Ladak- Aryagram (Village of Aryan)

I remember , I read about Indus Valley civilization in history during my school days. I must confess that I couldn't understand that topic very well at that time. When teacher asked me any question about Indus Valley civilization, only pictures of Indus Valley Civilisation printed in the history book like sculptures of priest, dancing girl and seals of animals with pictures of bull, goat, buffalo, tiger and elephant, used to appear before my eyes.

It is already known to our readers that some of our team members had been suffering from high altitude sickness. For this we took rest for two days in Leh. Originally our Ladakh tour was planned to start with a visit to Pangong Lake. But considering the health condition of Mrs. Majumder we opted to start with an easier route to Aryagram (Village of Arayans). 

Magnetic hill :

Our journey started from Leh along Leh-Srinagar highway. The peaks of the brownish Ladakh range were covered with snow. Strong chilled wind was blowing across the road. We crossed many military camps on the way. During our Ladakh tour we got the opportunity to see with our own eyes that how our defence force protect our country in every respect. We crossed spituk to reach magnetic hill. Two sides of the road were covered with sand and small pieces of pebbles. The beauty of pale yellowish mountain forced us to step down from the car but we could not remain outside for long because of tremendous force of wind. In an attempt to prove the magnetic properties of the hill our driver parked our vehicle at a particular point with gear at neutral and engine shut off. To our amusement and astonishment we found that our vehicle started rolling along the perfectly horizontal valley. But even today I am not sure whether it was due to magnetic attractions or due to tremendous thrust of strong wind.

Nimo Village :

We crossed magnetic hill and reached Nimo village, 31 km. from leh. Here we saw the confluence of Indus and Jaskar river. The colour of Indus river was just like the muddy colour of water of the Ganges. The river was far below the road. The greenish paddy field on the banks of the river Indus had many willow and poplar trees. Barren mountains all around created a spectacular view. From Nimo village river Indus accompanied us all along up to Arayagram. We covered nearly 27 km. from Nimo to reach Likir and Alchi Gumphas via Sashpol.

Nimo Village

 

Confluence of Indus & Jaskar River

 

River Indus

Way to Arayan Village

Arayan Village :

River Indus was flowing quietly by the side of the road. We crossed two small villages Scarbuchang (27 km. from Khalse) and Achinathang (15 km. from Scarbuchang). Those villages had green paddy fields and the houses were built with stones. Quietly flowing river Indus flows enhanced the romantic landscape of the region. The first Aryan village Hanuthang is 8km from Achinathang and second one Bima is 10 km. from Hanuthang. Initially we planned to stay at Dha village which happened to be the last Aryan village . There are five Aryan villages still in india. Hanuthang, Bima and Dah are in Ladhak district and Ghorkon and Darchik are in Leh district. These villages fall in the inner line region drawn by the army for security reasons. They are very close to LOC. The tourists can visit only Bima and Dah. The inhabitants of these village are known as Drog-pa. ‘Drog’ means ‘hillock’, while ‘pa’ stands for an inhabitant. Their culture and religious practices are more akin to the ancient pre-Buddhist animist religion known as Bon-chos than to Buddhism as practised in the rest of Ladakh. Historians recalls their migration from Gilgit an event which must have occurred well before Gilgit came under the influence of Islam.

People here are taller, fairer with high cheek bones and almond shaped eyes. Traditionally Drok-pa have been peace-loving and vibrant people. They render their folk traditions once every three years during a special celebration in the Bona-na festival. This event is a testimony to Drok-pas rich historical antecedents which they seemingly trace from central Rome. Aryans are religious minded people who have laboured hard to preserve manuscripts as old as 2500 years. Specimens of these manuscripts are to be found only in the Hemis monastery. Their stylish head dress, ‘Kho’ embodies their spirit abundantly. It is studded with flowers and coins. Married women wear the ‘Monthu Tho’ in their head dress. It signifies marital status. They also adorn themselves with silver ornaments. Traditional dress of Drog-pa is made of sheep-wool.

 My experiences in Aryagram :

Entering Bima village suddenly we saw two Aryan ladies standing in front of a road side shop . One of the Aryan ladies around 45-50 years appeared like a figure as found in the page of a calendar. There were many pigtails in her hair and a silver tassel was shining on her head. Her head as well as hair was decorated with various types of flowers. Decorated head of that Aryan lady appeared like a moving flower vas as she moved. She decorated her neck and ear with pearl ornaments. Another Aryan girl was standing beside that older lady. She was around 20 years old. She was nice and charming. She was wearing black pant and a black jacket. A modern Aryan girl. We wanted to take some photographs of those Aryan ladies and asked for permission. They could not understand our language. One person came out of the shop. Perhaps he knew some Hindi and understood our conversation. He then persuaded those ladies for a brief photo session. We took some photographs of those Aryan Drok-pa girls.

River Indus in Aryan Village

The Bima village had lots of apricots, apples, walnut and grapes trees. Barren rocks and cliffs were all around. Muddy Indus river was flowing through the village.

Two or three accommodations were available in Bima village. We stayed in ‘Aryan Guest house’ in Bima village. This Guest-house was built at the feet of a barren mountain. Green Paddy fields were around the Guest-house. Mr. Dorje a local school teacher was the owner of this Guest house. He was also an Aryan and was very aristocratic in appearance. We took our evening snacks in the adjacent garden. After taking evening snacks we went to Dah village. Here the Indus river was flowing 20-25 ft below the road level. Some of our members descended along the natural steps created by the bolder to reach the river. We collected few pebbles from the bank of the river and enjoyed some moments with river Indus.

Batalik range

We arrived Dah village by 5’O clock. It was 4 to 5 km. from Bima. Here we met the Gorkha regiment of the Indian army. Some of them were from Bengal. From here we saw the batalik range. Lots of exchange of fire took place here during Kargil War. They showed us how bofors canon were taken at the top of the mountain to fight the intruders. I humbly remembered the martyrs who laid down their lives for the sake of the country.

A party was arranged at night in the adjacent lawn of the guest house. Here we met some local school teachers who came to join the party. They were not Aryans, they came from Leh. We got lots of information from them regarding history , geography and people of Aryagram. According to them populations of Bima and Dah villages were at that time four hundred and two hundred respectively. Cultivation is their main profession. The people of these village are generally literate. There was a Class nine standard school in Bima Village. Khalse has a secondary school, We had a grand dinner with chicken cooked with fresh vegetables We shall never forget the hospitality of the owner of the Aryan Guest-house.