G L Khajuria
In the midst of western snowy Himalayas at an elevation arounding 7,150 Mts (22,594 ft) from mean sea level (MSL), lying between 77 degree Latitude, 33 degree longitude are situated ‘Zanskar Mountains Rang’, Intervening – Deosal Mountains to its North-West and “Bara Lacha La” to its South-East encompassing snowy glaciers with enchanting valleys in her lap in and around the vicinity of Kargil – the most prominent. Chorobat pass, Lamasyutru, Rupshu to the North and Drass, Amarnath, sanctum sanctorum, Nun and Umas La to the south.
And so charming and hunting are honey-dewed – Deosal plains, just below Deosal Mountains, where one can most conveniently attribute, a piece of heaven, though of course, mistakenly fallen over here by the almighty Gods and Goddess.
And then river Sindh off-shooting from lake ‘Mansarovar’ serpent crowing up and down is the rarer of the rarest Ral river. Is it not astonishing to every human, who so ever glimpses even through google indeed? Yes, one becomes wonderstruck beyond any shadow of doubt and all this finds illustration in the most popular Rajtarangini by Kalhana. Rightly has thus remarked by Dr E F Neve, Ancient India has nothing more worthy of its remote civilization than the grand remains of Kashmir which though inferior to Palmya or Persepolis in stateliness, are in possession of beauty so immensely superior to either”.
Surrounding 20 Km to south, Rangdum finds its existence of Pazila, in other words also nomenclaturised as Pazita, top perched upon some 4400 mts from Mean Sea Level (MSL) and while crossing this beauteous watershed, lies the most prominent Zanskar, de facto, the most secluded of almost all the Trans- Himalayan valleys. The meadow tableland is the rarer of the rarest picturesque velvety spot with milky clouds wafting the azure sky and as the road winds down the steep slopes toward the head of Stood valley, one becomes wonderstruck viewing the most enchanting and haunting, the main tributary valleys of Zanskar .
The mighty and majestic ‘Drang-Drung’ glacier which looms large into its fullest view. And so true is with majestic and mighty ‘Zanskar’ where the narrow snowy uplands extend far and wide for miles and miles in togetherness far away hills which surround the Sindh river, where all the slopes, its steeps and meadow are covered with milk-white snows with a multihued honey-dewed herbs and shrubs and further where rushing silvery steams, with nectar clear water outflows. It is here in the interiors of Zanskar which courses through splendid scenery of sylvanite splendor.
Zanskar comprises of a triarmed (three armed valley, a system which is lying between the greater Himalayan Range vis-a- vis Zanskar lofty mountains having similarity of snow-capped high-altitudinal clefts and as on the date occupies its own uniqueness and appropriate placements of prominence, apart from its seculadedness and to the least interfering with Ladakh as a whole in so far as microcosomical phenomenon is concerned. And of course, some of the religious endowments have, de facto, evolved with revolving wheel of time over the remote past.
And which way the prominent caves have taken use of transmigration to transcendentalism and meditate though ambiguously is hyphothetical as far as it goes to the eminency of ‘Buddhist’s saints and sages.
Down the ages, Chinese pilgrims of whom Hiuen Tsang is a living legend in our olden yet golden scripts who transversed Leh, Ladhak, Kargil and Zanskar around seventeenth century and was eminently been captivated by lovely and enchanting beauty of Zanskar amongst other paradisical places.
And the “Kailasa’ and its surrounds including Zanskar is the best place in the world.
And amongst snowy Himalayas, next to the value of Kashmir which is nomenclaurised as paradise on mother Earth as thus written and reflected by Kalhana, in his historical treatise “Rajtarangni”.
A century and a half ago, French authorities deputed their most prominent Naturalist and bontanist by name “Victor Jacquenment” to go as a travelling naturalist, preferably to the interiors of greater Himalayas and in his monumental collection of data from greater Himalayas was later published after his death in six volumes which added considerably the beauties of the greater Himalayas of Leh, Ladakh, Kargil and Zanskar, preferably the immersive importance of rich, vide, varied manifestation of flora and fauna recorded in everyday language much of what he noticed and experienced.
Undeniably, therefore, it is on record that as per the latest survey conducted by wildlife department there are on this date as many as many as 800 black bears out of which 80 per cent exists in Zanskar whereas the rest are spread over the other part of great Himalayan region to our part of territory, apart from many more varied flora and fauna in the greater part of the Himalayas and its surrounds.
Conclusively, therefore, it is no denying the fact that if our pride the greater Himalaya is the crown of India, Zanskar is doubtlessly a golden feather in it and in the ultimate analysis, add here an important quote of our reversed Gurudev, R N Tagore, “He lies lost who confines himself to his own self, he attains self-expression who realizes himself in all”.
(The author is former
Deputy Conservator of Forests, J&K).
