Tag Archives: Kumbh Mela India is in the news at the moment – because of Covid. In spite of the fast-tracking of any vaccines the country can get hold of, a second wave of virus variants is sweeping the country. India now has the second-highest number of Covid cases in the world, and their public and private hospital systems […]  The crush of humanity heading to and from the Ganges through the streets of Haridwar seems unimaginable now. Haridwar, in Uttarakhand in North India, flanks the holy River Ganges as it flows south and east out of the Western Himalaya. The city has a population of just over 310,000 (2011), but when I was there […]  “Respect all religions. Practice your own.” So said a Swami visiting Australia many years ago in interview when asked if he wished to attract people to his Hindu faith. Proselytisation is an alien concept in Indian religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. Sectarianism violence has played – and still plays – a central […]  India is an intensely sensory experience. For me – a Westerner who grew up in a conservative culture of lowered voices and subdued shades in the northern prairie lands of snow and open spaces – the colours, the smells, the heat, and the press of the crowds in India can quickly lead to sensory overload. […]  Much of the world is currently in lock-down, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic and the inadvisability of being in small spaces with large numbers of people. I currently have two lots of travel insurance – and travel plans – that are functionally worthless as countries spiral into panic and wonder how their already-stretched health systems […] |
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