Seduced With A Sunset: My Boat Ride in Rameshwaram.

And I learned what is obvious to a child.

That life is simply a collection of little lives, each lived one day at a time.

That each day should be spent finding beauty

in flowers and poetry and talking to animals.

That a day spent with dreaming and sunsets and refreshing breezes cannot be bettered.” 

― Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook

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The darshan to the century’s old and hugely renowned Ramanathaswamy temple had concluded successfully earlier in the day. I had followed it up with my lazy ambling along the sacred sea shore Agni Teertham later in the afternoon capturing and soaking the religious furore engulfing the entire area. Now that a couple more hours had passed by, giving way to that wonderful time of the day we call evening, I am here again, this time my brother leading the way.

‘Let’s go for a boat ride!’ He had exclaimed soon after his afternoon siesta. Happy with the idea, I chipped in excitement – ‘Yes, the last one that sails out into the water, we’ll watch the sunset.’

Nature being second home to us, both to him as well as to me, the idea of peacefully watching the sun go down into the river spanked music to our ears.

The gates for the last boat opened at around 5.30 pm and our tickets costed Rs. 60 each. I hop onto the big canoe with a spring in my step and rush to get hold a good seat for myself.

My Sunset boat ride in Rameshwaram has just begun!

With a loud hoot to send a few distant birds hawking in the sky, the ship sways back and forth pulling itself out from the harbour deck and out into the sea we go! The temple keeps getting further and further. So does the lighthouse located nearby. The jumbled strain of the chattering pilgrims springing from the sacred shores of Agni Teertham dies down eventually. I close my eyes and exhale a deep breath as I settle down in my seat; a stroke of gentle breeze caresses my face. Soon, the hum of the incessant murmurs are replaced by the whoosh - whooshing melody of the sea. The way is clear; now is the time to dive deep into one’s own sea of silences. And bathe in the beauty that shines through…

For it’s not just a boat ride, any boat ride, but it’s a cinematic performance by the blazing sun, the gentle sky and the gurgling sea – it’s a phenomenon that happens every single day - and you are invited.

She dances,

... to the symphony of magical colours, flowing ever so elegantly with the orchestrating time, enthralling one and all with her brazen spirit.

There’s something unreserved about the whole setting - in the sun and the sea and the breeze and the boat and in them and in us and in me - like a groovy music hanging in the air, the eloquence of silence, suspended in the all pervading universe and then, flowing into one another’s personality, bringing and binding everyone together in a different zone. A zone of nothingness.

Nothingness... the threshold between two very different worlds.

These moments when you sway with the swaying boat watching such a spectacle in nature are precious. Here, in this moment, individual identities do not matter any more.

She binds us all.

The doors of the sky are open; the charming sun is peeping through...

He looks to me a bit restless though; a few more moments and it’d be time for him to go. But not before, he lights up the entire house. There’s a fire in his belly! There's a lightness of touch about him that sets him apart. He dives into the Folsom river but doesn't hit hard, he caresses… Leaving an indelible impression not on her delicate body, but her fiercely heady heart.

If only for a streak, her illusionary veil of darkness is pierced

revealing the real gracious radiance of her beauty.

There are chains that bind, but being the hero that he is, he doesn't cut. Merely laces… creatively gliding through with his peerless spark.

The boat bobs up and down; there are miles to be crossed and a destination to be reached. There are tides to be encountered and a shore to be seeked...

But this gentleman is in no hurry!

He can be trusted for the direction is never lost. He knows his job well, his limits and he embraces them all – Mother Nature in turn, she rocks them all.

The sky comes out shimmering, draped in scintillating garbs of orange, pink, purple, grey and black. Alluring as it is but all illusionary, just like life, except the real, the unattached – the blue!

His youth has long melted into the infinities of the horizon, and the boat lies safely harboured to the dock, there is still some light illuminating the pathway of the deck as I, along with my brother, make our way back to our Budget hotel.

Soon it will be dark outside, but not within my heart.

The light of this beautiful little love story sparkles on.
And, one day, I shall walk this path again,

To ride in the innocent waves of beauty,

And, delight in yet another cinematic performance by the sun, the sea and the breezes,

colourfully orchestrating all our individual destinies,

in a single symphonic melody called life.

Tips/ Information / FAQ's for travellers:

1. When is the best time for a boat ride in Rameshwaram? Sunrise and sunset are undoubtedly the best times to take a boat ride.

2. What is the cost of the ticket per person? Cost for a single ticket is Rs. 60. Children below 2 years are not allowed.

3. What are the timings of the boat ride? The timings are subject to change as they depend on the weather conditions. When I went there during sunset, the weather being clear, the last boat for the day took off at around 5.30 pm.

4. Where is the boat jetty? How can I get there? The boat jetty is along the shores of Agni Teertham, on the way as you walk towards the TTDC Hotel.

Previous Posts from the trip:

1. Planning Rameshwaram: An Introduction, How to Reach, Where to Stay.

2. The Sweeping Healers of the Agni Theertham in Rameshwaram!

3. Shri Ramanathaswamy Shivlingam Temple Darshan and 22 Kund Snanams, Rameshwaram.

4. What to do in Rameshwaram? Walk the Shores of Agni Teertham!

5. Where to Eat in Rameshwaram? Hotel Guru, Gujarati Bhojanalya and more!