Unfortunately the sun rose an hour before I reached the top of the hill. I'll have to try again tomorrow morning before I leave for Mysore. The colossal image of Gomateshwara, tallest free standing statue in India, is simply stunning in the morning hours, and there are few devotees visiting, all of which seem happy to take their darshan in silence then move to quiet corners for meditation. I do the same, this is the first temple I have visited peaceful enough for such an endeavor.
Gomateshwara attained Moksha by standing in a forest stark naked, so motionless that vines grew on him, snakes and ants coil and burrowed at his feet.
The aspiration of attaining Moksha was in my mind all morning.
After lunch I try resting but my nose kept on dripping after I woke.
In the evening after several failed attempts to get connected to the Internet (first a power outage, then a connection failure) I re-climb Indragiri Hill, all 750 stone cut steps, to see the sunset. I guess you can tell I really like that hill alot.
I pick my way gingerly over a less trodden path to Channanna Basti set away from the main crowd going to and from the colossus to view the sunset.
While waiting a priest arrives to give last prayers to the idol enshrined. He chants in just the right frequency to make the small chamber resound with his voice. The vibrations turn me into an empty vessel. It is not so much an emptiness but a potential to resonate.
I try to keep this openness as the sun creeps towards the horizon in its own time. I am thwarted by small fears and panic attacks of the shoe rack counter closing and not getting my slippers back, as people start leaving the premises in the distance.
Despite my best, and worst, efforts, the sun does not change its time or place. This is what I took with me down the hill that evening.
