The redoubtable, wonderful Sushil Tanwar of Ashadeep and I are taking Shimla for a walk today. The idea is to remind Shimla of its old tradition of walking. How great was this, how good for the health of its denzins, and for its pure air which never carried anything more than the fragrance of the evergreens and wild flowers growing by its roadsides.
Wish us luck, dear reader, that we are at least able to light a flicker of awareness in the residents our beloved town which is so beautiful and so generous.
As always, I cannot leave you without quoting some verse!
I look and look
Looking's a way of being: one becomes
sometimes, a pair of walking.
Walking wherever one's looking takes one.
The eyes
dig and burrow into the world.
They touch
fanfare, howl, madrigal, clamour.
World and the past of it,not only
visible present, solid and shadow
that looks at one looking.
And language? Rhythms
of echo and interruption?
That's a way of breathing
breathing
to sustain
looking
walking and looking,
through the world
in it.
~ Denise Levertov ~
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5 comments:
I was pleasantly surprised to find a mention of my wife Janaki's great grandfather at page 18 of the book on old homes in Shimla which you wrote for HP Tourism.Though we have heard those stories in our Kerala Tharavad ,this is the first time it is coming out in an HP publication. Now our clan can justifiably claim to have been in Shimla for the last four generations!
Suvrathan
how did it turn out?I was waiting for pics.
Dear Mr Suvrathan, thank you for stopping by. The book you mention has been written by my friend, the redoubtable Raaja Bhasin. Thank you for stopping by.
Varsha, just made the post!
wow!!i think ive gone through ur whole blog in 2 days straight and i really liked the way u write with all the great pics..i live in shimla but my profession carries me worldover most of the time..i was wondering who is the author and what you really do...maybe i even know you even if it is six degrees
Shimla is one of my favorites too and I keep going back to visit regularly. Love the Mall especially the old book seller, the leather shops and confectionery.
Shimla trip
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