august 2018, ISSUE No.

32

travelogue:

Perspective: The
cover story:
landscapes of ‘triangles’
visible in Mountains Upas ana Griha ,
nisha aggarwal Shantinik etan
ABODE OF PEACE,
CONNOTATION OF HUMANISM,
photo ESSAY: INTERNATIONALISM & A
SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT
New Zealand:
anirban dhar
The Real Middle Earth
Wenzin Huynh
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 01
contents
FEATURE COVER CUISINE TRAVELOGUE PHOTO
STORY ESSAY
Festivals Chahou Kheer Perspective: New Zealand:
of August UPASANA Parindita The land- The Real
GRIHA, Bhattacharyya scapes of ‘tri- Middle Earth
SHANTINIKETAN: angles’ visible
ABODE OF PEACE, in Mountains Wenzin Huynh
CONNOTATION OF
HUMANISM, IN-
TERNATIONALISM Nisha Aggarwal
& A SUSTAINABLE
ENVIRONMENT

Anirban Dhar

4 6 12 14 22
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 03
 FestivaLs AUGUST 2018
Wkikimedia Commons
Parsi New Year
17th August 2018

Parsis all over the country cel-

ebrate this occasion with tradi-
tion and gaiety. Food and new
clothes along with social gath-
erings are the main attractions
Wkikimedia Commons of the festival. Onam
Wkikimedia Commons

Tagore's Death Anniversary 24th August 2018

7th August 2018
Wkikimedia Commons This is a harvest festival of Kerala. Elephant processions,
spectacular fireworks, and Kathakali performances
On August 7th 1941, India’s Nobel are the main attractions of this festival. A boat race is
Laureate Rabindranath Tagore also held at Aranmulai and Kottayam to add more joy
passed away in Kolkata, West Ben- to this festival.
gal. He was the first non-European
to have won the Nobel Prize for Lit-
erature in 1913.

Wkikimedia Commons

Wkikimedia Commons Flickr

Wkikimedia Commons

Id Ul Zuha
Independence Day 22nd August 2018 Pixabay

15th August 2018 This is a celebration of the Raksha Bandhan

This is a celebration of India's inde- end of the month-long Ram- 26th August 2018
pendence. Official ceremonies zan season of fasting among
Muslims. This three-day festival This is a celebration of the brother-sister relationship. Sis-
mark the day at all government es- ters tie decorated colorful threads on the wrist of their
tablishments and schools across the is celebrated upon the sight-
ing of the moon. Grand feasts brother's hand with a promise of life-long protection
country. People come out in huge and affection from the brother inaugustreturn. Sweets and
numbers to celebrate the occasion. and purchase of new clothes 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 05

Wkikimedia Commons mark the occasion. gifts are added attractions of this celebration.
cover story

“The highest education

is that which does not
merely give us informa-
tion but makes our life
in harmony with all exis-
tence.”
Photo: Hridoy Hazra

UPASANA GRIHA,
ShANTINIKETAN:
ABODE OF PEACE/CONNOTATION
OF HUMANISM,
INTERNATIONALISM &
A SUSTAINABLE ENVIRONMENT

Anirban Dhar

Upasana Griha - a sublime exploration in Shantiniketan - is an

existence of Maharshi Debendranath Tagore’s vision and trans-
formation to Bramho belief/religion from Hinduism. Every year,
on the seventh of Poush month (Bengali Calendar), popularly
the 23rd of December in English Calendar, is observed in the
Upasana Griha at Shantiniketan as Maharsi Debendranath's
transformation into the Bramho belief-vision. This very auspi-
cious date is also the inauguration/initiation date of Poush
Mela for every year.
Photo: Hridoy Hazra
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 07
 cover story
One of the most magnificent architectures in Shan-
tiniketan, the Upasana Griha is also popularly known
as the Prayer Hall or Kanch Mandir, which derives its
name from the glass encumbered walls. The splendid
architecture was built by Maharshi Debendranath
Tagore approximately in the year 1863. The marvel-
lous structure of Upasana Griha is made of several
colourful Belgium glasses and precious Marbles.
Photo: Rajashree Dutta Choudhury
Through the travelogue of Upas-
ana Griha, an individual can per-
ceive the meaning of Gurudev
Tagore’s Shantiniketan in his/
her own way: 'Where the head
is always held high and where
knowledge is free…!'
In one's individual experience of
Upasana Griha - his/her percep- “I slept and
tion may nurture an abode of
learning unlike any other in the
dreamt that
world. The sublime atmospher- life was joy.
ic scenario in the interior of the
Upasana Griha perceives an in-
I awoke and
dividual to embody Rabindra- saw that life
nath Tagore’s vision of a place
of learning that is unfettered by
was service.
religious and regional barriers. I acted and
From the very commencement, b e h o l d ,
Shantiniketan was modelled by
Tagore on the principles of hu-
service was
manism, Internationalism and joy…”
a sustainable environmental,
glimpses of which can be iden-
tified in the Upasana Griha as
well.
The Upasana Griha – a deity
less Belgium glass temple with its
magnificent chandelier hang-
ings, is prominently known for its
morning prayers, where irrespec-
tive of religion, caste and various
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 09
cover story

Photo: Anirban Dhar

statements of belief, people can come and join. Along with its various vibrant happenings, performances during the myriad festi-
vals, and eclectic architecture, Upasana Griha of Shantiniketan is really special for the fact that Tagore’s vision gives a complete
artistic freedom to its explorers . In line with Tagore’s immortal words, “Where the head is held high, and knowledge is free,” the
Shantiniketan knows that freedom to acquire knowledge also means the freedom to work whenever an explorer feels like. In the
holy atmospheric scenario of Upasana Griha; knowledge perceives the Yatra Viswam bhavatyekanidam - where the whole world
can find a nest. Through the travelogue of Upasana Griha; Shantniketan, an individual can perceive the quote of Gurudev – “She
is our own, the darling of our hearts, Shantiniketan. In the shadows of her trees we meet in the freedom of her open sky. Our dreams
are rocked in her arms. Her face is a fresh wonder of love every time we see her, for she is our own, the darling of our hearts.”

august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 011

 cuisine

Chahou Kheer
INGREDIENTS
1. 1 cup rice (washed and soaked for at least
15 minutes).
Parindita Bhattacharyya
1. 2 bay leaves.

3. 1 cup sugar.

4. 6 cups of milk/ condensed milk.

5. 1 tbsp raisin.

6. Few cashew nuts.

7. 2 tbsp grated coconut.

HOW TO PREPARE
1. Boil the milk, then add the bay leaves and
cook for few minutes.

2. Add the soaked rice into the milk, then add

sugar and give a stir for at least 5 minutes.
Close the lid of the utensil and put the flame
in simmer and again cook it for 10 more min-
utes.

3. Once the rice gets boiled properly then

put the flame into medium. Add raisins ca-
shew nuts and grated coconut for few sec-
onds.

4. Dish is ready to serve.

This is basically like normal kheer, but the spe-

Chahou kheer is the tastiest kheer prepared using sticky rice of Manipur. This rice has a cialty of Cha-hao rice makes all the differ-
flavor of its own, also it is fluffy and smooth in texture. Additionally it is gluten free and ence do not forget to try this at home. Here's
a simple authentic Manipuri rice kheer
can be served as desert. This kind of rice mainly comes in black color and is known as
Chak-hao, but white one is also a common one to find. This rice is specially prepared in HAONA CHABIRO!
holy ceremonies, to make offerings to God. august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 013
 travelogue

Perspective : The landscapes of

‘triangles’ visible in the Mountains
Story & Photographs: Nisha Aggarwal

s e e i t . And
A Scene from the way to Solang Valley
r e l y h o w we d i n g on
us is m e , dep e n
a r o u n d e m y r i a d a r e an
o r l d cou l d b l d s h
The w f s e e i n g H e r e I wou n g my
y s o i o n . d u r i
the wa c t i v e c ognit n e u s h ered Him-
r e s p e o f m i s k n o w
one’s p e r c e ption i s i t . M o st of u t o u r ism,
t i n g s h v lties l i k e
interes a c h a l Prade t s s p e c i a f t hose,
n t H i m s o f i i v e o
rece d e s h i n term
B u t i r r e spect s c a p e in
P r a re et c . l’ lan d
achal a d v e n t u e ‘ f o r m a n t of a
a g e , g t h o r t m e
herit r ealizin n ass ost
A Restaurant in Naggar

s k e p t h e r e i s a i n a l m
my ey e o rmal’ i c h I sa w
h p e r u s a l . ‘ F
‘ t r i a n g l e ’ w h
a s , c a s tles to
eac u l a r s h ape r a n t s to sp r s h ould
A 'Nescafe' coffee Shop at Main Market, Manali
a n g m re s t a u roun d . O
three l d i n g f r o b j e c t s a t h e top
r y b u i r i o u s o f ’ a t
eve
p s a n d in va h h a d a ‘roo . T h e rea-
small s h o ure w h i c itect u r e
r y s t r u c t t h e a r c h s p l a ce
v e o f ich ta k e
I say e g l e ’ a s part f a l l , w h
rian ow
had a ‘t is simply the sn winters.
t g
son for i Himachal durin
n
heavily i

august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 015

travelogue

To prevent the roofs from snow, congealing the roofs are de-
signed and made in sliding shape instead of flat platformic
style. But despite the buildings and other concrete objects,
the triangle is seen prevalent in trees, mountains and other
scenic sights as well. Therefore, it led me to connect the tri-
angle with its philosophical meanings too.
A ‘triangle’ has multiple meanings as a symbol, but differ-
ently or somewhere connected in both Eastern and West-
ern society. Some keywords associated with triangle include
gender, creativity, harmony, proportion, ascension, manifes-
tation, illumination, integration, subjectivity and culmination.
This sort of versatility captures themes of magic, wonder and
creativity in the triangle. In geometry it means a triangle, in
geology it means a mountain, in symbology it means a lot of
different stuff, in road-hoardings it indicates to various direc-
tions, for occultists it’s a summoning symbol, in pop-culture it
symbolizes LGBT through a pink triangle and in mathematics
it has a Greek name called ‘delta’ which means a change in
one variable compare to the other. And in European unions,
a black down-pointing triangle indicates to a system to iden-
tify medicines that are being monitored particularly closely

august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 017

travelogue
by regulatory authorities, de-
scribed under Black Triangle
Scheme.
The orientation of a triangle is
also important to its meaning.
None of other basic shapes
offer this kind of inherent du-
plicity. When we turn a square
on its side, the symbol mean-
ing remains the same. Same
with the circle-rolling it down,
it’s still a circle but the triangle
proposes variable meanings
when tipped top from bottom.
For example a point-up triangle
represents a strong foundation
or stability, as it is rooted to the
ground through a solid base. It
also symbolizes male energy,
considered as solar, lingam,
Shakta, active, mountain, up,
father; and fire and air are the
masculine elements. Oppose
to it the point-down triangle
represents female energy, lu-
nar, yoni, Shakti, passive, cave,
down, mother; thus forms the
elements of earth and water.
Point-up triangle can also rep-
resent ascension toward the
spiritual world, while the point-
down triangle can represent
a descent into the physical
world.
Any discussion about triangle
meaning cannot be com-
pleted without connecting it
with the number three. All the
mystic teachings incorporate
the power of three within their
folds. Three represents the
union of the number prior to
it (one and two). Numerologi-
cally speaking, if one repre-
sents force, and two represents
an opening, then three is the
birthing of true wisdom. There
are other triads proposed by
esoteric triangle which repre-
sent the historical and cultural
trinities like ‘spirit, mind, body’,
‘mother, father, child’, ‘past,
present, future’, ‘power, intel-
lect, love’, ‘thought, feeling,
emotion’, ‘mother, maiden,
crone’, ‘love, truth, wisdom’,
‘creator, destroyer, sustain-
er’ and ‘creation, preserva-
tion, destruction’. This is repre-
sented in Indian mythology as
‘Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh’ and
similarly in western society the
Christian God is trinity - ‘father, The Banner of Peace at the entrance
son and holy ghost’ united in of Uruswati, Naggar
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 019
travelogue
a single godhead, represented by a triangle. This trinity is
clearly visible in ‘banner of peace’ initiated by Russian Artist
Nicholas Roerich. It symbolized religion, art and science en-
compassed by the circle of culture which can be seen every-
where at Nicholas Art Gallery, Museum and in its premises at
Naggar, Himachal Pradesh. Here, one cannot deny remem-
bering Egyptian Pyramids consisting 2-D triangles into it. This
Pyramidal structure is much evident in structure of Hadimba
Devi Temple situated at Manali, Himachal Pradesh.
The triangular geometrical landscapes of Himachal Pradesh
were surely reminding me of early cubist landscapes of Art-
ist Paul Cezanne. Although triangles are there in the works
of artist Nicholas Roerich having plenty of hills and moun-
tains into landscapes, but they are not consciously created
cubes. So, the purposes may be different, but my eyes were
feasting the geometry; its meaning, philosophy and the spiri-
tuality, speaking silently into the Himalayan Valleys. By see-
ing this existing geometry, one may begin to personalize the
potential of an overwhelming subject of triangle meaning
and its association with circle. All the found triangles seemed
as the resting energies into Himalayas where the helicoidally
carved paths were not less than the springs of circles.
At the end, I hope that you enjoyed these perspectives. But
don’t stop at my cognitions. Find triangles in your life, in na-
ture, in books, connect them if you had previous visits to Him-
achal or let them stay in mind if you go to Himachal in future.
See them in life around and incorporate them into your life
experiences. As I believe, our lives are not less than a ‘giant
lab experiment’. We can introduce triangles and other sym-
bols in our daily practices to record the results of our findings
or to make alive a travel to some hilly place. Ultimately this
perception is for leading to a bizarre phenomenon of ‘Travel’
and to ‘Deal’ differently with different destinations!
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 021
 PHOTO essay
Photographs & Story:

NEW ZEALAND
Wenzin Huynh

The Real Middle Earth!

Q
ueenstown – One of my
favourite places in New
Zealand. Travelling and
exploring outside of my
home country is always
exciting but the best thing about it all is
coming back and remembering how
lucky I am to call this place my home.
There are very few places I actually make
an effort to go back to more than once
(there’s only one cafe and one restaurant
in Auckland that sits in this category) and
Queenstown is one of them. My next
goal…roadtrip around the South Island.

Perks of solo travelling? Being completely

selfish and doing you’re own thing. Not
having to put up with annoying people is
FAAANTASTIC! Also just noticed how dirty
my vans are…
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 023
PHOTO essay

Queenstown Mountains: Views

after a day on the snow
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 025
 PHOTO essay

On the road to Milford Sound (which

technically isn’t part of Lakes District but…I
guess this was en route)
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 027
 PHOTO essay

Moonlit stars just out of Queenstown august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 029
PHOTO essay

Exploring a river close to Wanaka

after discovering part-way through
a hike that my shoes couldn’t quite
handle the icy conditions...
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 031
 PHOTO essay

Not quite Lake District but we took the 4 hour drive

(one way) to Milford Sound. This shot was taken in
the middle of winter with my shoes off wading in the
freezing cold water. Maybe one day I’ll share the
behind-the-scenes shots of how this turned out!
august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 033
PHOTO essay

Queenstown Lake Scenery

august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 035
 PHOTO essay

More views after a day on the mountain

august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 037
PHOTO essay

The photographer herself!

august 2018 | TRAVEL & DEAL | 039

Megha Joshi
Indrapramit Roy
Jimmy Chishi
Mandykins Galore rya
Partha Seal c ha
ta
Indira Purkayastha h at
B
ul
Pradeep Mishra
h
Ra
Malavika Rajnarayan
Prakash Jogi n
io
Pratul Dash u ct
d
Mahhima Bhayanna
Pro
George Martin d
Mee Jey t an
p
Rashmi Khurana nce
Manjot Kaur Co
Rohen Dumbre
Saba Hasan
Aditi Agarwal
Varnita Mahajan
Vinita Dasgupta
Monika Seth

extending the contemporary

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On view from
9th August ‐ 28th August 2018

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