दादी के बर्तन

दिवाली आने में अभी कुछ दिन थे, पर जैसा कि और कुछ रिवाज़ों के साथ था, घर की सालाना सफाई दरअसल एक ज़रुरत थी। शायद श्राद्ध चल रहे थे या ख़त्म होने को थे।  हम बच्चे भी सामान उठाने-रखने में अहम् भूमिका निभाते थे। पुताई के लिए रसोई को खाली किया जाना था। माँ के कहने पर मैं बांस की सीढ़ी से टांड पर रखे सामान तक पहुँच गया।  मेरे छोटे कद की वजह से उस जगह में मैं आराम से काम कर सकता था। वहां देखा तो कुछ बड़े-बड़े बर्तन रखे थे। तांबे, पीतल और हिंडोलियम के थाल, परात, हांडे, लोहे की बड़ी कढ़ाई और लोहे की कुछ बड़ी-बड़ी करछीयाँ। कुछ छोटे बर्तन जैसे ताम्बे का लोटा और कुछ बड़े बड़े गिलास भी थे।  ये बर्तन मैंने कभी इस्तेमाल होते नहीं देखे थे। "ये किसके हैं?" मैंने पूछा। "दादी के हैं, कढ़ाई ध्यान से उतारना, भारी है कहीं हाथ से छुट न जाए", माँ ने कहा। माँ की आवाज़ भावहीन थी, और मेरे लिए उसका मतलब एक रूखापन था। शायद माँ और दादी की बनती न थी।  ऐसा कभी किसी ने कहा तो नहीं था पर मुझे लगता था। जहाँ दादा हमेशा हमारे साथ रहते, दादी मेरे चाचा के यहाँ रहती थी। जब कभी मैं पिताजी से पूछता कि  दादी हमारे साथ क्यों नहीं रहतीं तो वो कहते की चाचा के बच्चे भी छोटे हैं और उन्हें भी देखभाल की ज़रुरत रहती है, इसीलिए दादा हमारे साथ, और दादी उनके साथ रहती हैं। दादी कभी-कभी हमारे यहाँ आतीं पर दो-तीन दिन में ही चली जातीं। दादी हमसे ज़्यादा बात नहीं करतीं थीं और इसीलिए हमें उनके आने पर कोई बहुत ख़ुशी नहीं होती थी।  दादाजी के साथ मैं अक्सर सैर के लिए जाता था और वो मुझे ढेर सी बातें बताते। वो हमें हमारी उपलब्धियों पर उपाधियाँ देते जिनके लिए हम चचेरे भाइयों में हमेशा होड़ रहती। अक्सर सबसे बड़ी उपाधि मेरे ताऊजी के बेटे को मिलती। हालाँकि बाकि सब बच्चों को निराशा तो होती पर कभी पक्षपात का आभास नहीं होता।  

कुछ दिन में सफेदी और सफाई पूरी हो गयी। मुझे फिर से बांस की  सीढ़ी लाने को कहा गया, इस बार बर्तन वापिस रखने थे।  पर मैं उस वक़्त खेलने जाने को आतुर था।  मेरे दोस्त मैदान में आ चुके थे और पिट्ठू का खेल शुरू करना था। उन दिनों पिट्ठू का दौर था, हमारे खेल हर कुछ दिन में बदल जाते। अब तक लंगड़ी-टाँग, खो-खो और गैलरी पुराने और उबाऊ हो चुके थे। फुटबॉल और क्रिकेट ज़्यादा फैशन में थे पर उनका सामान कुछ ही बच्चों के पास था। उन दिनों हमारी कॉलोनी में कोई न कोई मकान बनता रहता था और हम बच्चे वहां जा कर पिट्ठू का जुगाड़ कर लेते। कभी-कभी तो हमारे लिए कोई कारीगर एक दम गोलाकार काट कर पिट्ठू के पत्थर बना देता। मानों लौटरी लग जाती और फिर कई महीने तक वो पिट्ठू हमारे ख़ज़ाने का हिस्सा रहते। पिट्ठू के खेल में ताकत, निशाना, फुर्ती और सहनशक्ति सब ही खूबियों का प्रदर्शन हो जाता और नव-यौवन की देहलीज़ पर पैर रखते बच्चों को एक चुनौती और उत्तेजना का आभास कराने में सक्षम था।

"मुझे खेलने जाना है, आकर रखवा दूंगा", मैंने माँ से कहा। पर माँ कहाँ सुनने वाली थी, "मुझे फिर खाना बनाना है", माँ ने कहा।

"ये बर्तन किस काम आते हैं?" मैंने पूछा। 

"किसी नहीं। आजकल इस्तेमाल नहीं होते। अब तो खाना गैस चूल्हे पर बनता है और इतने बड़े बर्तन उस पर नहीं रखे जा सकते, जब अंगीठी पर खाना पकता था तो ये काम आते थे।" माँ ने उत्तर दिया। 

"तो फिर इनको वापिस क्यों रखना हैं, इनको फ़ेंक क्यों नहीं देते ?" मैंने फिर पूछा। 

"बहुत महँगे हैं, फ़ेंक नहीं सकते। पता है ताम्बा और पीतल आजकल क्या भाव है" माँ ने समझाया। 

"तो फिर बेच दो, बिन बात जगह घेरते हैं।" शायद मेरी उम्र मुझे जिरह का आनंद सिखा रही थी। 

"सिर्फ पांच मिनट लगेंगे, रखवा दो। किसी को दे दिए तो दादी को बुरा लगेगा" माँ बोली। 

'तो यह बात है ', मैंने सोचा और बिना कुछ कहे अनमने मन से वो बर्तन फिर से रखवा दिए। 

बहुत साल बीत गए। घरों की शक्ल बदल गयी और रसोई-घर की सबसे ज़्यादा। अब सिल-बट्टे की जगह मिक्सी इस्तेमाल होती थी, पत्थर की चक्की घरों से गायब हो चुकी थी, काफी कुछ खाना बिजली के उपकरणों से बनने लगा था। अब रसोई में पंखा और एग्जॉस्ट फैन भी लग गए थे। मेरे दादा-दादी का स्वर्गवास हो चुका था। मुझे अजीब लगता था कि हालाँकि मेरी याददाश्त में दादा-दादी हमेशा अलग-अलग घर में रहे, लेकिन जब दादी का देहांत अचानक पहली जनवरी को हो गया, तो तीन महीने के भीतर ही दादा भी चल बसे। मैं सोचता ज़रूर दोनों में काफी स्नेह रहा होगा। मैं अब हॉस्टल में रहता था और केवल छुट्टियों में ही घर आता था।  पर जब भी आता, घर के छोटे-मोटे बिजली और सेनेटरी के काम  मैं ही कर देता। एक बार मैं नव-वर्ष के मौके पर घर पर था। तभी अचानक रसोई का एग्जॉस्ट ख़राब हो गया। माँ ने कहा, "तेरे लिए परांठे बना देती हूँ, ज़रा ये पंखा देख दे। " मैं पंखा ठीक करने के लिए कुर्सी रख ऊपर चढ़ा तो यकायक मेरी नज़र वहां पड़े बर्तनों  पर पड़ी। 

"अरे, ये अभी तक रखे हैं" 

"क्या वो दादी के बर्तन, तो इनको और कहाँ रखें?" माँ ने तवा चढ़ाते हुए कहा। 

"इन्हें निकाल क्यों नहीं देते ?" मैंने पूछा 

"इतने बड़े बर्तनो को कौन बाजार ले कर जाए और अब क्या कीमत मिलेगी इनकी। ये लाइटर तो फिर नहीं चल रहा, नीचे उतरेगा तो इसे भी देखियो। मुझे तो माचिस ही ठीक लगती है। " माँ ने कहा। 

"तो कामवाली को दे दो, उसे ही कुछ पैसे मिल जायेंगे। नहीं तो इस्तेमाल कर लेगी, उसके यहाँ तो अंगीठी होगी।" मैंने एग्जॉस्ट की तार जोड़ते हुए कहा। 

"वो तो स्टोव पर खाना पकाती है, हमारे राशन कार्ड का मिटटी का तेल भी वही लेती है।  वो क्या करेगी इनका। चल तू नीचे आजा और ये खाना मंदिर में दे आ।" माँ ने कहा। 

"मंदिर क्यों?" मैंने पूछा। 

"दादी के नाम का निकाला है, उनको ऐसे परांठे बहुत पसंद थे। आज पहली जनवरी है न!" माँ ने राज़ खोला। माँ के बोलने के लहज़े से मैं समझ गया कि चाहे माँ और दादी की बनती न हो पर कुछ लगाव तो रहा होगा। फिर माँ बोली "अरे ये बर्तन तेरी दादी की निशानी हैं, पड़े रहने दे, तेरे पिताजी को बुरा लगेगा अगर निकाल दिए तो।"

अब बात मेरी समझ में आ रही थी।  

समय का चक्र घूमता रहा। मैं नौकरी करने लगा और मेरा विवाह हो गया। कुछ समय उपरांत बच्चे हुए और परिवार बढ़ने लगा। घर में जगह की किल्लत होने लगी। हमारी ज़रुरत को देखते हुए, पिताजी ने निर्णय लिया कि घर का पुनः निर्माण कराया जाये। घर पुराना भी हो चला था और एक करीने से बने नए घर का विचार सबको अच्छा लगा। उसके लिए पुराने घर को खाली करना था ताकि उसे तोडा जा सके। गैर-ज़रुरत वस्तुओं को निकालने का यह सुअवसर भी था और वो ज़रूरी भी था। ये तय करना आसान नहीं था की कौन सी चीज़ बेकार है। इसके लिए एक फार्मूला बनाया गया कि कोई भी वस्तु अगर पिछले छह महीनों में इस्तेमाल न हुई हो और बहुत मूल्यवान न हो तो उसे बेकार मान लिया जाए। आधी पैकिंग के बाद ये फार्मूला दो साल में तब्दील कर दिया गया। तब हमें मालूम हुआ कि हम कितना फज़ूल का सामान जोड़ कर रखते हैं और फिर कहते हैं कि  घर में जगह की कमी है। ढेर ऐसी चीज़ें निकली जिनके होने का हमें इल्म ही नहीं था। रसोई की दुछत्ती में से फिर निकले वो दादी के बर्तन। धुल की परत ने उनकी शक्ल बदल दी थी।  लोहे की कड़ाही और करछी में ज़ंग लग चुका था और बाकि काफी बर्तनों पर उस ज़ंग के निशाँ थे। 

"अब इनका क्या करना है?" मैंने माँ से पूछा। 

"देख लो अगर ट्रक में जगह है तो डाल लो!" माँ ने कहा।  

"ट्रक में तो जगह है पर किराये के घर में कहाँ जगह होगी!" मैंने माँ को समझाया। 

"फिर तुम्हारी मर्ज़ी है! कुछ रख लो, अगर हो सके तो", मैं समझ रहा था कि  माँ पिताजी की भावनाओं का ख्याल करके ऐसा कह रही होंगी। तो मैंने सोचा कि चलो पिताजी से ही पूछ लेता हूँ। 

"मैंने तो कितनी बार कहा है कि  इन्हें किसी को दे दो, रखे-रखे ज़ंग लग गया, पर तुम्हारी माँ हमेशा मना कर देती है, उसी से पूछ लो।" पिताजी की बात से मैं अचम्भित था। 

मैंने माँ से कहा, "माँ , अगर हम ये बर्तन ले भी गए और संभाल के भी रखे, पर जब वापिस नए घर में आएंगे तो क्या इतने पुराने बर्तन हम रखेंगे? आप ही बतायो, इनको ले जाने का क्या फ़ायदा ? और पिताजी तो खुद ही इन्हें निकालने को कह रहे हैं"

"ठीक कहते हो!  जब घर ही नया बन जायेगा तो पुराना क्या रह जाएगा! ये बर्तन शायद तुम्हारी दादी ने तुम्हारी बड़ी बुआ की शादी के समय बनाये थे! बुआ शादी हो कर चली गयी तो ये बर्तन दादी के लिए बुआ की याद बन गए! फिर बुआ अचानक चल बसी तो दादी को बहुत सदमा लगा और वो चुप-चाप रहने लगीं! जब मेरी शादी हुई तो मैंने पाया की तुम्हारी दादी के लिए इन बर्तनों का ख़ास महत्व् था, उन्होंने कभी कहा तो नहीं पर मैं महसूस कर पाती थी। मेरे आने के बाद शायद अपनी खोयी बेटी को उन्होंने मुझमें पाया। अपनी ज़िम्मेदारियों की वजह से वो मेरे पास ज़्यादा रह तो नहीं पायीं, पर दो-तीन दिन के लिए मेरे पास आती थी। जब भी आती मुझे चुपके से कुछ न कुछ दे जाती। अब इन्हीं बर्तनों में मैं उनको पाती हूँ। मुझे लगता है जब तक ये बर्तन घर में है, उनका आशीर्वाद हमारे ऊपर बना रहेगा। लेकिन जब मनुष्य ही स्थायी नहीं है तो इन बर्तनों का क्या औचित्य। एक न एक दिन तो इन्हे निकालना ही होगा। "

मैं माँ की भावनाएँ समझ रहा था किन्तु व्यवहारिकता मुझे भावुकता से परे ले जा रही थी। एक समाधान निकाला गया। दादी की एक फोटो फ्रेम में मढ़वा कर दीवार पर टांगी जाये, जिससे हम दादी को याद रख सकें और बर्तनों से विमुक्त हुआ जा सके। 

दो साल बाद जब हम नए घर में वापिस आये तो दादी के बर्तन हमारे साथ नहीं थे। दादी की फोटो का फ्रेम हमारे साथ था और साथ ही में मेरी माँ की फोटो भी फ्रेम में थी। माँ इस दौरान कैंसर रोग से चल बसी थी।

Sea-shore

I am silent
not because it does not evoke an emotion
rather I am speechless
as these feelings cause a commotion
As sea-waves they hit my core
I stand here like the shore!

It is not a river where the water passes and is gone forever,
these waves keep coming back with a tide,
while receding they leave skeletons or beautiful shells
I lap them up in my stride!

I stand here as Sun sets
and I shall be here with each morning
and watch the sea in it's fury and serenity
and be here  and be here till eternity!

Premise of medical management!

Most patients who have common diseases, even in severe form, are refused treatment by Apex Medical Institutions like AIIMS. They are sent to the more earthly hospitals. It is because of the attitude of the Institution that it is supposed to treat only uncommon or rare diseases. This view is not only of the treating doctors but is also endorsed by the administration. These Institutions are convinced that they are above 'mundane' humanity. This stems from the thinking that 'what can we get from the patient' rather than vice-versa. So if a patient has a condition that is worth publishing or presenting in a scientific forum, the patient is quickly admitted and worked-up with special interest, otherwise the patient is sent to another hospital. MCI's requirements that each faculty should have certain number of publications to get promoted has only furthered this situation. It also has the potential for those investigations including invasive ones to be performed that are more useful for publication of a paper rather than benefit the patient's health. Now, this attitude is palpable in faculty of other teaching institutes also. Probably MCI's intention was to promote scientific research in Medicine in the country but a debate needs to be initiated that whether this has lead to callousness towards patients who have common conditions and have nothing to give to a doctor in a government set up.

More and more of the medical journals are becoming paid as each day passes. For many journals, including top reputed publishing groups like BMJ, one can take an annual membership for a fee and publish any number of articles. These paid articles at times may be much inferior to the articles that were rejected as the contributor has not paid the fee. Therefore, we get to read more and more articles that have been paid for. Unfortunately, it is likely to lead to a bias where more articles are published by people who are commercially inclined and see the fee paid for the article as an investment, expecting returns in various forms, rather than sheer advancement of medical knowledge.

These are unfortunate circumstances that are contradictory to the basic premise of medical management. Like other oaths that people take, Hippocratic oath has been forgotten to an extent that Doctors don't even remember that there was such a thing that they took on completion of there graduation. May be because the people who administer the oath, themselves do not remember it. By the way who was Hippocrates????

पोटली सौहार्द की!

पोटली सौहार्द की!

'प' से पवित्र होता है और 'प' से पाक भी
पर षट्कोण के 'ष' सा उसका पेट काट दिया
जब देश में लकीर खींची
तो भाषा को भी बाँट दिया,
हिंदुस्तानी जो ज़बान थी
उसे उर्दू और हिंदी में छांट दिया,
पर हिंदुस्तानी जो दिल है
उसे कहाँ कब बाँट पाया ये समाज,
तभी तो गणपति के संरक्षण में आज भी
होती है अदा जुम्मे की नमाज़।

नहीं सीमित चौपाई और दोहों तक
अब उर्दू  में भी होता है इनका गुणगान,
जिन्हें  सुरसा न कर पायी,
भाषा से कैसे संकुचित होते वे हनुमान।

समझते हैं लोग एक दूसरे के नमस्ते और सलाम को,
कोई कितना भी बरगलाये,
पहचानते है एक दुसरे के रहीम और राम को,
और पहुँचने को सब तक
मारवाड़ी में भी लिख दिया है
पैगम्बर के पैग़ाम को।

रख ली है दाढ़ी और पांच बार नमाज़ पढ़े
मीरा के भजन गाये, नाचे धर के सिर पे घड़े,
अब्दुल रियाजुद्दीन कहो या कीर्तनकर राजूबा,
धर्मों से भी ऊपर है ये वारकरी अजूबा,

पर्दानशीं देखें शिव को चाव से
और गोदी में खिलाएं गोकुल का लल्ला ,
कोई हो मुअज़्ज़िन की गली,
और कहीं हो साधु का मोहल्ला,
पर कैसे अलग रख पाओगे
जिस देश को जोड़े गेंद और बल्ला !

जब भी मैंने इस देश की नब्ज़ टटोली है,
तो पाया कि  ये जैसे एक पोटली है,
माना की इसे झँकझोड़ो तो ये बजती है,
इसमें बसे पत्थऱ टकराते हैं
चिंगारी सी निकलती है
आवाज़ आती है
एक भयंकर नाद की,
पर फटती नहीं, खुलकर बिखरती नहीं
क्योंकि ये देश
है एक पोटली सौहार्द की !

Rain another day!

My son asked me to go out with him, "it's a lovely evening with wonderful weather, let's go out!"
Something was wrong and I didn't feel like going but didn't want to say no to him, so I trudged along. This is how I felt today:


Some other day,
I would have fallen in love
with this cool breeze,
Light drizzle falling on lush green trees,
Would have looked like pearl, the drops on the leaves,
From my hectic schedule, it would have felt like a breather,
But today I hate, I abhor, I detest this weather!
These drops look like tears of blood,
The small puddles look like sorrowful flood,
Today can not forgive this murderous rain,
For killing an innocent brother,
a saviour gone in vain,
We just pray
for we don't know
how to prevail over
this agonizing pain!!


In memory of Dr Deepak Amrapurkar

Europe: a summary

The history that we traveled in Europe encompasses history of most of the Europe, that stems from Greek mythology! In fifteen days we visited ten countries and thirteen cities. The bus that we took from London to Milan was our home for thirteen days and the Italian driver was our charioteer. We would check in at a hotel in late evening, sleep and check out the next morning. However, it was not as testing as it sounds as we could relax in the bus and reached fresh at our destinations. It used to be 4-5 hours journey at a stretch with half an hour break. Our guide was a wonderful person who kept reiterating about safety of our passports and money and would do repeated briefings about the day's itinerary. We had city tours of many cities with dedicated guides, some were wonderful, like in Florence, while others were incomprehensible, like in Rome. Our trip went like this:

London→(Dover→Calais)→Paris→Brussles→Amsterdam (Volendam)→Cologne→Heidelberg→Drubba→Rhine falls→Engelberg, Jungfrau, Interlaken, Mt Tilis,Lucerne→(Liechtenstein)→Wattens→Innsbruck→Tirol→Venice→Florence→Vatican City→Rome→Pisa→Milan

We crossed U.K. to France from Dover. Dover reminded me of the story, 'The man who hated time', that I had read in my school. The story is about a man trying to smuggle watches in his car from Dover to France, as he escapes the customs, there is a siren for a two minute silence and that is when the ticking of all the watches in his car becomes loud and clear and he is caught and sentenced to life-imprisonment. Our bus climbed the ferry and we enjoyed the ship ride in the English Channel. Our visit to the Lido show, watching the mid-night illumination of Eiffel Tower and the visit to the Place de La Concorde were the new things. The Arc de triumph appeared much bigger this time. Whole of the French revolution crossed my eyes as we took the city tour of Paris, as if Guillotine was right there in the Place de La Concorde. A new zipline has been started from the second level of Eiffel tower, that looks like an incredible adventure. This time it was not as cold and breezy at the second level as it was in November 2011. The rush was much less at the third level, and so was the adrenaline rush. There was a young boy and a girl may be in early 20s, talking to each other in french. Suddenly, the boy went down on his knees and took out a ring box with a ring and proposed the girl. The expression on the girl's face was of surprise and disbelief, followed by a passionate french kiss. Surprise proposal at the top of Eiffel tower, it does happen in real life also!! I prayed for them in my heart!

Like Eiffel tower, Atomium was erected as a temporary structure for a science exhibition but has  stayed and become an icon for Belgium. Brussels looked similar to other old European towns. The 'Pissing Mannekin' is a small statue for it's fame, however the improvisations that the shopkeepers have done to sell their waffles and Ice-creams are hilarious. Our hotel in Amsterdam offered my kids a hand at Squash. My previous trip to Amsterdam saved me the urge to visit the city in the tired evening that we reached. Canal cruise in Amsterdam offered some beautiful scenes, Amsterdam looked bit different from the canals. Madurodam, where they have made a miniature Holland is a remarkable and enjoyable park, unique in itself. The best was the animatronic film about the independence of Holland. We took our snaps with the tulips. The visit to the shoe factory, cheese factory and Wind Mill in Volendam completed our Netherland trip and we moved on to Germany. I found the countryside of Germany to be extremely beautiful. We reached cologne and saw the grand but un-maintained Cologne cathedral. There we were obliged by a priest, with whom we took pictures. The famous perfume, '4711' had to be bought, though not from the legendary shop. We stayed at Heidelberg and moved to the Black forest next day. People from India, found it funny that these forests were called black because of their density. We have surely seen darker and denser forests, however, they appeared manicured. In the middle of the Black forest is Drubba, famous for its Cuckoo clocks. They demonstrated how the bellows in the clocks mimic the sound of cuckoos. There were hundreds of clocks but the phenomenal was the life size clock where the six mannequin couples started dancing at the strike of three. We also saw a glass factory there and understood why the occupation is called glass-blowing. They crated magic in colours.

As we moved from Germany to Switzerland the terrain started to become hilly. The beauty of Swiss is that the terrain is hilly but has gentle slopes and curves that have lush green grass, that is interspersed with farms, beautiful hut-houses and is lustre clean. The site of magnificient Rhine falls was refreshing. The boat ride was one of the best experiences of our tour. Our boat-driver took us almost right into the falls where a beautiful rainbow was being made by the bright sunlight. From the rhine falls we went to Engelberg, a town in the center of tallest swiss alps. The sight was straight out of a Yash Chopra movie. Our hotel, 'Terrace' is located opposite to Mount Titlis and we enjoyed its scenic beauty not only from the wonderful terraces and balconies but even from our beds! Next day we boarded our train for Mt Jungfrau and this time my journey didn't stop at Murren but we took the cogwheel that took us right to the top of Europe. The journey is picturesque in the true sense of the word. It's amazing how conveniently one reaches the height almost same as Rohtang Pass in Manali. Though it is known by the Sobriquet 'Top of Europe', it is third highest peak of Bernese Alps. Highest peak of Switzerland is Monte Rosa while that of Europe is Mount Elbrus in Russia. Mont Blanc of France may be the highest peak of Alps. However, it may be the highest place in the world where you can directly reach by a train.

They have mad a structure known as Sphinx, that takes you to different levels at the Jungfrau. The scene of Aletsch glacier is विहङ्गम ! When we reached there, I felt exhausted and wind was biting cold but after few minutes I was more comfortable and we enjoyed playing in the snow. It was first visit of the kind for my children as they had not been to Rohtang Pass and Chandanwadi was like a miniature model of that when we had visited Kashmir in summers.

From Jungfrau, we went to Interlaken, the dream city for holidayers from where you can enjoy the scenic beauty of Jungfrau. A statue of Yash Chopra commemorates him as ambassador of Switzerland. Next day we visited Mt Titlis, where we reached using lifts, the last one being Rotair that offers 360 degree panoramic view, the speed of ascent is remarkable. At Mt Titlis we took the Ice-flyer that's the kind of trolleys we call 'Gondolas' in India, that flies at a great height over barren snow. We enjoyed ice-skooting and ice-tubing. I realized what my boss had once told me that natural beauty of Switzerland is not much different but technology has made it remarkable, as I ascended the walkalator with my tube from the bottom of the slope!

Next in our itinerary was Lucerne, a beautiful old town with new charm. It has a marvellous Swan lake with a three hundred years old wooden bridge over it. It was initially difficult for me to beleive that I was watching  हँस in real life. We also visited the Lion monument that has been carved in a single stone in memory of swiss soldiers who died because of betrayal and that's why the lion is seen stabbed in it's back with tears in his eyes. Here we came across the famous swiss banks and delicious ice-creams. We also met a chow-chow, who has his own facebook page and is quite famous known as 'Rocky- the hurricane'.

Our three days surrounded the natural beauty of Switzerland  and were the highlight of the tour. The hotel is also wonderful. They held a party night where we let our hair down to the tune of English and hindi songs. Three artists dressed in local dress, made us dance with them during dinner time and added vibrance to our memories.

We moved on to Austria, another country similar to Switzerland in topography. On the way we saw Leichtenstein, one of the smallest nations in the world, thus adding to my list of Monaco and Vatican city. There is a castle situated on a mountain where the royal family lives and a small city with a market down hill. Our hotel in Austria was on a hill top and a lavish property with spacious rooms, lot of paraphernalia and balconies with awe-inspiring scenery. There was a pressing iron for trousers, where one could just hang and trousers in , wait for 20 minutes and get the crisp pants!The best stay of our trip. We wished to stay there for two more days but they say Man has to move in life! We had our lunch at a mid-way resort something parallel to 'Haveli' restaurants. The ambience was great and was surrounded by lush green mountains. We had our continental lunch and some souvenir shopping. Wattens has the headquarters of Swarowski. They showcase how they have tried to  make glass look like Diamond. There is a Rana Pratap's Chetak in the first hall adorning Swarowski crystals. They have showcased the crystal world with lot of creative technology. Next stop was Innsbruck, again an old European city known for it's Golden roof that is made of brass. We did not go to but I was reminded of my Vienna visit from where I had caught one of the smallest planes I have ever traveled in.

Only Italy was left. We were beginning to get satiated and tired. The apprehension that we have to safeguard our money and passports in Italy was playing on our mind. The weather was becoming warm as we moved away from Austria. Somebody in the bus said, 'I want to go home' and there were many moans of agreement. People clicked hundreds of pictures of natural scenery as we had traveled from Germany to Swissland, similar scenery did not evoke any excitement as we left Austria, probably we had plenty of natural beauty by then. We were glued to the TV screens in the bus as we enjoyed DDLJ, Sultan, PK etc.

Next day we were to visit the city of romance, Venice. We began to feel the positives of Italy. Though water was to be bought, as the tap water in Italy is not potable, loos were free, so the balance sheet remained in balance. We had been paying for peeing and now we had to pay for पी ing. Most ladies were dressed in their best summer dresses for Venice. We crossed Adriatic Sea in a Motor boat and enjoyed pleasing sights as there were revelers in speed boats and large Ship cruises including Star Cruise were stationed there.

Beauty lies in the eyes of beholder, holds true for Venice also! It's a beautiful small town where there are water canals instead of lanes in between the rows of houses. It is different from Amsterdam, as in Amsterdam, there are roads on both sides of the canal and you have an option to reach through water or by road. The boatmen rowing the Gondolas do not sing a song but do wear the traditional black striped t-shirts. Venice has its own history and I refrain from going into details! There is a bridge of sighs through which prisoners were taken for the last time before being punished to death. The St Mark's Square was touted as the 'World's best drawing room' by Napolean, it remains the most photographed place in the world. We visited the Murano glass factory, where the 'Glass artists' carved out beautiful masterpieces in a jiffy. We realized why red wine glasses were more so expensive than other colours as they had to use small amount of gold to achieve that colour. We tried the famous Venetian masks in a shop owned by a gentle Pakistani couple. Lion with wings is the emblem of the city and it does give wings to one's passions as the sunny afternoon evolves into a breezy evening.
After visiting Florence, Vatican City and Rome, we reached the 'Field of Miracles' in Pisa. Leaning Tower that is actually a bell tower,  just behind the adjoining church and the baptistery, is truly a wonder. We had a group photograph with tower in background. The campus is clean in spite of large number of visitors. After the visit we had another wonderful Indian lunch at another Indian restaurant, which only these tour operators can dig out. They keep the food ready and serve fifty people in no time so that in one hour it is all done. This kind of management that obviates the waiting time for meals and queues at various attractions is one of the factors that makes it possible to visit so many attractions in ten countries in fifteen days. Traveling in a group in the same bus from London to Milan saves both time and money and also creates bonhomie that gives more veritable experience.
Milan was our final destination. The shops in the market made us realize why it is called fashion capital of the world. Milan cathedral is a unique church with large number of statues adorning it. The Galleria is the world's oldest shopping gallery but looks like the newest one with shops of world's top brands. There is Leonardo da Vinci's museum at it's back side. The suds and chocolates shops we experienced here, were very different from what we had seen elsewhere.
It was our first group tour with pre-fixed itinerary. Earlier, I used to think that these trips are not worthwhile, as they are tick and go at the ear-marked sight seeing places and do not let one soak in the feel of that place. I have realized that expectations from a holiday trip, for each one of us in the family,  is different. On my previous visit to certain European destinations, I could fulfill my agenda as I was traveling alone. I talked to my wife and children and realized that this trip might actually be the most-suited thing to do. It could fit most of our individual and combined aspirations, giving us best value for our time and money and we were happy with our decision at the end of the tour.
Such trips do give psychology lessons! Desires of heart are not limited by one's age, shape, size, colour or even financial status. In our group there were many couples who had just retired from their service and wanted to celebrate their successful life with the newfound money and time. There was a family of three sisters and a young lady, who had left the boring and uninspired men in their family behind to enjoy the way they wished to. Like-minded people quickly identify each other and tend to enjoy each others company. The impromptu subgroup that got made on the very first day continued till the final day. Though our 'tour-coach' told us on day one that seats in the bus would be shifted each day so that everyone could have variety and balance of experience. However, it was not followed as some people always wanted to sit in front. There were two episodes of argumentation but overall milieu remained congenial through out the trip. One group of family that seemed unreasonable, gradually improved as they realized that practically everyone else didn't like what they were doing. We were the back-benchers and had total fun. On day three of the trip, everybody introduced himself/herself over the public address system of the bus, everyone was very creative, making it a memorable experience in itself. Then there was antakshri one day and songs on another.
As we boarded our bus for the Milan airport, we had already started missing out those with whom we had shared our life for a fortnight. Many people of the group were on the same flight, that made us feel that the trip was still on. Our flight from Milan to Abu Dhabi  (European odyssey) gave us a bonus of adventure.We had our change of flights at Abu Dhabi where we spent around two hours of waiting time. We all sat together and chilled out. We were all completely relaxed as we had successfully completed a big trip without any mis-happening and there was nothing to be anxious for. We reached home with a sense of achievement and a bagful of wonderful memories. I thanked God for being kind!!

London eyes!!

We were quite excited to be reaching London to start our Europe tour. I always had an aura for London especially as I had visited Europe twice earlier but London had remained out of bounds for me because of a visa. We had reached in the morning and had a full day free to us, so in spite of being tired and sleepy we wanted to make the best of it. In no time an impromptu group of 13 people was made, who arrived at a consensus for a programme for the day. My confidence made me the leader of the group. I knew that I would be using same Modus Operandi that I had used for other European cities in previous years. We walked to the nearest metro or 'tube' station as it is called in London and had a glimpse of Wembley on the way. Wembley stadium was right next to our hotel. For a change, language was no barrier and we had decided that we were going to the Picadilly Circus. We wanted the best bargain and so we wanted to buy the tickets in a group and asked for help from an official there. The station master got back and told us that it was not possible to buy a group ticket as the counter had been closed for some reason and therefore he allowed us to board the train and instructed the team at our destination station to let us out, where we could buy the tickets. We were happy at the courtesy extended to us and were grinning to our widest in the coach.

In London 'Tube"

The whole coach was for us as it was not a rush hour and the train traveled beautiful country side before diving underground. After a change, we reached the Piccadilly Circus. It's a small crossing around a circle with a statue in the center. The hallmark are the big hoarding and signs on top of the surrounding buildings. There is a statue in the center and I asked a guy about it, what looked like 'cupid' to me. He told me that that is the statue of 'Eros'.

Shaftesbury memorial for Anthony Ashley Cooper: The aluminium statue of 'Anteros' at Piccadilly circus

Later I came to know that what is 'Eros' in greek mythology, it is 'Cupid' in classical mythology. In Greek  mythology Eros is considered a primordial God and represents God of love or sexual desire.  However, in another version, Eros is considered to be son of Aphrodite or Venus and Ares, the God of war. Sometimes Eros is seen as a member of a group called Erotes, gods of love. They are seen as winged males with bow and arrow, sometimes as cherubic boys. This is usual portrayal of Cupid. Anteros, one of the erotes is considered to be the twin brother of Eros, and is the god of unrequited love and creativity. Anteros, is the angel of Christian charity and that is why it has been used for the memorial of the philanthropic Earl of Shaftesbury at the Piccadilly Circus.

There is an interesting story of Eros and psyche, who is the deification of human soul.

"The story tells of the struggle for love and trust between Eros and Psyche. Aphrodite was jealous of the beauty of mortal princess Psyche, as men were leaving her altars barren to worship a mere human woman instead, and so she commanded her son Eros, the god of love, to cause Psyche to fall in love with the ugliest creature on earth. But instead, Eros falls in love with Psyche himself and spirits her away to his home. Their fragile peace is ruined by a visit from Psyche's jealous sisters, who cause Psyche to betray the trust of her husband. Wounded, Eros leaves his wife, and Psyche wanders the Earth, looking for her lost love. Eventually she approaches Aphrodite and asks for her help. Aphrodite imposes a series of difficult tasks on Psyche, which she is able to achieve by means of supernatural assistance.

After successfully completing these tasks, Aphrodite relents and Psyche becomes immortal to live alongside her husband Eros. Together they had a daughter, Voluptas or Hedone (meaning physical pleasure, bliss)."

Near the Anteros statue there were people demonstrating their skills as artists by being dressed up as statues. The lady who looked like a bronze lifeless statue suddenly sprang to life as soon as I put a Euro coin in her bowl and was enterprising enough to take pictures in various poses with whole group. This is a common phenomenon seen in western world, somehow beggars in India have different techniques.

We decided to go to the Trafalgar Square from the Piccadilly Circus. Next we came across a restaurant called 'Little Britannia'. Around the corner was a fountain with bronze statues of four horses, 'The Horses of Helios'. In fact spent few minutes there as it had a lovely feel about it. Helios essentially refers to Sun, who is supposed to travel from East to West everyday in his chariot drawn by four horses  named  Pyrois, Aeos, Aethon, and Phlegon. In Greek mythology Apollo is considered the Sun God, the god of creativity, medicine, plague etc. Generally Apollo, Helios and Sol are equitable gods in greek and classical mythology. However, while Helios is considered to be son of Titans Theia and Hyperion, Apollo is an Olympian, son of Zeus and Leto, whose twin sister is Artemis.

In Hindu mythology, Sun god 'Surya' has seven horses in his chariot.

Our path from Piccadily Circus through
Trafalgar Square to Leicester Square

 

Bronze statues of Four Horses of Helios

We took the right turn after the horses and were at Haymarket, though no one was selling Hay there. It housed the famous 'Her Majesty's Theatre- Phantom of Opera' and we were delighted to see its exteriors, wishing to watch a play someday in future.

We reached Trafalgar Square famous for it's pigeons. Its a remarkable open space in front of National Gallery with many monuments. Trafalgar Square commemorates victory of British Navy over French & Spanish forces at the Battle of Trafalgar. It was led by Vice-admiral Nelson, who lost his life soon after the battle and is thus a great british war hero. A very tall column with his statue at top has been erected here and is called 'Nelson's column'. It is guarded by statues of four Lions. There is a fountain that adds life to the place and this is the plinth where most people and pigeons are found. There are statues of George IV, Henry Havelock and more. I think Trafalgar Square was designed by Edwin Lutyens, same guy who designed new Delhi.

From Trafalgar square, we went to Leicester Square and saw a live acrobatic street performance, characteristic of Western world. There is statue of William Shakespeare in the Shakespeare park and the square is quite a happening place besides being an important metro station.

The 'Tower of London' ; There's the kohinoor!

We took the tube to Tower hill station. Its a wonderful view as one comes out of the underground station. One can see the 'Tower' which is the fort where Kohinoor is kept. It was the erstwhile residence of the Tudor kings before they shifted to the Buckingham Palace. It sounds surprising that its called a tower as there is no tall building there and the whole area is named after it. However, its a magnificent monument, I can say, the most towering fort that I saw in Europe. Exterior is wonderfully preserved and the surroundings are impeccably clean and tastefully designed. The tower is located right next to Thames and reminds one of Shah jahan's idea of making monuments on the banks of river Yamuna.

Right next to the Tower, on the river is the London's iconic Tower bridge that has two tall towers on each side joined at two levels. the lower level is a road bridge that opens to let the ships cross by. We were delighted to watch the bridge open and close.

We went to the upper level that has a glass bottom and one can experience kind of sky-walk with road and river below. The experience was very enjoyable. There are a lot of stories related to the bridge. One interesting story is about an incident when the bridge started to open while a public transport bus was climbing the bridge, by the time the driver realized that bridge was opening, the bus had come quite close to the mid point and stopping the bus would have led to vertical fall back of the bus. The driver continued driving and jumped the bus across the gap to the other side of the opening bridge. No passenger was injured.

Next day we took the city tour of London and saw the City of Westminster. Buckingham Palace, Premier's residence, the monumental St Paul's Church, Hyde Park, London Bridge etc. We saw the Savoy hotel, the first one to have telephones in the world.

Visit to Madame Tussaud's museum

After having seen a few Wax museums in India, like Johnny's wax museum, in Shimla, I was not much appreciative of the iconic Madame Tussaud's. However, it's legendary green dome and the animation movies that they played inspired awe.

Madame Tussaud's wax statue; at work!

London eye was the last attraction in London that we visited, giant of a wheel that is! One sees famous London buildings while on the ride like bell tower, the Shard and so many and one realizes that it was there, at the banks of the river Thames that settlements of Londinium started, when romans came to this area 2000 years ago and now it's one of the most famous and important cities of the world!

London eyes!!

Rome and Romans

Continuing with mythology.......

(Note: Greek characters are in red, while Roman equivalents are in blue. For the origin of various characters refer to "Florence and Greek Mythology", others are briefly introduced in parenthesis).

Zeus, the king of Gods, held a banquet in honour of the marriage of the Sea Nymph Thetis, who could change her form and the mortal Peleus. Many Olympian Gods were present but the Goddess of strife, Eris, was not invited as she would have spoiled the party. She was annoyed and came uninvited and threw a Golden Apple from the Garden of Hesperides marked as "to the fairest of all" as a prize of beauty. Three goddesses, Hera, Athena (Minerva, born fully formed and armoured from the head of Zeus) and Aphrodite (Venus) claimed the apple for being the most beautiful. Zeus, did not wish to make the judgement and rather asked, Paris (the shepherd prince of Troy, a mortal) to do the same. They met him at the Mount of Ida. After he failed to decide the three stripped naked and met him and also offered him a bribe. Hera, offered him the kingship of Europe & Asia, Athena offered wisdom and skill in war and Aphrodite offered the most beautiful woman in the world by making her fall for him. This was as per the powers possessed by each of them.

Menelaus holding dying Patroclus: Florence

Paris, accepted Aphrodite's offer and accorded the prize to Aphrodite. He received Helen of Sparta in return, who was wife of the Greek King Menelaus. This led to the attack on Troy by Greeks leading to the epic Trojan War. In this war there were heroes from both the sides, that ended with the famous Horse ploy with the spartan victory. Achilles was son of Thetis and Peleus. Thetis had tried to make him immortal by dipping him in immortal river by holding his heel, when he was a child, and thus while whole body became impenetrable, the heel remained the vulnerable area. He had been established as an invincible hero among the Greeks but he refused to fight in the war. Then Patroclus asked Achilles for his armour and went to the battlefield wearing that and motivated soldiers who took him as Achilles. He fought bravely but was killed by Hector. There is a group of statues in Florence, Loggia dei Lanzi, where Menelaus is seen holding Patroclus just before his death. After his death, Achilles joined the war and was on the verge of victory, when he was killed by Hector by hitting an arrow in his heel. Achilles and Ajax died from the Greek side while Hector and Paris died from the Trojan side. It is believed that the city of Troy was somewhere in modern Turkey in Anatolia region, probably Hisarlik. 

Aeneas, son of Aphrodite (Venus) and Anchises, was one of the few Trojans, who were neither killed nor enslaved by Greek Spartans after their victory in the Trojan War and thus could escape to Italy and became the progenitor of Romans and is thus considered the first true Roman hero. Aeneas is sometimes considered the Norse of the Viking mythology as Zeus is considered Thor.
Numitor, a descendant of Aeneas, was the king of a Latin city called Alba Longa. He was displaced by his brother Amulius and his daughter Rhea Silvia was made a Vestal Virgin so that she would not bear any children and thus securing the future of Amulius. However, when Rhea visited a grove dedicated to God Mars, she conceived and gave birth to two twins, Romulus and Remus, who were ordered to be killed by Amulius, but survived and were brought up by a she-wolf. When they reached adulthood, they removed Amulius and made their grandfather Numitor king again. Then they set out to build a new city for themselves. They reached a place where there were seven hills. There was a difference of opinion between the two as to which hill should be occupied. Romulus ploughed one area and started building 'Rome' one fine day. Rome is a capital on seven hills. (see Shimla, the erstwhile capital on seven hills).Thus came Rome and thus came the Romans!
Romulus not only founded the city but founded its government, its military, religion and traditions. He ruled from 753 to 717 BC. However, only those people who didn't have any family or work in their native place came to Rome and thus Rome had mostly men. Nobody was ready to marry their daughters to them. Then they organized a festival and invited people from nearby city Sabine. When Sabines came they stole their unmarried maidens and raped them. Gradually, with their offsprings, Sabines got integrated into Latins and was establish the Roman monarchy.

In background:
"Rape of Sabine Women" a combination statue at Loggia dei Lanzi, Florence.
The first group statue made from a Monolith in Italy.

Though it was a monarchy, it was not hereditary and the king was elected till the fifth king. The seventh king was Lucius Tarquinius Superbus . His son Sextus Tarquinius, raped a noble lady called Lucretia. She narrated the incidence to her husband Collatinus and her father and committed suicide. Collatinus with his colleague Lucius Junius Brutus then swore to expel the king and his family from Rome and to never let Rome be a monarchy again. Then Brutus established Rome as a republic in 509 BC. This Brutus was the ancestor of the Brutus that betrayed Julius caesar. The rape of Lucretia is thus considered a landmark in the history of Rome as it lead to establishment of a republic. It has been written about as a poem by William Shakespeare, painted and sculpted by many masters of art.

Julius Caesar was born in 100 BC and was a powerful roman general. He crossed river Rhine and English Channel, which established his supremacy. He became the chief priest of Rome that was a powerful position and was initially vested in the king himself upto initial monarchy. Julius Caesar became a dictator after a civil war, made many reforms in the republican governement, started Juliun Calendar. He then established monarchy again and named Octavius or Augustus as his heir. He was brutally assassinated by a group of his own senators within the senate including 60 people by stabbing him 23 times. Brutus was made immortal by the lines of Shakespeare, when Caesar sees Brutus attacking him and says, "Et tu Brutus!" (You too! Brutus) in the play Julius Caesar. Julius Caesar is also known for his love with the enigmatic Egyptian queen Cleopatra. He changed the history of Rome by again making it a monarchy and lot of administrative and military measures. Julius Caesar ruled till 44 BC, his rule was followed by another great ruler of Rome, Augustus Octavius. This was the time when Europe was changing.
Glory of Rome was rising and so was the population. People needed clean drinking water. In 19 BC, A Virgin helped the roman technicians locate a source of pure water 13 kilometers away from the city, this was called 'Aqua Virgo' and was brought to the City. This served Rome for 400 years. At the same place a magnificent fountain stands today, known as Trevi fountain as it situated at the junction of three lanes. In fact, one is amazed to see narrow lanes leading to such a huge fountain.

Trevi fountain: Aqua Virgo

The architecture of the fountain is spell-binding and one can easily spend hours here. In spite of the crowd it has a serene feeling. In fact, it can be seen in lot of movies with people throwing wishing coins in it. Trevi fountain is said to be the origin of the culture of putting coins in water for a wish, I think which in term derives from the mythical wishing-well. It is said that one has two put two coins and one must visit the fountain again if the wish is fulfilled. Did I ask for a wish??
Roman empire was at its glory, Europe, Africa around Mediterranean and West asia was all under Roman control. There were Vassal Kings who ruled various territories for the Roman emperor. Israel had divided into two kingdoms, Jerusalem and Judah. Judaism was considered orthodox and difficult to follow by many in the west asian region. Jesus Christ, soon  became popular and had a number of followers. On the night before his Crucifixion, he called his 12 disciples and besides other things told them that one of them was going to betray him. Famously painted as 'The Last Supper' by Leonardi da Vinci, probably the most famous painting of the world, done as a mural in a church of Milan. Peter was one of the disciples, called as Apostles. Paul, was not an apostle originally but after a miracle became follower of Christ, who were now called Christians. Peter along with Paul and others spread the message of Jesus Christ for 34 years and reached Rome. Christians were not liked by Jews or Romans. Nero, was the emperor of Rome 37 AD. He was a powerful and dynamic ruler. A colossal statue of Nero was built in Rome and there was a circus of Nero. There was lot of pressure on Nero to eliminate Christians, who were seen as sacrilegious both by Romans & Jews.  In AD 64, there was the great fire in Rome. Christians were blamed for the fire. Peter was crucified in the circus of Nero, Paul also achieved martyrdom with him. With time, the place where Peter was buried became a pilgrim site for Christians.
Julius Caesar had crossed English Channel in past. In 43 AD, Romans invaded England and started a settlement  along the banks of the river Thames, called as Londinium that gradually became London with time.
The Flavian rulers who succeeded Nero as emperor of Rome started building a huge amphitheater in AD70  near the Colossal statue of Nero. It came to be known as Colosseum and stands today, though partially damaged, as a symbol of Rome that loudly speaks of the past of Rome where Gladiators romed.

The Colosseum of Rome

Colosseum - Rome

The Colosseum is a huge structure, almost of the size of Modern Stadia. It has been partially damaged by Earthquake. There is a huge gate also built for entering the area.
A shrine came up at the site of burial of Peter and its prestige began to increase. Constantine the Great became the ruler of Roman empire, bothe west and east in the late third century. He proclaimed the 'Edict of Milan' that gave Christianity an official status in 313 AD and converted to Christianity himself and thus became the first Christian Emperor. He renamed the capital of Byzantium empire as 'Constantinople' and built a church at the site of Jesus Christ's Tomb. Thus Constantine gave the legitimacy to Christianity.
Gradually, in fourth century, a church, called St Peter's basilica was built at the shrine of Peter.  St Peter thus became the first pope. Modern St Peter's Basilica was built at the same site as the old one starting in 1506. It is the largest church in the world and the office and residence of the topmost christian religious leader, 'Pope'.

Selfie-conscious

A new technology can lead to change of culture! We are fortunate to have witnessed this nature's experiment in a clear demonstration.

Smart phones are the biggest revolution that this generation has witnessed. We know that lot of things like transferring information including videos or transferring money can be done in few seconds by a hand-held device today. My children are often surprised that we didn't have internet or mobile phones in our childhood, yet it was equally convenient.

With the arrival of internet came the urge to share our smallest experiences with the world. The most imploring desire being, the wish to share the experience one has on visiting a new place and what better than sharing its picture. This became possible with the new camera phones, just click & send! However, better still would be if one could be seen in the frame alongside the novelty. It was difficult if one was alone. People started using their skill of taking a blind picture by facing the camera and clicking it in innovative ways. The phone manufacturers soon realized this need and started providing a 'selfie' camera, whose megapixels increased with each generation of phone. Then 'selfie' from a buzzword became a rage. But the problem was that selfie was usually quiet a close-up with one's face being prominent in the foreground. That is when the need to look good became compelling. These Selfies were to be shared with thousands or lacs of people on social media and so looking good was mandatory. Thus came the obsession to look good. Nowadays, it is common to see young men sitting in parlours and getting themselves groomed, with attention to each detail. Men were never so conscious of their looks in my life-time as they are now and I think it is because of the 'Selfie'. These days most trendy young men sport a beard, as it is 'in fashion'! I feel men are more obsessed with 'Selfie' but may be there is no statistically significant difference between the sexes. So we see how with arrival of new technology, the culture has changed and we have more number of well-groomed people on the streets. I hope technology someday makes a change where people on the streets are well-mannered and better behaved also!!

Florence and Greek Mythology

Our journey spanned over 2500 years! I felt that man has remembered history of 2500 years and has faint memory of what happened before that and we call it myth. It appears today's heroes become legends as time passes and then myths.Though I used to think that this watershed of 2500 years is because of availability of records and artifacts but this trip changed my notion. I perceive that hundred quarter centuries in future Gandhi and Einstein would be mythical figures.

What binds Europe into one is Greek mythology and then Bible as most of the stories seem to stem from there. If we have to unify whole world, we would need the go to proto-Greek era where we may find commonalities with other civilizations including our own Hindu mythology.

A Glimpse into Greek Mythology

Like all mythologies Greek mythology explains the creation of Universe. First their was the Void, nothing. So the Void is actually not nothing but the first Something that is called as the Chaos. From the Chaos came the 'Bottomless pit' or the immeasurable space called as the Abyss (may be referring to the profound gulf of Hell), referred to as Tartarus. From Chaos also came the Darkness (Erebus) and Night (Nyx) and the tangible Earth (Gaia or Gaea). The Earth is then the mother of all. Her Roman equivalent is Terra or Terra Mater (Mother Earth). She gave birth to the Sky (Uranus). With the Sky, the Earth gave birth to the Titans, the Giants and the Sea (Pontus). What comes as a surprise to our way of thinking is that Night and Darkness gave birth to Heaven (Aether) and Day (Hemera).

Moros (Doom, Destiny), Ker (Destruction, Death), Thanatos (peaceful Death), Hypnos (Sleep), the Oneiroi(Dreams), Momus (Blame), Oizys (Pain, Distress), the Hesperides (Golden light of sunset and nymphs of evening), the Moirai (Fates), the Keres (Spirits of death), Nemesis (Indignation, Retribution),  Apate (Deceit), Philotes (Friendship), Geras (Old Age), and Eris (Strife) are all children of Night.

These are all considered primordial Deities in Greek mythology. Descendants of primordial deities are the second generation of divine beings called the Titans. They were giant deities of incredible strength, who ruled during the legendary Golden Age, and also comprised the first pantheon of Greek deities. They are based on Mount Othrys, a mountain in central Greece. The Titans included first twelve children of Earth and Sky (Gaia & Uranus) and their children. Uranus or Ouranos is the only Greek deity after which a planet has been named that is the 7th planet from the Sun.

Most notable of the Titans are Cronus and Rhea. Saturn is the roman equivalent of Cronus and is the given name to the 6th planet from Sun. Cronus and Rhea are son and daughter of Earth and Uranus, who is the ruler of the universe. Cronus is the youngest of the first generation of Titans. He overthrows his father Uranus with the help of his mother Earth and castrates him. He throws his testicles into the sea that produce white foam from which takes birth the goddess Aphrodite. 

Titans & Olympians

Cronus or Saturn takes his sister Rhea as his queen and rules during the Golden Age and is considered the Patron of Harvest. However, there is a prophecy that as Cronus overthrew his father Uranus, he would be overthrown by his own sons. So Cronus devours his first five children as they are given birth by his wife Rhea. When Rhea gives birth to his sixth child Zeus, she hides him and gives Cronus a stone wrapped in towel called Omphalos, which Cronus devours. When Zeus grows up he frees all his siblings from within Cronus and overthrows him. Zeus is the equivalent of Jupiter (5th planet), Indra or Thor. Zeus is the King of Gods of Mount Olympus. An equivalent of Indra ruling Swarg. Thursday is named after Thor and that has a parallel in Brihaspati. Zeus along with other brother and sisters overthrew the Titans in a battle called Titanomachy and starts the third generation of the greek deities the Olympians. Mount Olympus is the highest mountain of Greece considered the abode of the twelve olympians. Hera was the sister and queen of Zeus.

Zeus is the father figure in greek mythology and is the father of many heroes and Gods. After defeating Titans,  Zeus shares the booty with his brothers. While Zeus gets the Sky and Air, Poseidon gets Water and Hades gets the underworld or the world of Dead. Zeus punishes the Titans and traps them in Tartarus. One of the Titans, Atlas, is given the punishment of holding up the sky. The ancient Earth can not be shared, but she doesn't like the way Zeus treats the Titans, so as to take revenge she gives birth to  the monsters Typhon and Echidna (fathered by Tartarus), however they are controlled by Zeus. After the Olympians there are other generations of greek deities.

The Trip

I have mentioned about Greek mythology so that it can be referred to if required.

We had seen U.K., France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Eleven days of touring had satiated our appetite for seeing new places and we were contented and tired. We were entering Italy, we were told that it would be hot unlike all previous places that were pleasant. We were repeatedly cautioned to take care of our money and passports as Italy is said to be a country with high chances of these being snatched or pick-pocketed. Due to these factors, most of the passengers in our bus, of the total 49, were stressed out. Some started to voice, "I want to go home!" However, with its wonderful treat of history and marvelous art that we had hitherto only heard of, we were back on our feet in no time and started to enjoy again.

Florence, is a medieval town, that seems to have stopped its clocks 300 years ago. Like many other European cities it has a wonderful and unique church, that is the emblem of the city and the constant companions the bell tower and the baptistery. Arno river meanders and hosts the city in its lap. The classical view is seen from the Michelangelo square, even the old bridge that has interesting history can be savored from here.

Florence, as seen from Michelangelo Square

Orange coloured dome of the 'Duomo' stands out! However, what I found most remarkable was that the city hosted two of the greatest artists Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci at the same time. Many shops in the town are called 'David' after the world famous statue sculpted by Michelangelo, that stood in the Piazza della Signoria for long but has been moved to the museum now.This is the square in front of the town hall of the city that has been the hub of political activity for centuries. I used to wonder that what is so unique about the statue of David except that David didn't bother about clothes. 

The united kingdom of Israel was ruled by Saul from 1050 to 1012 BC. When the kingdom was attacked by the giant Goliath, a philistine, Saul sent David to fight. David, who was young and of ordinary built, used to play harp in his court but agreed to put up the fight. This statue depicts his composure and stance at this moment, when he has accepted the challenge and is about to go for the fight. He struck the forehead of Goliath with a stone and killed him and became the eternal example of victory of an underdog.

DaviD

Subsequently David became the King of Israel. David is believed to be ancestor of Jesus Christ. David was succeeded by King Solomon, who was the last king of United Israel from 970 to 931 BC. During his reign kingdom of Judah was created. While Saul and David are Biblical characters, Solomon is considered a definite historical entity, finding place of importance in all three Abrahamical religions, thus creating a watershed between myth and history.

On the right of the David's statue is an open air sculpture gallery called Loggia dei Lanzi, what a visual treat it is! To the uninitiated, it just appears as a collection of statues but in reality each one is a masterpiece created by a genius reflecting a story that changed the history or is of paramount importance in the mythology. At the entrance are placed Lions called Medici Lions with a sphere under the paw, named after the house of Medici. The Medici family were initially bankers but gradually became the largest bank of Europe in 15th century and then the hereditary Dukes of Florence and expanding to become the grand dukes of whole Tuscany region with Florence as Capital. Three popes came from their family. They were very strong but not very popular rulers, therefore they used great artists of their time to depict their power, by portraying various heroes of past. There was another banker named Piti, who built a Piti Palace, later acquired by the Medici family. There seemed to be a race to collect great artworks and these palaces became storehouses for these and now museums.

Loggia dei Lanzi

Another wonderful figure is that of Hercules killing the centaur Nessus. Hercules or Heracles is the son of  Zeus  and a mortal Alcmene, but named after Hera, the wife of Zeus in greek mythology, iconic for his strength.  It is said that he was driven mad by the queen of Gods, Hera and he killed his son, daughter and wife and then for penance he had to carry out twelve tasks known as twelve labours in the Bible. While legends of Hercules are found all over Europe, this sculpture is a great narrative.

Hercules killing the Centaur 'Nessus'

The centaur (half human, half horse) Nessus carried the wife of Hercules across the river, he tries to force himself on her and in the revenge Hercules kills him. Though Hercules, the hero, kills lot of characters in mythology, but it is the venomous blood of Nessus that finally kills Hercules and then he is welcomed as a God by Zeus and assigned as Gatekeeper of Olympus.

The most remarkable statue in this open theater of myth and history is the Cellini's bronze statue of Perseus holding the head of Medusa. Perseus was son of Zeus and another mortal Danae, and was the great grandfather of Hercules (maternal). Medusa, who had snakes as her hair, after she was cursed by Goddess Athena for being raped by Poseidon in her temple, could turn anyone into stone with her gaze. Perseus kills her by looking at her reflection in his shield.

Perseus holding the head of Medusa

It is said that Medici's intent of installing Perseus' statue  was to tell people that those who didn't fall in line would be treated like Medusa as he was like Perseus.

As one walks away from the Piazza, one passes through the narrow streets reminding one of Walled City of Delhi. We reached the old bridge over the river Arno. There is a unique feature of the shops on the bridge, there are only Jewelry shops and there is a story behind that. There used to be mostly meat shops on the bridge many centuries ago, as the butchers could discard the remains of the dead animals in the river easily. Then one of the Medici rulers got married to a princess, who had been brought up in very rich environs. She refused to live in the Velachhio palace as there was no garden or lake in the centre of the town, so a palace was bought for her across the river. For the ease of commuting for the Duke from the central town hall to the palace a corridor was built above the buildings leading to the bridge and then above the shops on the bridge upto the new palace. However, when the princess did not like the foul odour of meat and carcasses and so an order was passed that there could only be Jewelry shops on the bridge and it has stayed so.

Bridge on river Arno

After visiting  the bridge we went to the church of Holy Cross, where is buried another genius of Florence, Galileo Galilei, who had to face life-long house arrest for defending his theory that Sun was the center of the planet system (heliocentrism) and not the earth (geocentrism) as it was against what was taught in the religion.

Holy Cross Basilica of Florence

We noticed a huge scaffolding in front of this church. It was in preparation for the annual football match for supremacy in Tuscany region. It is said to be one bloody match.

I realized that while in Hindu mythology, there are stories of attempts to defile the chastity of women, but they are mostly by disguising as husband or a lover, like Indra's various ventures but in Greek and Roman mythology and so in early history, rape, is a recurring theme. There are many statues and paintings on them as many times that has changed the course of the history.

Medici's were fond of art and were privileged to have artists like Michelangelo during their time. Three popes came from the Medici family, Pope Clement VII got Michelangelo to paint The last Judgement in Sistine chapel.

Church of St Mary of Flowers or 'The Duomo' - The Florence cathedral

The Baptistery in front of the Cathedral