Bastar - Part 2 - Exploring Jabarra : The Tribal Village of Natural Healers

Welcome to the tribal village of “Jabarra Healers” 

We were put up in forest bungalow in Jabarra and it was a luxury in this tiny village. There are 2 rooms (3 people sharing) with attached bathrooms, and they provide camping facilities also if the group is big. Food was served in dining room for us and we were served authentic local cuisine comprising of dal, rice, aloo gobi subzi and very interesting subzi of red amarnath leaves(this was a surprise element for us😊 ). 



This forest bungalow was built in 1918. With no mobile network, you can expect a relaxed holiday with much needed digital detox. 

Next day, we woke up early in the morning at 5 am for an adventurous Jabarra bear hike. But nature had a different plan for us, and surprise showers halted our plan.

Once the rains stopped at around 7 am, we decided to take an intriguing village walk to get a feel of the village space and the tribal lifestyle here. We also had our local tour guide with us here from a travel group called “Unexplored Bastar” who took us around and explained us about their culture and lifestyle. 

The Rustic Village Walk

Jabarra is a forest village located in the tribal belt of Dhamtari Village in Chattisgarh. This is inhabited by the primitive Kamar (PVGT’s) and Gond tribes. It is very famous for herbs and medicinal plants. 


As we walked across the narrow lanes of the village, we could see tribal art everywhere – be in on the paintings on their homes or water tank or anganwadi school. These street arts speak a lot about their culture. Our guide told us the drawings are often done to celebrate festivals and include animals and birds, human figures, the hunt, and the dance. 





We stopped by at the first home and the people in that house were more than happy to take us around. Most of them have good portion of a land to cultivate rice, Jowar and mainly pulses. 







We came out and strolled further more to enter another house







Local Chickpeas


They are very creative in arts and crafts too which includes pottery, basket-making, body-tattooing, and floor-painting




Tending goats and cattle are also a common sight here. 



There is no transport available to commute between two villages. You will need to have your own vehicle to commute. 

After a good rustic walk, we started walking back to our rest house. 







Since it was dark when we reached previous night and there was power cut, we could not click much pictures of the same. So until breakfast was getting ready, we clicked some pictures of the amazing property we were put up.  





Breakfast was ready and we were offered authentic food which had Kheela along with spicy tomato chutney. 

Hike to Jabarra Peak

Post breakfast at around 10 am we set off on this hike to Jabarra peak along with local tribesmen from the village who introduced us to loads of medicinal trees and plants. It is said that every person in Jabarra understands the medicinal properties of each root/plant which has been traditionally passed on from their ancestors. Hence the people here are also called “Jabarra healers”. This is also believed to be Asia’s largest Ayurveda space. 

We reached the base point of the hike within 15 minutes from our forest bungalow. As we got off from our vehicle we were so amazed to see the road so clean, not crowded and covered with colorful trees on both the sides. 





As we started from the base camp, we saw a fresh Leopard pug mark here. That was a welcome for us into this trail 😊. Local tribesmen told us that the forests here are rich with wildlife and are home for bears, leopards, and other wild animals. 



From here we were led into the forest by tribesmen, and they were enlightening us the healing values of various medicinal plants for the treatment of ailments such as Malaria, Fracture, Wounds, Snake Bite etc


Guddu kit for bandages and to treat bone breaks

Timsa tree

Tree shedding leaves resembling maple leaves 


These leaves enhance the beauty of the forest when viewed from top. 

After around 1-2 kms walk inside the forest, you will reach a point from where you need to do rock climbing now to reach the first milestone. It was little tough, but with the help of tribesmen we were able to make it. We took a pit stop here to absorb the stunning views around us. 






We next started our walk uphill towards our next milestone. 



We came across a very strange structure wherein we didn’t understand if the rock was supporting root or root was supporting the rock. Our local tour guide from “Unexplored Bastar” told us that this is believed to be the forest god for villagers. In case of forest fire or any other danger, they climb up the hill and from here they can see how much area is impacted due to the calamity. This will help them assess the situation. 



From here we walked further uphill and reached the next milestone. Here also we got some stunning views of the surroundings. Colorful trees amongst lush greenery were adding to the beauty of mesmerizing views. We took pit stop here for water break and then started to our final milestone. 




Once we reached this point, it was a WOW moment for us. We were amazed to see jaw dropping views on top. 




Tribesmen told us that this is the place, people come for meditation or relaxation or even Yoga. Complete silence and no one to disturb you. What else you can ask for detoxification of mind and body in such a serene place. 



We were back to the base camp by 12:30 PM. Post reaching our place of stay, we packed our bags and thanked the local tribesmen for the amazing hospitality and showing us around Jabarra. 

We then started off to our next destination Tatamari which is around 2 hours journey from Jabarra, and I shall be covering all the details about this place in my next blog. 

So, signing off now taking some medicinal knowledge from people residing in Asia’s largest Ayurveda space - Jabarra Healers 😊

Bastar - Part 1 - Arrival at Raipur and Half day Sight Seeing

Bastar - Part 3 - Drive to Tatamari View Point

Bastar - Part 4 - Bell Metal Handicrafts of Kondagaon

Bastar - Part 5 - Official Introduction to Baster Vibes

Bastar - Part 6 - Cave Explorations 

Bastar - Part 7 - Stroll through the Colorful Traditional Tribal Haat Market

Bastar - Part 8 - Teerathgarh Falls 

Bastar - Part 9 - Mendri Ghumar : Valley of Fog

Bastar - Part 10 - Chitrakoot Falls : Niagara of India

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