Refined Sanctuary

The farther I tried to comprehend ‘Why the name, Panagarh?’, the only conclusion I could come to was that the word “Pana” means “Sharbat (a sweet, cold beverage)”. So, here is an illustration of my impression of this beautiful place and its beautiful meaning.

        Panagarh is a quite suburb in the District Bardhman of West Bengal. It’s probably untraceable through the map, but those who’ve been its residents once would surely mark it in the centre of their hearts.

While I was new at the station, I kept wondering what makes this place unusual from the other Air Force Stations, despite being a small one. Interestingly, all the things that I outlined about this place that makes it unusual, in my opinion, have been massive and varied. Most of which revolve around nature. It’s a place less touched by too many technologies. Thus, keeping it incredibly real and its real beauty incredibly visible to its admirers.

Starting from the mornings, it’s a bit earlier than usual early mornings as it is located in the east of the country. You can hear the roosters cock-a-doodle-do from the other side of the boundary. But that too depends on the rooster’s mood, whether it wants to wake up/wake you up or not. To describe the beauty of the mornings at Panagarh would be an amateur’s attempt at scribbling, yet I signed — 

Captivating stillness on the clear streets 

Beginning of sunrise and calm breeze

Daylight warming up the trees

Spreading tranquil and everywhere peace

Sometimes there’s a lilac haze

Other times, periwinkle in your gaze

Morning walk becomes your morning prayer

Like practicing mindfulness with no haste

Waking up in the morning wasn’t just a habit; it became my desire to be out on the streets before the ‘crack of dawn’. Although there were plentiful trees across both sides of the road, the broad streets allowed a vast and clear view to watch the sun rise and then turn into a dazzling overcast.

Middays were usually sunny and cheerful, with groups of ladies collected near every block, discussing their daily routines and stories of how different their childhoods were compared to their children’s childhoods. Well, according to me, they intentionally and purposefully aimed at pulling mockery over their kids to an appreciable extent.     

And shortly after their gossip session, you can hear some hoo-ha in the background. In an instant, ‘an ultimate Panagarh resident’ will know “what is the genesis of this chaos?”. Even if you’re not a resident, let me tell you that this is the most predictable thing about Panagarh. Because some naive ‘Nagaraja’ is giving his surprise Darshan to these feminines or unwillingly taking ‘darshan of theirs’.

However, you don’t always have to be outdoors to know that a serpent is passing by. The birds and squirrels are sharp at sensing a serpent’s activities. Certainly because this is a danger to their nests. You can hear the birds’ chirp and chatter all day long — credits  to the discrete contrast of feathered friends in Panagarh. But the chirps at this time are evidently unusual to their conventional way. You will know and recognize it clearly when you hear it.

If truth be told, one would get frightened, or more accurately, freaking frightened, at such encounters. I was previously like that too, but as the encounters got usual in our routines, we became habitual to meeting them once in a while. And even started to sympathize with these ‘slithering creatures’ because, yo-ho-ho, how resilient and graceful they are. Other than this, beyond any doubt, they deserve a tribute to their shiny, flexible personalities —

A snake in the grass

An idiom for someone dark 

When you come to Panagarh campus

Everything is real and to the mark

Colossal ones are climbing the trees

P-Mucosa is a non-venomous beast

Sometimes grey and sometimes yellow

Scanning every branch and hollow

Bird’s nests serves the best feast

Unscared it will slide beside you

If it’s tired of being hungry

Krait, Cobra and lazy Vipers

These venomous are also your neighbours

While Krait and Cobra are probable brothers

Russell’s Viper’s hiss is relatably louder

Not just these, there’re more in the sphere

Some slither fast and quickly disappear

Bronzeback can break into your bathroom

Tiny holes are enough for it to squeeze through

Frontyard, backyard, under your feet

Slipping through your nerves, haunting your dreams

Some faded fast, before I could identify

Scarier as they sound, a beauty you can’t defy

Station medicare centre contains excess of Anti-venom

And systematically formatted snakebite treatment chart

Snake repellant concoction’s available at every bazaar

So man and reptiles coexist together as one part 

          

Don’t make your way through their territory

You are the guest and they play the host

They are the masters of that land

No reason’s worthy, enough to boast

You might as well call Panagarh "a serpent's utopia". Again, credit goes to the discrete contrast of reptile friends here.

        Believe me, as much as we don't want to see them—way  more than that—they don't want to see us. And as much as we are afraid of them, they're afraid of us too. Throughout our stay, every time people spotted a snake, they called up the professionals, who would come with snake catchers and take the reptile safe and alive with them. Because, their survival is equally important for us. There's no species more superior to another when it comes to its importance of survival. Because we all together form part of this peaceful ecosystem.

        Then, late afternoons quickly turn into cheerful evenings. Children’s park converts into a complete ‘Circus Theatre’. While most of the kids are busy playing inside the park, the short bicycle gang is busy improving their skills and undeniably scaring people off enough to compel them to start walking off the road. Ladies are all heading for evening walk with their groups. Kids are sugaring their mothers for an evening dose of chips and ice-cream. Many Airmen (mostly Living-ins) get gathered under the ‘Hawa Mahal’ for their usual get-together. Maybe to get some ‘Hawa’ after their hectic schedule and, more importantly, to get their specific doses of customized smoothies. And many of the tough, feisty soldiers are carrying out their fitness routines next to Children’s Park. Surprisingly at Panagarh, even the evening goodbyes and farewells are cheerful. 

Even so, the most stunning of all is the unpredictable weather in Panagarh. Sunny, cloudy, mostly sunny, mostly cloudy, windy, stormy, lightening and thunderstorms without precipitation; sometimes torrential downpours followed by scorching sun and vice versa; frequent hailstorms are also common. Confusing? Well, still better than the real mystery about Panagarh’s weather.

Most common are the lightning and thunderstorms, which even occur on days with no possibility of
precipitation at all. But for sure, when it rains, these so updated “Weather Reporters of Panagarh” will be “spot-on” with their phenomenal reporting skills. Talking about their skills, Panagarh’s lightning is majestic and graceful in striking your fans, your window glasses, your very reliable wifi setups; and it could strike the whole server system of an entire office building. But do not worry; as soon as the rain starts, unplug everything in your house, and no less than everything should remain. Though, no need to unplug your brain, because firstly, it might(or certainly) be a bad conductor of electricity, and secondly, you need to keep it handy at such an entertaining hour.   

         There are many other heartwarming things about Panagarh. And these tiny things make their space in your heart, yet leave you speechless to explain so as to let you know that some emotions arise to be treasured and not to be given a certain definition —

Trees of dates, bananas, Jackfruits

Guavas, mangoes and plenty of neem 

All these keep fruiting well

Full of the joys of spring

Lemongrass is a cherry on top

Essence of lemon with nothing sour

Put it in tea, bring it to a boil

A soothing affair for every hour

Early mornings and early evenings

Late autumn and early springs

Aroma of fishes on every Sundays

Broad sidewalks and national highways 

Wagtails', squirrels', and parrots' nests

Millions of mosquitoes taking your blood test 

Native fruits and vegetables in the market

All you never knew you could forget

Shy, supple touch-me-nots 

Frogs having a pool concert

Queen of night and Palash tree

The healthiest earthworms ever seen

Tiny ‘kulhad wali chai’ shots 

Perfect rashogullas for your treat

        The stay at Panagarh has indeed been a sweet, cold “Sharbat” kind of relief in the scorching urbanisation. It provides an encouraging environment for connecting with nature and your surroundings, as well as the opportunity to connect with yourself.

         Compiling most of the things from my experience at Panagarh, I am certain that there are plenty of  other things about the place I might not have come across. But, after having written such a lengthy post through my intuit, now I will snuggle into my couch to catch some Zs and leave the rest of the exploration to you, so you too have a chance to exercise your own initiative. I wish you happy observation. P.S. You are welcome.

                                                                                                                                                                                           - VAISHALI

~DENOTATION~

1.     Suburb : an outlying district of a city, especially a residential one

2. Stillness : the absence of movement or sound

3. Lilac : a pale pinkish-violet colour

4. Periwinkle : a purple-blue colour like that of a periwinkle flower

5. Dazzling : extremely bright, especially so as to blind the eyes temporarily; extremely impressive, beautiful, or skilful

6. Overcast : cloud covering a large part of the sky

7. Mockery : teasing and contemptuous language or behaviour directed at a particular person or thing

8. Hoo-ha : a commotion; a fuss

9. Genesis : the origin or mode of formation of something

10. Discrete : individually separate and distinct

11. Slithering : move smoothly over a surface with a twisting or oscillating motion

12. Yo-ho-ho : used to attract attention

13. Colossal : extremely large or great

14. Utopia : an imagined place or state of things in which everything is perfect

15. Feisty : lively, determined, and courageous

16. Stunning : extremely impressive or attractive

17. Torrential : (of rain) falling rapidly and in copious quantities

18. Spot on : completely accurate or correct

19. Full of the Joys of spring : be lively and cheerful

20. Supple : bending and moving easily and gracefully; flexible

21. Scorching  : (of criticism) harsh; severe

22. Snuggle : settle or move into a warm, comfortable position

23. Catch some Zs : get some sleep