Sunrise Atop Korigarh

Each and every day we are blessed with on this Earth begins with one. We may not yet be awake, and it is sometimes hidden from view by cloud, but it is there nonetheless.
-anonymous

The citadel of Korigarh (or Koraigarh) is imposing when approaching from below.  This is not a large fort, about two kilometres radius, but it is interesting in that it is one of the few forts where one can see the sunrise over the Sahyadris. The day I went there, the clouds obscured the horizon, but it was a blessing in disguise, the rays peeping from the clouds were beautiful.From here one can see Tung, Lohagarh and Visapur forts.

The Ganesh Gate appears after a sharp bend in the approaching steps.  Most forts have a sharp turn just before the main gate, this makes it difficult for an attacker or his elephants to generate momentum when rushing the gate.   The stone placed by ancient artisans were so finely cut and positioned that there was no need of cement or any binding material between them.  In an attempt to spruce up the fort, much of the original fine stone-work has been replaced by concrete.

The sunrise is beautiful to behold from the eastern rampart. The original bastions have worn down and at many places are barely two feet high.  There are two lakes and many storage cisterns on top of the fort. Water was life in these forts, particularly during a siege or in summer, so there was always a vast system of underground cisterns to store water.  Below the  eastern rampart is Aamby Valley with its two lakes, once an elite township, it now wears a sad  and decrepit air.  These lakes reflect the sky and make for a lovely view.

An ancient cannon, once the proud arbiter of history, now a mute sentinel.  This one is known as "Laxmi Tope" and is the largest of those I saw. These cannon would have hurled shot many miles at attackers, an intrinsic part of the defensive battle. There are five or six cannons on top, two are long range guns and the others appear to be siege mortars.

Where once fierce soldiers patrolled, there are now a colony of macaque monkeys.  Fed by tourists and the leftovers of the food of local workmen, they are now aggressive and view humans as a source of food.  These macaques and other animals in close proximity to humans are fast losing the ability to forage and eat their natural food.

The entrance to the Koraimata mandir beckons the devout.  There is regular worship at this and other mandirs dotting the fort plateau, however the presence of workers and the possible inaccessibility have given them a rundown appearance.  The once pristine pond next to the mandir is now clogged with bottles and  other tourist detritus. 

A mighty siege mortar now has a toothless gape at the picnickers who carelessly fling wrappers and plastic around.  Inaccessible and difficult to climb forts were the backbone of the military system. Generally one could see other forts from the top of one fort, a useful way of calling up reinforcements in the days prior to electronic signalling. A fort could only be captured by long, often years, of siege or by treachery.  It was guns like these that gradually  eroded the primacy and dominance of forts 

A bell summons the faithful....
Soldiers , by their very life and death vocation, are intensely religious. So one finds many temples on the way up to and in forts.  The patron  goddess of this fort is Koraidevi, though there as many as seven visible temples dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu and Ganesh among them.  Many of these places of prayer are still in use and periodic gatherings are common. 

A lone tree grows out of the once proud stonework of Korigad fort, its bastions and turrets now shrouded in vegetation, monkeys, and the ubiquitous  tourist, many of whom with a careless flick leave behind indelible ecological scars.  The path up and the top is littered with bottles, wrappers and food-containers. I urge you to note the words of a  historian who once said;The sanctity of our battlefields, monuments, and veterans institutions is of utmost importance to preserve military history and pay respect to those who fought.