Usha Vedasalam accomplished the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra only a week earlier than the devastating floods in Nepal. That is her account of the pilgrimage.
IMAGE: Usha Vedasalam prays at Lake Mansarovar close to Mount Kailash. All pictures: Variety courtesy Usha Vedasalam
Although I had deliberate and booked the journey for June 15, the Indian authorities had halted permissions and journey on the Tibetan border.
I waited till August 10 and was about to cancel my journey.
It was a 13-day journey for which I had paid Rs 3 lakh.
However on August 11 I obtained the allow, and on August 12 I took the 6.30 am flight from Chennai to Delhi. I work as a retailer supervisor in Auroville, Puducherry.
There have been 40 of us from throughout Tamil Nadu. I’m 48 and single whereas the remainder of the travellers had been principally aged above 55.
I used to be informed the utmost permissible age restrict for the allow was 68.
On August 12 we reached Kathmandu round 4.30 pm.
The following day, we did some sightseeing and procuring to acclimatise ourselves. By then our Chinese language visas had arrived, that are legitimate for 3 months.
On day 3 we reached the border, the place the immigration formalities had been accomplished.
Two of our co-travellers had Covid, so that they had been made to sit down individually whereas the officers checked our bags and paperwork and stamped them for clearance.
IMAGE: Usha travelled to Kailash Mansarovar with 39 different vacationers from Tamil Nadu. This {photograph} was taken after finishing the immigration formalities on the Nepal-China border. Every week later, on August 26, 2026, the world was washed away by the flash floods.
On day 4, we reached the border city of Kerung in China. From Kerung, we travelled to Saga in a four-wheeler.
From Saga, we travelled on to Lake Mansarovar. After that, we started the Kailash parikrama, which entails going across the sacred Mount Kailash.
The mountain is taken into account divine, and the parikrama is much like the girivalam (pilgrimage) we undertake round Thiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu.
Kailash is Lord Shiva’s residence. Since we can’t go inside, we stroll or journey on horseback across the mountain to finish the parikrama.
I’ve all the time wished to do it as a result of it’s thought of sacred to hunt the divine’s blessings, and it’s a pilgrimage of a lifetime.
The older you develop, the harder it turns into to undertake this journey.
IMAGE: Usha at Gauri Kund close to Dolma Cross.
The Kailash Mansarovar parikrama is roughly 42 km lengthy and takes three days to finish.
The journey may be extraordinarily difficult due to the tough terrain. There are steep stretches and lengthy downhill walks, which may be exhausting.
Via the journey, we cowl 4 completely different phases — North, East, West and South.
On day 1 of the parikrama we coated 14 kilometres by foot. We had been supplied with oxygen cylinders.
These whose oxygen ranges fell beneath 70 had been suggested to not proceed the journey.
Ten members fell sick and needed to be hospitalised.
We began early. The very best a part of the North section is the time between 8 am and eight.10 am when the Solar comes up and also you get to see a golden Kailash.
Because the Solar’s glow falls on Mount Kailash, the sight is breathtaking.
It lasts just for about 10 minutes. For those who miss it, you will not see it once more.
On day 2 of the parikrama, we went additional up in direction of Dolma Cross, which is roughly 18,500 toes above sea stage.
This leg is 22 km, throughout which we go by Gauri Kund, the place Goddess Parvati is believed to have bathed.
It’s a very steep trek, and you’ll’t take 10 steps collectively directly. A few of us had fever and chilly, so once more, 10 members needed to stop their journey.
Moreover, it was raining, so the highway was muddy and slippery as effectively.
The third day was comparatively simple as a result of it was solely six km.
However I couldn’t end one stretch of about six kilometres as a result of I used to be not feeling effectively. The chilly and rain made issues much more tough, and my well being turned a priority. So, I employed a automobile to finish the journey.
From there, we accomplished the Chinese language immigration formalities and travelled again to Kathmandu.
For the journey, you want a legitimate Indian passport, a Tibet journey allow and a Chinese language visa to enter. Luckily, we acquired our visas in about one-and-a-half days.
IMAGE: Usha’s well being turned a priority on the third day of the pilgrimage.
Earlier than beginning the journey, it’s essential be bodily and mentally ready for the journey. We had been informed to practise strolling a minimum of 5 to 10 km day by day and do respiratory workout routines. Those that do yoga commonly benefited.
The temperature can drop to -20 levels, and there aren’t any clear bathrooms. As you go greater, there is just one pot that everybody has to make use of to reply nature’s name.
As we took Diamox to battle altitude illness, it made us urinate often. There was no different alternative however to make use of no matter bathroom was out there. It was very unhygienic.
A few of us had diarrhoea and vomiting, so the stench was insufferable. All through the three days, we did not brush our tooth or take a shower as a result of there was no water or wash basin. We survived on oats kanji, dal-rice, fruits and dry fruits.
The meals is usually liquid-based, they usually deliver it on yaks.
The Mansarovar Yatra doesn’t solely take a look at your bodily endurance. It assessments your psychological energy, willpower and resilience, too.
IMAGE: Usha on the North section of the Mansarovar Yatra.
The yatra will not be meant for everybody. If you’re somebody who’s fussy, sick or don’t have an adaptable persona, you will discover it extraordinarily tough to outlive in these situations.
Out of 40 members, solely 10 might efficiently full the parikrama. The remainder fell sick and needed to be hospitalised.
On our means again to Kathmandu, we heard a couple of landslide. Our return journey was delayed by a couple of hours.
As soon as we reached our lodge rooms in Kathmandu, the very first thing we did was take a shower.
We returned to Chennai from Kathmandu on August 24.
Two days later, once we heard concerning the floods, I might solely thank God that every one of us had reached residence safely earlier than the tragedy struck.
A number of the locations the place we clicked photos have been washed away by the floods. It’s so devastating to observe.
Whereas I’m grateful, I’m praying for the households of the lacking travellers.
Regardless of all of the challenges, the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra was a lifechanging, non secular expertise for me.
As informed to Divya Nair/Rediff
