Stranded in bone-chilling rain.
“It was a bone-chilling September rain. Heavy, unforgiving, pouring down for 5 hours. Accompanied by a wind which had daggers in its cloak. We were at 11,000 feet at the Kedarnath helipad. The tent that provided shelter was enough for 30. And there were 100’s of us hoping to get on to the helicopter that had been cancelled for hours. Though we had raincoats, the rain had soaked through every inch of our clothing. We were squelching with chill. While my wife and I were merely miserable, my daughter was running a high fever and I was afraid of she’d get pneumonia. But that’s not the worst of it. My mother is a heart patient and another heart attack was imminent. My father though reasonably fit, was deep in his 70’s. Grim is not the word for it.
“I had taken my whole family to Kedarnath, planning it well, so we would miss the monsoons. But the Himalayas are no respecter of plans, and perhaps climate change was upsetting the seasons.
Options went from Bad to Awful!
“Caught up on a mountain with torrential rain, and wind we looked at our options. They were awful.
“We had given up our hotel. And in Kedarnath, very basic hotels are in high demand, and cost a not inconsiderable 30,000. {For those doing a conversion, look at it this way, in purchasing power conversion, that’s 5,000 dollars}. Worse, with the rain backlog we still may not be able to get a hotel, at any price. The thought of spending another day or two stranded in the porch of a Government buiding made me shudder.
“Option 2: take a pony down the mountain. But many have slipped and fallen to their death ponying back to base down treacherous mountain paths. Which left us with taking human porters. Again, at a cost of 100,000 for the 5 of of us. And again considerable though risk. And with many of these options you can’t do an internet transfer. Hard cash or go jump.
“Option 3: wait at the helipad and pray.
Praying for a Miracle and they ARRRIVE!
“Out there in the miserable rain, I took Option 3. I closed my eyes and meditated. At first it was worse. The cold was colder. The whimpering of kids were louder. The shriek of rain felt sharper. Then, the meditation took. Something in me cried out to the God, the elements – “I know you want me to stay longer. But get my family to safety and I will return.” There was a pause. And then, suddenly, I relaxed.
“That moment was incredible and etched in my soul. The clouds were still dark. But my mind was light. The rain was still punishing. But calmness filled me. And the fog, hey how did I forget to tell you of the fog. It was like 10 feet and that’s it. Yes the world was foggy but my spirit was clear. The knots of fear, opened up. I felt a deep assurance like a hand to the back of my heart. And unvocalised message in light resonated in my head it said: ‘All will be well”.
“Minutes after the assurance the rain stopped, the clouds cleared, the raging wind turned into a light, playful wind. And the helicopter crew began to prepare for take-off…
“But the miracles don’t stop there… For with 20-30 helicopter flights cancelled. There were close to 200 of us there. At first, the air-crew, were shouting take 3-3 random, people. Do a lottery with names.
“Then suddenly like a bolt from the blue, the man in charge said, The Tiwari family. We boarded. The helicopter took off smoothly. It takes just 10 minutes over spectacular mountain folds and valleys and we were down on the helipad on good old, level ground. Gathering our luggage, waddling with wet clothes, {the feel of chilled wet underwear is torment}, and squelchy shoes we reached safety where taxis awaited, about to sweep us into the warm embrace of hotel rooms with steaming lunch… Then at that moment, as we turned and looked back at the helipad, we saw dark clouds had gathered round. The rain once again began its attempt to outdo waterfalls. Our hearts went out to 100’s left behind, the people we had befriended on the cold peaks of Kedarnath.”
Tarun & Celia's Spiritual Interrogation into The Whys of The Miracle!
“As I related this to Tarun & Celia, they began their psychic interrogation. {You know how they are? Pushing you to go into the crawlspaces of God}.
“They asked me to go back to the moment of relaxation. First I saw a hand of light, a tendril of light touch my heart as if assuring it. Then my root, chilled and scared relaxed from a blue-grey to a happy orange. Then a flood of light went up, and Tarun & Celia too saw the left side of my crown light up. Tarun says, it’s the nadi linking to my spirit guide…
““Who was it? Which God helped you?” Tarun demanded. While logic says, Kedarnath Temple is ruled by Lord Shiva, I did not see the classic form or trishul I often see. I got a golden light, that reminded me of my spirit guide I discovered in a Angels and Spiritual Guide session with Tarun & Celia. Shreenghayamurree… Now put like this, it sounds like a name. But it actually is like a sound so true, it gathers the beads of all universe… It is as a deep existential principle before earth was formed and humans coined the name Lord Shiva…
“Anyway, Tarun & Celia explained that that being call it Shreenghayamurree or Lord Shiva or golden presence had asked what the scriptures name as Nandi to help. He sent a kind of an energy pillar, which branched at many levels, crown, navel, below the feet. But this energy pillar or command by itself would not have resulted in miracles if I and my family had not believed.
“Tarun & Celia elaborated, the energy at my feet, and the command to the earth linked up to the land shakti which shifted the cloud pattern temporarily. If my root was not relaxed and sure that earth listens to ‘God’, the weather would have changed, but on another peak.
“The energy at the navel was redirected by me to the flight scheduler, and my dad. He had been bonding with the flight scheduler. Celia & Tarun elaborated, that the flight scheduler and my dad were connected in a past life. The command of the God and our actions resulted in us being chosen for the flight…
{2 quick commentaries: This is why even though a God may command an event, unless man matches it, and God’s helpers and shaktis agree, miracles can be still-born. Or just welcome assurances. Also, many look at Temples as buildings, or places, caught up with deities, carving, buildings and what-not, but the great Temples are actually gigantic rivers of existential power, that we humans mark on the flesh of earth.}
Terror, Miracle, Faith!
“I have met God often. But this time at Kedarnath, those 15 minutes where God/energy matrix, turned down the storm {like a fan knob}, and my family being {unfairly} blessed has cut deep. How deep? I am yet to absorb. Yes, I have met the divine for a decade. But in those 15 minutes, I met a lifetime of God. 12 lifetimes of God. So did my mom, my father, my wife, my daughter. God played a high-stakes poker game with me and my family. My heart still trembles when I recall those hours. But I have come out with a million in my soul pockets.
“Now, I have made a promise to God, to go back to him/ Kedarnath. Should you? 2 months after we reached safe the same heli-service crashed killing 7. From my spiritual awakening sessions with Tarun & Celia, I know we are deathless. But knowing it and knowing it are 2 very different things… there are great arms beneath us on this great journey, and I am sure they are there for us… and also for those whose flight hit the mountain.”
Ravi Tiwari
