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Living in the Great Thar Desert
I was about 30 kilometers west of Jaisalmer in the Great Thar Desert when the jeep I was in stopped at a small group of mud homes. In exploring them I came across this young girl who was sitting outside her home. She appeared to be resting, taking a break from her daily chores. Though she wore a lot of jewelry it was noticeably different than that of some of the elder women that I have encountered and featured on previous postings on this blog. This girls jewelry lacked the precious metals and stones, but was equally colorful and impressive.
Desolate with nothing in sight for miles, the locals here are friendly, colorfully dressed against the brown backdrop and lead a simple life.
This is our photo for day 16 of our month long series of photographs on Rajasthan. We’ll spend 3-nights in Jaisalmer on our upcoming spiritual adventure to northwestern India in Oct.
Hindu Youth singing “Aum Namasivaya”!
Each evening after dinner we get together for bhajans/kirtan. The counselors lead the younger campers in some chants at the start then Muni concludes the evening of music by leading them through some bhajans. Here’s a video from last night showing Muni leading them in singing “Aum Nam...
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Yoga, Meditation and Practical Philosophy for Youth
Our 2nd day of camp and the youth are enjoying themselves. Our morning started with Hatha Yoga. It was Dandapani’s turn to teach the girls and Muni’s turn to teach the boys. Immediately after Hatha Yoga we did 20 minutes of guided meditation. The meditation that I (Dandapani) conducted was struct...
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Jaisalmer, in the Great Thar Desert
Jaisalmer is picturesque and truly a gem in the desert. Isolated, it’s an oasis in the Great Thar Desert, with its giant sandcastle like fort. It is also the base for many an adventurous trek into the ocean of sand. The old fort in the centre of town is majestic against the desert backdrop ...
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Desert Dwellers
As our jeep headed west from Jaisalmer we made our way further into the Great Thar Desert (also known as the Great Indian Desert) I could only wonder to myself how people lived here. Over an hour later after driving on a single lane road we arrived at a group of mud huts in the…
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Hindu Youth Camp Begins!
Good evening from Morgantown, West Virginia where 55 Hindu youth have gathered with Dandapani and Muni Natarajan (and camp coordinators) for a week long camp. The focus is the study of Hinduism and to have a joyous time with fellow Hindu youth. A typical day sees campers in an hour long hatha yog...
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Priest Training along Pushkar’s Holy Lake
Young Hindu priests gather in the morning by Pushkar’s holy lake for training in rituals and chanting. Rajasthan, India. The act of gently pulling the ears is called Palikarsha in Sanskrit. This is usually performed at the beginning of worship in front of Ganesha. Hands are crossed with the...
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