Liminal Life : A Peek into a Sadhu’s Life

It was 2:51 PM and I realised the train's departure time was 2:50 PM. In my scheme of things the departure time of the train was 3:00 PM. I ran. I could see a train moving. As usual the escalator was crowded and the staircase was empty. I hurriedly climbed the stairs and reached the deck of the over-bridge. The train was still moving. From the top I could see Baroda written on it. I was crossing an entry to platform -1. The train was moving closer to platform number-2. Yes, I could get into the train. I ran faster. The train was moving slowly. I was confident. Very confident. I knew I could run parallel to the train and get into the coach. It did not happen. Exactly five meters before the last step of the over-bridge I noticed the train moving away from the platform. Between platform-1 and platform-2 there are three tracks. Platform-2 has two parts; Platform-2 and platform-2A. The train I was trying to board departs from Platform-2A. Exactly near the last step of the over-bridge, I noticed a right hand switch [connecting point of two parallel railway tracks] that took the train to the middle track, far away from me, the train slowly and teasingly moved farther and farther. The guard kept waving the green flag almost teasingly. I had lost the race.

The next train was two hours later. The train was waiting on platform-2. It was being cleaned. I waited on the platform for some time and entered into a coach a few minutes before the train's departure. A person wearing a saffron dress and a number of rudraksh mala (stone fruit garland) around his neck was sitting on a seat, exactly near the entrance. He was also wearing a headgear of saffron colored cloth. He looked like a Sadhu. He had placed his luggage on the seat opposite to the seat he was occupying.

"Do you want to sit here?" he asked.

"Yes," I said and sat on the vacant portion of the seat.

A person from a nearby seat said to the Sadhu, "You have a good life. You do not have to buy tickets."

The Sadhu was speaking Hindi.

"Where are you going?" The sadhu asked.

"Anand," I said.

"Where is that?" he asked.

"Where are you going? I asked.

"Nadiad," he said.

"Anand is after Nadiad,” I said.

“I have never heard about the place. Is it a big city?” he asked.

“Anand is 19 Kms from Nadiad. There is a math (ashram) close to place I live. It is called Jagnath mandir," I said.

The sadhu took out a small diary and a pen and said, “Please write address of the ashram in this in Hindi or Gujarati.”

I wrote address on the small diary and asked, "Your ashram is in Nadiad?"

"No, I keep moving around from one place to another," he said and mentioned about many places in Gujarat that I forgot and I did not stop him. However, I remember him saying, "Have you heard of Parab Dham? It is a big (religious) place and crores of people assemble there. It is close to Junagadh." I remember it because I searched the place on internet as he spoke. He further added, "There they offer Rs320/- to every sadhu. The arrangements are very good."

Then, he opened the smaller bag and started showing number of biscuit packets of Parle-G, small packets of dry fruits and other eatables. I noticed that the bag was full of eatables. He was also mentioning from which place he received what. After the exhibition he put everything in the bag once again and closed the chain.

"What do you do with the money?"

"There are needs," he said.

"Do you have a bank account?" I asked.

"No," he said.

"Where would you go in Nandiad?" I asked.

"To the Jalaram mandir," he said and added, " My dress has become old. I will get a new dress made there. It is a very big temple.There are many sant (saint) like me who come there for food."

"Ok. Do you follow the Jalaram sect?"

"I am from Niranjani Akhada. Its headquarter is in Haridwar," he said. [Akhada are monastery following master-disciple with martial ascetics members.]

"Tell me about it," I said.

"There are many Akhadas, such as Juna Akhada, Niranjani Akhada."

"What is the difference between the two?"

"The istadev (main deity) of Niranjanai Akhada is Kartikeya, son of Shiva. The istadev of Juna Akahada is Dutta Guru or Duttatreya [son of Atri and Ansuya]. Girnar in Junagadh is the place of Duttatreya. It is in Gujarat," he said.

"Tell me more about your Akahada," I said.

"There are 16 madhi, which is like 16 houses, each headed by a Mahant. Each of them are allowed to make disciples."

"Who is your Guru?"

"My Guru is ABC*** Giri."

"What is your name?"

"My name is BCD*** Giri," he said.

"What is Giri?"

"Giri, Puri, Bharti and Anand/Nand are like four brothers," he said.

"Are all of them equal or is there a hierarchy among them?"

"All are equal," he said but he did not look sure.

"When did you leave your home?"

"I left home 40 years back in 1982. My brothers started troubling me after the death of my father. I left home."

"Did you ever return?"

"My brothers usurped my property. I have nothing there in the village."

"What about your mother?"

"She died but I did not visit my village. I knew about her death but I did not visit my village."

"May I know where is your village located?"

"I am from Fatehpur, Uttar Pradesh," he said.

"After you left home you never visited your village?" I asked.

"Few months back I visited my village," he said and once again he started searching something in the small bag. He took out a paper and said, "I went to my village to get this." He extended the plastic laminated paper towards me. I read it and took a photo.

?The certificate was stamped by the village Pradhan. The name of village was mentioned and his name was mentioned. His colored pasport size photograph in sadhu's dress was also pasted on the certificate. "It is 'Niwas Praman Patr - Residence Certificate'," I said.

He nodded his head.

"You said you have become a saint. You also said you have left your village. Why do you need this certificate?" I asked. I was curious.

"For police. You know I keep moving around from one place to another all the time. There are occasions when officials inquire about me. I show them this paper. This is like identity card for me," he said.

"Is there any norm of issuing identity cards by your Akhada?"

"Yes, the Niranjani Akhada issues cards," he said.

"Where is that card?"

"I have not yet got it made. I will get it made during the Kumbha mela (religious fair of Hindus held after, three, six and 12 years)," he said.

"Why during the Kumbha mela?"

"There is a norm of getting cards only during the Kumbha mela. All the sadhus of various Akhada assemble in the Kumbha mela. The mahants of each Akhada issue cards," he said.

"How often do you visit Haridwar?"

"Not often. I keep roaming around," he said.

"Who takes care of your Guru?"

"There are 150-200 chela (disciples) there to take care of him," he said.

“Do you have any chela (disciple)?”

“No, I do not have any. I do not have resources to maintain a chela. I do not have ashram of my own. Where would my chela live? I myself keep roaming all the time,” he said.

"You are not associated to any Ashram?" I asked.

"I was there in an Ashram in Haryana for three years and then I decided to leave it," he said.

"Any specific reason for the decision?"

"The youths of the village in which the Ashram was located started troubling me," he said.

"I did not understand," I said.

"The village youths come to the Ashram and ask for ganja (hemp). There is a perception that all sadhu smoke hemp. I do not. The youths asked for money for liquor. Then, they pestered for the number for lottery," he said.

'What is that?"

"You have never heard about the lottery?"

"I have," I said.

"They declare winners on the basis of the last few digits. The youths asked to guess those digits. They knew sadhus have magical qualities and they can foresee everything. It was getting a big trouble. I left the Ashram," he said and added "majority of Ashrams in Haryana are empty because of these problems. I am in Gujarat for the last three years. It is nice here."

"For last 40 years you have lived in Ashram for only three years and you have kept roaming for so many years!" I said with surprise.

"I took sanyas (renunciation) eight years back," he said.

"Ok, I thought you took sanyas after you left home in 1982," I said.

"No, after leaving home I went to Ludhiana. I was working in a cycle factory," he said.

"So, you have worked entire life in a cycle factory?" I asked.

"I have also worked in Britannia biscuit factory," he said.

"I know about only one Britannia biscuit factory in Kolkata," I said.

"Yes, you are correct. It is on the Diamond Harbour Road. It was near Marine institute," he said,

"It is not Diamond Road. It is Taratala Road," I said.

"Yes, you are correct," he said.

"How did you reach Kolkata from Ludhiana?" I asked.

"I have a family," he said.

"Are you married?"

"Yes, I am married. I have two sons and two daughters. Both daughters are married. The sons are still bachelor. They are around 25 years old and they live in the village in Bengal," he said.

There was a moment of silence.

"When I was working in Ludhiana I developed friendship with a Pathak. He was from a village named Pathakolia (village of the Pathaks) near Sasaram," he said and added "Pathak suggested me to marry. He also arranged a girl from Bankura district of Bengal. I spent Rs 5000/- for the marriage," he said.

"I did not get you," I said.

"I paid one thousand to the brother of Pathak. There was a tout who found the girl for me took Rs2000/- and money was also spent on the marriage feast," he said.

"I am still not getting it," I said.

"Pathaks are Brahmins. The father of Pathak did something wrong (unch-neech ho gaya tha) and he was a ex-communicated by fellow Brahmins. He was unable to marry any girl from his own caste. He married a girl from Bengal. So, Pathak knew about the arrangement," he said.

"What is your caste?" I asked.

"I am a Kayastha," he said.

“On the certificate it was mentioned Pal, which is a surname of caste Gadedia (sheep rears) in UP,” I said.

“Yes, you are correct but the Pal in the name is not a surname. It is a name given to the disciples before they are offered Guru-Mantra (a ritual in which the master says something into the ears of disciple). I was BCD*** Pal first before I was provided name BCD*** Giri by the Guru,” he said.

"Your wife's caste?" I asked.

"She is from Nai (barber) caste," he said.

"In which caste did you marry your daughters?" I asked.

"In Bengal there is no caste based restrictions like UP. The society is open there," he said.

"Still," I insisted.

"One son in law is from caste Teli (oil presser) and second is from the Nai caste," he said.

"In which caste would you marry your sons? I asked.

"I told you that there is no caste based restrictions in Bengal. They can marry any caste. It is their choice," he said.

"So, you worked in Britannia factory when you were in Bengal?"

"Yes. My family was living in Bankura and I worked in the Britannia factory in Taratala," he said and added,"I regularly go home."

"You mentioned you took sanyas?"

"I go home. I live there but I do not make contact," he said.

"What is that? I asked.

"I do not make physical contact with my wife. I have destroyed the nerves (nas ko khatam kar liya hai)," he said and indicated with his index finger and said,"it can never become this," tightening his index finger. He further added, "after nerves are destroyed there is no feeling of physical contact. The desire has vanished."

He added, "Many sadhu take diksha (initiation) during Kumbha mela and one of the ritual is to get the nerves destroyed during the diksha. I have heard that the hold it between two woods and pull it with force. The nerve gets destroyed. In some cases it also bleeds. I regularly pressed the nerved and after a point it stopped working," he said.

"Which nerve?"

"How can I tell you? he said.

I extended my index finger and said, "You can tell me whether the said nerve is dorsal or ventral or lateral," touching top, bottom and sides of the finger.

"On the bottom," he said.

"How did you identify the nerve? I asked.

"I learnt it from a fellow sadhu," he said and added, "I am one among lakhs of sadhus. I have obtained lot of spiritual power. I pray regularly."

An elderly person sitting next to him was keenly listening him. He said, "Sadhu ji, I have a severe low back pain. I work in a band company and sit for a long time stitching button holes (kaaz banana) of the dress. Can you suggest something for me?"

The sadhu nodded his and said, "I do not know about it."

The train was slowing down. It stopped at the Nadiad station. The sadhu put the big bag on his shoulder, picked up iron chimta (tongs) and got down from the train.