Superstition in the Himalayas - By Biswa Phuyal

The awe inspiring beauty of the Himalayan Mountains lures many trekkers both experienced and inexperienced, to scale its magnificent heights and beauty. This past month I along with three friends ventured on a journey that took us through some of the most breathtaking parts of Nepal as we trekked through the famous Annapurna mountains.

The Annapurna trek traverses a variety of terrain. Over twelve days we trekked through villages and rice terraces then climbed through forests surrounded by high Himalayan peaks and glaciers offering simply the most outstanding mountain views. This amazing region also provided sights and sounds of many characteristics; men herding mules, sheeps, goats and yaks, women adorned in colorful strands of glass beads, children speaking near perfect English for a sentence or two, a mix of Buddhists and Hindus, and a strong sense of independence and uniqueness.

All sounds very nice huh, well there’s a catch – stairs, lots and lots of stairs, and the ever threatening altitude sickness. This was the first time trekking in the Himalayas for all four of us and to try to circumvent the punishment the stairs would inflict upon us we walked at a steady pace realizing the potential danger ahead of us if we didn’t do so. Many trekkers that we met along the route weren’t so lucky and their journey were either delayed or cancelled due to someone having altitude sickness. This became more prevalent as we entered Manang, our sixth day where the altitude is 3500m (nearly 12,000 feet). There we acclimatized for one day and during a coffee and cards break I began talking to my Western friends about the Hindu religion. Their questions weren’t exciting but my answers seemed thrilling to them as their curiosity expanded to peculiar details. One such detail was the custom of Hindus sending off a family member. I told them of my own experience using the most recent example of the blessing I received from my grandfather before leaving for this trek. I also told them of the apple I kept in my bag as an offering my grandfather gave me. I told them I still had the apple with me and would keep it in my bag until the trek ended. Initially they were reluctant to believe the blessing I was given but day after day and the higher we got they realized we weren’t getting sick, not even the slightest headache while other trekkers were becoming sick and some began descending to reduce their symptoms. As we were ascending, my friends started to believe that maybe we were blessed and cherished the apple I had in my bag.

As the trek concluded after crossing the Thorung La pass at 5,500 meters, higher than any point in the continental US, we descended to gale-force winds of lower Mustang into the holy city of Muktinath. There, ecstatic over our achievement and mindful of our blessing we took a holy shower through 108 water sprouts as many onlookers were amused to see three foreigners join in on their ritual. I explained to the onlookers why they were bathing which not only amused them but made them feel proud that three trekkers from almost another world were paying their respect of the blessing they received for twelve days high in the Himalayas.