Following the Ramayana: Adam’s Bridge

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Rameswaram is a town in the south east of Tamil Nadu with a spectacular temple and an important place in the ancient epic story the Ramayana. It is at the end of this island where it is written that a bridge was built by the ape army so that Lord Rama could go to Sri Lanka (only 30km away) and save is wife Sita from the evil Ravana. Whilst only the start of the bridge can be seen by the naked eye now, it is believed to have been used up until the 16th century.

My journey to Adam’s Bridge began in Rameswaram.  From here it is about a 15km bus ride to the drop off point on the beach, past this point only 4WD vehicles can travel. Being not one to do things the easy way, instead of jumping into a share jeep for the rest of the 10km journey, I took off my shoes and starting walking bare foot paddling in the ocean.

It was a 35 degree day and there was no shade, but the beach was an endless stretch of pure white sand with no other soul in sight.  It was simply the quietest, most isolated and cleanest place I have seen in India; pure bliss

The walk to Adam’s Bridge

For the next 10 kms I walked barefoot in the sand, letting the salt water wash over my calves and refresh them.  To me, bathing my feet in the ocean is one of those experiences that can’t be measured in terms of the joy it brings.  Wet sand squelching between my toes and the fun of running away from waves as the tide slowly edges its way further inland.

About 5 kms into the walk I past the town of Danushkhodi. This town was apparently washed away in a flood, all that remains are several broken buildings, some brick pillars in the ocean, an abandoned railway station and a few brave fisherman huts.  It feels like a ghost town, and we stop to chat to the few remaining locals who point out the old railway station and church.

Dhanushkodi

Continuing on it was now nearing the middle of the day and the sun was relentless.  It must have been at least 35 degrees Celsius, and I can feel my ill prepared skin starting to burn.  Its isolated, no other soul is in sight, but I still don’t feel brave enough to strip down to my underwear and dive into the ocean. So instead, in front of a lone statue of Hanuman I wander into the ocean fully dressed. The water is warm but still refreshing as the waves roll in around me. I put my head under and enjoy the crisp, cooling effect over my burning scalp.

Walk to Adam’s Bridge

The walk continues on, and slowly my clothes dry in the sun.  In the distance it looks like I am approaching the end of the earth.  I can see the sand ending, and the ocean before me, with the waves crashing against an imaginary wall at the horizon.  As I approach it becomes apparent that there are small sandbars within the ocean.  This is Adam’s Bridge.

Thought to be a man-built bridge, or as Ramayana legend has it, a bridge build by the ape army to enable Rama to walk to Sri Lanka.  Now predominantly underwater, Adam’s Bridge stretches over 30 kms connecting India to Sri Lanka. To me it feels like I  have reached the end of this vast country, with no other choice but to turn around and go back the way I came, unless I wanted to succumb to the will of the ocean.

Adam’s Bridge

So I turn around and start back along the beach the way I came.  By now I am tired, the sun has burned my skin and I can feel dehydration setting in.  Once I reach Dhanushkodi I sit down for a short while and decide I just can’t face the 5km walk ahead.  One of the local stall owners suggests I wait for 20 minutes and a local van will go past and take me back to the bus stop.  So I stop.

An hour later, still waiting for the elusive local van I start to panic.  I have a train to Chennai this evening, and if the bus doesn’t arrive soon I won’t have enough time to walk back to town to make my train either.  Then finally in the distance I can hear the stalled humming of a rusty van.

It stops in the distance and I run to meet it. Its not a van meant for people, but rather a cargo van carrying the fisherman’s catch of the day.  The only room left is on the roof.  I look up at the top of the van and start to panic, as I get older I find my fear of heights becoming more pronounced.  How am I going to climb to the top and then sit on the roof of this van.  I close my eyes and just find a way to make it to the top and into the middle of the roof so I am surrounded by other people and fish, away from the edge.

The Van

Its a muddy journey back along the sand and marshland, a couple of times we stall and it looks like the van may be stuck, but we make it out with little trouble.  Eventually arriving  at the bus stop, I am weary and burnt but also exhilarated from the day.  It is so rare to have 5 minutes without seeing a soul in India, but to have almost an entire day is a luxury beyond words, coupled with the beauty and smell of the ocean.  This journey to the end of the country could be the closest thing to my perfect day.


Comments

8 responses to “Following the Ramayana: Adam’s Bridge”

  1. […] ever so inviting. The last time I can remember wanting to jump into the ocean was over 3 years ago near Adam’s Bridge, I certainly haven’t seen an ocean in India that I’ve wanted to bathe in since then. […]

  2. […] so many reasons, one of my favourite experiences was walking to Adam’s Bridge in Tamil Nadu. The pristine beach, isolation and feeling that I had reached the end of the country, […]

  3. […] It had been 18 months since I had been outside of India.  That’s a long time, and to be honest I didn’t think going to Sri Lanka was really going to be a big change from what had become normality to me, after all at some points there is only 30 kilomtres separating Tamil Nadu from Sri Lanka, as I discovered when visiting Rameswaram. […]

  4. When we first went to Rameshwaram, I was maybe 10, my mother told me that she believes both the Ramayan and Mahahbharath describe nuclear wars that were so utterly devastating little or no traces of hem have been left behind. Keep in mind this is a highly educated woman, an electrical engineer actually. As a kid I was always fascinated by this idea and it inspired me to learn as much as I could about the the two epics. I had such elaborate theories about how the after two devastating wars, ancient Indian historians (before the two epics were written down, historical accounts were passed down by word of mouth) deliberately left out details and added in mysticism to cover up the knowledge of weapons used (which were of course, nuclear in nature) so that they may never again be used.

    But having grown up, at least grown older, I have come to realize that there are pitfalls in adopting an all or nothing approach to religious text. One may chose to do it if one so wishes, religion after all is a very personal thing(“like having a penis, ok to have one, ok to be proud of the one you have but not ok to wave yours in public”-internet). What matter is what you take home from religious texts-the consequences of messing with someone else’s wife, the fact that you can be the strongest being on he plane but can still stand to learn from the experience of others (Lord Hanuman being the case in point), in situations when you are not sure what to do, do everything you can do (the incident with the sanjivini booti and Lord Hanuman), be gracious in victory and in defeat, you can learn even from your enemies. Of course the Ramayan and Mahabharath are full of chauvinism and some instances of bigotry, but I chose not to live by those ideals. In fact I feel it shows that no one in infallible.

    I will stop now, because now I am sermonizing. All I wanted to say was that when I first went to Rameshwaram, my mother told me that she believes both the Ramayan and Mahahbharath describe nuclear wars that were so utterly devastating little or no traces of hem have been left behind. Which as a ten year old I found enthralling as a child. Reading this just brought back some memories. And if I have offended someone by trivializing their beliefs I apologize, sincerely. I couldn’t help myself and I will surely go to whatever place you believe sinners like me go to. (That last bit may be sarcasm but my apology is sincere).

  5. I think that depends upon what you believe.

  6. Good! Was the Ramayana a real story or fake story?

  7. […] so many reasons, one of my favourite experiences was walking to Adam’s Bridge in Tamil Nadu. The pristine beach, isolation and feeling that I had reached the end of the country, […]

  8. Christine Avatar
    Christine

    Sounds wonderful Raks – will certainly be on my list if I ever make it to India.

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