tired after a day-long pilgrim walk by hundreds of thousands of devotees, resting silently - at Velapur, Solapur District, Maharashtra

The wari  is a tradition that has been truly Maharashtrian, mainly Deccan, for more than 400 years and more. The dedicated devotees in the wari, are the warkaris, and they consider God as the ultimate truth and accept that all humans are ultimately equal. Being a warkari requires dedication beyond devotion, and includes appropriate ethical and moral behaviour and lifestyle. The great walk from Dehu and Alandi to Pandharpur is perhaps one of the largest voluntary congregations of humans in the world in a region for a considerable number of days. 

Velapur is an important staging point for the Sant Dnyaneshwar palkhi that comes from Alandi via Pune and went ahead to Pandharpur, crossing more than 220 kilometres, in time for the Ashaadh Ekadashi. Lakhs (ie hundreds of thousands) of warkaris who walk all the way to Pandharpur, come to rest at mid-route at Velapur. During the monsoon, the camping grounds at Velapur is slushy, in pouring rain, and there is hardly any adequate electricity or sanitation at the premises. But, they come silently and organise themselves in neat quadrants, and keep chanting their prayers until about midnight. Soon after, the half a million or more pilgrims rest it out, sleeping or praying, silently.

The entire camping ground is taken over, methodically, with tents coming up and water tanks filled up. There is no confusion and there is no chaos. This photograph was taken sometime after midnight, with the pilgrims resting silently, and an enormous calm filling the camping ground. Sometimes it rained, and  the pilgrims just shrugged it off, pulling out plastic sheets and covering themselves. Even the rain seemed to be like a blessing. 

the wainganga - the river that flows north at Markanda, Gadchiroli District, Maharashtra

The Wainganga or Penganga River is famous for its locations being mentioned in Rudyard Kipling's "Jungle Books" as the domain of Mowgli, Baloo, Sher Khan, Bagheera and other animals. One mention is of Akela, the pack leader of the wolves, and his entire pack of more than a hundred wolves, running alongside the Wainganga River. There is another mention of a pack of jungle dogs chasing down a sambhur male stag, if I remember rightly.

This photograph of the Wainganga is at a very unique location. The south flowing river that starts somewhere in Seoni in Madhya Pradesh and races to join the Godavari River, is at this location - flowing north alongside the holy and sacred Markendeshwar or Markanda temple at Chamorshi Village in Gadchiroli District of Maharashtra.

For one stretch alongside the Gadchiroli District, the Wainganga River spreads out wide, and turns north and later, again turns to flow south. Alongside the Markanda Temple, one cannot imagine that there would be another parallel flow of this river after it turns southwards. At the temple banks, the river is peaceful, spread wide, and flowing steadily. One can see the opposite banks at quite some distance, and if one can harken back to Kipling's Jungle Books, one can almost see Akela and his pack racing alongside the river.

The temple is a splendid location and worth visiting. There are many small temples within the perimeter, almost 16 to my count. Some of them are in good standing, and one can see devotees visit them and offer prayers. Several devotees and pilgrims walk down the steps from the temple to the river banks and offer their salutations, take a dip and present their prayers. Its absolutely beautiful at dusk, as I could witness in one visit.

My zen moment at this temple and the river was to look upon the vast panorama, and sit amazed at the splendid country. The river is very different from most other rivers that one can visit in the Subcontinent. The crowds, the temples, the polluted cities and boats and shops and vendors are not there. Its absolutely and totally an unhibited river stretch of the Wainganga at Markanda.