Category: News

ASTHI PAHAR: “HILL OF BONES” by Late Acarya Kiirtananda Avadhuta   Once when we were walking with BA’BA’ on a particular hill southwest of ANANDA NAGAR. Ba’ba’ said, “Let me sit down here. You go and search for any stones that look peculiar to you. If you find any, call me.” So we searched and found a very large, strange looking stone and called BA’BA’ over to it. BA’BA’ touched it, smelled it, hit it with a stick and listened to the sound and then said, “This is a fossil of a dinosaur. Look at the bottom and you will see the tail. It would be nice if we could bring it to my museum in Calcutta, but who will carry it? If I ask you to carry it, can you do it?” I answered, “BA’BA’, if Rector Master (then Acarya Amitanandaji) helps me, then I can do it.” BA’BA’ laughed and said, “Here nobody is Rector Master, everybody is Fossil Master!” Then i saw another peculiar reddish stone and brought it to BA’BA’. He said, “That is a fossil of a giant pterodactyl [prehistoric reptilian bird] with reddish eyes – a very dangerous predator, so ferocious that it used to fly carrying elephants in its claws.” That day BA’BA’ found many fossils. We said to BA’BA’, please give the name of this Hill.” BA’BA’ paused and then said, “This Hill will be called “ASTHI PAHAR”, the “HILL OF BONES”. Then BA’BA’ told us that during the ice age all the prehistoric animals came here to die – huge reptilian birds and dinosaurs as big as twelve elephants. There was two types of dinosaurs, vegetarian and non-vegetarian, but all of them had very small brains and very stupid. They always used to quarrel among themselves and ate their own eggs. Gradually they became extinct. The stones on Asthi Pahar are very old – so old that if you crush them with your fingers they crumble into dust. The water on this hill, as elsewhere at ANANDA NAGAR, is full of iodine and other minerals, and is very good for health, especially for digestion.