Reaching for the skies

Altitude, latitude and attitude:

Aditha Dissanayake

Why do you climb? When this age-old question was first publicly asked in the 1920s from George Mallory during his attempts on Everest, his incredibly complex or dismissive answer was "Because it is there." Today's youngsters though, have many reasons. They climb to preserve nature and the mountains for future generations. They climb for change.

There is very little you can do to improve your physical fitness while sitting all day at a desk, (except perhaps taking a walk to the canteen,lifting your feet up and down the way you are asked to do on a plane or eating a lot of bananas instead of the chocolate in your bag). What could you do to improve your health, physically as well as spiritually, while taking care of planet earth too at the same time? Go climb a mountain.

But if I think I know you by now, I know you will surf the web before you do any such thing. Beware. One of the first pieces of advice you see might be a Disclaimer: “Mountaineering is a dangerous sport. No book or guide can alert you to every hazard involved with climbing...before you climb make sure that your will is signed, witnessed, and in a safe place (which means not with you when you are climbing).

Say this to Ranjith Kharmegam and Prabhath Ratnayake and see them smile. They know there is a risk factor involved but they also know that the physical and spiritual satisfaction they feel when they reach the summit surpasses the danger and the uncertainty. Like all aspiring mountain climbers they feel nothing beats the pleasures of mountaineering which lie not only in the conquest of the peak but in the intense personal effort, ever increasing proficiency and contact with natural grandeur.

As in most things in life the greater rewards of mountaineering too do not come without considerable risk and hard work.

First things first. Are you sure you know what a mountain is? Or rather what a mountain is not? A mountain is not a plate filled with rice, or clothes waiting to be washed, or garbage by the roadside. (“Stop kidding” I can almost read Kharmegam's mind) What then is a mountain? Kharmegam explains with textbook precision. A mountain is a large amount of land that rises high above its surroundings. A mountain range is a group of connected mountains. Mountains not only add beauty to planet earth but provide food, water and yes, even entertainment to us, earthlings.

Realising that the relationship between humans and mountains is hard to separate, Kharmegam and Ratnayake had formed the group called 'Prabhawa' last year, bringing together a team of young people intent on appreciating and safeguarding the mountains of Sri Lanka.

“I grew up on a tea estate in the hill country” explains Kharmegam the spokesman and the Secretary of Prabhawa. “To me mountains are sacred because this was where I was born, grew up in, and will be buried one day.” He is happy his friend Prabath too feels that “it is our responsibility and duty to be grateful and to preserve mountains for the future generations.”

Describing that his friendship with Ratnayake dates back to their school days, Kharmegam who works as a Field Coordinator at the Haputale Vidatha Resource Centre of the Ministry of Technology and Research says even though he and Prabath are from two different races, this has never been a barrier and through “Prabhawa” they plan to extend this bond among their contemporaries as well. “Prabhath is a Sinhalese and I am a Tamil. We represent different communities but we are like one family. Community, Language or religion are not applicable to us or to any of the members of Prabhawa; namely Roshan Jayasuriya,Tharaka Weerawanni, Noel Bruno Dawson, Dinuka Wijeyarathne Malith, Kalindu Jayasundera, Dhushanthan, Dinidu Dhanuska and Pradeep.” Back to the mountains. Recently, members of Prabhawa gathered at Haputale to celebrate International Mountain's Day 2011.

Having walked through the Haputale town the 120 nature enthusiasts who had taken part in the event had stopped at the “Kurinji Sri Muthu Mariyamman Kovil ( Kurinji means Mountains in Tamil) to take part in a Hindu religious ceremony before beginning the strenuous climb to the summit of the Haputale mountain range.

“It is a long term belief among devotees of this particular temple that, if someone embarks on a new venture from this temple it always ends with great success” explains Kharmegam “All the climbers took part in this religious function and were blessed by the priest of the Kovil”.

The ‘real’ climb as Kharmegam describes it had begun from then on. Amidst singing, good humored teasing and even play acting (whenever they stopped to rest)the group had trekked uphill under a sky covered with a blanket of clouds. “There were Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims among us. But we hardly noticed our race differences. We all felt we belonged to one big family.”

Once they reached the summit some had gazed at the breathtaking view of the valley below, while some rested their weary limbs and listened to the advice given by several older climbers (Dr.Kodikkara from the Diyathalawa Base hospital, teacher Rajanayake and the Divisional Head of Scouts, Rajananda Kumarasiri)and yet others, unable to totally disconnect from the web had checked email and shared the view from the top, with their friends on Facebook.

“We made sure we left only our footprints on the summit” assures Kharmegam. The members of Prabhawa are satisfied that by gathering over hundred youngsters to take part in this year’s Mountain Day celebrations and through the Disaster Management Seminar they conducted on December 6, that they had managed to convey to the future generations the importance of loving, caring and preserving the mountains around us.

If you too wish to be a member of Prabhawa, Kharmegam says you can contact him on 0724262005 or write to [email protected].

Why not, see if you can do it. See if you are who you think you are when it comes to hard work, endurance and stamina. Discover your limits. Leave that desk and stretch your frozen limbs. Climb, climb and climb. Have a great day and enjoy the mountains!

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