HereNow4U - Living Jainism Tour 2006 - 07.01 Jaipur (1)

26th November 2006

We reached Jaipur after four hours of ride. We sat with our revered hosts, Balwantji and Premji Mehta (photo l), and our friends Sanjeev and Shivani Bothra (photos left and in the middle taken by Sanjeev Bothra, the latter via autotimer) in the living room after one more hour of searching their home. We refreshed ourselves and took then delicious lunch together, first meal of the day. We had simply forgotten to eat as well.

The road after Tamkor meditation hall was like most local roads, not asphalted and rather small. We passed picturesque villages, all in a sleepy Sunday morning mood. Obviously, this was the day of visits, we either saw people getting out of busses or waiting for them. The driver even under described road situation maintained considerable speed. When he outstripped a bus, Karuna opened her eyes only when it was done. After delivering us at our hosts’ home in Jaipur, he would be free.

We still ignore if there are roads from Tamkor to Jaipur in better condition, but enjoyed passing scenes of rural life, ancient Rajput palaces, mansions, and wells, relicts of feudal Rajasthani society. The wells seemed in quite a distance from villages. They were social centres, acting like news agencies; villagers from surrounding settlements met there. We wondered how to carry home the daily needed quantity of water in clay containers for a big family in hot climate, not to mention the animals.

Balwantji’s and Premji’s home in Jaipur was another world; we were happy to reach there; the hour of shuttling back and forth in their neighbourhood was forgotten. The driver had found their house without map, by simply asking passers-by.

After lunch, Sanjeev and Shivani Bothra took us to their studio. It is located in front of the house where the family lives in a calm and beautiful area of Jaipur. We had met already two years ago during our Ladnun Trip to Spirituality and promised there to meet again. Now the occasion had come, together with Shri Balwant Mehta they had meticulously prepared our Jaipur schedule. This afternoon they showed plenty of the creative designs they had developed to us.

Twice a year, Sanjeev Bothra is invited to hold design courses at Ahmedabad University's Design Department, the only one in India, Sanjeev told us. Together they both realise Jain principles in designing things of daily use, healthy for users and environment, without waste of material and budget. Among others, they have made a calendar with wonderful sketches of Acharyashree. They are fully dedicated to their work and further are engaged in scientific research. Shivani is trainer of Preksha Meditation and Non-Violence; she is specialised on guiding children in this matter and is about to do research work in this field..

In the evening, they invited us to Chokhi Dhani (literally: fine hamlet) Resort, an ethnic village, where old Rajasthani handicraft as blacksmithing (photo) is practised to bring it near to tourists from India and abroad.

Further, musical and dance traditions are performed, which Aparigraha could not resist to record. Last not least,...

traditional vegetarian food in remarkable quantities is offered. We enjoyed this long day, and when we got back to Balwantji and Premji Mehta, we were so tired that we hardly were able to converse with them. They noticed our fatigue and sent us upstairs, where we immediately fell asleep.