Cows

I am coming to realize that the greatest benefit of staying at a guesthouse where other Westerners pass through is that I'm get to practice my spiel every day-- by the time I get home, I'll be a pro at explaining what I do and why it's sweet. One issue I've gotten to polish in this manner is the importance of cows in India. Everyone likes to joke about Hindu cow-worship, but other than laughing at what seems to be irrational idolatry most travelers struggle to connect the animals freely making their way throughout the city with what they know of Hinduism. I've come across three equally compelling explanations-- without knowing Indian culture well enough to judge their accuracy, I'll just share them all.

First is the economic reality of Indian life. Milk (and its products, ghee and curd) are of critical importance to the vegetarian diet that most keep. Dung is kept for fuel and fertilizer, and oxen are used for carts. Cows eat garbage, as well. The sheer importance of the cow, then, gives it a special role.

Second is a historical argument. Indo-European languages and cultures share an obsession with the cow, an obsession that simply solidified here while it eased elsewhere. For example, Nordic cultures featured a cow as the original nourisher of humankind, and Jared Diamond convincingly showed in Collapse that Viking preference for cows as status items contributed to the failure of the Greenland colony. In English, many of our words having to do with money are descended from the concept of herds of cows-- for example, pecuniary, from peks, a cow herd. This feature of our shared heritage was simply accentuated in India (see here).

Finally, and most compellingly, is a religious interpretation. Milk, as a gift from a mother to her child, is the purest material expression of love. The cow is holy because the milk we get from it is the substance of pure love, and our need and use of that love requires appropriate respect to the producer. Indeed, Krishna is known as a 'thief of love' due to his proclivity towards stealing ghee as a child and making off with gopis (milkmaids) as a young man. In northern India, where the bhakti tradition emphasizes devotion, each of these aspects of the cow's importance tie together to affirm its holy position.

Reinventing reincarnation

Perhaps the most fascinating aspect of Hinduism is the idea of reincarnation. In this age of corporate yoga and pharmaceutical Buddhism there's hardly a person who can't expound on how we're all stuck in samsara, the eternal wheel of reincarnation, our souls endlessly striving towards final liberation or moksha. But other than philosophical fancy or fodder for stoned wonderment, what does reincarnation actually entail?

I found my high school adviser's metaphor to be quite helpful. We are all familiar with the sight of bubbles rising out of a carbonated drink. If we abandon for a moment our knowledge of chemistry, then it would seem that air emerges out of nothing, forms bubbles, and rises to the surface, dissolving into the atmosphere. In the same way, our souls (atman) are small pieces of the stuff of eternity (Brahman), like bubbles are of air. Our little 'divine sparks' are stuck in this world, like the air in the drink, but we also inevitably rise towards liberation. The bubble itself is the shell we create to shield ourselves from the nasty world- our egos.

That's all good and fine, but what does it mean for a strict materialist who doesn't want to concede all this 'eternity' and 'soul' jazz? I look at it this way. There's no need to invoke higher powers when you put your life up against the 6 billion others that are being lived right now (to say nothing of non-humans): the idea of that much humanity is eternal enough. The concession that your life is made up of the same stuff as anyone else's is tantamount to the idea that you could be born in any other life. The self-aggrandizing ego convinces us that we are 'lucky' to lead good lives, but really we're just monkeys with an attitude just like everyone else. And what goes around comes around.

Perhaps not the most elegant theory, but it gets across the same point. As Red Green would say: I'm pulling for you, cause remember, we're all in this together.

Dippin' a toe in the orient

The most numerous (and harmless) type of tourist is the westerner who, finding themselves with some weeks or months to spare before the start of the next term or the expiration of unemployment benefits, decides to head to India to experience something a little exotic. It's a good choice: travel costs are low, the colorful culture is famously alluring, and, most importantly, Indians only kind of look like terrorists.

These tourists usually come to India with pretty high expectations for Indian culture-- parades of elephants/camels/palanquins, orange-clad holy men, colorful gods, etc.-- but thankfully tend not to have strong preconceptions. So they quickly fasten on the obvious, like cows in the streets and constant noise from temples, and are content to just see the sights and feel the vibe. They make excellent travel partners because they will treat every detail you point out as if it is the greatest insight ever made.

Their only major faults stem from their necessary naivety towards Indian culture. On the one hand, they remain oblivious to many of the more interesting (or distressing) aspects of Indian culture, for the most part never moving beyond the facade of poverty, religion, and cacophony. More annoyingly, they can joke for hours about the apparent irrationality of India, at once telling it just like it is and at the same time betraying the fundamental cultural arrogance that afflicts us all.

Reasons to shave, vol. III

There's a lot of pot in India, and a lot of tourists who make its consumption a priority. It's an odd situation, for while some groups (like wandering sadhus and some farmers) are allowed to freely light up a chillum, marijuana use is otherwise very strictly proscribed, both highly illegal and socially discouraged. So an awkward balance is struck, with the freely growing weed and rich tourists on one side and a strict penal code and unsympathetic embassies on the other.

Pushkar is a holy city for Hindus, but it's also a major stop on the hippy circuit. Banana-nutella pancakes, Enfields, and homespun are as common as Siva lingams and sannyasins. And there isn't a tourist restaurant in town (most of which sport a 'No Indians Allowed' sign in Hindi-- a nice contrast to the radical egalitarianism of the idealists sipping chai inside) that doesn't offer 'special' cookies or lassis.

I've never been one to condemn having a good time, but I'm happy to avoid this side of tourism in India. This country's class-based and image-obsessed culture is extremely sensitive to details of behavior, hygiene, and dress that the 'smile and a handshake' West prefers to write off to individuality. By keeping my hair short, my face clean, my pants pressed, and my shirt collared, I can make a real difference in the way I am perceived and treated. In a place like Pushkar, where the locals are all too used to the interests (and weaknesses) of westerners, that goes a long way towards an enjoyable and hassle-free visit that includes genuine interactions with Indians.

Pushkar Unt Mela

After an overnight train back from Delhi I hopped on my Bajaj for the 300km drive to Pushkar, a small town nestled in the Aravalli hills whose natural lakes and bathing ghats make it an important Hindu pilgrimage destination. To westerners, though, it is most famous as the site of the yearly Camel Fair/Unt Mela, where thousands of animals are bought, sold, and displayed and herders get a rare chance to kick back a bit. The popularity of the Mela and the town's relaxed atmosphere have also made it a prime stop on the 'alternative' tourist circuit.

The Mela is a result of the particular ecology, anthropology, and economics of camel herding in Rajasthan. Camel herding castes (such as the aforementioned raikas) live in family groups that own 40-100 camels, all but two or three of which are females and young. Spending the summer in the hills to avoid the desert heat, the herders return to the Thar for the lush vegetation and cool temperatures of the winter breeding season. Before heading off, though, they all meet up and swap top studs to prevent inbreeding. Inferior males are castrated and sold to farmers for work.

This year's mela was one of the most profitable ever, a result most likely caused by high oil prices and the resulting ineconomy of tractor use. The number of camel herders, however, was at an all-time low (I only met one full-size herd). This year's selling was mostly done by middlemen, dealers who rounded up marginal animals from their district and came to make a profit. For the NRCC, hoping to find some really top animals (and willing to pay their hefty price), the fair was a disappointment.

Tourist stereotypes: Karmic krusaders

Spiritual tattoo? Dreds? Hippie clothing? Glazed-over eyes? Caveman stench?

Why some people think that India, home to one of the most capitalistic, materialistic, class-driven, ambition-friendly, image-obsessed cultures on the planet, is some haven of spirituality where karma comes to get down is absolutely beyond me. Yet think they do- at least as well as they can while perpetually stoned- and at the slightest provocation will deliver a monologue on familiar New Age themes. Actual conversation at the guesthouse:

UNWASHED HIPPIE : Hinduism's all about love, man.
ME: I'm not so sure. Have you read the Bhagavad-Gita?
UNWASHED HIPPIE: No, but I've been meaning to. It basically says we're all one, right?
ME: Not really. It's about duty.
UNWASHED HIPPIE: This world is transient, we're just lost souls seeking liberation.
ME: What does that mean for the here and now?
STONED RAVER: Now and here, man: nowhere!

I'm all for people opening their hearts and minds to new cultures, new ideas, and new ways of life, but this is something else. Trying to relive the individualism and idealism of the revolutionary 1960's in today's world is hedonistic and irresponsible. So go ahead and have your Paulo Coelho-fueled journey of spiritual self-discovery, but at least have the decency to conform to the hygenic standards of the culture at whose expense you're naval-gazing.

Tourist stereotypes: introduction

When I first visited India two years ago I was disgusted by most tourists. It seemed to me like everyone who came here was intent on reliving some 1960's journey of spiritual self-discovery, while in fact their Lonely Planet led them to trendy exotic placenames where Indian entrepreneurs, seeing the dependable signs of white skin, poorhouse clothing, and dubious hygiene, sold them bhang lassis made with filtered water that cost three times more than an average Indian family made in a day.

Needless to say, this is a very harsh and over-generalized view that has since softened. Still, there are very distressing aspects of tourism particular to this country. There really are a lot of people who come to India for material renunciation, temporarily forgetting the price of their airfare. Many come espousing New Age spirituality's roots in Hinduism or seeking a yoga ashram, only to reveal that they've never read the Bhagavad Gita and couldn't pick Vishnu out of a crowd (he's the blue one). The carefree egalitarianism of hippies- or even of the most conservative Westerners- is fundamentally at odds with the rigid class system of India, the consequences of which go over the heads of all but the most observant visitors. As I spend more time here, I am beginning to see an even more sinister side to tourism: that most hotels are run my the mafia. No joke.

But my daily exposure to tourists at the NRCC and at the guesthouse have begun to steel me to their faults (just like shacking up with a hipster made me finally accept that I, too, am a hipster deep down inside) and I've even begun to take a perverse joy in hearing their predictable rants and formulaic pontifications. So please allow me to share the enjoyment only a hater can get from the idiocy of his fellow humans in this new series, Tourist stereotypes.

Womens

I have now been living at Vinayak guest house for more than six weeks-- and I have yet to learn the name of Jitu's wife.

This is conservative Bikaner's modern interpretation of the timeless Rajasthani (and Mughal) custom of purdah. The Maharajas of the Rajput states would acquire vast harems, and after marriage the young wives moved into a separate wing of the palace where, guarded by eunuchs and served by girls, they spent the rest of their lives until ritually burning themselves on the funeral pyre of their husband (sati). Less prominent members of the community would merely keep their women housebound, and completely covered in the case of male visitors.

Today, the gender egalitarianism of urbanized nomads catalyses trends towards westernization and liberalization, and the lives of women are rapidly improving. Tight jeans and western tees are a rare but unsurprising sight, and among youth female literacy approaches male. But the most resilient customs have nothing to do with outward signs and everything to do with male attitudes.

These are most evident with respect towards western women. There is absolutely no reason for Indian men to think western women are anything but complete whores: movies and TV depict easy flirtation and open sex (see a related observation by my friend Sloan, in Rwanda); most tourists make little effort to conform to public morality (for example, anything but the most fleeting embrace is considered part of sex, and wearing short sleeves is like wearing a short skirt); and I have yet to find an internet cafe whose computers weren't clogged with the nastiest kinds of porn. Next to Indian women, who like the men must stay chaste (and repressed) until marriage at 20-30, 'phoren' ladies are slatterns who will give it up if you just grab 'em in the right way.

So, despite changes, men still like their wives and sisters well-esconsed, even while 'Eve-teasing' any westerner they can and shamelessly exploiting unionized prostitutes.

Khyber: Aryans

The first invaders to pass through the Khyber pass into the Indian subcontinent were Aryans, a Central Asian tribe speaking an Indo-European language related to Latin and Greek. According to one interpretation, their mastery of ironworking, horses, and the chariot allowed them to quickly conquer the advanced Harappan culture of the Indus valley around 1500-1000 B.C.E. The Harappans, who since 3300 B.C.E. had developed a large civilization complete with standardized measures, an indigenous writing system, and indoor plumbing, were forced into the Indian peninsula where they are linguistically and genetically represented by the Dravidian peoples who make up today's southern states.

The Aryans didn't bring just destruction and collapse, however. Their rich literary tradition, well known from the famous Vedas (ie, the Rg Veda and the Upanishads), gave rise to a three-millennia-old poetic tradition that includes the Mahabharata and the Ramayana. Their sophisticated philosophy forms the core of what we call Hinduism, along with many of their gods and myths. Most importantly, their strict approach to social hierarchy solidified into the caste system.

As European scholars gained familiarity with Indian culture in the 18th and 19th centuries, they began to see similarities between Sanskrit, Latin, and Greek and correctly inferred the existence of a common mother-tongue, Indo-European (which also gave rise to Germanic, Slavic, Baltic, Celtic, and many other language families). Later researchers began to find shared aspects of mythology, ritual, and culture (for example: the god of thunder, Indra/Thor; creation myths invoking giants; and a fascination with cows- 1, 2, 3). It was the perception that these 'Aryans' gave rise to the great civilizations of the west that led to the term's adoption by racial supremacists of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Khyber: Introduction

The Indian subcontinent is completely isolated by land save a small gap in the Hindu Kush mountains of the northwest, the famous Khyber Pass on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. South Asia's history can be seen in terms of who pased through these gates at what time, invaders sweeping and receding across the region like waves, leaving behind traces of their stock, culture, and religion.

There have only been three migrations in Indian history that did not pass through the Khyber Pass. One (sensu latu) was the periodic arrival of the latest model of hominids, from Homo erectus to modern Homo sapiens' coastal spread eastward 70,000 years ago. The most famous was the influx of the colonial powers, from early Arab trade links to Vasco de Gama to the eventual dominance of the British East India Company. Recently, the South Asian diaspora has led to the emergence of East Indian communities around the world, from centuries-old families of East Africa to half-Indian Guyana to the famous New Jersey suburbs, particularly Edison.

Deshnok, the temple of rats

Last Sunday (before tricking out my bike) I awoke early to head to Deshnok, the famous rat temple of Karni Mata. This goddess (a manifestation of Durga) has been the patron of Bikaner ever since its founder Bika secured her blessing, and the number of times she has saved the city from certain destruction and drought are countless in the region's lore. I was content with some simple sight-seeing.

We arrived around 7:30AM (after a highly gratifying ride along new roads where I could exceed 30mph!) in time to see most of the rats bedding down for the day. Aside from the mandatory bare feet and layers of rat shit, the temple was quite beautiful, with different rooms and adornments added since the first (innermost) simple shrine. We glimpsed a white rat, a symbol of good luck. It is believed that the souls of local villagers are reincarnated only as humans and rats. This is why the pests are tolerated and so lovingly cared for; indeed, stepping on one can only be repaid by the erection of a silver rat statue.

Now we're in the middle of a nine day festival in honour of Durga, and to kick it off every Hindu in Bikaner made the 30km walk to Deshnok over Monday night. We took a jeep with 300kg of bananas to distribute as prasad, enjoying the sights of the pilgrimmage along the way. Among impromtu dance parties outside tuk-tuks sporting massive speakers, parades of Hindu nationalists chanting slogans, and the sheer spectacle of 400,000 people in motion it was a memorable night.

Getting down in the desert:

The Indo-Gangetic plain

Every year, two massive monsoons grace India with lush rainfall before expiring in the towering mountain ranges that isolate the region. First as snow, then as glaciers, then as sediment-rich runoff, this water returns to the subcontinent in three massive rivers: the Ganges, flowing eastwards across the north of India; the Brahmaputra, flowing south to meet the Ganges in Bangladesh; and the Indus, flowing south through the arid reaches of the west. It is the Indus, now the aorta of Pakistan, that granted the region and its native religion their names, as Indus became Hindustan and finally India and Hinduism.


The vast fertile swath created by these three rivers, known as the Indo-Gangetic plain, is today home to over 900 hundred million people. Many live in some of the largest cities on earth-- Islamabad, Karachi, Delhi, Kanpur, Kolkata, Dhaka-- but most reside in the countless small villages typical of South Asian life. Even today, over 60% of Indians draw their primary income from agriculture, even though it only accounts for only 28% of GDP. To a large degree, it is this economic pattern that explains why 300 million Indians live on less than $1 a day, and 750 million on less than $2 a day. Yet it is the ability to support enormous numbers of people that grants India its richness, whether in the earth-shaking armies of the Mughal Empire or the growth of today's IT economy.