
The Sun sets at Dubai…
A khatta-meetha take on life around me through my presbiopic eyes!
You can only imagine the lively discussions that took place before we made our
choice!
Suffice to say that we tested the patience of our relationship manager and I
must say he was pretty cool throughout.
None
of us rush to answer a ringing telephone anymore; as there is a hefty chance it
will be someone trying to sell an insurance policy/credit card/ loan. I
have yet to meet a person who has taken up this telephonic loan proposal. The
range of products being touted via SMSs range from ‘sizzling’ celebrity photo
and music downloads to meal deals, mock croc bags and several other frivolous
accessories!
Located in central India, Bhopal is the capital of Madhya Pradesh state and I had often transited this city during train journeys but had never actually stayed there. Sanchi is located to the north east of Bhopal at a distance of about 45 kms. It is home to the Buddhist monuments – the Stupas that show case Buddhist art and architecture. This is designated as Unesco World Heritage Site. It dates back to some time in the 3rd century BC and was constructed by Emperor Ashoka. After its hey day period, it was ignored and forgotten for several hundred years. It was re-discovered and then explored and developed by British Officers during the Raj. There are plenty of reviews and descriptions of this site available on the internet so I would not like to repeat those. This page on the website of the Archeological Survey of India offers excellent information.
![]() |
Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi |
Sanchi is easily accessible by road from Bhopal. Entry is with a nominally priced ticket and the guard at the entrance politely told us not to eat inside. There is an excellent museum near the ticket hut but I suggest visiting it after seeing the Stupas. Its a very good idea to take services of a local guide as they have an uncanny knack of retelling the history of the place and bringing it alive.
The main stupa (Stupa 1) is said to hold the remains of Gautam Buddha and the other stupas are of his disciples. It is distinguished by its bigger size and by the triple umbrella (chhatravali) on its dome. It has four entrances (toranas) and the southern one is thought to have
been the principal entrance. The
other ones (east, west, north) were built later. Each gateway has two pillars (square with carvings on all sides) and a superstructure of curviform architraves (also carved with different stories).
Our guide brought attention to details inscribed on the pillars which relate the life and preachings of Gautam Buddha and Jataka tales. Parts of the site have been restored. At no site is the Buddha depicted in the form that we now know him to be but he is depicted symbolically. E.g. Umbrella held above the throne, dharma chakra, footprints etc.
If you happen to visit any place near Sanchi do make it a point to go there. It has a serene atmosphere and the Gautam Buddha’s ideas are conveyed in a very subtle manner via the carvings. There are beautiful seats under the trees that are ideal for this purpose. The skills of the artisans in years gone by is humbling especially considering that they did not have the so-called advantage of ‘modern’ technology. Dont miss the stone pillar with a mirror like polish or the huge stones that would have been hauled from miles away and then installed in its position or the interlocking cylindrical stones that form the peripheral boundary of the main Stupa. These are just a few examples. There are many more at Sanchi. .
This site has special walkways for visually challenged individuals and a sign post in braille. This is among the few places that I have seen that offers this facility for the differently-abled.
At the entrance is a small shop that sells some brochures and CDs that have extensive information and history of the site. However they do not have any significant mementos or fridge magnets (I am really partial to those!) which is sad considering that this is such an important destination. I do hope concerned authorities do something to rectify this. Rest rooms are available and there is small shop that sells basic food
items. So do go prepared with snacks or something to eat depending on
where you have travelled from.
Here is a slide show of some of some photos. It only gives a glimpse of the beautiful place and the images probably do not do full justice. Double click on the image for the slide show to open in a new tab… then its possible to read additional descriptions of the photos.
Considering my interest in trees, this blog will be incomplete if I don’t write about the trees I saw there. The most important is the Bodhi tree planted just at the entrance. There are several Khirni trees at Sanchi, all flourishing and their shiny dark green leaves glowed in the cool morning sun. I also noticed a Kalam (Mitragyna parviflora), lots of Bougainvilla and other trees usually used for landscaping. Here is a slideshow of the trees at the Buddhist monuments at Sanchi.
Enjoy!
As Sunrise approached the line slowly
became longer. Unluckily the tapris located nearby that would have provided
much needed chai were demolished just the previous day by the Anti-encroachment
squad.
Here is the link to the Mahotsav website: http://sawaigandharvabhimsenmahotsav.com/
But in this day and age, why can there not be a more user friendly method to sell tickets? If it already exists, then music lovers should be informed about it.
Agree?
Hibiscus or Jaswanda as it is called in Marathi grows profusely in and around Pune but it blooms only for a day. The fully grown buds of Hibiscus bloom after sunrise and shut in the
evening. By the time night falls, the buds are fully closed. While one can buy many types of flowers the Hibiscus and Prajakta are two flowers that are rarely sold in the markets. This can be a challenge for the devout as the buds need not necessarily bloom on the day of their Pooja. This may not always happen. So one commonly sees people straining to pluck buds from trees growing along compound walls as they return from their morning walks!
A relative told me a method to ‘trick’ the buds to delay their blooming. This way one can collect mature buds and get them to flower later than the day they would normally. My experiment aimed for a one-day delay but maybe it will work for two days as well. I’ll try that the next time I have a bigger harvest of mature buds and let you all know!!
Here is what I did and I have a set of photographs to show you how the bud/flower behaved.
On a particular day (lets call it Day minus 1) my Hibiscus had about five mature buds that were set to open the next day (lets call it Day 1). I wanted to use the flower on the day after that (to be called Day 2). Under normal circumstances, the buds would have all bloomed on Day 1 and I would have had no blooming flowers on Day 2.
I plucked the buds and kept two of them in the fridge on the evening on Day minus 1.
On Day 1, I took them out and let them stand in some water. The buds were still tightly closed, the other buds of the same ‘age’ had bloomed fully. I used them in my Pooja.
![]() |
1. Hibiscus buds were tightly closed after being kept ovenight in the fridge |
The petals opened slowly and I monitored their progress through Day 1. The photographs have been taken in the afternoon, late evening and night.
![]() |
2. About one hour outside the fridge. |
![]() |
3. Afternoon of Day 1. Petals start opening |
![]() |
4. Evening of Day 1: Partially open buds |
At end of Day 1, the other flowers had closed and these remained in the partially open state.
The buds stayed in water overnight in the room.
![]() |
5. Night Day 1. Partially opened flowers. (9.29PM) |
Day 2: The buds bloomed fully and stayed open for the entire day. The petals shut tightly as the end ended.
![]() |
6. Fully open flowers (5.40AM) |
![]() |
7. The flower of the previous day (Day 1) had closed. These flowers stayed fresh and fully open. (9.29AM) |
![]() |
8. Petals close in the evening. (6.09PM) |
This seems to suggest that the flowers can be ‘tricked’ into blooming later. Their overnight stay in the dark refrigerator must have worked.
While writing this post, I came across this article that offers tips to keep Hibiscus flowers open.
I do not know if we can keep the buds in the fridge for another day
so that they can bloom on Day 3. If any of you tries this, do let us
know.
Take care!
Update (07 Oct 2013): Recently I have seen Hibiscus flowers for sale but this is very very rare. In the meantime you can try my experiment…
![]() |
Hibiscus flowers are not always sold in the market. |