Delhi

Just as a warning this post may be boring for some!


You never know what you will find on the streets in Dehli but there are many fewer people living on the streets than there were 15 years ago.  There are more street people in many american or european cities.
The infrastructure is lacking as you can see in the electrical wires (at end of photos) that grow organically over the alley ways and the roadways and sewer systems that are insufficient.  But you feel lots of goodwill amongst the people here.  Like the naked Jain priests that are walking through the streets, they have renounced all attachment to worldly things down to their clothes.  They carry brooms to sweep away any ant they might walk on.  They are vegetarian for sure but they don’t even eat root vegetables because you kill the plant by eating them. This policy of extreme non-violence was developed by the in the 5th. cen. BC. It is called “ahimsa” and Ghandi used it in his ground breaking policies. 
As I can’t rearrange the pictures once uploaded
here they are :
roses that smell good!

We went to the flower market and it is funny because in Tahiti the strung flowers were meant to adorn the person wearing them whereas here they are only for offerings to the gods.
This is Humayun’s mausoleum.  He was the second of the Moghul emporeurs that descended from Afghanistan to take over northern India in the 16th cen. They were Muslim and so more concerned about life after death unlike the Hindus who believe they will be reborn so the Moghul s made lots of mausoleums  like Taj Mahal and the Hindus built temples.
This is a screen made of intricately carved sandstone to let in light and to have the winds circulate to cool the buildings.
More flowers that are grown around Delhi and brought to the Chandni Chowk market for sale.

Before the market we went to Qutab Minab. The column above is a detail of the place.  It is a part of Dehli where the invading muslims took the stones from the Hindu temples to make minarets. Some of the old stones have figures on them and these are old hindu stones as the muslims do not represent the human figure in their art. At least not in buildings, miniatures are another story.

At this same place there is an artifact from the 3rd cen. BC.  an Ashoka iron pillar.
This is it here below and it is black and made entirely of iron. It is about 7 meters tall and inscribed with writings of his policies. 
Ashoka was a very interesting guy. like Constantine he had an epiphany after having slaughtered many enemies on the battle field. He converted to buddhism after being introduced to it by a cousin and thereafter never again killed a living thing. He put these pillars up all across India, from west to east and north to south in Ceylon.  India was unified by his grandfather Chandragupta who is thought to have met Alexander the Great when he was on his travels. Pretty amazing Alex is called Sikander here.
The technology of casting a huge iron pillar like this one is mind boggling.


This is a close up of the stone screens carved in sandstone.
Another photo of the iron pillar, it used to have a sculpture on top
of it.
Our guide in Qutab Minab. At the beginning of the stone building they imitated the wooden architectural elements.  Just like this minaret looks like a large tree trunk.



Colorful saris.
Arches in a mosque.
Flower market vendor.
This is what’s called a baoli or well for collecting rain water for use in the neighborhood.
Marigolds.
The Jain priests in the streets.
Hauling merchandise through the tight alleys on a cart that is pushed by muscle power.

Humayun’s tomb dome from the inside.  We haven’t yet seen the Red Fort but will, same red sandstone and white marble.

These are the electrical lines.

 

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