(20) Visit to Dhoby Ghat, a huge laundry in Mumbai - The tour of the sacred places of "Slaughterhouse" finally comes to an end.

Travels to Buddhist sites in India and Sri Lanka (20)
Visit to Dhoby Ghat, Mumbai's Giant Laundry - The tour of the sacred sites of "Slaughterhouse" finally comes to an end.

Previous Article(19) 40% of the population are slum dwellers⁉The Skyscrapers and Slums of Mumbai: A Perspective on India's Hyper-Indequality Society."I talked about the slums of Mumbai in Section 2.1, but there is one more place that is a must in Mumbai.

That is Dhoby Ghat, known as Mumbai's giant laundry.

In modern India, the caste system has been legally abolished. However, by Shinya SuzukiCaste and Tentacledons in Contemporary India."As explained in the article, caste still persists even though it has been legally abolished.

In particular, cleaning jobs, sewage disposal, and laundry jobs have a history of being regarded as low caste jobs.

The Dobiegart is just one such example.

I was also surprised when I visited the site. Dhoby Ghat is located right in front of the Mahalaxmi station. The road between the railroad station and Dhoby Ghat is elevated, and part of it is an observation deck from which one can look down on Dhoby Ghat. I also took this picture from the observatory.

India's famous dangerous crowded trains were also visible from here. However, it was much milder than I had imagined. I guess the commuter rush in Tokyo is much worse than this. Well, I guess it depends on the time. I came here outside the rush hour. I am sure that the commuting time must be outrageous.

As the name of the huge laundry, a large amount of laundry was drying in front of us. I could not see the equipment used to do the washing because I only saw it from above, but according to the guide, mechanization has been introduced recently, and the way of working has changed. However, the guide told us that the whole place would not change so easily because most of the work is done by poor people.

Skyscrapers line the street directly behind Dobiegart.

As I mentioned in my last article, this is exactly how it is in Mumbai, no matter where you go. Everything is next to nothing. It may be chaos, which is typical of India, but it is still bizarre.

Looking straight down. Is that a washing tank filled with water?

Occasionally, people walk around here. I look down on them from above as an outsider, but I wonder how they see me. Am I just a scenery, or am I a depressing spectator? Either way, there is no doubt that they live in a completely different world from mine. The way they see the world and the way they think is completely different. When you come to India, you cannot help but feel that there is no single absolute truth or theory that is common to the world.

Now, I was lost in a certain emotion as I looked at this doobiegart.

We've finally come this far..."

For me, this is more than just a laundry area.

This is where Keisuke Ito'sgenocidal OrganIt is a sacred place, so to speak, and was also the setting for the

My first encounter with this film was a commercial for it that happened to be on TV; I think it was in 2017.

And it was this commercial that led me to pick up the original work.

And when I finally started reading the book, I was gripped from the very beginning.

I don't know what it is. But there is something different about the words of this man (the author, Keisuke Ito)...!"

I quickly got into it, and from there it was a rage.

And most surprising of all.. the issues discussed in this novel."is "That's what I was thinking at the time."This meant that there was a surprising overlap between the two.

I don't think the readers have any idea what on earth I am talking about.

But to put it crudely, what I had learned up to that point and what I was following with interest at the time were depicted there exactly as they were. For example,

From where and to what extent am I the unique consciousness that is 'I'?"
Where is Hell?"
I believe that human consciousness is also defined by the matter of the body, and that by analyzing and stimulating the brain, we can create specific thoughts and states of being."
I wonder if humans and animals aren't inherently separate entities."
What is the existence of the great invisible power and action that moves human beings? What is the connection between religion and mythology?
Terrorism, war, technology, neoliberal economics, globalism, private military companies, environmental destruction, poverty."

There are too many others to mention.

What surprised me most of all was the existence of the countries in which the novel takes place.

At that time, I had already begun planning my round-the-world trip for 2019. The trip was the culmination of my exploration of "what religion is" and "what human beings are," which I had been studying since I was a student.

The route was ultimately Tanzania, Turkey, Israel, Poland, Czech Republic (Prague), Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina (Sarajevo), Croatia, Italy and Vatican, Spain, USA (New York and Washington), and Cuba.

If you've read "Slaughterhouse Organ," you'll know exactly what I mean.

Yes. The countries I visited and the setting of "Slaughterhouse" coincided beautifully! The film also features the United States, Prague, Sarajevo, and Tanzania as major locations (and Mumbai, India, is also very important to the film, but only in Mumbai airport connection. (And Mumbai, India also plays a very important role in this film, but I was only able to make a connection at the Mumbai airport and was not able to go sightseeing in the city. That was my only regret!)

I became incredibly engrossed in this piece and read it over and over again. No matter how many times I read it, I never get tired of it. I love it more and more each time I read it.

I decided to make this book my companion for my trip around the world.

I planned to travel with only carry-on luggage, so my luggage had to be as small as possible. Even bringing just one book would be fatal.

But I really wanted to take this book with me! I managed to get it into my carry-on bag with a sense of "this is the one book I would take with me to a desert island.

That is how much this novel means to me.

The last remaining sanctuary of the beloved "Slaughterhouse" is here in Dhoby Ghat, Mumbai.

As I mentioned earlier, I only visited Mumbai on my 2019 trip with an airport connection. After a time, I have finally arrived here.

Of course, I have brought the book with me on this trip as an accompaniment in 2019. Finally, my "Slaughterhouse Organ" made its own pilgrimage to the novel's setting. I am talking about the best-selling book "Slaughterhouse Organ". There are probably countless books about it in Japan. But I believe he is the only one who actually traveled there. This book, which I have read many times and kept in my bag, is already falling apart. But for me, it is a very beloved companion. I will continue to love this book from now on.

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