Author: Stephen Alter
Publishers: Penguin Books
Pages: 327
Unlike what it’s title seems to indicate, Elephas Maximus is no science book for the students of biology, but a book for every one who has slightest interest in Indian Elephants, or Asian Elephants to precise. Stephen Alter has done considerable research on every aspects of the elephants in India and has presented it well enough to attract readers of every kind. In his own words –
In this book, I have tried to tell elephant’s story in India through myth, art and literature, as well as something of its biology and natural history.
He travels all through the country in search of the elephants and visits them in the wilderness of National Parks, in temples in captivity, in breeding centers of state forest departments and anywhere else elephants might exist as myth or reality. He writes about their biology and natural history, besides covering cultural aspects of their relationship with man, historical status and position of elephants in India and also man-animal conflict. Alter also ponders on Ganesha, the elephant faced Hindu god. He digs through the ancient scriptures of Gajasutra and Kalidasa’s Meghadoota to discover the role and status of elephants in the history of our society.
The emotional aspect of relationship between man and pachyderm is given considerable importance and is one of the highlights of the book. He writes about Mahouts who love their elephants and remain sensitive to the needs of the giant, about conservation efforts in India, and caring for the elephants. The pains of capturing elephants by Khedda and other measures in the past have been well elaborated.
Also notable are his coverage of elephants at various locations all over India, including Mysore, Guruvayur temple, Sonepur Mela, Mudumalai elephant camp, Corbett and Rajaji National Parks, Kabini and Kaziranga.
The contents of the book are well organized, has a good flow and makes a good reading for those with even the slightest interest on pachyderms.
Travelling in the North-East in the summer of 2006
Guwahati >> Eaglenest >> Tawang >> Nameri >> Kaziranga >> Shillong >> Cherrapunjee
+Previous: Impressions of Guwahati
+Next: Travelling to Eaglenest National Park in Arunachal Pradesh
+Go to the beginning of the series
The next morning, I started out to Kacheri Ghat on the bank of Brahmaputra. I was taking a ferry from here to Peacock Island – a small landmass with a hillock housing the Umananda Temple.
Peacock Island. You can see how wide Brahmaputra is. Infact this is one of the areas where the river runs narrow compared to rest of Assam
As my ferry took off, I realized how huge Brahmaputra is. It was summer time when most of the rivers in India empty or at least mellow, but none of that applies to Brahmaputra. Even when the water level is low, it still is wide and flows at a considerable speed. Despite being so large, the map shows that Brahmaputra flows in a narrow channel near Guwahati compared to rest of Assam. I got to see her again in Tezpur where the bridge across the river is a few miles long.
Ferry to Peacock Island
I got down from the ferry and walked around on a bridle path that took me around the island. It took less than 10 minutes to complete the circle. The island has a mix of Bamboo and evergreen tropical trees and is rocky at some parts. The tiny island housed lot of life. I saw a few Asian Koels, some warblers, a Grey Tit, Magpie Robins, Jungle Babblers and a bunch of Mynas. I returned to this island a few weeks later to get photographs of the Golden Langurs, and also shot pictures of a pair of Grey Tits. The Langurs are a star attraction of the island.
Grey Tit
Golden Langurs are endemic primates found only in Manas National Park bordering Assam and Bhutan. A priest of Umananda temple is said to have brought a few young ones to the island and let them free. They grew up in the island, confined by the Brahmaputra and have grown used to humans. They are so accustomed that you can sit right next to them like you would sit with a buddy, and they still ignore your presence. May be they would even be thinking about saying hello to you but are constrained of speech. The Langur’s eye is very human like and has a strange draw when you look at it. They also looked very bored and lazy as they have little to do but eat what people give them, and roam around in the tiny island.
A Golden Langur
Umananda temple is located at the center of the island on the top of a hillock. It is a small temple, with the sanctum sanctorum located below ground level. Sanctorum is lit by wick lamps and little sunlight enters in. The burning lamps and the darkness surrounding it create an atmosphere of peace in the room.
I returned from the island and checked if I can take an evening cruise on Brahmaputra. But the cruises were not operating owing to a holiday, so all I could do is to spend the evening in my hotel.
To be continued..
Travelling in the North-East in the summer of 2006
Guwahati >> Eaglenest >> Tawang >> Nameri >> Kaziranga >> Shillong >> Cherrapunjee
+Previous: Bangalore to Guwahati
+Next: Umananda Temple and Peacock Island, Guwahati
+Go to the beginning of the series
I had a free day at Guwahati. I had arrived a day earlier than I needed to, so I can hang around and get a feel of Guwahati.
When I started for North East, I had an impression of Guwahati and rest of the North East in my mind. I had presumed that Guwahati would be a small town nestled between hills with Brahmaputra flowing on one side of the town. I expected the weather would be pleasant to cold and raining at times. I had distinctly remembered reading a news report a year ago that Guwahati is struggling to grow and is suffering from lack of space, resulting in hills in the periphery brought down to make way for construction(illegally, I presume). The mention of these hills had reinforced my impressions of Guwahati as small hilly town.
When I cruised down from airport to the city, I could see that the town is really growing, and fast. Real estate business seemed to be booming like any other city in India. Half the ad-hoardings on the road were of steel bars, cement and the like. As we cruised from airport to city, I realized that Guwahati is not a small town, but fairly big and growing. The city lies in the plains of Assam sandwiched between the hills of Meghalaya on one side and the mighty Brahmaputra on the other side, leaving it without much room to grow. It was just the beginning of summer and it was already getting hot and sticky during the day, not exactly the weather I had presumed.
Eastern part of the city has many small hills that probably mark the end of the Khasi hills of Meghalaya. It is these hills that are slowly brought down to make way for construction. The way Guwahati is growing, it feels just like Bangalore – in a mess!
Next day, I got to see another problem that plagues the city – traffic. In city’s busy Paltan Bazaar area where my hotel is located, traffic hardly gets to move forward. Roads often get choked for hours. The traffic is so immobile at places that you don’t even have to worry about parking space – just leave your car on the tail of the traffic and come back after you finish your work – it is very likely that nothing around has moved an inch and your car is safe where it was left! It is no exaggeration – I did see someone doing just that!
Two weeks later when I returned to Guwahati, it was raining and the traffic scene was worse. There was slush everywhere and the drains were overflowing but the traffic was no different, making it miserable for a pedestrian to move around.
To be continued..