by Reema Islam
I said “Itakhola Mura.” With a puzzled look he said “There is no such place here.” I went into panic mode and spluttered something incoherent until his face gradually lit up and he said “Oh Ittkhola mura!” He revved up his CNG run tuk-tuk and heaved it up a hillock while we sat shaking our heads at the many phonetic wonders of our trip.
Armed with bursting enthusiasm, guide books and various brochures from the museum’s dusty shelves, I with two of my trusted girlfriends had set out on an adventurous weekend to Comilla, East of Bangladesh, to check out the ancient sites popularly known as moinamoti. Comilla was known as Samatata from around 6th-13th century AD. Parts of Bangladesh fell under the region called Vanga at a close proximity to Maghada, which was quite a powerful state since the time of Asoka (304-232 BC). The Mahajanapadas or Great Learning Centers were a group of institutions that are said to have had an interactive relationship of knowledge sharing. The most famous one of these centres is said to have been Nalanda Institute in the now Bihar region of India. A corresponding university was said to be in Pundranagar, now lying in Naogaon district of Bangladesh. This centre is now designated a World Heritage Site and is called Paharpur. However a learning centre of probably a lesser kind was also discovered further South of the country.
Our first stop in Comilla was the museum where the remains of a fossilized tree greeted us at the entrance. Pottery shards, huge stone mortars and pestles or “Shil & Batta” (where the mortar had caved in considerably with such extensive use) Buddha in a Vajrasattva pose (sitting in a typical lotus pose, holding a thunderbolt in his right hand which is diamond shaped, supposed to cut through anything and not be cut itself, symbolizing purity and in his left hand is held a bell to symbolize wisdom and compassion. Together these two are essential in reaching enlightenment). The museum is large and houses many relics set in simple glass shelves, from the times of the Guptas, the Palas, the Chandra Senas and also the local ruling dynasties such as the Khagdas and the Devas. Comilla was known as Samatata from around 4th-13th century AD. The name Samatata was first mentioned on the Ashoka pillar in Allahabad where the Gupta ruler Samudragupta (ruled 335-376 CE) noted this as one of the principalities of that period. With monasteries built in a distinctive style of that era, Samatata has much to reveal as it flourished through kingdoms ruled by local rulers for about 500 years from 6-11 centuries AD. Housing some of the greatest vestiges of Buddhism in the form of the various monasteries around Comilla, Samatata attracted many a pilgrim seeking enlightenment.
Thus when Wanderlust and an inquisitive mind made the monk Hiuen Tsang smuggle himself out of China in the 7th century AD to make the perilous journey to India, his main aim was to read up on Buddhism. His journeys through the terrains that preached the gospels of Buddha also bought him to a deltaic region, with green fields and meandering rivers. Tsang visited the famous Nalanda Institute now in Bihar and its corresponding university, Somapura Vihara, the now World Heritage Site Paharpur in Naogaon, Bangladesh. These were both part of the great Mahaviharas, or Great Learning Centers. However a learning centre of probably a lesser kind was also discovered south-east of the country. Tsang was surprised to note bustling universities and hostels for up to 2000 monks and his documents have helped us understand Samatata a little better. An institution noted by him as Kanakastupa Vihara could well be the now excavated Salban Vihara.
Salban Bihar or Salavana Vihara as the signboard stated (Vihara means monastery and Salbon for the sal forest that once was), confused my two friends who had yet to catch onto the phonetics of the Sanskritic versus Bengali names. The disintegrating parameters of this once ancient monastery are now surrounded by an artificial garden sprawling around it. The main part is said to be the area that housed the main monastery for the students, with little cubicles that possibly accounted for the little cells where the monks resided. 115 cells and remnants of what could be a kitchen, abbot’s office and courtyard have been identified by the experts. This site is not only the most excavated one, but shows the perfect cruciform design-a crucifix shaped structure, (a popular style as seen at Angkor Wat or other Javan, Burmese sites of those days). However to inquisitive novices like us all we could make out were possible windows or door jambs or a seat.
Itakhola Mura, another red brick built structure depicts either a monastery of sorts with a residence area, courtyard and maybe an office or two. With a quaint passage that has little alcoves in the wall meant for oil lamps, Itakhola also houses the largest in-situ stucco (plaster) statue of Buddha in a lotus position, found in the country. This whitish torso-less statue placed in a walled up chamber is left to dazzle its visitors. Similar alcoves in the walls surrounding it make one wonder how the people of Samatata must have lit them with lamps, considering the only way in was from one storey above. A ladder, ropes, or agile monks, Itakhola Mura left us animated and rearing to visit the next site.
We had come to Comilla hoping to learn something about ancient eastern Bengal, but came away thirsting for more, as Samatata gave us a sneak peak at its heritage. With over 50 sites being discovered in and around Comilla, precious little is known about its people. From the Khadgas to the Devas many a ruler lived but left us little to draw a picture out of. Since we know that Samatata housed many institutions, it may be assumed that the locals supplied the monks with food and other necessities, creating a flourishing job market. But their legacy remains hidden between the disintegrating bricks of the Moinamoti ruins, a name popularized in some stray ballads and in museum brochures.
4-Day Bangladesh World Heritage Tour: North Bengal
If You Go:
Comilla is about a 2 to 2.5 hrs drive from Dhaka on a holiday. Snacking on the way is highly recommended since Comilla is home to the famous Rosh Malai & Pera, sweets made out of cow’s milk curd. Local buses leave every few hours from the main bus terminals but it is recommended to hire a private car so one can stop along the way and also the many sites of Moinamoti. You can also book a berth on the local train going to Chittagong and stop off at Comilla station.
Dhaka Cultural Tour Including Traditional Theatre Performance
Photographers are as credited below:
Buddha in Vajrasattva (Tarek Murshed)
Buddha in sandstone (Tarek Murshed)
Salban Vihara (Reema Islam)
Pathway of alcoves (Sadia Faruque)
Rupban Mura (Reema Islam)
A kind of altar (Reema Islam)
About the author:
Reema is an environmentalist with an active wanderlust and luckily gets to travel through work as well. She is currently on a mission to discover ancient Bengal as she lives in Dhaka, Bangladesh and writes for national and international magazines on archaeological news, updates and general information about the sites around her country.
Given its historical significance, Hampi has been designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. This means the tourism infrastructure and maintenance is much better now than what it used to be. For many years, as the bustling cities around Hampi grew, the stone mandapas (stone pillared pavilions) on the mountains and carved dancing girls on the stone walls were silent witnesses to all that modern growth brings. Even now when you drive to the main site of Hampi, you pass many historic sites, with ruins of temples and mandapas, carved splendidly, surrounded by the bustling sprawl of city life, cars, modern houses and people. With recent improvements however, the main sites have been well preserved with security and infrastructure enabling travelers to experience this historic city to the fullest.
Wandering inside the sprawling metropolis is like traveling back in time. You can almost hear the trumpeting of horns as they welcome the royal family, with gloriously decorated elephants and horses, and the cheer and applause of the people as their beloved king and queen go by. King Krishnadeva Raya was a lover of good things in life, including good art. He ensured that many of the artisans and architects in his kingdom were kept busy and happy creating the most beautiful city in the world, coming to life out of solid boulders. A city which time and tide would never be able to transform into dust, a city which would remain standing forever. And so it does, to this day.
Hemakuta Hill is behind the Virupaksha temple and as we climbed up the mountain, several stone mandapas cast their long shadows on the granite as the sun began to set. Smaller temples and gopuras (stepped roof of a temple) rose in the distance. English-speaking tour guides are available for a fee and you can get a comprehensive history of the place on a full-day tour. Hemakuta Hill is capped by a “Sunset vista point” which is highly recommended for viewing glorious sunsets over the city. From the top, one also has a vantage viewpoint over the vast fields of banana and sugarcane in the distance. It is a very peaceful and serene scene. A hush falls over everybody as the mellow sun gets warmer, brighter and more beautiful. The glowing orb dips beneath the horizon to the tune of a thousand chirping birds on their way home.
Hemakuta Hill and Matanga Hill are popular for day hikes. The sunrise atop Matanga is legendary, but we did not get a chance to see this for ourselves. All the main sites in Hampi are close by, although it would take longer to walk across to each, it’s easier to hop on to an auto-rickshaw to save time. We met a French traveler who was visiting Hampi for the second time, the first time being 10 years ago when he was just a young man eager to travel and see the world. Now he was much older and had a family. He was excitedly exploring the city on a bicycle to see what had changed and to relive the adventures of his youth.
We left the best for the last – the Vittala Temple which is said to have the best carvings and sculptures in all of Hampi. We hiked up to the temple, stopping by at several pushkarni reflections (structures created in the ground to hold water, possibly for royal baths and other purification purposes), and a temple with horses carved out of the pillars (Kudremukh – horse’s face). At the Vittala temple, two things took our breath away. The ornate musical pillars and the royal stone chariot.
We spent an entire day exploring many nearby temples, spellbound at all the beautiful carvings and sculptures made out of solid stone, imagining what it must have been like at this bustling city at the height of it’s richness and grandeur, with thousands of artisans, artists and sculptors carving away at these huge boulders to create what we are lucky to be able to still see and touch today. Hampi was a truly fascinating and memorable experience. We will be back again, and this time for longer. Maybe we will even get one of those bicycles like the French traveler and spend a couple weeks in this magnificent place, soaking up a bit of history!
This is Sri Pada, also known as Adam’s Peak. It may not have the notoriety of Mount Everest (as the highest mountain in the world) or the elegant beauty of Mount Fuji, neither does its history go back as far as Mount Sinai’s, but it is the only mountain in the world to be venerated by four major world religions: by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and Christians.
All human life has come to this place across the centuries: rich and poor, kings and paupers, religious leaders and non-believers, young and old, strong and weak, sick and the well, disabled and able-bodied.
At the entrance to the mountain we stop again. A Buddhist priest blesses us. For us first-timers (all but Dimuthu’s father) we are given a white cloth with a good-luck coin wrapped inside. Dimuthu’s father ties each wristband on our right arm. A red mark is placed upon our foreheads, giving us Saman’s protection, one of the four guardian deities of the mountain.
Amila and I climb the steps to the shrine of the footprint. He bows down, head to the ground. I close my eyes and reflect on my own thoughts. Then we remove our white strips of cloth from our wrists and tie them to a pole.
“Make a wish,” Amila says.
This monastery, founded in the 17th century, is among some 25 on Majuli Island, a long stretch of land in the broad Brahmaputra River in India’s remote northeastern state of Assam. It is home to 350 monks of the Vaishnivite sect, known for its commitment to social equality and brotherhood among differing castes and tribes. Our visit is one of the memorable shore excursions that my wife Annie and I enjoy during a 10-day small-ship cruise along a mighty stream that discharges more water than the Mississippi.
One of the subcontinent’s least-visited regions, Assam has great ethnic and cultural diversity. Joined to the rest of India by a narrow neck of land, its majority population is racially and historically closely linked to Burma. Several minority tribes derive from migrations out of the Himalayas to the north. Assam was founded in the 13 th century when the Ahom kings arrived from the Burma-China border area. Adopting Hinduism, they successfully resisted the islamic Mughal invaders, who conquered so much of India. One side trip is to an ornate Ahom royal sports pavillion and the ruins of an enormous palace.
We settle into a leisurely shipboard pace, gliding smoothly downstream with the current between scoured low shores and barren sand islands, miles-long stretches of fine silt deposits that give the water a milky look. The geography often resembles a moonscape, made all the stranger and more alien by the mists and morning fogs of the winter season.
Others eke out a living by harvesting swamp grass for thatch or animal fodder. Or by working under contract to the government river authority, building and repairing long, low structures made of woven bamboo and affixed to pilings in the shallows. These divert the river’s flow and create a deeper navigable channel. Like the seasonal fisherfolk, they live in crude, temporary encampments on the bleak sandbars.
In the courtyard of a temple devoted to Shiva, I kneel to receive the blessings of a holy man, who puts the red spot on my forehead and ties a coloured string around one wrist. We follow as devotees enter the dimly lit inner sanctum with offerings of food, money or marigold flowers. They chant a mantra as a priest blesses them with splashes of holy water.
An economic mainstay is tea cultivation, Assam’s most notable export. We see extensive plantations, row on row of the little shrubs, and enjoy lunch at a magnificent tea estate owned by the same family for more than a century. Another specialty is silk production and weaving. In the courtyard of a cottage-industry workshop, three women squat on the ground. One turns a crank, while the others, with dexterous fingers, coax filaments of naturally golden, and exceptionally rare, muga silk off silkworm cocoons that float in a pot of water. The resulting thread is then used by highly skilled weavers at hand-and-foot operated looms to create gorgeous fabrics with intricate patterns. Mahatma Gandhi once said that Assamese women “weave dreams in muga silk.” The prices for shawls and tailored garments are embarrassingly modest.
Two half-day excursions into rugged Kaziranga National Park offer some of the world’s richest and most rewarding wildlife-viewing. We ride on the back of an elephant to get up close and personal with some of the park’s 2000 huge one-horned rhinos, as well as water buffalo and swamp deer. We bounce along jungle trails in an open jeep to train our binoculars and cameras on ospreys, eagles and storks. Agile langur monkeys leap through vast banyan trees festooned with orchids, while mynah birds flit about.
The river is so shallow that Charaidew runs aground repeatedly. A government navigation boat leads us through the sinuous and shifting main channel. On one grounding, however, we hit so hard that a rudder is damaged and will need to be removed and repaired in a shipyard. With apologies, our voyage must be cut short.
About the author:
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