You must beat or be beaten! Beat up the monkeys to salvage your pilgrimage, here in Shimla!

Ever thought of visiting India? Well, if you never had such an encounter, personally I had. The place that first came to mind is Shimla, the sacredness of the famous Jathu temple is found here. Many people, just like I hope to visit this treasured place to behold the grandeur that always well-spoken of. My friend, if you’ve never visited, the pace is very divine, close to nature, an excellent place indeed. More than what they say I found the place, exquisite and worthy a visit. The beautiful 150 feet statue of god Hanuman could be vividly seen from a high point. From a distance, I could clearly see a panoramic bright orange idol of Lord Hanuman standing atop of a hill as if guarding those hills. The more you go, the more the grandeur keeps increasing.

Disregard of the awesomeness of the place it’s going to be satirical, and you’re going to get ashamed if you cannot put up with the language of the site, I’m just saying! Divinity juxtaposed with shame, yes, a great shame indeed! It’s a hurdle tracking through to reach there, it’s a journey you’ve got to learn, a new phenomenon, perhaps the most strange I’ve ever met, but it’s surely worth it going between the trees and hills as you enjoy the nature.

Coupled with an hour or less just tracking, the road was engulfed by a multitude of monkeys, an unbelievable scam. While walking by the roadside, dozens of people coaxed me to stick to the customs of the place by getting with me stick to beat off monkeys by the roadside. It was very incredible, beating monkeys? I could see people lined up the road with sticks for sale, whose purpose was to beat off monkeys that made their way to attack you.

This seemed strange to me, how could beat up monkeys for sure? Taking my way off for pilgrimage in this sacred place, just to start beating up monkeys, something I have never dared do, leave alone beating up a spider or lizard. Beating up a monkey, a group, essentially beating them direly? Perhaps this could be the only thing to differentiate me with people in Shimla; I could not beat up a monkey.

As I maneuvered through people kept imploring me to buy their sticks. As I passed by, I realized it’s the status quo of the people here carrying sticks with them rarely could you see anybody pass by without clinching to stick.

Rather than heeding this strange, otherwise barbaric, inhumane culture as I would purport, I decided to pack handfuls of nuts and biscuits instead on my way on. The nearer I drew the temple, the more the reality began to unravel my mind. Very few instances of stick selling were showing up, and the little that could be, the more expensive it became. My thought was in the event it happened I had a dire need of stick; I would pluck up, perhaps a twig and fight off, or just yell, or frighten the primates off.

Wow, I had anticipated it wrong! Never had I envisioned this, crowds and crowds of monkeys began to show up, just by reaching the temple vicinity. No stick, twig or shrub was in my sight. The creatures were screeching, approaching towards me. A great company of them, in fact, a battalion! They could stare at me angrily, watch me carefully, I noted their look seemed to indicate they knew I was powerless in their sight because I lacked the stick.

Monkeys can play you, they've got a perfect IQ to suggest who is a threat who is not, and what one is carrying, probably, they think it is food, a worthy meal for them. Thanks to the small nuts and biscuits. Else monkeys could have done me a big blow; I vowed to toe the line next time on my visit to Shimla. Either you carry the stick, beat them up or they’ll beat you, not just a little, perhaps fracture you!