Fw: Arunachala Information, News, Updates and People

October 1, 2006

Arunachala Grace News - October, 2006

Ley Lines

Some people postulate ancient sites and monuments are somehow all interconnected through a meridian of what is known as Ley Lines and that these Ley Lines are part of the Earth's energy system. Ley, as a word, is akin to leoht (light illumination) and Middle English lea meaning 'pasture land, a meadow which is open to the sun and therefore, at times, drenched with light.' The most potent ancient monuments around the world have one thing in common: the presence of Earth energies which have the power to alter and uplift human consciousness. The theory of Ley Lines, a subtle energy system is beginning to be recognized and used today. Such Ley Lines are found at most ancient monuments and sacred places and the system is believed to exist as an independent circuitry with the capacity to affect consciousness. Power centres radiate a universal energy that as well as affecting consciousness can themselves be influenced and also changed by consciousness itself. In fact strong human emotions experienced over time at a power center creates layers of consciousness that future visitors can feel and experience.

Ley Lines

The Greening of Arunachala

[by Apeetha Arunagiri] The terrain of the Greening is a rocky mountain in the centre of a plain ringed by mountains: the Maha Mandalam. This rocky mountain is an icon, an indicator and a beacon confirming the presence of a column of invisible light. Locals affectionately refer to the rocky mountain by the nickname "the holy hill". Experts claim that it has a granite core extending two hundred kilometres down into the earth. Its visible shape certainly invites contemplation on unity within diversity and it undoubtedly has a profound influence on those fortunate enough to come to it, sometimes even on those fortunate enough to see a photograph of it. The Greening of Arunachala is an ongoing process from which participants now claim there is no turning back. This process contributes towards the primary health care of the local inhabitants in this potentially rich ecosystem. The focus of the process is on Arunachala's underground artesian basin. Only the roots of trees will enable our water table to regenerate now that this area approaches the category "desert". Despite contrary indications due to the green flush of insufficient rains, the water beneath our feet approaches this dangerous official designation because of environmental mismanagement in the past, particularly in response to the monumental rise in population during the past seventeen years, since Thiruvannamalai became District Headquarters. The roots of trees hold the soil and so prevent erosion on our heavily eroded mountain. They also contribute towards water conservation: one adult tree utilizes many millions of roots and trillions of root hairs to retain moisture after rain and release it slowly into the underground reserves – thus minimizing waste. We are exceedingly fortunate here to have a huge monolith in the centre of a plain because it affords us a tremendously large catchment surface area to capture and conserve precious water in our formidably hot dry climate. The untold trillions of roots on a forested mountain will ensure that we always have plenty of water, even in drought. During the last twenty years an enormous number of trees have been planted with the intention of utilizing the mountain's capacity to support a large population of humans and animals in good health. There is a concerted effort in progress now by government and non-government groups to ensure that the children of our children, and their children into the future we cannot share, are enabled to live well in this divine place. A very vast number of trees are still to be planted, and in order for the forest to be sustainable the mountain will require constant vigilant protection, however awareness is certainly growing within the community that the Greening is most welcome. It will take some years before the effects of plantation become visible in the rising level of our underground water, but eventually it will be visible and moreover, tree plantation will attract rain because trees are intimately connected to our waters, both above and below. Although the growing of a forest is an exceedingly lengthy process, the effects of the plantation work of the past twenty-five years are now very visible. Arunachala has been a lodestone since time before mind and this will no doubt continue. A realistic prognosis for the future of Thiruvannamalai is towards a chaotic city with a beautiful mountain in the middle. The mountain in the middle of the future Thiruvannamalai will be as sacred a natural lingam as it has always been, and provided that the Greening is sustained consistently, the area is sufficient to support a healthy wilderness, particularly if safe corridors are conserved between Arunachala and adjacent wilderness areas. The Greening of Arunachala sets a perfect environmental precedent since firstly it is so very visible, and secondly it is very visible to a very large number of pilgrims who regularly visit here. Sobeit.

Please accept this invitation to visit

Species Selection and Planting Techniques

Species Selection and Planting Techniques for Arunachala Greening. The earliest efforts made toward greening Arunachala had included some exotic species, as well as others that while native to India, would not naturally be found in this locality. It is my feeling that even leaving aside the various arguments regarding alien species, the simple point is that the forests of this area are so species rich, so interesting and so beautiful, that there is no impulse to look outside such a treasure trove when reforesting the Holy Mountain. I also believe that from a purely pragmatic viewpoint, the survival rate of local species will on the whole be better, though this is of course not always the case. There is a common perception regarding the forests of Mount Arunachala that there are no such thing, that the slopes of the Hill are basically barren, rocks with a few thorn bushes here and there, and only wild lemon grass covering what little soil there is. This couldn't be further from the truth. While it is true that there is almost nowhere a closed canopy of old forest, pockets of stunted remnant vegetation survive all over the Hill, and most promisingly, there is also a natural regeneration taking place everywhere. It is by observing closely these remnant pockets and the fresh re-growth that we can best learn what will be the most appropriate species to plant. It is also valuable to visit nearby forests that remain somewhat pristine, in order to garner more information regarding appropriate species. These visits are also very rewarding for the project staff, giving them the experience of being in true forest and a feeling for where we are heading in our work. The most plentiful species on Mount Arunachala are Satin-wood, Vepaalai, Indian Laburnum, Vengai, Udupai, Vitex altissima (peacock's foot), Strychnos potatorum (clearing-nut), Rose-wood, Deccania pubescence and some of the local Acacia varieties. We find Soap-nut, Amla and Ebony along with five other species of Diospyros. From the rocks sprout ficus varieties, and higher up there are patches of Terminalias paniculata and tomentosa. In sheltered pockets of valleys and near the top, where it is cooler and there is more dew-fall, evergreens such as Cassine glauca, Drypetes, Lepisanthes tetraphilla, Memecylon and Pamburus (a type of wild orange) are more common, while on the most exposed and degraded slopes Sterculia, Givottia, Commiphora and even the endangered Hildegardia can be found. All in all, the number of woody species native to Arunachala is probably over 150 and could be as many as 200. We have planted over 100 of these different trees, some just a few, others in their thousands. There are some, such as the Acacias, Stereospermum and Hardwickia, that are virtually indestructible. A second group, which would include most of the species we plant, will suffer some casualties (depending on the severity of their first summer) but will on the whole do pretty well. With others success may depend on correct selection of altitude, aspect or soil type, and with others still it may be that they will only survive their first years in the shade of other trees. Generally speaking, there are a few things that will affect the survival of any tree planted out on the Hill. It is critical that the tree gets maximum time to establish itself in favourable conditions before the onset of summer. Any shock that the tree receives during transplanting will delay it's root formation as it recovers from the shock. Trees that have been too long in the nursery are also slower to establish as they have become pot-bound in their packets. So we try to plant as early as the rains will allow us, to plant the right species, and to plant saplings with a healthy, vibrant root structure that is ready to immediately extend down into the ground. It is also important that the size of the pit into which the tree is planted is sufficient to give the roots a little loose soil to grow into. Follow up care is fairly minimal, mulching and creating small water catchments around the tree. With these works, as with the size of the pit, there is a basic economic calculation as to where the extra benefit in terms of increased survival rates is cancelled out by higher costs. We have settled on pits of one and a half feet deep (any deeper is anyway very difficult in the rocky soil), and are finding that we have a survival rate of over 60% after one year, which is extremely gratifying, and compares favorably with the experience of other efforts in such conditions. [Govinda Bowley is the Founder and Director of the Mountain of Medicine project, and has recently become the Secretary of the Annamalai Reforestation Society. He can be contacted at arunachalagovinda]

Soatru katraazhai – Aloe Vera

By Herbologist Dr. Manickam [email: drmanickam_tvm] Aloe Vera is famous the world over. However it is little known in the traditional Indian ayurvedic treatment of peeling the stalks clean and then eating with jaggery (nuggets of dark brown sugar). This acts as a blood purifier, reduces body heat and is also good for the stomach. Similarly extracts are prepared from this herb that will cure stomach ulcers and cool the body. Farms in India are actually being encouraged to grow Aloe Vera by offering farmers tax incentives. The increased quantities of Aloe Vera is being utilised for cosmetic and medical purposes. Aloe Vera is a hardy and prolific grower that needs little water and is very suited to the South India climate. This herb occupies an important place in Siddha and Ayurvedic medicines. It is called an Eligzer and Aloes Homeopathic Medicine is prepared from this herb. Ointments for skin diseases and for facial beauty cosmetics are made from Aloe Vera. A lotion is also prepared called Kumari Thailam which is used to encourage hair growth on the head.

Retreat, Residential Venue - ARS

The Arunachala Reforestation Society model farm is located 4 kms from the base of Arunachala, but the actual distance you need to travel from Ramana Nagar is about 7 kms. The farm which is situated in the countryside on the South side of the Hill, is managed on behalf of ARS by its manager Mani and a staff of 13 agricultural workers - many of who, depending on the season, spend most of their time on specific Hill duties. The farm is a working one, however it can be used as Venue for Retreats or to house individual guests. Accommodation comprises 15 rooms with shared bathroom facilities and the maximum number of guests that can be welcomed at one time is 60. South India cooking is available and specific menus can be developed according to tastes. There are also laundry facilities available at the Farm. The facility has an excellent infrastructure with a combined solar system-EB system with a water storage capacity of 30,000 litres. The 8 acre facility is very peaceful and other than a yearly Permaculture course, is rarely used as a Retreat Venue probably because it is not well known. However it actually provides an idyllic, peaceful setting whilst being close to Arunachala. The area is unspoilt with pleasant country walks through old fashioned villages. For enquiries regarding Retreats, group bookings or individual stays please email Govinda at: ars.tiru

Monsoon preparations

Tiruvannamalai Municipality recently convened a District Disaster Management Committee to discuss precautionary measures to be taken to mitigate possible flood situations during the October-December Northeast monsoon season. In this respect PWD (forest) officials were requested to prepare materials such as gunny bags, wooden logs and sand to repair possible breaches in water bodies. Public Health Officials have been requested to ensure the availability of sufficient quantities of medicines in the case of monsoon-related illnesses. Fire and rescue service personnel have also been asked to ensure facilities such as rubber boats and ambulances are available throughout the monsoon period. The Municipality also ordered that Control Rooms should operate round-the-clock in Tiruvannamalai Divisional Offices throughout the October-December Northeast monsoon season.

Arunachala Ecology

The Arunachaleswarar Temple, tanks and wells around the giripradakshina path comprise part of an ancient water conservation system designed to harness surface run-off from the Hill. The system comprises a ring of inter-connected reservoirs about 1-1½ kms from the base of Arunachala that receive water run-off from the Hill and also an inner ring of wells and tanks along the base of Arunachala which are part of an ancient water conservation system. Reforestation work done by organisations such as Arunachala Reforestation Society (ARS) and Kadu Siva Plantation are responsible for the improved stability of soil during monsoon floods and the reduction of silting of ponds and reservoirs at the foot of the Hill. Unfortunately rampant and ill-planned urbanisation and development of the Tiruvannamalai area have considerably undermined the viability of canals and reservoirs around the Hill. Arunachala is like a natural sponge holding water by virtue of its foliage which is sustained by ground water from porous rocks, springs and rivulets. However serious damage has destablised the ecology of this area through years of unsound practices of wood cutting, goat and cow grazing and Hill fires. Soil erosion on Arunachala became so unstable due to the lack of the bonding effect of deep tree roots that in 1966 a landslide occurred with boulders from the Hill actually falling on the south-western side of Tiruvannamalai!

Trees of Arunachala Worship

The following trees are mentioned in the Skanda Purana as being especially favoured by Arunachala. Photo of Cassia Fistula: Kesaras (Rottleria tinctoria) Nagas (Mesu Rox Burghii) Aragvadhas (Cassia Fistula) - Indian laburnum/Golden shower Punnagas (Mallotus Philippinensis) - Monkey-face Tree Kurabakas (A kind of Barleria) Cutas (Mango Tree) Patalas –Trumpet Flower Tree Maluras (Feronia Elephantum) – Wood Apple

In This Issue:

Ley Lines

The Greening of Arunachala

Species Selection and Planting Techniques

Soatru katraazhai – Aloe Vera

Retreat, Residential Venue - ARS

Monsoon preparations

Arunachala Ecology

Trees of Arunachala Worship

Arunachala Grace Network

News and Services

My Name is 'I AM'

Notes on a Personal Sadhana

Upwards

Links

Arunachala Grace Network

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Our Website

News and Services

This month we continue with reforestation at Arunachala and have a report from Apeetha Arunagiri of Arunachala Kadu Siva Plantation and one from Govinda Bowley, Mountain of Medicine. We also include information from Dr. Manickam and hereafter hope to include regular updates of local herbs and foliage in our monthly Newsletters. Next month our Newsletter will concentre on Health at Tiruvannamalai; both allopathic as at Rangammal Hospital and naturopathic with news about local practioners. We will also have features on ecology, herbology, narratives, quotes, news updates and information on Arunachala resources. ************************* Accommodation Information It is possible to book accommodation at Sri Seshadri Ashram in advance. Note: a/c rooms are more comfortable as they have been built recently. Contact: R.Muthukumaraswamy, Secretary, Sri Seshadri Swamigal Ashram, Chengam Road, Tiruvannamalai 606603, T.N. tel: +91-(0)4175-236999 email: trl_seshadri ************************* This month our recommendation for local services focuses on two Hotels at Tiruvannamalai: (1) Hotel Trishul, 6 Kanakaraya Mudai, 3 minutes from the temple, a/c rooms. Vegetarian A/C rooftop restaurant with view of Temple. tel: +91-(0)4175-222219 Brilliantly located near the Temple. The Hotel is surprisingly quiet considering the location. (2) Hotel Ramakrishna 34-F Polur Road, Tiruvannamalai 606601 tel: +91-(0)4175-25004-7 Fax: +91-(0)4175-25008 A comfortable Hotel with a/c rooms, a good restaurant (which is always busy) close to town and the Big Temple. A Hotel probably more suitable for short stays.

Hotel Ramakrishna

My Name is 'I AM'

[anonymous] I was regretting the past and fearing the future. Suddenly my Lord was speaking, 'My name is I AM' He paused. I waited. He continued. 'When you live in the past with its mistakes And regrets, it is hard. I am not there. My name is not I WAS. When you live in the future with its problems And fears, it is hard. I am not there. My name is not I WILL BE. When you live in this moment, it is not hard. I am here. My name is I AM.' ************************* Arunachala Puranam "All stones in that place [Arunachala] are lingams. It is indeed the Abode of Lord Siva. All trees are the wish-granting trees of Indra's heaven. Its rippling waters are the Ganges, flowing through our Lord's matted locks. The food eaten there is the ambrosia of the Gods. When men move about in that place it is the earth performing pradakshina around it. Words spoken there are holy scripture, and to fall asleep there is to be absorbed in samadhi, beyond the mind's delusion. Could there be any other place which is its equal?"

Notes on a Personal Sadhana

[by Alasdair Black] The first sight of Arunachala is a significant and memorable event in the life of every devotee. My first contact was not so much a sighting as an awareness of a looming brooding presence over the town of Tiruvannamalai when I arrived in the very early morning of my first visit in 1979. I had come by train from Villupuram, and although it was not yet light, the mass of the mountain was evident from a blotting out of the stars in the direction I knew it to be. The outline cleared during the ride by bullock cart from the station to the Ashram. I was very excited. The first light began to illumine massive boulders in pinkish hues and very quickly the whole vast dawn splendour revealed itself in what felt like an intoxicating immensity. Time slowed, and it seemed as if my soul like a struggling amphibian lurched and emerged, wobbling and rejoicing, into the air of a fresh and sweet consciousness. It was an important event for me. On another occasion I went off for a weekend to stay at the nearby Ashram of Father Bede Griffiths at Shantivanam. Although the place has its own special beauty, I frankly could not wait to get back. I rose on the Monday morning at 3 a.m. to catch the early morning bus to arrive in Tiruvannamalai at midday. As the rickety vehicle approached on the last hop from Tirukoilur, the first distantly faint outline of the Hill swam hazily into view in the late morning sun. I could not believe how beautiful it was. It seemed at that distance to be perfectly symmetrical, like one of those idealised Chinese prints of some romantic and misty but unbelievable mountain. However, this was real, and again I was very excited. It was faint and blue, mysterious and alluring. As we came nearer, all the bumps and irregularities assumed their usual, and by now very familiar, form. I was glad to be back. Such beauty, such inner magnetism, cannot be adequately explained or described. Arunachala may simply be, for some, the true inner pole of the Earth, as Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi so often asserted. Such devotional outpourings are reminiscent of the hymns of Prophet Isaiah in another context: "Rejoice for Jerusalem and be glad for her All you who loved her . . . That you may suck and be satisfied With her consoling breasts, That you may drink deeply with delight From the abundance of her glory. For thus says the Lord: Behold, I will extend prosperity to her like a river And you shall suck, and you shall be carried upon her hip And dandled upon her knees . . ." One does indeed long to fill oneself, greedily and in great gulps, with the milk of loving-kindness, wisdom and enlightenment, from those stark stumpy paps of Arunachala, to be dandled upon those accommodating slopes and ravines, to allow the burdensome ego to dissolve into the bliss of its Oneness! "It stands as an insentient Hill. Its action is mysterious past human understanding. From the age of innocence it had been within my mind that Arunachala was something of surpassing grandeur. .. . It drew me to it, stilling my mind . . . Thou dwellest in different religions under different names and forms . . . Thy unity permeates the diversity of beings and religions . . . nothing can keep the soul from returning to its Source . . . Arunachala, Self, Ocean of Bliss." [Arunachala Venba by Guru Namashivaya] ************************* Wonders [by Iswari Kamalabaskaran] When I think of all the wonders of this world, The earth, sea and sky and all that in it, I know they would not mean a solitary thing, Unless, I could end my days in the bliss of Thee. I have been told, All the corners are meant for man, To walk, to fly, encompassing all, To bind their lives in this search, The masters of all they see. Yet, When I move within that frame, Within the confining walls, Of this earth and sky, I find I cannot build my life that way, In fear it could stain. My soul moves in a different way, My life, A continuous search, So that when it meets with yours at my journey's end, It will step into that bliss that only you can give!

Buy Iswari Kamalabaskaran books here

Upwards

If you wish to climb to the top of Arunachala, there are two preferred routes. One is to take the stone path that leads from the back gate of Ramana Ashram. A 20 min hike will take you to Skandashram, the hermitage overlooking Tiruvannamalai where Ramana lived from 1916-1922. From there you follow the white paint on marking stones all the way to the top. The other major route starts opposite the West Gopuram of Arunachaleswarar Temple. A small road leads steeply upwards, past Guru Namashivaya Shrine, Mango Cave and Virupaksha Cave. From there the path becomes non-existent and increasingly difficult but it is well marked with paint daubed stones. Make sure whichever path you take, you are wearing non-slip shoes, have a good bamboo walking stick, and a small backpack with lots of water. Do not believe people who say, 'piece of cake', 'easy' and 'two hours up and two hours down'. It is a difficult hike which sometimes becomes quite a battle. For someone physically out-of-shape, who needs a lot of rest breaks, the ascent of the Hill may well entail a 5 hour climb up and a 6 hour climb down.

Links:

News and Updates of ArunachalaIn-depth Arunachala informationLey LinesArunachala Kadu Shiva PlantationApeetha Arunagiri SiteArunachala BooksHotel Ramakrishna