Haridwar (india part #3)

Have read somewhere that when a great soul arrives, it rains...
Guruji has often said this is what happens when she comes into town...
and the day we arrived in Haridwar was no different...
we were met by a torrential downpour of rain...
what a blessing it was to be guided thru india by Guruji..
she had lived there off and on for five years and knew the best most clean places to stay...
she knew each time we set off exactly where we were going and could direct the driver
of the rickshaw with great precision...
this does not mean that everything went smooth by any means...
Guru was always up front insuring that the drivers were honest in their dealings which
was unending work for her....  
Haridwar was amazing to pull into as there is a massive bronze statue of Lord Shiva
that seems to hover above all else...  very stunning ...
we arrived at our hotel which was quite nice overlooking the rushing waters of the ganges...
this place was so different than Delhi --
as the primary life and action at least where we were situated was along the ghats of the ganges...
we rose early that morning and went outside where the *action* was ...
the feeling was very surreal...
it felt like no one slept there at all as there was a constant buzz of activity...
many of the ones outside wore sannyasi robes even those that had crippled and/or deformed bodies...
there were people taking baths in the rushing waters hanging onto ropes as the current is so strong
it could sweep one away...
some in the water were absorbed in devotional prayers and/or offerings to mother ganga...
(this was one of the beautiful things about india that displays of devotion in the open were completely
common and no one blinked an eye at it....  so very different than the west where all is
so private and these types of displays are done behind closed doors) ....
we crossed a little bridge and met a few sadhus that were outside ---
it was the usual affair with them... smoking, chatting and drinking chai...
along our route we met with a sadhvi or female sadhu....
sadhvis are very rare in india (i believe we may have seen two while we were there)...
this is because it is a very harsh lifestyle outside and also not safe for women to roam alone...
this particular sadhvi did live outside .. she had made herself a little camp that was quite sparse,
but one could tell that she had lived there awhile as it seemed to be set up like her own space..
she had a small boy with her that was running around in sadhu wear...
she said he was given to her to raise (something must have happened to his family, but do not remember)...
she was raising him like her own and was to teach him the ways of traditional wandering...
this woman did appear to be mostly sincere and have some knowledge
about sadhu life as it is meant to be which was nice...
Guruji praised her for being true on the journey ....
we stayed out most of the morning hanging out with the sadhus and hearing their stories and chit chat... Guruji would always ask them how their sadhana was going...
it was very much the same feeling... not much seriousness...
but indeed very interesting and filled with color and life...

we only stayed in Haridwar for one night ....
our next stop was rishikesh which is where Guruji spent most of her days while in india
and where she entered realization along the banks of the ganges there ...

off we went to the next destination...

om shanti