Jaipur to Rathambore

Tuesday, 15 September 2009

Jackie Lallier wrote: "We awoke to a nice sunny day and went off to the countryside. We had a wonderful lunch at Pakoras including fried lentil & chili balls. We observed a herd of donkeys used to transport laundry. Hindus live in harmony with nature (early ecologists) and don't believe in cutting wood as they worship nature.
The children start school in April, vacation in May & June and restart school in July. We saw LOTS of barley fields. The government is trying to eradicate polio. Last year the prime minister, a woman, gave money to women who opened bank accounts (some can write their signature but some still use a thumb print). She also encouraged girls to go to school by offering them free uniforms. When the Aryans came in 1500 BC, they pushed the Dravidians south who were all farmers. The caste system was devised wherein the people were divided into 4 groups of jobs: (1) Brahmins (priests) who could read & write & give advice, (2) Kshatriza who were warriors and could protect against foreigners, (3) Vaishyaa who were farmers and merchants and could provide business organization for people, & (4) Shudras who were people who worked with their hands such as laborers and servants. This all was meant to be a division of labor but corruption soon started. The Brahmins started to cater to people who could afford their service and became advisors to the warrior class. Traders were OK. Then the Brahmins took beautiful girls from the 4th group, the men from the 4th group challenged the warriors, the Brahmins helped defeat them and the 4th group was moved outside the city and not allowed to read or write, and weren't allowed to go to temples just like the "Untouchables' - the 5th group generally not spoken of. However, they were still needed for garbage and other cleaning jobs. The suppression got worse and all children learned their fathers' trade "in the blood". They couldn't marry out of their caste as it would be too much of a change in lifestyle. Other castes could mix but not the 4th. The British didn't accept the 4th caste unless they turned Christian and some turned Muslim. After independence, politicians took advantage of these people for voting purposes. The government set aside jobs for them by reserving so many seats for them, even though they were not qualified. It is called "aBC' - other backed classes - so there is still lots of corruption. People know what caste you are in by your family name.
At 1 :00 we came into the town of Sawai Madhopur, an important railroad stop between Delhi & Mumbai. Kite running is an old sport here. We hfld a welcome drink at the Nahargarh Hotel Palace in the Ranthambore National Park. Some of our group went on a cantor for a 200+ step hike up to a 1,000 year old temple and a few of us took a path alongside goats and cows for a walk. Tonight we had a slide show and got to bed early. This is a fantastically beautiful place with lots of parakeets flying around. We are the only 14 people staying in this huge place."