MAA NANDA DEVI RAJ JAAT YATRA 2014

The Royal Journey
 MAA NAN DA DEVI RAJ JAAT yatra is a procession of escorting from Maa Nanda's Mother's place to her sauraas (Home in Kailash). Jaat is beautifully portrayed in the folk song and Jaagar sung by women.
(Raaj Jaat Yatra is organised in every 12 years. The holy Raaj Jaat Yatra takes approx. 18-19 days and covers 285 km.
Raaj Jaat Yatra is performed for solace and salvation, starts from Nauti Village and goes up to Roopkund and Homkund with a four horned Sheep(चैसिंगा खाडू).
Main transit points are Nandkeshri, Dewal, Mundoli, Baan, Ran-ki-dhar, Bedni, Kailua-Vinayak, BhaguwaBasa, Roopkund & Homkund.

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 life is full of new things , events, instant happenings, beauty, sudden attraction and many more, but if and if only, when you come out of the box-”box having walls of daily official job, boring routines and repetitive things.”

 someone true said-

”without experience a person is zero.”

And having experience is not too bad, except difficulty that you face.

So me with some friends decided to go to ”tracking cum faithful ज्यादा”- Maa Nanda Devi Raj Jaat Yatra 2014.

I like travelling since my childhood, though I am being lazy after I left my industrial job. But watching the preparation of Raj Jaat Yatra, day by day made me rethink my decision. And now – I wanted to be a part of this Divine Function.

”Jai Maa Raj-Rajeshwari”

heading to divine travel

29 August, 2014, I started at 5 Am from Didihat to Baghshwar. I was travelling in the lap of nature starting from the bottom of the search of divine peace. Minute by minute we were moving up in high altitude, above the clouds. It felts like touching them one by one and poking them to shower droplets of rain, giving rise to my journey.

It took 4 hours to reach Bageshwar. Met with friends, shift bag-pack from one to another car, ate some breakfast, and headed to Gwaldam.  In mid way we find a stoppage Loharjung. Here we got registered at Biometric Booth (Facilitate by Uttarakhand Govt.).Then we joined a long queue of vehicles and after one and half hour reached the last destination till where a vehicle can drive us-The Village BAAN(altitude 2444 m.). 

As its a traditional function so thousands of people were at Baan on 29 August, 2014.  Everyone was in hurry like they won’t want to miss anything. So we did the same, took our bags-packs necessary things, bought some snacks and cold-drinks (as we know we aren’t going to taste these things for upcoming 3-4 days). And we walked behind the mob. 

Task no 1-

Find a place for our tents.

 The Village was already crowded. We hardly find a place – a field. We walked and jumped many times upon the herbs and small plant to make it easy for tenting. As it was dark, we used our torches and mobile LED to establish tents. Anyhow, we managed and succeed. 

JAI MAA NANDA DEVI.

Task no 2-

find something to eat……….

It was a night halt for all people there and especially for those men who were holding their hope, who were carrying Chatoliyan () of Maa Nanda Devi. Everyone was busy with something like tenting, food and for eve cultural programme. We saw most of the kumaoni and garahwali cultural performances. Enjoyed, danced and clicked pics.

We were feeling hungry.After searching half an hour somehow, we got a place to eat. we started and said

M lovin it  :)

-:Night phase:-

It was 11 PM approx. we were in our tents, me & happy listened mixed sound of the Dhol, Nagada and Thali. We came out, picked cameras and gone in search of that sound. We found that place. I remember clearly, many women were dancing around fire stall. It was huge. And some people were praising the Goddess in Rhymes. 2-3 men were beating the dhol & nagada. People say this tradition ”JAGAR”. Our ears were feeling pleasant. I still have that sound in my ears. We also participated in that dance. At 1:30 AM we came back to our tents.

 

Joke of the night -we slept in a field having approx 30 degree slope-ooppsee.

Day 1

”Now its  a mighty long way up

rock – n – roll

as your body gets hot,  

your heart gets cold.”

  We woke up at 7 am, breathed fresh air, removed tents,  took some tea and got prepared for our first adventures track. People gathered to Puja and farewell of four throned sheep, form that transit point. People were touching sheep , to devote  their faith to the Goddess,

A News reporter was filming all events for TV broadcasting.

We managed a porter person and agreed him to accompany us.

The plan was to track 19 km and reach Bedni Bugyal. We started from Baan & after 400m through  the pine forest  we reached at Latu Devta Temple(its historical story is that-‘this temple’s door opens of its own and it happens when the worship time comes in years.)

 

In between track we crossed transit point Gairoli Patal. We were being tired, thirsty during the track, but the stall managed by the local people and villagers was very helpful. NDRF team members were also helping people to climb forward. We faced muddy way, rocky paths and rain, but we climbed up to  Bedani without  any worry.After 8 hour struggle we reached at Bedni(3000m.) at 5 pm.

    We had same task find a place to halt.

But it wasn’t like last night cuz of Bedni Bugyal having a lot of plane field area in it. We made our shelter, arranged things inside & made a gully around, so that it can prevent us from water logging beneath the tents.

 we ate the food at one feeding stall (organised by a person from Kotabagh-Nainital). Then we went to rest for the day. It was getting dark, but the moon was also shining on all people over there.

Peace of the day- Thank God we were lying on a zero degree slope plane. :)

Day 2

At 5 am early in the morning Hemant shouted me wake up n see…..i heard this 2-3 times… woke up with lazyness….came out and saw an amazing bow rain bow rain bow rain… yes a Rainbow.

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more is to coming soon :) :) :)