SIDDHA BABA GUFA

Herbert Daniel Gebauer - 06/01/2018

An unspecified cave entrance (unidentified shape, unidentified dimensions, unidentified orientation, unidentified characteristics) is said to give access to a well-ventilated, dolomitic cave (note 1), which is not only associated with an unidentified Siddha Baba or Superman but also yielded alternatively layered calcite / aragonite speleothems (stalagmites) that have been investigated in view of datable climatological archives recording some aspects of the South-Asian monsoon history. ETYMOLOGY: The legendary -siddhi- (Sanskrit, etc., plural of siddha) of Hindu folklore are supernatural powers, which are said to be gained by extreme emancipation. The siddhi result, for example, in the ability to lift one's body from the ground (levitation) or to travel swiftly through solid rock. A -baba-, literally: grandfather, is a Hindoo title of respect (HAMILTON, W 1828, 2: 720) and an affectionate appellation for a male person of any age (note 2),. SITUATION: DENNISTON et al. (1999: A-153) loate Siddha Baba Guffa simply somewhere in Pokhara Valley and forward the rough position 28°15'N, 84°00'; elevation circa 1000 m (precision error apparently ±7'30- or ±18’781 m), which possibly represents the location of the Pokhara Valley on a world-wide scale but, if taken as N28°15'00”: E084°00'00” indicates the position of the village of Bhalam, which lies about 3 km in a direct line NNE from the Pokhara town centre at Mahendrapul, the bridge across the Seti (note 3). CAVE CLIMATE 1999b: Stalagmites from Siddha Baba Guffa (28°15'N, 84°00'; elevation circa 1000 m), a well-ventilated, dolomitic cave in the Pokhara Valley, Central Nepal, preserve a mineralogical record of Indian summer monsoon variability over the past 2300 years. Annually deposited aragononite layers formed between 2300 and 1500 yr B.P. indicate reduced monsoon moisture and high cave aridity, while alternating calcite / aragonite laminae deposited after 1500 yr B.P. record increased summer monsoon moistre and more humid cave atmosphere during the summer monsoon. The mechanism driving aragonite crystalisation appears to be linked to inhibition of calcite precipitation by Mg-rich dripwater in an evaporative environment. The transition from aragonite-only layers to aragonite / calcite laminae at 1500 ±20 (2 std. dev.) yr. B.P. is abrupt and suggests that monsoon precipitation increased suddenly at this time. Dense, optically clear calcite from 450 ±7 to 350 ±20 yr B.P. (1550 to 1640 A.D.) and during two shorter intervals after 1640 A.D. indicate cool and/or moist conditions coincident with the Little Ice Age. The interval following ~1800 A.D. is predominantly aragonite and may mark warming at the end of the Little Ice Age. Similar change in monsoon regime have been noted from regional continental records, but most are limited either in temporal resolution or geographic distribution. Karst is abundant throughout Nepal, and thus speleothems may provide unique insight into short duration hanges in the character of the Indian summer monsoon throughout the Holocene and Pleistocene (DENNISTON et al. 1999: A-153). CAVE CLIMATE 1999b: Annually deposited aragonite and calcite / aragonite layers in stalagmites from Siddha Baba Guffa cave in Pokhara Valley, Nepal provide insight to summer monsoon variability spanning the past 2300 years. A dry period was identified between 2300 and 1500 yr B.P., followed by increasing moisture and humidity. Optically clear calcite, corresponding with cooler conditions, developed between A.D. 1550 to 1640 and during two short intervals after 1640. Denniston et al. note that these cold periods correspond with the Little Ice Age. After A.D. 1800 annual layers are predominately aragonite reflecting regional warming (DOUGLAS DALZIEL 1999).hanges in the character of the Indian summer monsoon throughout the Holocene and Pleistocene (DENNISTON et al. 1999: A-153). CAVE CLIMATE 1999b: Annually deposited aragonite and calcite / aragonite layers in stalagmites from Siddha Baba Guffa cave in Pokhara Valley, Nepal provide insight to summer monsoon variability spanning the past 2300 years. A dry period was identified between 2300 and 1500 yr B.P., followed by increasing moisture and humidity. Optically clear calcite, corresponding with cooler conditions, developed between A.D. 1550 to 1640 and during two short intervals after 1640. Denniston et al. note that these cold periods correspond with the Little Ice Age. After A.D. 1800 annual layers are predominately aragonite reflecting regional warming (DOUGLAS DALZIEL 1999).