Am not one of the 'temple-visiting' kind। In fact I would rather avoid a visit to a famous temple just to steer clear from the crowds of frenzied devotee! Would prefer paying my respects to the Lord at any small temple amidst natural suroundings to take in the pristine energy such a place offers. But when you take a holiday via road, it is just right that you visit such places that are on your route or even make a slight detour to visit one that is a 'must see'.
Our first halt was at Shamlaji which has a lovely Vishnu temple situated at the base of hills and definitely a 'must-see' as compared to the ones that are overly frequented by devotees। We reached there by about 8।30 AM. This is a nice time to go when there are no crowds and one can get a good view of the temple architecture. The outer walls of the temple are replete with exquisitely carved figures that make one wonder about the skilled artisans that lived ages ago and probably spent an entire life sculpting them.
The next halt was a Nathadwara which is houses the famous Shreenathji temple, one of the most frequently visited ones this side of the country. At the entrance one comes across several 'temple guides' who are ready to take you in via the so-called 'vip transit'। It was fairly crowded but not as much as it normally is, so I was told. Probably we had got the timing right and could safely avoid the crowds, having reached there around 12.30 in the afternoon. We were able to get a good 'darshan' of Lord Shreenathji.
Some temple guides are barely 10 years of age and eager to learn the trade of making a fast buck with carefully learnt communication skills relating the history of the place। I was particularly taken up by this young lad who probably guessed I could be ready game to listen to his tales। I engaged him in conversation and learnt that he was earning his way to pay his school fees. I was touched by his appearance, his innocent, piteous-looking face was too much to turn away from. He wished that I should listen to him relate tales of the Lord of the temple and I readily obliged lending him my ears. In his own style and language, little of which I could comprehend, I heard him through and gave him a tenner, which he gratefully accepted. Older guys like him wanting to snatch away his earnings tried to tell me he was a sham, but my heart refused the believe them. I was touched by the experience.
Two days later on our return journey we visited Ranakpur which is famous for its Jain temple। Friends had told me much about this place and even though we had to make a detour, it was well-worth the visit. This beautiful temple is a structure of of white, glittering marble well-known for its 1444 supporting pillars of intricate, exquisite carvings, no two of which are alike! Again like the Shamlaji temple, one is awe-struck by the skill of the artisans that worked on them.
I like visiting Jain temples; they are quiet, peaceful and spotlessly clean, a quality which I greatly value and thankfully devoid of the jostling and pushing of frenzied devotees to put you off!
Our last visit was to Ambaji, a temple dedicated to Goddess Ambamata who symbolises 'Shakti' and is generally frequented by devotess every full-moon.
At the end of the holiday it now felt nice that I could visit all these temples, something that I was never too keen about despite having lived in Gujarat since birth!
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