“If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, infinite.
For man has closed himself up, till he sees all things thro’ narow chinks of his cavern”.
William Blake: “The Marriage Of Heaven & Hell”
Doors of perception... John Callaway 2012
Doors closing, (or opening), seems an apt metaphor for a weekend spent revisiting parts of the Kavre District. Having started my VSO placement living on the Panauti Road in Banepa back in June 2010, there’s a certain sense of closure to be had from returning to both places. Its around ten months since I was last in Banepa, and probably slightly longer than that since I was in Panauti.
In truth, not too much has changed, although the place that I used to live is now an office for the Kavre branch of Nepal journalists. Banepa really isn’t that photogenic, and I didn’t take any more photographs, but I do like Panauti….and I remain fascinated by doors like the one above, which is part of the Triveni Ghat complex. There is something very ‘human’ about the juxtaposition of Hindu iconography and text with everyday objects such as the cleaning rag, the plastic bottle and the medicine bottles…
Triveni ghat complex, Panauti. John Callaway 2012
I’ve reflected elsewhere on the way in which temples in Nepal are also living spaces for the local population. A place to sit and talk, do your washing, for children to play…a place for all people, not just the chosen few…
Sometimes tolerance is less forthcoming!!
A space for all...John Callaway 2012
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