Water, the subtle and sanguine drop of life, is the earth’s quiet heartbeat, flowing through rivers, oceans, and every living being. It carries the whispers of ancient rain, nourishing fields, forests, and dreams. A single droplet bestows the promise of life, satiating one’s thirst and kindling the flames of hope. Its stillness reflects the sky; its movement carves mountains and shapes our destinies. Water reminds us of life’s fragility and resilience, silently echoing the mystical charm of nature’s warmth. “Water is life’s matter and matrix, mother and medium. There is no life without water”, the well-known Hungarian biochemist, Albert Szent-Gyorgyi sounds true here. The universal solvent of water in reality is our matrix. The physical makeup of our body is indebted to the marvels of H2O. What sort of a life without water be? Beaches, river banks, water parks, and seashores are the oft-explored places by us. We thought of taking a deviation in our routes this time in pursuit of the holy roots. A trip we yearned to go for long and we never thought we would go then much before the monsoon. The time was right enough to set off on our journey to Dhanushkodi and Rameswaram. Jeeth as usual after office time having a normal chit chat sipping the tea told Anvik aka Kunjapp and his mom – Why can’t we go to Dhanushkodi the next morning? I was not able to make head and tail of the query as I never expected such a surprise with a calm smile. He told us the weather was fine enough to head to the lands that are suffused with the spark of divinity. We began packing our bags soon after the dinner. Kunjapp was jumping on toes in his excitement to bask in the watery waves. We slept off a bit early after the packing. It was a sound sleep with Kunjapp’s twittering of ‘Dhanush Kody’. His imagination has already taken him to the sea and beach waves. He slept off muttering Dhanushkodi. I began pondering over the rich legacy of Rameswaram, ‘the land of Lord Ram’s God’. I was familiar with the streets of Rameswaram ever since I learned an excerpt from The Wings of Fire in the Hindi textbook of my tenth class. The one who chased his dreams and lived his dreams; the only newspaper boy from Rameswaram who dreamt of being the President of India. What more does a girl of fifteen years need to cherish as an inspiration for a remarkable journey? For me, I was about to see that religious Rameswaram land made immortal by Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, in a night’s wink. Jeeth’s alarm started ringing by 05:45 AM and an elated Kunjapp got up before giving us a chance to stop it. He got up asking his dad, “Accha, shall we get ready now? If not, we will be late”. Our travel geek is hyper-excited and all set for a trip anytime anywhere. He started getting ready after sipping his routine glass of Horlicks milk. Jeeth loaded everything including us in Kunjapp’s silver grey (Baleno for him is Silver grey) car. Once the loading was completed, we started by 08:20 AM from Nellai. It was a journey of almost five and a half hours. Jeeth covered the distance by 13:10hrs. Our base for the trip was the serene Justa Saranga Hotel, where we quickly settled in for a delicious buffet lunch, savoring rice, aloo baingan sabji, dal, lauki curry, and a refreshing scoop of ice cream.
Post-lunch, we headed to Dhanushkodi, a place masked in both history and myth. Jeeth wanted us to start at the earliest and we sensed from Kunjapp’s gestures that he was impatiently waiting for both of us to lock the room and unlock his Silver grey’s door. Within a few minutes, we reached our dream destination. Once a bustling port town, it was devastated by a cyclone in 1964, leaving behind eloquently attractive ruins. Yet, Dhanushkodi’s unparalleled charm lies beyond its tragic history. It is believed to be the point where Lord Rama built the Rama Setu (Adam’s Bridge) to cross over to Lanka and rescue Sita. The sanguine shoreline and the whispering waves seemed to echo the stories of the Ramayana. Jeeth who visited the place almost ten years back felt that the Ghost town had altered drastically albeit it never failed to alter the admiration of visitors. Kunjapp and his dad were eager to walk and run whereas I made myself busy purchasing some souvenirs and accessories for everyone dear back home. We roamed around watching the remains of the church with a touching heart. Kunjapp and I stood on the banks of the waves murmuring history and posing for Jeeth’s camera. We moved to the temple path without knowing where we were heading. The shrines and the small temples we came across in Pamban village turned out to be surprising for Kunjapp especially the one in the background of water. He could not resist running around and walking through that movement of water. We started the gaadi and stopped after a while for Kunjapp to dance in the marvel of the serene waves. He enjoyed it to his fullest saying he was not coming any time soon. He wanted to play again and his dad escorted him to take a walk for long in that watery sway. Kunjapp, our little explorer, found pure joy in the serene waves, running and playing with his catching enthusiasm. We couldn’t help but marvel at the sheer beauty and calmness of the place, a contrast to its stormy past. Kunjapp’s gleeful smile seemed to me like breaking the calmness of the silent and peaceful water flow. As the sun dipped lower, we bid farewell to Dhanushkodi, taking with us its whispers of legend and its serene landscape. We spent more than an hour playing in and around Dhanushkodi beach with him. Kunjapp has already fallen for the mystic and miraculous nature of water. At times I feel the astonishment of this planet is contained in water. Kunjapp demonstrates this with a passion for falling for the rhythms of Jalam, the ultimate life drop it carries. After enjoying ample time for the day, we reached the hotel and slowly proceeded to our room after an inquiry about the holy Rameswaram visit planned for the next day morning. I did not get what the receptionist mentioned as bathing in 22 wells. I sensed I must carry additional pairs of attires for the three of us. Count down for the early morning began!
The arrival of the dawn happened early with a sense of enthusiasm for our visit to Rameswaram, one of the holiest towns in India. Ramanathaswamy Temple is one of the holiest shrines in Hinduism and a prominent site among the Four Holy Places together known as the Char Dham of India. Notably, it is the only Char Dham temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. Soaked in a rich historical legacy, the temple is tangled with several legends that highlight its profound significance in Hinduism. Adi Shankaracharya, the renowned philosopher and theologian, played a remarkable role in establishing the Char Dham pilgrimage circuit, which incorporates Rameswaram. He is believed to have visited Rameswaram to emphasize its spiritual importance as a key site for worshiping Lord Shiva and achieving liberation. Putting an end to our conjectures, we welcomed the morning with the radiance of exhilaration. By 5:15 AM, we were ready and set off by auto to the Rameswaram Sea, where we performed a sacred dip alongside Kunjapp. The refreshing water and the solemnity of the act connected us to the timeless rituals of this spiritual haven. Kunjapp had a holy dip with me first while Jeeth was capturing us. He did it a second time with his dad thinking multitudes of devotees were playing in the water like him despite the time and crowd.
We were a bit confused as we did not know how and when to enter the temple. Our faces in bewilderment made the local guide confident that he could come towards us and lead us to the temple gate. He made sure that we did GPay before the pilgrimage to the temple premises commenced. It was time to get introduced to the holy wells of Arulmigu Ramanathaswamy Temple. It was indeed similar to a rapid circumambulation wherein we were asked to follow and run along with the guide. He mentioned the names of all the wells beginning with Mahalakshmi Theertham. He did the same thing in all the wells. He had a sort of steel bucket tied with rope. Amidst the crowd, he took water from all the wells and poured on three of us. For me, it was a version of the miniature ounce of Theertham we normally get from temples. Suffused in the flow of holy waters from all the wells, my mind was filled with devotion and prayers for the well-being bowing my head in reverence. Saraswathi Theertham immediately reminded me of the grace of my grandmother who might be sensing this divine design from the other abode. The names of a few Theerthams came to me in an array: Savithri theertham, Gayathri theertham, Sethu Madhava theertham, Kavatcha theertham, Nala theertham, Neela theertham, Surya theertham, Chandra theertham , Siva theertham and so on. I could recollect that Ganga, Yamuna, and Gaya Theerthams were together as the guide told us 16,17,18 and he showed us the holy waters of the three wells in no time. Every time the water fell, Kunjapp’s laughter heightened with his holy imagination of getting drenched again and again. Kodi Theertham was the last of the wells near the temple corridor. The sacred one is believed to release Lord Krishna from the sin of killing his cruel uncle, King Kamsa. The guide left soon after having the darshan of temple wells. We were asked to go to the dressing hall to change. While Jeeth was carrying Kunjapp throughout the darshan, I tried hard to keep our clothes without getting wet. We carried everything in a big shopper as my lack of common sense failed to make me carry at least a shopper that could be closed. We both changed to half-wet clothes whereas Kunjapp’s tiny clothes lying beneath covered in our attires remained safe from the touch of drops. What a divine grace! We started posing for selfies, sitting for a while, and began exploring the temple. Our experience was extremely humbling, as we immersed ourselves in centuries-old customs. The temple itself is a marvel, dedicated to Lord Shiva and revered as one of the 12 Jyotirlingas. According to legend, it is believed that Lord Rama, after defeating Ravana, prayed to Lord Shiva to seek forgiveness for the sin of killing a Brahmin. The grandeur of the temple and its exquisite carvings left us in awe as we completed our darshan and tasted the divine Laddu Prasadam.
After our spiritual sojourn, we returned to the hotel for a simple breakfast comprising idli, vada, paratha, and tea. Soon, it was time to bid adieu to Rameswaram, a land that is not only steeped in mythology but also gained global recognition as the hometown of Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, India’s ever-adorable President and an unwavering source of inspiration for youngsters and scientists. Jeeth wanted to take us to the Museum but the time and his sense of official responsibility made him pack and go back at the earliest. The journey back home was lively, with Kunjapp wide awake and enjoying every moment, proving to be the true sunshine of our adventure. We made sure that he tasted some of his favourite dishes from the best-loved restaurant that beckoned him with the delight of the park and toys.
Our spiritual journey was a thoughtful mix of spiritual enrichment and historical exploration. From the mythical origins of Rama Setu to the tranquil ruins of Dhanushkodi, the trip was a reminder of India’s deep cultural roots and the power of legends. The sacred dips, the majestic temple, and the joyous moments by the sea made this trip memorable. It was a journey not just through places, but through time, faith, and the essence of life itself. Although we have been to Mookambika, Murudeswar, Guruvayur, Sivagiri, Tiruchendur, Madurai Meenakshi, Palani, Tiruchendur temples and all with Kunjapp, the surprising pilgrimage to Rameswaram via Dhanushkodi will remain close to our hearts forever. I feel like saying water stays close to our hearts with the reverberation of a Shamno Varunah forever. The benedictions of the sea God have touched us always and forever. “So let the mind flow like water. Face life with a calm and quiet mind and everything in life will be calm and quiet”, as Thich Thien-An says. Jalam or water is the real matrix and mother of our lives. Let this liquid brim through our entity pouring the divine inspiration to look ahead and yearn for a miracle in every sphere of life.
Dedicated to Sujeeth and Anvik Sujeeth, the priceless possessions of my life who make me go with all my daily delirium and creative lunacies. Love and hugs to my warriors!
Aparna Ajith
About the Author
Dr. Aparna Ajith serves as an Assistant Professor in the PG Department of English at Sree Narayana College for Women, Kollam affiliated with the University of Kerala. She is the author of Musings of Venus, An anthology of poems. She is the recipient of the Panorama Global Youth Literary Award 2020. She is one of the recipients of the Kerala State Chalachitra Academy Research Grant 2020. Being a freelance journalist, she writes and translates articles for the Information and Public Relations Department, Govt. of Kerala. She is an avid reader and blogger who dabbles in the world of prose and verse. Having lived in four Indian cities and a quaint hamlet, she soars high in the sky of artistic imagination wielding her realistic and diasporic impressions. Her academic and creative pursuits bestowed her the opportunity to travel to 18 states and 2 union territories in the country and get a glimpse of their varied cultures. Beyond her professional pursuits, she finds joy in navigating the highs and lows of life alongside her beloved baby, Anvik Sujeeth, whose presence often breathes life into her poetic expressions.
