A jog amidst Nature

Dharmapuri – serene and beautiful

The huffing and puffing was getting stronger, I was breathing hard, I felt the pain at the sides of my abdominal muscles, but I was determined to go on. The place was just a few yards away. My muscles asked me to stop, but my mind was pushing me to jog on, after all, its favourite place was just in sight. I looked at the rising sun to my right, it was bright red, big in size, and it was soothing my eyes. The air was silky smooth, hitting me with a gentle force. To my right was a small pond, the recent heavy rainfall had filled water to its brim. If it rained a day more, the water would have come to the road. The sun’s rays were shimmering over the waters. The man-like rock structure was staring at me, and I wondered for how many years it stood that way. I continued to run, I soon crossed over small hills formed by the rocks. They had strange structures. The rocks stood abnormally over each other, they could fall if there was a heavy earthquake.

I took the left turn towards Dharmapuri, “push – it’s just a few steps away”, I told myself. Finally, the stone bench I loved to sit and rest after my jog had finally arrived. I was sweating heavily, the sweat drops rolled over from my forehead onto my spectacles, then to the tip of my eyelashes. I closed my eyes and I could feel the drops roll over to my cheeks and lips. They tasted salty – I could feel the deep satisfaction of my hard work today morning, my mind would now not complain of not doing any hard physical activity for today. I could go to my office in peace with my mind.

The panting continued, my neck and back was completely drenched. I could feel the sticky T-shirt on my stomach, I was beginning to cool down, and I felt the chill of my own sweat.

The grass tips had small water droplets of the rains last night over them. A small stream had formed which flowed underneath the bench and crossed over to the other side of the road. The sound of the flowing water was so soothing. The flow was neither too slow, nor too harsh, it was just perfect. The big plants and bushes around the bench started to move due to the cool wind. This was paradise. The road which led to the temple looked clean due to the rain, the air was so fresh and energizing. I could smell the freshness in the air.

Soon a small bird with a long tail sat over the electric wire and started its chirping. I could hear the response it got from a distance. The two birds were indeed talking! The modulation in their cries, the short cries and the lengthy ones, the raise in pitch, you could make out everything. Such a peaceful and careless lives they led; I felt jealous of them!

There were more rocks near the stone bench. I could see chameleons running around busily underneath the rocks. Suddenly I spotted a small bird, red in color. I had never seen it before anywhere near my home. When I came to Hyderabad, I felt it had so many rocks and no greenery, and used to often compare it with the greenery in Bangalore. But sitting here, I feel that these rocks have a story to tell about the countless incidents they have witnessed over millions of years. These rocks are not really lifeless.

I closed my eyes to feel the nature around me. I wondered how nature has such a strong effect on our minds and why we don’t spend more time with it. There were no thoughts in my mind, and I felt completely free. This moment was nothing short of a good meditation session.

I then waked towards the Dharmapuri temple. My favourite spot was the Srinivasa temple which stood over a hillock. The view behind this temple was simply breathtaking. I do not remember the number of times I have come here to see the sunsets. The sun descends over amazing rock structures, and sometimes you wonder if are really in the middle of a city. I had spent so many peaceful moments here. I have taken some of the best sunset photographs here. I have forced many of my friends to come here at the time of sunset. The temple is very clean and the idol is very beautiful. You can step in and have a very close look at the god. I wonder why people still go to Tirupati and have a hard time there to get the glimpse of the god. The ornaments and the flower arrangement over the lord were so beautiful.

The wind was even stronger here. I could see the fog over the waters of the pond. There are many shrubs and trees here. The rose gardens planted by the temple authorities were in full bloom - there were many colors – pink, red and yellow. In between these roses, there were many other plants that had beautiful flowers on them.

I got down to visit the Sai Baba temple. We Bangaloreans are never real bhakts of Sai Baba, but the temple here was so beautiful that I and mom never miss it. The aarti song captivates us. It is in Marathi, and we don’t understand a word of it, but still it captures our mind towards him. I stepped over to touch the feet of Baba. This was special as we are never allowed to touch the idols in any temple, I feel it helps us to connect to him in a better way.

I started to jog back towards my home soon after.