Streams rise at the base of this mountain. I walked up from the main road near the Beas River through a small steep footpath. The road was idyllic. Clear streams cut through the road and a small bridge suspends over it. The rustic village has a calm soothing effect. The village still retains the traditional house making style. Every gully springs up surprise. At one corner there’s this German bakery and at the next turn we’ve the traditional houses with cows. Foreign tourists who have only seen cows on the road in India looked overwhelmed like they were seeing a deer or a Nilgai.

Vashisht was named after Rishi Vashisht one of the seven sages of Hindu. Legend has it that the saddened Rishi Vashisht after learning that his children were killed by Vishwamitra tried to commit suicide. But the river refused to kill him. The river was therefore named as Vipasha which literally means ‘freedom from bondage’. It was later shortened to Beas River. He began mediating and vowed to start his life anew. The Vashisht temple which exists even today is believed to be more than 4000 years. It’s difficult to imagine how a place so old could remain so small.