rather than manual chisels, but you could tell that each carving was subtly different from the next, and thus not mass-produced. The temple itself is a tribute to Bhagwan Swaminarayan, the founder of this particular sect of Hinduism.

There were also two presentations I went to; one was an vast labyrinth of animatronics (just like in Disneyworld) that chronicled his life. The other was an IMAX movie. His life story, as presented by these, is over-the-top. Leaving home at age, 11. Spending the next 7 years wandering over 10,000 km, wandering the Himalaya for a year wearing nothing more than a loincloth... and on and on. I'm not kidding. Superman had nothing on this guy. After two hours of this, I was over-the-topped out, and had to leave.

Finally, I went to the Bahai' Lotus Temple. Located within a spacious parkland, the walkway to the temple was a river of humanity. Though the architecture is very aesthetic, the interior is as sparse as Akshardahm is overindulgent. Just an open space with pews. There was a service happening, and I sat down just as a lady started to sing a hymn. It was brief, but her soft and reverent voice resounded throughout the temple. I got goose bumps. I felt a definite tinge of sadness when she finished... I wished she would continue for the next hour. Another moment of profound calm and serenity in this chaotic country.

Though it wasn't intentional, it turned out to be a fairly spiritually themed Sunday jaunt.