Himalayas / A Short Walk In Bhadashi (Article & Photographs by C. Lazarus)

Bhadashi is a mountainous region on the north eastern banks of the Ganges near Rishikesh and home to the infamous Beatles Ashram, which can be found deep in the wooded forests. I marked the map below to show exactly where I walked on this little street imaging excursion. Rishikesh is a vegetarian town, meaning the sale of meat and it's consumption is illegal, this includes eggs, but sadly not milk, this is right up my alley.

Situated on the banks of the holy river like Allahbad, these two cities couldn't be more different. Rishikesh has a vibrant tourist scene and is the summer escape for all the hippies and Oshoites who frequent Goa in the cooler months. Strangely motor vehicles have been banned on this side of the river, which is great, but driving permits have been issued to a few adventure companies and they roar their jeeps up and down the narrow streets at a frighting rate and with little respect for the peaceful and tranquil surroundings they disturb. It is quite clearly an example of the political corruption all over India. Pay the cash and do what the hell you want.

Regardless of Rishikesh thriving community, it is not without its fault lines. Here is an abandoned Yoga retreat on the main street. Like the one deep in the forests where the Beatles lived, it has fallen out of touch, with the land owner most probably dead for many years. These places lay dormant, which is charming when nature begins to take over.

There is still a healthy meditation scene here. This beautiful Banyan tree sits at the heart of this old Yogi's ashram. He sweeps the leaves into a neat pile and waits for his students to arrive. Banyan trees fascinate me, they coil around themselves like snakes, growing growing growing, ripping through the concrete ground, they are an unstoppable force of nature.

My wife can't get enough of the pretty street dogs.

Where there is tourism there is peacocking. This extravagant Indian man dresses to impress or confuse whilst he operates his clothing shop. He deserves little credit because when we left his shop without buying anything he muttered some rude words. He was a bit of a knob.

More dogs, more pain. I want to bring all of them to Scotland and show them compassion!

Just by the entrance to the Beatles Ashram, crowds of monkeys socialise. In the tree a mother holds her baby, if you look closely you can see the baby monkey snuggled up.

Last but not least the famed holy cow. Hinduism and spirituality seem stronger in Rishikesh than other places. The animals look better cared for and the cows, goats and horses were in great condition. A few metres down the road though I did spot a dead cow that was rotting away on the street and did so for the next week, which was strange and sad. I didn't take a picture.

Have a good day and I hope you enjoyed todays photographs.
C Lazarus.