I’ve been in Goa, India now for 6 days and it dawned on me that I haven’t taken anyones picture really.  This bugged me BIG time and after lunch I decided to take off and get some errands done.  I needed to:

1. Find out about train tickets for an upcoming trip to Mumbai
2. Look for a tailor shop to make me a custom camera bag
3. Inquire on costs for tours around the Goa area
4. …and get some damn photos of someone Indian!!!!

So I took off on my moto-bike and started checking things off.  I found the tour and train info easily but the tailor shop was proving difficult to find, so I kept driving and driving.  I ended up all the way on the other side of town with no luck.   Just as I was about to turn around with the bike, I heard the loudest Hindu music ever.  At first I thought to myself “Why would anyone play that crap so loud, they must all be deaf!” but quickly realized that it was a Hindu temple (the first one I had seen in Goa, as Goa is apparently 95% Catholic as it seems) and that meant I might get lucky and get some photos finally.  I speed up and pulled the bike over, not knowing exactly what I was going to do. 10sec prior to this the music I was hating was now pulling me inside to the compound.  It was then as I started to walk up that I seen him.

An old man with the warmest smile was waving at me, as if I was a long lost friend.  I made my way up and tried to think of the proper way to show respect to this holy man, so basically I just put my hands together and kind of bowed towards him.  He almost made a twinkle in his eye when I did this, as if he knew I was lost and needed some guidance.  He reached out for my hand and lead me into the temple.

The temple was fairly small and simple but I was in awe to finally be in one.  I find Hindu religion the most fascinating of all religions.  He walked me up to the front where there was a shrine to some Hindu God.  He grabbed some bananas and handed them to me without saying a word, so I took them.  Then he lifted a spoon of water and I thought he was going to throw it on me or something but then realized he wanted me to drink it.  Thought better of that and kindly shook my head no, as if to say “I’m good on diarrhea and don’t need more”  He just smiled and put the spoon down.  He then lifted a large spoon of what looked like mashed potatoes towards me.  I didn’t know what was going on and finally I spoke something.  “Is this an offering I’m suppose to give or am I suppose to eat this?”  He motioned without words to eat.  I smiled and motioned that I was super full but would eat 1 banana.  He just smiled again and gave me a smooth look of “Ok but I was just offering”.

I sat on the steps and ate my banana for a few minutes just looking around.  I finally pulled my backpack around and got my camera out and motioned if it was ok to take pictures.  He just nodded and smiled, while laying on the floor with his head against the wall.  I walked around the room for about 5min snapping away, feeling like a kid in a candy store.  This was why I had come to India, to shoot photos of it’s culture and it’s people.

The Swami finally motioned me over to see something in the next room…owww I thought, am I getting a personal tour of the place!  He walked me around outside showing me the different Hindu Gods, located here and there in their own rooms.  He tried to tell me in his best words what was what but I really didn’t understand him at all.  Was the first time since I had been there that he even spoke a word.  He let me take my time in each room while I snapped photos, then escorted me to the next one.  We did a full circle of the place and seen that the tour was about to end, even though I didn’t want it to.  I motioned if I could take a photo of him and he again just smiled and nodded.  I went back into the main room and deposited 50Rs (about $1.10 USD) and waved by, as I walked out.

Now I present to you, without further words, my first Holy Man encounter in India.

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