Who is Ruskin?
I’ve just finished reading “Roads to Mussoorie,” by Ruskin Bond. Ruskin is an Indian author born in 1934 in Kasauli, Punjab, Undivided India or British India. I don’t know why Wikipedia refers to my country as British India. Most of us call it Undivided India. At least, those of us whose families came across into India during the Partition call it Undivided India.
Anyway, Ruskin lived most of his life in Mussoorie, a hill station in the North Indian hill state of Uttarakhand. I grew up in Nainital, another hill station in Uttarakhand, so that I can relate to his stories about the hills. Given a choice, I’d escape to the mountains, ban tourists from visiting, and never return to the plains.
Memories. Changing Times.
“Roads to Mussoorie” is a memoir, a collection of writings on separate topics relating to his life in Mussoorie. If you are unfamiliar with some characters, he mentions–real and literary–the book will leave you fogged. Also, if you have not grown up in the hills, you may consider him a quaint old man. In some ways, he is just that–a quaint old man who writes effortlessly. His style reminds you of the effortless style of P. G. Wodehouse, and most young people today are unfamiliar with him.
Most young people won’t have heard of “The Pickwick Papers.” When Pickwick confronts me, my mind travels back a few decades to my schooldays. I grew up, first in England, then in an Irish Christian Missionary school. Wodehouse was a part of our staple diet. So were Biggles, Billy Bunter, James Hadley Chase (when we began discovering our hormones), the first pages of “The Godfather,” and Sherlock Holmes. My kids preferred the adventures of Geronimo Stilton and consigned my favorites to history’s dustbin.
While reading the book, I asked myself a question and tried to visualize him huffing and puffing along the meandering hilly paths in Mussoorie. Why should I care about his reminiscences? A lady in Ilkley, England, told me that when nostalgia catches up with you, you know you are becoming old.
Nostalgia.
As our chronological age advances, the path well-trodden becomes longer than the road you are yet to tread. When we gird ourselves for Death’s final sting, we turn our gaze backward. The young folk look forward and don’t have time or patience for the indulgences of those who age.
Why should I care about Ruskin Bond? Why should you, or anyone else, care about my travelogues? Is it because we attempt to take you on a journey into the past, to times when the world seemed more straightforward? Those were days when rotary dial phones were a luxury when we scrambled up and down trees and could not conceive of a future when we’d glue our eyes to a digital screen.
Maybe some of you want to visit places through someone else’s eyes and compare your memories and impressions with the writer’s. Each of you will have your reasons for reading reminiscences of travelogues.
Are We Becoming Ghosts?
Ghosts and the occult fascinated me as a teenager and continue to do so today. Writers have postulated many theories about ghosts throughout the ages. In the Middle Ages, people invented incubi and succuba to express their sexual fantasies. Evil ghosts, dolls, and ghostly possessions continue to fascinate us. We outgrow Casper and focus on evil witches in dark novels and horror movies. These theories and stories assume ghosts are active little chaps.
But I read another theory, which is valid. I don’t remember when and where I stumbled upon this postulate, but it is interesting. Ghosts, in this version, are passive entities stuck in time. They are unaware of time's passing and remain lost in their world. Some say Salimgarh in Delhi is haunted. Aurangzeb imprisoned his favorite daughter, Zeb-un-Nisa, in Salimgarh, where she spent the last two decades of her life, composing poetry under the pen name “Makhfi” (which means, ‘The Hidden One.’). Some claim her ghosts walk the corridors, composing poetry even now.
Are people like Ruskin Bond and me well on our way to becoming ghosts, stuck in our old adventures, walking in the mist along mossy mountain paths?
Who knows? Who Cares?
Who knows? Who cares?
If so, please join us in our ghostly tales of travel, adventure, memories, reminiscences, and nostalgia. Nostalgia may sweeten your tea when you join us on our journeys.
A Note. The Paywall will come later.
In a post about a month ago, I wrote that I would put all photography posts behind a paywall. However, it seems that I need to get an import-export code before I can collect payment from anyone outside India.
The government’s regulation is annoying, especially since I have not even started collecting money and have not reached a critical threshold! Until I can sort this out - soon, I hope - I shall not put the photography posts behind a paywall.
A Few Words on the Photos.
I shot both of these images in Mussoorie several years back. I used a Nikon Coolpix for the sunset and my old Nikon D200 for the trees. The Nikon Coolpix has languished on my table since then and functions as a paperweight. I use the Nikon D200 only when I shoot digital pinhole photos. Since then, I bought a Nikon D810 and now use a Fujifilm X-T4 and Fujifilm X100V. Fujifilm has launched the Fujifilm X-T5 and the Fujifilm X 100 VI. If you want to buy the Fujifilm X 100 VI, you may have to wait a few months. The reviews are fantastic.
I used Luminar Neo to edit the images. This is an excellent tool for amateurs and also for professionals. It is easy to use, and you can create some good images fast.
My referral code is in this link.
I will move on to Jaipur next week.