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Manali - The Home of Manu
 Legend
says that Manali is the place
where Manu stepped down to recreate human
life after floods had devastated the world.
Manali is situated at the head of the Kulu
valley, 108 kilometers north of Manai near
the Beas River. Though the town lies at the
heart of the region’s highest mountain
ranges, it is easily accessible by road from
the plains. Old Manali is situated about 3
kilometers northwest of the present ‘new’ Manali. It is a lovely area of old
guesthouses and orchards. The "Manu
Maharshi Temple" where Manu
meditated after he arrived here is a
landmark.
Manali’s main street, the ‘Mall’
is a noisy scene of constant activities
fronted by the bus station, several shopping
markets, and a line of hotels, restaurants
and travel agents.
Northwest of the Bazaar is the Dunghri
temple. It is the oldest shrine in Manali
and the seat of Hadimba (Hirma Devi). The
temple is a giant wooden pagoda crowned by
crimson pennants, a brass-ball and a
trident, which dates back to 1553. Its facade embellished with wonderful
woodcarvings of elephants, crocodiles and
folk deities.
The shrine is dominated by several large
boulders one of which shelters the stone on
which goats and buffaloes are sacrificed
during important rituals. The hollow at the
center of the rock, believed to be Vishnu’s
footprints, channels the blood to Hadimba’s
mouth.
Gompas or Buddhist monasteries are
seen at the southern edge of the town. The 'Gadhan
Thekchokling Gompa’ was built by Tibetan
refugees in the late 1960. This gompa has
some brightly colored frescoes and a
Buddhist statue.
The Tibetan market, spread around the
back of the Hotel Ibex, has many stalls that
sell shawls and other woolen clothes and
souvenirs. Woolen goods are the town’s
forte, particularly the brilliantly
patterned shawls for which Kullu valley is
famous. A good place to familiarize you with
prices is the Bodh shawl Factory Shop.
Manali’s other specialty is Himalayan
handicrafts-such as prayer wheels,
amulets, masks, musical
instruments, rosaries and thangha.
Sometimes these items are hawked as antiques
in the NSC market or the souvenir shops. The
silver jewellery inlaid with turquoise and
coral sold in or behind the mall the
genuine, but it takes an expert eye to spot
a fake.
Only 3 kilometers from Manali lies Vashist,
an amorphous jumble of traditional timber
houses and modern concrete cubes divided by
paved courtyards and narrow muddy lanes.
Vashist boasts a couple of old stone
temples, opposite each other above the main
square. Dedicated to the local patron saint
Vashista they are adorned with elaborate
woodcarvings.
The rafting season in Manali
generally lasts from May to mid-June,
depending on the monsoon from mid-September
to mid-October. In summer paragliding
is organized on the slopes of Solang Nullah
in the north of Manali by the Himalayan
eagle Paragliding School run by North Fair
Adventure tours. Skiing for beginners is
arranged at Solang Nullah from January to
March.
How to get there.
The nearest airport is at Bhuntar, 50
kilometers south of Kullu town. There are
two booths at the bus station, which provide
computerized booking services. Public buses
regularly ply between Manali and Kullu town.
Air: flights are available from Delhi to
Bhuntar from where one can hire a taxi or a
luxury coach to reach Manali.
Road: Delhi (16 hours); two overnight HPTDC (Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development
Corporation) buses and many private
companies run daily buses to Shimla (10
hours), Dharamsala (10 hours) and Chandigarh
(10 hours).
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