The Great Gujarat Road
Odyssey – Day 14: Somnath & Diu
The plan is to go see the
Somnath Temple in the morning and then be on the way to Do the Diu. But the
town is being locked down as the CM is supposed to arrive today for the conclave.
Good sense is to leave the town immediately. You had stayed in Veraval, about
seven kms north of Somnath. The towns were lit up last night as if it was
Diwali.
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| One Word: Diu |
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| I Love Diu |
Few kms from Veraval is the
Bhalka Teerth. Lord Krishna saddened by the Yadavas’ infighting and massacaring,
retires to this spot to meditate. A hunter Jara mistakes his foot for a deer
and shoots an arrow. Lord Krishna departed for Neejdham and was cremated at a
nearby place called Dehotsarg. According to Purans, this happened on 18th
Feb 3102 BC.
Jara is forgiven because
this was all preordained 36 years ago When Gandhari cursed Krishna for killing
her 100 sons. Incidentally, Jara is Vali
who Krishna had killed donning Ram’s avatar in another era.
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| Bhalka Teerth where Lord Krishna departed in Prabhas Patan |
Bhalka Teerth is getting a
makeover. Pillars have been erected and probably a temple will come over the
white marble idol of smiling Krishna. There is a small kund which is probably
the site where Krishna was meditating. Workers are sawing stones raising dust.
Dust follows you everywhere in Gujarat. God is finally going to hear you.
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| Boat Yard in Veraval |
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| Veraval: The Fishing Boat Harbour |
Driving down the Bandar
Road, there are thousands of fishing boats in the Fishery Harbour Area. By the road, a boat yard is building these timber boats. You
saw one in Mandvi in Bhuj. Looks like this has been going on for thousands of
years ago since the Lothal times when timber boats, probably similar to this one, would sail to
Mesopotamia from coast of Gujarat.
Skirting the Somnath
Temple, on the road to Diu, before the narrow bridge on River Hiran, you turn left to drive
straight into the Sheetla Maa Complex.
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| Sun Temple in Prabhas Patan |
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| View of Surya Mandir near Somnath - late 19th century |
Next to the bathroom-tiled
temple is a surprise. Amidst Angkor Vat like setting a forlorn and ruined
temple stands, well barely. This is quite a find. You are sure Gujarat ASI has
still not found time to come visit it in recent past. Even the sign has fallen
and is lying among the fallen leaves - probably uprooted by the same nice folks
who have scribbled inside and left all this dirt around. You still can’t believe how this temple has survived
all the upheavals that happened just a short distance away to the West.
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| Deity of Surya |
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| Sun Temple: The yellow marble portal to the mandap |
The temple reportedly was
built around 1350 by the Chudasama King Mahipaladeva and has all the elements - porch, octagonal mandap now with open roof, antaral, sanctum
and ambulatory. The ambulatory is decorated with niches that has Surya
depictions. The entire premises have thick overgrowth with a forest on top.
This is our country’s paradox. While hills and forests are being cleared in the
name of development, here on top of an almost 1000 year temple, a forest has
grown. The place is littered and filthy. Broken images lie all around. This one frame, conveys the gap
between the high profile tourism promotion and ground reality.
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| This can only happen under the watch of Gujarat ASI - perhaps the worst bunch of people |
The temple built
overlooking the Triveni and facing East with the Surya deity, must have been a
temple of eminence, opines Henry Cousens. The front porch and the front of the
Mandap seems to have been rebuilt clumsily. So the temple, just like the Somnath Temple within earshot,
was mostly demolished with the shikhara and mandap thrown down. The
surviving lower mouldings would have looked similar to the Somnath Temple.
Later the porch and the mandap would have been rebuilt.
So what could not be
destroyed by the iconoclasts, the barely surviving temple suffers at the hands of the
present custodians who could not be bothered to take care of it. While we rue
the demolished and disappeared temples, here an almost complete temple has been left to rot.
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| Somnath: River Hiran |
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| Somnath Temple rises as River Hiran flows towards the Triveni |
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| Somnath Triveni |
You are back on the narrow
bridge over the Hiran river. Downstream, River Kapila, along with the mythical
Saraswati rivers meet to form the Sangam or Triveni. In the distance, Somnath
Temple rises. This is probably the Dehotsarga where Krishna was cremated. From
Mathura, to Kurukshetra, to Dwarka Bet and now to Bhalka Teertha and Dehotsarga,
you have completed the journey with the Lord.
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| Gujarat Police Road Post at Tad - Respect All Suspect All! |
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| The causeway that connects Gujarat to west Diu |
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| Oh Yes! |
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| So the Gujarati Chakdas can be seen across the state and now even in Diu |
Even in the wildest dreams
you would not have thought of one day driving from Delhi into the island of
Diu. Here you are driving from Tad, the last village on Gujarat side, onto the
causeway built over tidal marshes and saltpans into a different political
entity for the first time – the Union Territory Administration of Dadra and
Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu.
You remember from your
school geography classes the little piece of land hanging from the mainland of
Gujarat. The change in the landscape is immediate. Coconut palms line the shady
road. You have finally shaken off the dust cloud. It is clean and fresh and
breezy here. The seafront looks beautiful. You are going to love this island.
You just drive around for first few minutes just trying to get a hang of this
exciting looking part of India that was almost unattainable all this while and
a foreign outpost till 1961.
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| Diu: Gateway to Heaven |
Diu has two bridges that
connect it to the Kathiawad peninsula – one that you came on from Tad; the
other is on the eastern end that connects to Ghoghla village, a part of Diu, on
the mainland.
Next few daylight hours are
going to be rushed while the evening holds the promise of Diu Festival that
goes on here for several winter months.
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| Diu Cross - the road goes north to Una in Gujarat; to the right is the Fort Road that goes to the western tip with Diu Fort |
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| Jallandhar Beach, Diu |
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| South Pole is just 12325 kms from Diu |
Diu finds mention in Mahabharat where it is called Mani Nagar and like every place in India, Pandavas too came here during their exile. In mythology, Diu was called Jallandharkshetra because a demon-king named Jallandhar lived here who was killed by Lord Vishnu.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Just
a Thought
Just across the sea from
Gujarat, Diu is everything what Gujarat is not – it is superclean, there is no
dust, there are hardly any people and there is no noise. Diu Fort is well cared
for and impeccable, the beaches are heavenly and there is helpful signage all
around the island for a visitor who has just driven in for the first time.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
You are back on the sea
front as you watch life go by on the sea. Diu is actually beautiful. You are so
taken in by the beauty and the neatness. You just float around trying to stay
sane as you turn delirious. Best part of being in Diu after spending two weeks
in Gujarat is that once you are away from the tourist heavy seastrip, rest of
Diu is quiet, with no people and mot charmingly and no dust here.
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| The Zampa Gateway of Old Diu |
The Zampa Gateway is an
interesting painted red fortified entry to the old city. Just inside is a
chapel horribly remodelled in 1950 with tiles but has a charming image of
Virgin & Child and with a tablet that indicates a date of 1702.
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| Naida Caves in Diu |
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| Diu: The incredible cavescape of Naida Caves |
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| Diu Fort: View of the St George Bastion |
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| A masonry tank in Diu Fort to harvest rain water |
Diu Fort is one of the most
beautiful forts in many ways. It has the perfect setting as if rising from the
blue waters of Arabian Sea. The ramparts are in good shape and have this
European look giving you a feeling that you are somewhere on Scottish coast. In
the distance, there is the island fortress of Panikota. The premises are neat and the sun is spreading the golden light and
even though there is time for the sun to set and that is when the heritage
places close but the fort closes at five so you will be scampering around the fort
before they decide to lock you in. Yes the guards are threatening to lock you in. Diu's jail is inside the fort and the proposition does not look promising!
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| These howitzers would have seen action in 1961 during Operation Vijay to liberate Diu from Portuguese occupation |
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| Diu Fort: Way to St. Philip and St Nicholus Bastions |
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| The ruined St Tiago Chapel |
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| Diu Fort: St Tiago Chapel |
The fort is armed with all the paraphernalia that makes this a complete fort. The Portuguese did
make it look all so, well, Portuguese. There are bastions named after saints, there are cannons
and howitzers, there is that double moat, double gateways, there are chapels, there is an armory, there are grave stones inscribed
with script that you remember from Velha Goa and all the Portuguese places you
have seen in Kochi to Kolkata. There are African Hoka Palms and there is the
Light House and that reminds you that you have still not been able to climb one. And there are
dungeons and there are temple parts and you know how the Portuguese went medieval
on temples in Goa and elsewhere. It is just so perplexing that how small places like Diu, Goa and Assam so lovingly take care of their heritage while places like Gujarat and Maharashtra leave their heritage to die.
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| Diu: INS Khukri Memorial |
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| INS Khukri |
These seas around Diu have
seen warships from medieval ages. Along with the Portuguese and Gujarat
Sultanate ships, a Turkish armada too floated in. The Portuguese emerged
victorious and would stay here till 1961. In more modern times, these waters
saw action during India- Pakistan war of 1971. On 9th Dec 1971, INS
Khukri, a frigate was torpedoed by the Pakistani submarine Hangor and went
under water along with the Captain, 18 officers and 176 sailors, about 40 nautical miles off the Diu Coast. This is Indian
Navy’s only loss of a ship in combat. This is a solemn moment as you look out
into the sea to remember the fallen men.
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| Sunset Point in Diu |
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| INS Khukri Sunset Point, Diu: you were concerned when you saw this person hop and jump to the farthest rocky ridge into the waters. Tide could have come in. But he probably knew what he was doing. The sightseeing done, he unfazedly jumps back to the shores. |
The sinking sun is signalling
the end of another day on the road. You are barely able to balance yourself as
you climb this eroded rock shelf. People have taken up position on the rock as they
watch skies take brilliant colours. Waves lap gently below.
There is something about sunsets
on the road. While they treat you to these magical scenes that are rare in an
urbanscape, the sunsets bring that inexplicable longingness that usually lies
in there somewhere, unfelt, to the surface. Now only if you could figure out
what it is. The setting sun does not ever help. It brings those feelings up and
by the time you look for answers it disappears. And it keeps doing it to you.
***********************************************
We Don’t Have Any Branches –
this Palm does
As you move towards Diu
beyond Kodinar, there is a surprise as big as the Sun Temple in Prabhas Patan.
Palm trees which usually grow straight have evidently been hit by lightning and
their trunk has split into branches. And now the ramrod straight palm seems to
be undecided and is growing in every direction possible. You have never seen
anything like this before. There are more scattered ones on the way and you
have to stop and investigate and take photos.
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| Branching African Hoka Palm |
In Diu, there are whole
clumps of these branched palms apparently happy in the dust free salty air. Palms
are acutally creating these orchard like shaded groves with the breeze being
fanned by their well fan like leaves.
बड़ा हुआ तो क्या हुआ, जैसे पेड़ खजूर |
पंथी को छाया नहीं, फल लागे अति दूर ||
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| Diu: Gingerbread Tree |
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| Diu Fort: African Hoka Palm or Doum Palm - Hyphaene dichotoma |
Of course, Kabir wasn’t lucky
to have come to Diu otherwise he wouldn’t have belittled palms for not offering
shade to the traveller from faraway.
***********************************************
Festa De Diu Nights at Nagoa Beach
There are times when you don’t wish for things just because they
are so far out and you just don’t want to bother Him, instead saving your
wishes for the times when they are more realistic.
But of course God has other plans. First you are sent to the
Hornbill Festival on the Eastern tip of India and now, so incredibly, you find
yourself on the Western tip at the ‘Festa De Diu’. It is so unbelievable that
you stop wondering why this is happening to you and just try to make the best
of it. So the second night, on your way onwards to Palitana, you drive back
into the prettiest town of Diu for another night of festivities.
At Festa De Diu, Nagoa Beach, Diu (Asia’s Longest Beach Festival
– 1st Dec to 15th Feb 2016)
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| Festa De Diu |
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| The Diu Village at Festa De Diu |
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| Lambada, a Pune based band performing at Festa De Diu |
Festa De Diu is the longest Beach Festival of Asia and runs through winter from Dec to Feb. So you can drop in anytime and get treated to live performances. This part of Nagao Beach looks plush as the lights come on. This is Diu Tourism’s Diu Village with luxury tent cottages that are way beyond your budget. You will just have a look around. Apparently, there is lot to do around here and the whole shebang includes Bungee Jumping and Hot Air Ballooning. For now you will go to the concert site that is almost empty and take in some local rock gigs.
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| Diu: Zampa Gateway that leads into the packed old Diu town |
Back into the city, the Zampa Gateway is lit and. The empty roads sparkle. The vibe of the town is carefree. You seem to belong to this place. You could cruise on the roads all night.
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| Diu: Zampa Gateway |
You are ready to fall in love with Diu.
The journey continues.
Day's Stats
- Route
Taken – Veraval to Pranchi to Kodinar. From Tad, the last village on Gujarat side you cross into Diu
- Distance
covered today – 120 kms
- Total
Distance covered so far - 3180 kms
References
Somanatha and Other Mediaeval Temples in Kathiawad by
Henry Cousens, 1931
Imperial Gazetteer of India – Vol IV, 1885 – Page 305
Report on the Antiquities of Kathiawad and Kachh, 1874-75 by James Burgess
Bhalka Teerth
Sun Temple
Branching African Hoka Palm
The Territories and States of India 2016 Europa
Publications
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