Nageswara Temple is another small one where Lord Shiva is worshipped and we saw a Temple for Rahu also (one of the nine celestial bodies in the Navagraha. [Actually, we saw Temples for all the major planets. Sun (Surya), Moon (Soma or Chandra), Venus (Sukra, is a male in Vedic astrology), Jupiter (Guru), Mercury (Budha), Saturn (Sani). Mars (Kuja) plus the nodes (Rahu and Ketu)]
The attraction in this Temple is Shiva is worshipped in several forms. On the North, which means South facing is that of Lord Dakshinamurti (Shiva as teacher), on the west Ardhanarishvara (Shiva and Shakti in one figure) and Brahma on the south. Almost life-size sculptures of some devotees, donors or royalty are carved along the corridors. I did not see any history written about them. The Nataraja shrine here is shaped in the form of a chariot, and the shrine dedicated to the Sun God.
Other Temples we saw included that of Shiva as Pathala Beejanatha. Pralayakaala Rudra and that of Kaali.
We were told that the Sun's rays fall on Nageswara on the 11th through the 13th day of the Tamil month Chithirai (Aries).
We were there in the winter month of November, so, did not witness this.
The temples at Thirunageswaram:
There are two major temples at Thirunageswaram. One is that of Oppliyappan, which is one of the famous 108 Divyadesams.
The other is that of ThiruNageswara. I don't remember much about these Temples.
The list of all the Temples we saw is so huge, I am surprised that I am able to keep track of this much.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Kumbakonam Temples
Kumbakonam is known as the City of temples as there are a few thousand temples in and around Kumbakonam.
The Kumbeswara is the largest and the oldest Shiva temples located in the center of the town of Kumbakonam. The presiding deity of this temple is Lord Kumbeswara and the presiding Goddess is Sri Mangalambigai. There is a shrine dedicated to Adi Vinayaka (Lord Ganesh).
It is a huge and colorful Temple with intricate carvings. The Mahamaham festival takes place here once every 12 years during the Tamil Month of Masi (February/March), when pilgrims from all over India visit Kumbakonam to take a holy bath in the sacred Mahamaham tank located in the heart of the town. We were not there during that season. But we met with the Sabari Malai crowd. Where ever we went, they were ahead of us in their black clothes in most of the Temples, starting from Kapilateertham in Tirupathi.
Sarangapani Temple:
The next Temple we saw was of Lord Sarangapani (his consort Komalavalli) a Vaishnavite temple. It is twelve storied close to 150 feet high and was built during the 15th century (some claim as 13th century). The architecture again is superb. Click here to see the broader view of the Temple.
This temple is the largest of the Vishnu temples in Kumbakonam. It is among the 108 Tirupatis. First Srirangam, then Tirupathi and the third in line is of Sarangapani. The shrine is in the form of a chariot. The beautiful tank adjoining this Temple is called Hema Pushkarini and on the other side of which was Adi Kumbeshwara temple. A hundred-pillar hallway (I did not count) from the seventeenth century was awesome. We enter through a twelve-storied pyramidal gopuram which is one of the largest gopurams in South India. We saw the statues of many Alwars here.
Someswara Temple
Someswar Temple is situated in the southern portion of Sri Sarangapani temple, facing East. It has two entrances, one on the East side and the other on the South side. Gopuram is five-tiered. Arumugam and Thenar Mozhi Ammal are the deities in this temple. To me this Temple's gopuram looked very different from that of the others (Sarangapani, Chakrapani and Ramaswamy)
In very close proximity to the Sarangapani Temple are that of Ramaswamy and Chakrapani.
Ramaswamy Temple:
Here the main attraction is the the paintings of Ramayana. The story goes that the only temple where Lord Rama, Sita are in the same platform and Lord Hanuman is playing the veena instead of reading the Ramayana. The entire deity is said to be made from Saligrama monolith. Again, the intricacy of the carvings on the pillars is exquisite. In most of these Temples, no photography and no foreigners were allowed after a certain point. So, I stopped taking the camera with me altogether.
Chakrapani Temple:
This Temple is situated about 1.5 km from Ramaswamy Temple. The main deity is Chakraraja (his consort Vijayavalli). The uniqueness of this Temple is that Bilwa pooja (which is normally done in Shiva Temples) is done for Vishnu who is in the form of Chakrapani) Here, the Chakra stands for the Sudarsana Chakra.
By the way, at this point, I have to mention that our driver finished his worship and darsans ahead of us. He spent some of his daily allowance (that Nirmala handed over to him) on CDs. He was supposed use that money for his food and lodging. Since he was eating with us, we paid for his meals and slowly, I saw him using the hotel room occupied by Rao and his brother (we paid for the extra bed) - hence he had extra money in his wallet. I added this bulletin just to break the monotony of my Temple stories. Also, he changed into black clothes and when I asked him , he said that he was doing the Sabari Malai diksha.
Now last, but not the least was Kasi Viswanatha Temple.
This Temple is situated very close to the Mahamaham tank. Here the main deity is Kasi Viswanatha (Visalakshi is the consort).
I remembered the Viswanatha Temple of Varanasi. (These two names used to be very common for children in our families. Actually, my mother's name was Visalakshi and one of my nephews who lives in Chennai is named after Viswanatha). There were statues of nine kanyakas (virgins) which are the 9 holy rivers, namely Ganga, Godavari, Kaveri, Krishna, Narmada, Saraswati, Sarayu , Tungabhadra and Yamuna. Also, to be noted is the fact that the sthala lingam was present in the southern part of the temple. It was worshipped by Ravana and is believed to grow with ages.
The Kumbeswara is the largest and the oldest Shiva temples located in the center of the town of Kumbakonam. The presiding deity of this temple is Lord Kumbeswara and the presiding Goddess is Sri Mangalambigai. There is a shrine dedicated to Adi Vinayaka (Lord Ganesh).
It is a huge and colorful Temple with intricate carvings. The Mahamaham festival takes place here once every 12 years during the Tamil Month of Masi (February/March), when pilgrims from all over India visit Kumbakonam to take a holy bath in the sacred Mahamaham tank located in the heart of the town. We were not there during that season. But we met with the Sabari Malai crowd. Where ever we went, they were ahead of us in their black clothes in most of the Temples, starting from Kapilateertham in Tirupathi.
Sarangapani Temple:
The next Temple we saw was of Lord Sarangapani (his consort Komalavalli) a Vaishnavite temple. It is twelve storied close to 150 feet high and was built during the 15th century (some claim as 13th century). The architecture again is superb. Click here to see the broader view of the Temple.
This temple is the largest of the Vishnu temples in Kumbakonam. It is among the 108 Tirupatis. First Srirangam, then Tirupathi and the third in line is of Sarangapani. The shrine is in the form of a chariot. The beautiful tank adjoining this Temple is called Hema Pushkarini and on the other side of which was Adi Kumbeshwara temple. A hundred-pillar hallway (I did not count) from the seventeenth century was awesome. We enter through a twelve-storied pyramidal gopuram which is one of the largest gopurams in South India. We saw the statues of many Alwars here.
Someswara Temple
Someswar Temple is situated in the southern portion of Sri Sarangapani temple, facing East. It has two entrances, one on the East side and the other on the South side. Gopuram is five-tiered. Arumugam and Thenar Mozhi Ammal are the deities in this temple. To me this Temple's gopuram looked very different from that of the others (Sarangapani, Chakrapani and Ramaswamy)
In very close proximity to the Sarangapani Temple are that of Ramaswamy and Chakrapani.
Ramaswamy Temple:
Here the main attraction is the the paintings of Ramayana. The story goes that the only temple where Lord Rama, Sita are in the same platform and Lord Hanuman is playing the veena instead of reading the Ramayana. The entire deity is said to be made from Saligrama monolith. Again, the intricacy of the carvings on the pillars is exquisite. In most of these Temples, no photography and no foreigners were allowed after a certain point. So, I stopped taking the camera with me altogether.
Chakrapani Temple:
This Temple is situated about 1.5 km from Ramaswamy Temple. The main deity is Chakraraja (his consort Vijayavalli). The uniqueness of this Temple is that Bilwa pooja (which is normally done in Shiva Temples) is done for Vishnu who is in the form of Chakrapani) Here, the Chakra stands for the Sudarsana Chakra.
By the way, at this point, I have to mention that our driver finished his worship and darsans ahead of us. He spent some of his daily allowance (that Nirmala handed over to him) on CDs. He was supposed use that money for his food and lodging. Since he was eating with us, we paid for his meals and slowly, I saw him using the hotel room occupied by Rao and his brother (we paid for the extra bed) - hence he had extra money in his wallet. I added this bulletin just to break the monotony of my Temple stories. Also, he changed into black clothes and when I asked him , he said that he was doing the Sabari Malai diksha.
Now last, but not the least was Kasi Viswanatha Temple.
This Temple is situated very close to the Mahamaham tank. Here the main deity is Kasi Viswanatha (Visalakshi is the consort).
I remembered the Viswanatha Temple of Varanasi. (These two names used to be very common for children in our families. Actually, my mother's name was Visalakshi and one of my nephews who lives in Chennai is named after Viswanatha). There were statues of nine kanyakas (virgins) which are the 9 holy rivers, namely Ganga, Godavari, Kaveri, Krishna, Narmada, Saraswati, Sarayu , Tungabhadra and Yamuna. Also, to be noted is the fact that the sthala lingam was present in the southern part of the temple. It was worshipped by Ravana and is believed to grow with ages.
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Vaideeswaran and The Temple for Mars (Kuja)
Please read the Chidambaram post again. i added some at the end (on May 30th).
I heard this Temple's name mentioned by my Tamil friends in the USA. The first offering of the hair (Tonsuring – the act of shaving your head to propitiate God) is a family tradition for some here. In my family, we do it in Tirumalai. Also, this town is famous for the Naadi shastra and we saw signs along the road advertising this. I was very excited because not only that I had interest, but also I had experienced the truth of this Naadi shastra in 1995 in Tirupathi (same Agasthya Naadi). Our driver's eyes brightened and wanted to know whether we would like to stop for a reading. I knew we needed a whole day for that - so, we said "no".
This Temple is very ancient, dedicated to Shiva. Vaideeswaran literally means the divine provider of cures (vaidya in Sanskrit meaning doctor). The main deities are Shiva as Vaideeswaran, Parvathi as Taiyal Nayaki and Subrahmanya as Muthukumara.
In addition there is a Temple for Mars (Kujaor Angaraka) which I was surprised to see there. Due to my interest in Astronomy and Astrology, I was overjoyed.
All the Carnatic music lovers know about Sri Muthuswami Dikshitar and his compostions. It is said of Muthuswamy Dikshitar that when his vision was impaired, Lord Subrahmanya appeared in his dream and told him to go over to Vaideeswaran Koil and seek the blessings of the Lord. You can hear this in his kriti, ``Muthukumaraiyane...'', written in Tamil.
In one corner of the compound, we saw Jatayu gundam where supposedly Rama cremated Jatayu (whose wings were cut off by Ravana). Of the 63 shrines along the banks of Kaveri, Vaideeswaran Temple attracts most visitors.
The interesting part I noticed was Vaideeswara faces West, the Goddess faces South. The painted figures of Vrishabha, conch etc, are exquisite carvings. There were several theerthams around this Temple, but we did not take a dip in any. The only name I remembered was Kodanda theertham. In the Southern enclosure, we had darsan of Ganapathi (Karpaga Vinayakar) whom we worship first before worshipping the presiding deities. As we did the pradakshinam (going around the prakaram) and as we approached the Eastern gopuram, we saw the famous Neem tree (Sthala Vriksha) and we did go around that tree also. There are innumerable statues in every Temple and I did not even attempt keeping track of all of them.
More coming................
I heard this Temple's name mentioned by my Tamil friends in the USA. The first offering of the hair (Tonsuring – the act of shaving your head to propitiate God) is a family tradition for some here. In my family, we do it in Tirumalai. Also, this town is famous for the Naadi shastra and we saw signs along the road advertising this. I was very excited because not only that I had interest, but also I had experienced the truth of this Naadi shastra in 1995 in Tirupathi (same Agasthya Naadi). Our driver's eyes brightened and wanted to know whether we would like to stop for a reading. I knew we needed a whole day for that - so, we said "no".
This Temple is very ancient, dedicated to Shiva. Vaideeswaran literally means the divine provider of cures (vaidya in Sanskrit meaning doctor). The main deities are Shiva as Vaideeswaran, Parvathi as Taiyal Nayaki and Subrahmanya as Muthukumara.
In addition there is a Temple for Mars (Kujaor Angaraka) which I was surprised to see there. Due to my interest in Astronomy and Astrology, I was overjoyed.
All the Carnatic music lovers know about Sri Muthuswami Dikshitar and his compostions. It is said of Muthuswamy Dikshitar that when his vision was impaired, Lord Subrahmanya appeared in his dream and told him to go over to Vaideeswaran Koil and seek the blessings of the Lord. You can hear this in his kriti, ``Muthukumaraiyane...'', written in Tamil.
In one corner of the compound, we saw Jatayu gundam where supposedly Rama cremated Jatayu (whose wings were cut off by Ravana). Of the 63 shrines along the banks of Kaveri, Vaideeswaran Temple attracts most visitors.
The interesting part I noticed was Vaideeswara faces West, the Goddess faces South. The painted figures of Vrishabha, conch etc, are exquisite carvings. There were several theerthams around this Temple, but we did not take a dip in any. The only name I remembered was Kodanda theertham. In the Southern enclosure, we had darsan of Ganapathi (Karpaga Vinayakar) whom we worship first before worshipping the presiding deities. As we did the pradakshinam (going around the prakaram) and as we approached the Eastern gopuram, we saw the famous Neem tree (Sthala Vriksha) and we did go around that tree also. There are innumerable statues in every Temple and I did not even attempt keeping track of all of them.
More coming................
Friday, May 16, 2008
Chidambaram
Being rainy season, it was relatively cool. The saga with the driver continued. We had to stop many times to get directions. Nirmala was (actually Rao and I also were) irritated that the driver had problem not only with the knowledge of the roads but also with the language and in following the instructions. But he was a good driver in the sense that he was calm in spite of our comments.
For this trip, we did not make advance reservations of any hotel accommodations. As we approached Chidamabaram, we started looking for one. I don't remember the name of the hotel. Throughout Tamil Nadu, we had no problem in most of the hotels that we stayed either for food or for other services. Nirmala and Rao spoke to the people at the front desk in their own Tamil. Their vocabulary inTamil was much better than their Hindi. Also, in the Southern part of India all business people can communicate in English.
Now about this Temple: This was a Shiva Temple. But Shiva in the form of Nataraja, the Cosmic dancer. The name of the town Chidambaram in Samsrit probably is Chit + ambaram, meaning sky of consciousness, representing the natural element, space.
The town is close (less than 60 kms) to Pondicherry in Tamil Nadu, . For the Shiva worshippers, this Temple is one of the five holiest temples. The other four temples in this category are, Thiruvanaikaval Jambukeswara (water), Kanchi Ekambareswara (earth),Thiruvannamalai Arunachaleswara (fire) and Kalahasti Nathar (wind). I am happy to say that we visited all of them.
The architecture was superb!! Very intricate and colorful. Most of these temples do not allow photography inside the shrine area. With the security being strict I stopped carrying the camera altogether. I did take some photos which I will load soon.
We waited for pooja (worship) and darsan for a long time. But it was well worth it. We had great darsan, not a big crowd. No pushing or shoving. Very peaceful. Then, we were asked to wait longer to witness the famous Chidambara Rahasyam (secret). There was curtain drawn and that room was to the left of Shiva's Shrine. Finally, the priest came and opened the curtain and we were asked to take a quick peak through the railing. A few around us said they saw it. I saw nothing. I looked around and Nagalaksmi was all in smiles. I wondered why I could not see? In our families, we use the word 'chidambara rayasyam'. I thought about that and then it dawned on me - we used it when there was really no secret. That means it is the 'nothingness'!!! So, we have to go beyond all these forms and rituals and see God in or as that 'nothingness'. I was happy at my conclusion!!
For this trip, we did not make advance reservations of any hotel accommodations. As we approached Chidamabaram, we started looking for one. I don't remember the name of the hotel. Throughout Tamil Nadu, we had no problem in most of the hotels that we stayed either for food or for other services. Nirmala and Rao spoke to the people at the front desk in their own Tamil. Their vocabulary inTamil was much better than their Hindi. Also, in the Southern part of India all business people can communicate in English.
Now about this Temple: This was a Shiva Temple. But Shiva in the form of Nataraja, the Cosmic dancer. The name of the town Chidambaram in Samsrit probably is Chit + ambaram, meaning sky of consciousness, representing the natural element, space.
The town is close (less than 60 kms) to Pondicherry in Tamil Nadu, . For the Shiva worshippers, this Temple is one of the five holiest temples. The other four temples in this category are, Thiruvanaikaval Jambukeswara (water), Kanchi Ekambareswara (earth),Thiruvannamalai Arunachaleswara (fire) and Kalahasti Nathar (wind). I am happy to say that we visited all of them.
The architecture was superb!! Very intricate and colorful. Most of these temples do not allow photography inside the shrine area. With the security being strict I stopped carrying the camera altogether. I did take some photos which I will load soon.
We waited for pooja (worship) and darsan for a long time. But it was well worth it. We had great darsan, not a big crowd. No pushing or shoving. Very peaceful. Then, we were asked to wait longer to witness the famous Chidambara Rahasyam (secret). There was curtain drawn and that room was to the left of Shiva's Shrine. Finally, the priest came and opened the curtain and we were asked to take a quick peak through the railing. A few around us said they saw it. I saw nothing. I looked around and Nagalaksmi was all in smiles. I wondered why I could not see? In our families, we use the word 'chidambara rayasyam'. I thought about that and then it dawned on me - we used it when there was really no secret. That means it is the 'nothingness'!!! So, we have to go beyond all these forms and rituals and see God in or as that 'nothingness'. I was happy at my conclusion!!
On our way to Tamil Nadu
Below is the list of places we covered in our first leg of this yatra. I will go through them in detail (as much as I can remember) in my subsequent posts. Also. I have to devote a paragraph for the Taxi driver we had for this portion of the trip.
The driver arrived around 11a.m. I minded it, the others did not. We loaded the car and started off. After a few minutes, the driver announced that he had to make a short stop at his residence to pick up his stuff. He stopped the car on the road near his place (which was in the interior section somewhere). He returned around noon. Now we were really going. After a few miles, we came to an intersection and were approaching a bridge. Rao noticed that the road was flooded (by the rains from Oct 28th) and cars would not go through the underpass. He asked the driver whether he knew any alternate route. The driver answered in the negative. He had no idea where he was! Rao guided him to reverse the car and ask someone for an alternate route. The other road was longer, but we were going in the right direction. It was potholes and water everywhere.
The following was our itinerary for this trip.
Nov 1st night at Tirumalai (Lord Venkateswara)
2nd, around noon, leave Tirupathi. Pass thru Kanchi. reach Chidambaram for night halt.
Cover the following Temples:
Vaideeswaran, Ramaswamy, Kasi Viswanadha, Tanjavur (Brihadeeswara Temple), Karaikudi. Rameswaram, Madurai. Palani, Chidambaram, Swamimalai, Tirunageswaram, Kumbakonam, Uppiliyappan, Sarangapani, Chakrapani, Kumbeswara, Nachiarkoil, Tirucharai, Navapashanam, Tirukkodal, Alagarkoil, Palamudircholai, Tiruppurakundram, Srirangam, Tiruvannaikoil, Samayapuram, Urayur, Uttamarkoil, Brahma Temple in Perambalur.
Reach Tirupathi on the 9th by midnight.
Nirmala and Rao did a lot of research and planning to make this trip happen and stick to the itinerary as much as possible. Rao did the internet search while still in USA and Nirmala talked to her friends who either visited these places or had information and recommendations that we could use and she documented everything. It was like a rough draft of a thesis!!!!( Well. they both had experience writing the thesis for their Ph.D.s)
I am sure there are package (guided) tours to visit these places. But the pros were less than the cons. This way, we had the freedom to stop where we wanted, eat or starve whenever we liked. And with five of us in this group, it was more economical. The language and food was no problem this time. Most importantly, Nirmala was able to get her first cup of coffee within minutes of brushing her teeth!
Friday, May 9, 2008
The second yatra begins
VISHNU PADAM in Tirumalai.
We all decided to go to Tiruchanur to see the Alamelumanga (Padmavathi) Temple on Oct 31st evening itself. Later on I found out that to have the full benefit of the darsan of Lord Venkateswara, you have to begin with her darsan. (very modern idea, I mused!!). I need to really find out why. Every Temple in India has it's own story (sthala purana). Padmavathi is the consort of Sri Venkateswara. If you click on Tiruchanur on the first line, there is a very brief information about the place. We hired a Taxi and it was about 5 km from where we stayed. We had excellent darsan, were able to view the Idol and listen to the chantings also. It was a good start, all the five of us agreed. I bought some bangles and some spoons carved out of wood.
There are many Temples in and around Tirupathi. The ones I visited are Kapilathirtham (Shiva), Govindaraja Swami, Sri Kodandarama Swami and Anjaneya Swami Temples. There is a newly built Iskcon Temple which I opted out this time. The devasthanam funds (some partially) all these Temples in addition to colleges, Veda school, hospital, orphanage, animal shelters and many more.
Our trip to Tirumala (up the hills) also was by the same taxi owner, but a different driver. As we approached the foothill where they inspect each vehicle for the registration etc. and security, our driver said that he did not have the needed papers. The police asked him to get down and confiscated his car keys and his cell phone. They made the necessary phone calls to the owner. The driver did not bat an eye. He was all smiles. Unlike us, evidently it was not the first time for him. We were detained until everything was cleared and we were sent a different taxi and a different driver. The driving distance to the Temple from that point was about 14 kms. It is all greenery, the winding road made it more exciting. I kept on telling the driver to go slow. You get nervous especially when you know how to drive. Once we reached the seventh hill, Nirmala got busy finding accommodation for our night stay. This driver was very friendly, experienced and was already in of Nirmala's good books. So, it was pleasant.
We had sponsored two poojas. One was the night darsan and the other early morning Netra (eyes) darsanam. We felt very much blessed with both. As always, Nirmala let us bypass many other devotees in line. But once inside, we went through the same routine of people pushing you from behind, volunteers guiding you (holding your shoulder tight and pushing). Thanks to Nirmala we were blessed in a separate room by the priest who put the sacred dhoti that adorned the primary Idol on our head for a second.
I was the photographer - FYI
Apart from this Rao and his sister-in-law Nagalakshmi took an adventure walk to see surrounding areas. I will try to add some photos later on. The rest of us sat on the rocks and observed the peacocks, beggars and rock formations and fellow pilgrims and some that were trying to sell trinkets etc.
Tirumala is very clean when you think of the number of people that visit each day. Actually, it is more developed, convenient and beautiful than it was when I lived in Tirupathi in the sixties.
We returned to Nirmala's apartment by 8:30 a.m. Nirmala asked that driver whether he would take us to the Tamil Nadu tour. He was already assigned to another group. But he guaranteed that his employer would send someone who was familiar with that state and who could speak Tamil. I am very fluent in Tamil also, but we had to make sure that the driver knew. We requested the next vehicle to be at the door before 10:30 a.m. Being a Friday, I was concerned about Rahukalam.
Monday, May 5, 2008
yatra 2 - preface
The idea of the next yatra occurred while we were still doing our first. A few months after our return to USA, we started talking about visiting the Temples of the Southern part of india. Rao and Nirmala were in charge. My only role was saying 'yes' to their ideas. By the way, while we were in Calcutta, I asked Rao's sister-in-law Nagalakshmi whether they would like to join us on our next trip. She wasn't sure. I felt that she would enjoy our company. Since Nirmala and she have become familiar, I felt that it would not be a problem for them to stay with Nirmala while in Tirupathi. (Later on, her children also encouraged her and she and Rao's brother finally decided to join us). We did not yet decide on the month and the duration. At that time actually, they had to focus on their move from Kolkata to Hyderabad. So, the discussion was very limited. We left it at that and returned home.
By March of 2007, Rao and Nirmala started their planning. It was very tightly packed for me. Not a single day to rest. Rao thought I could get my rest on the trains. But we were to travel by car in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. Then he wanted to attend a wedding in Jaipur. For this trip, Nirmala also was concerned. But he was ready to go without me to Jaipur. Fortunately, later on, he asked Nirmala to cancel our Jaipur trip (for reasons unknown to me). During my first yatra, I did not spend much time with my sisters and I promised to make up for that during my subsequent visit. So, I decided to go early, alone and spend time with my side of the family before the hectic yatra had begun. So, I flew to Chennai from Boston on Oct 13th to arrive on 15th. Spent two days there and went to Nellore by train. In those two days, my nephew Viswanatham picked me up from Mohan's residence and I was able to spend a few happy hours with his family. His children were very affectionate. Also,I did some saree shopping and visited three Temples. Mohan's family took me patiently to those Temples. His wife Priya is a very sweet lady. My daughter says she has a very 'cool' mother-in-law. They are a very loving family.
I have two older sisters. I stayed with my sister Adilakshmi in Nellore for three weeks. We visited our cousins, old friends, saree shops, jewelery shops, Temples. vegetable market and more. It was raining most of the time and roads were flooded. With open sewers in some areas, I was hesitant to walk on those roads. I very much wanted to visit my High school which was very close to my sister's residence. But somehow, it did not happen. Many of my favorite fruits were being sold in the market. But I was afraid to eat any because of the packed tour ahead of me. My second sister Pramada has four children. Her first son lives in Nellore with his wife and son Sanath. Sanath is adorable. Only daughter Padmaja lives in Kavali whom I visit every time I am in India. I could spend only one night with her family. Late on we were able to spend extra time with her second son Harish who is a student in Trichy. Pramada spends her time between Chennai, Bangalore, Nellore. I was very disappointed that I could not spend with her much. I spoke with her over the phone and we decided to meet at a wedding in November.
I left Nellore on Oct 28th by bus to go to Tirupathi, the day before a huge rain storm hit that area and flooded the region. Actually, I was to travel on the 29th, but Nirmala just asked me whether I could go the previous day, sothat we could spend time with our other friend Sulochana. Well. Sulochana lost her sick husband and moved to Tirupathi where she has some relatives. I was glad I did that. With the size of that storm and road conditions, I could not have made it to Tirupathi on the 29th. Also, I was able to spend time with my friends.
I forgot to mention that in the meantime, Rao's brother and sister-in-law decided to join us for the first leg of the yatra. They met us in Tirupathi on Oct 31st. Rao was coming from Boston on Oct 31st also. Nirmala arranged a Taxi to pick him up at the Chennai airport and bring him to her place directly. Well. it was full house on Oct 31st.
By March of 2007, Rao and Nirmala started their planning. It was very tightly packed for me. Not a single day to rest. Rao thought I could get my rest on the trains. But we were to travel by car in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. Then he wanted to attend a wedding in Jaipur. For this trip, Nirmala also was concerned. But he was ready to go without me to Jaipur. Fortunately, later on, he asked Nirmala to cancel our Jaipur trip (for reasons unknown to me). During my first yatra, I did not spend much time with my sisters and I promised to make up for that during my subsequent visit. So, I decided to go early, alone and spend time with my side of the family before the hectic yatra had begun. So, I flew to Chennai from Boston on Oct 13th to arrive on 15th. Spent two days there and went to Nellore by train. In those two days, my nephew Viswanatham picked me up from Mohan's residence and I was able to spend a few happy hours with his family. His children were very affectionate. Also,I did some saree shopping and visited three Temples. Mohan's family took me patiently to those Temples. His wife Priya is a very sweet lady. My daughter says she has a very 'cool' mother-in-law. They are a very loving family.
I have two older sisters. I stayed with my sister Adilakshmi in Nellore for three weeks. We visited our cousins, old friends, saree shops, jewelery shops, Temples. vegetable market and more. It was raining most of the time and roads were flooded. With open sewers in some areas, I was hesitant to walk on those roads. I very much wanted to visit my High school which was very close to my sister's residence. But somehow, it did not happen. Many of my favorite fruits were being sold in the market. But I was afraid to eat any because of the packed tour ahead of me. My second sister Pramada has four children. Her first son lives in Nellore with his wife and son Sanath. Sanath is adorable. Only daughter Padmaja lives in Kavali whom I visit every time I am in India. I could spend only one night with her family. Late on we were able to spend extra time with her second son Harish who is a student in Trichy. Pramada spends her time between Chennai, Bangalore, Nellore. I was very disappointed that I could not spend with her much. I spoke with her over the phone and we decided to meet at a wedding in November.
I left Nellore on Oct 28th by bus to go to Tirupathi, the day before a huge rain storm hit that area and flooded the region. Actually, I was to travel on the 29th, but Nirmala just asked me whether I could go the previous day, sothat we could spend time with our other friend Sulochana. Well. Sulochana lost her sick husband and moved to Tirupathi where she has some relatives. I was glad I did that. With the size of that storm and road conditions, I could not have made it to Tirupathi on the 29th. Also, I was able to spend time with my friends.
I forgot to mention that in the meantime, Rao's brother and sister-in-law decided to join us for the first leg of the yatra. They met us in Tirupathi on Oct 31st. Rao was coming from Boston on Oct 31st also. Nirmala arranged a Taxi to pick him up at the Chennai airport and bring him to her place directly. Well. it was full house on Oct 31st.
Sunday, May 4, 2008
Mohan visits us
After a few months. Mohan came to the USA and visited us also. Since Mohan was part of our first yatra, I thought I should include his trip to the USA in my blog. This was his first visit to this country. Our plan was to show him the Canadian side of the Falls. He got the visa to Canada from India itself to avoid any delays. It worked out perfectly alright. We drove to Ontario, Canada via Buffalo (NY). The weather was great. It was about four hours drive that day. I packed some food from home and we had a meal on the picnic benches a little away from the Falls. The waters behind us was beautiful.
The Falls were in full swing. We took him on the boat 'The maid of the mist' very close to the Falls. We were drenched by the mist in spite of the rain coats we wore. The rainbow was bright and clear near the falls. We walked around the shops, drove by Ontario Hydro which supplies electric power. I remembered arranging a winter trip to the Falls in my student days in Feb 1968 when the Falls was almost frozen and you could not stand still in one place for more than a minute. That was an entirely different beauty of the waters. But I would not recommend it for a first time visitor from India. Also, any season, you should see the Falls after sunset when it is illuminated.
Please click to see the album.
Since we lived in the Toronto area during our student lives, we show our visitors the University campus and a few of the streets we are familiar with. We could not inform our Srilankan friend Nalaayini (very loving person) about our trip. She lived in Scarborough which is a big city now and used to be a suburb of Toronto in the 60s. Scarborough is full of Tamilians, that too Srilankans.
In the evening, we entered a restaurant to eat. We ordered Dosa and as we were waiting, I felt like calling Nalaayini and asking her to come and see us. The person at the counter was kind enough to allow me to make the phone call. She said since it was a local call, I could use their phone. When I spoke to Nalaayini, we found out that the owner was her friend. She asked us to stay right there till she arrived and insisted on our staying in their house for the night. Then, a local Hindu priest came to eat, recognized Mohan as Srikanth's father and they had a long conversation. Small world, I thought!!!
We had wonderful time at Nalaayini's place. Her children are charming and loving.
We showed Mohan The CN tower, the campus, The Toronto City Hall etc. If you want to know more about these places, please click on them to see the details.
While I was waiting at an intersection for Rao to bring the car from the parking lot, a lady walked over and wanted to know whether we needed help. When I was 15, one of my lecturers wrote in my autograph " a smile wins a smile........", but at that moment my smile won not just another smile, but a friend. We exchanged phone numbers and I kept in touch with her. Marjorie was from Trinidad. She told me that one of her grand fathers was from Varanasi.
Later on we found a Punjabi restaurant, ate our meal and were on our return journey. We took lots of photos. We had tons of memories from there. Mohan patiently heard about them all.
We had no problem with immigration or customs. Mohan stayed with us for a few days, returned to his son Srikanth's place and travelled more before returning to India. We told him that we were planning on our next yatra in late 2007.
The Falls were in full swing. We took him on the boat 'The maid of the mist' very close to the Falls. We were drenched by the mist in spite of the rain coats we wore. The rainbow was bright and clear near the falls. We walked around the shops, drove by Ontario Hydro which supplies electric power. I remembered arranging a winter trip to the Falls in my student days in Feb 1968 when the Falls was almost frozen and you could not stand still in one place for more than a minute. That was an entirely different beauty of the waters. But I would not recommend it for a first time visitor from India. Also, any season, you should see the Falls after sunset when it is illuminated.
Please click to see the album.
Since we lived in the Toronto area during our student lives, we show our visitors the University campus and a few of the streets we are familiar with. We could not inform our Srilankan friend Nalaayini (very loving person) about our trip. She lived in Scarborough which is a big city now and used to be a suburb of Toronto in the 60s. Scarborough is full of Tamilians, that too Srilankans.
In the evening, we entered a restaurant to eat. We ordered Dosa and as we were waiting, I felt like calling Nalaayini and asking her to come and see us. The person at the counter was kind enough to allow me to make the phone call. She said since it was a local call, I could use their phone. When I spoke to Nalaayini, we found out that the owner was her friend. She asked us to stay right there till she arrived and insisted on our staying in their house for the night. Then, a local Hindu priest came to eat, recognized Mohan as Srikanth's father and they had a long conversation. Small world, I thought!!!
We had wonderful time at Nalaayini's place. Her children are charming and loving.
We showed Mohan The CN tower, the campus, The Toronto City Hall etc. If you want to know more about these places, please click on them to see the details.
While I was waiting at an intersection for Rao to bring the car from the parking lot, a lady walked over and wanted to know whether we needed help. When I was 15, one of my lecturers wrote in my autograph " a smile wins a smile........", but at that moment my smile won not just another smile, but a friend. We exchanged phone numbers and I kept in touch with her. Marjorie was from Trinidad. She told me that one of her grand fathers was from Varanasi.
Later on we found a Punjabi restaurant, ate our meal and were on our return journey. We took lots of photos. We had tons of memories from there. Mohan patiently heard about them all.
We had no problem with immigration or customs. Mohan stayed with us for a few days, returned to his son Srikanth's place and travelled more before returning to India. We told him that we were planning on our next yatra in late 2007.
To Tirupathi - Lord Venkateswara
We both visited my other friend's husband in the hospital. He recognized Rao and showed some anxiety. Whenever I landed in Chennai in the past, he was always there at the Airport with his smiling face waiting for us. Even when my two children visited India on their own, they received them whole heartedly. Now I think he felt his inability in doing the same. Remember I mentioned about praying for him while touring Chardham? The way he looked, I wasn't sure whether I would see him again. His wife tried to be bold. She was like another sibling for me. With all these memories, I went to the Chennai train station.
We were to join Nirmala again at Tirupathi. There was a direct train from Chennai - so, it was easy, pleasant and was only less than four hours of travel. She was a great host as usual. We were very comfortable at her place. She visits the Temple of Sri Venkateswara (Tirumalai -up the hills) at least once a week. She has been living there since her early teens. We are like sisters. She booked a special pooja (worship) called Poolangi seva that evening. We hired a Taxi and returned by night fall in the same Taxi to her flat (apartment). I recalled that in our college days we used to walk up and down the hills from our hostel. There was a group of us who always went together. I think it was about 10 miles or more each way. We were never tired during the trip, even though the aches and pains would show up the following day. Now, I felt tired even going by Taxi. All these thoughts went through my mind.
The evening Poolangi seva was great. After that, we went inside the primary shrine. With Nirmala being our guide once inside, we bypassed some crowd (which I never liked even 40 years ago) and entered the garbha gudi (anctum sanctorum). No matter how skillfully you entered up to that point, you are first at the mercy of the crowd who push and shove and later on at the mercy of the volunteers who really really hold your shoulder and push you. You travel many miles to reach Tirupathi, many hours to reach up to that point, but you are allowed to stand there in front of the Idol for no more than TWO seconds. I also complain about this. But with the millions visiting each day, there is no other alternative. The only thing I wanted was for the volunteers to be not so rude. Perhaps if they were polite, they cannot not control the flow of the devotees. I am sure each devotee would like to stand there for a long time. In spite of all this, the place is charged with energy and I felt the goose bumps every time I was there. Anyway, we had wonderful darsans and returned to her place for more rest.
Now that our yatra portion was over, we visited our respective families. My sisters, my niece and Rao's side of the family (all of them in Andhra Pradesh) before returning to the USA.
I had to rush through my posts at the end. I cut down on many details. But, I sincerely hope that all of you that went through my posts of this trip found something interesting, useful and enjoyable. Please don't forget to join me on my next trip to Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka Temples which took in November - December of 2007. I will try to post them very soon.
P.S. I could not elaborate on many names, but just search on the Google and you will get ample information.
Thank you all for traveling with me in spirit !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
We were to join Nirmala again at Tirupathi. There was a direct train from Chennai - so, it was easy, pleasant and was only less than four hours of travel. She was a great host as usual. We were very comfortable at her place. She visits the Temple of Sri Venkateswara (Tirumalai -up the hills) at least once a week. She has been living there since her early teens. We are like sisters. She booked a special pooja (worship) called Poolangi seva that evening. We hired a Taxi and returned by night fall in the same Taxi to her flat (apartment). I recalled that in our college days we used to walk up and down the hills from our hostel. There was a group of us who always went together. I think it was about 10 miles or more each way. We were never tired during the trip, even though the aches and pains would show up the following day. Now, I felt tired even going by Taxi. All these thoughts went through my mind.
The evening Poolangi seva was great. After that, we went inside the primary shrine. With Nirmala being our guide once inside, we bypassed some crowd (which I never liked even 40 years ago) and entered the garbha gudi (anctum sanctorum). No matter how skillfully you entered up to that point, you are first at the mercy of the crowd who push and shove and later on at the mercy of the volunteers who really really hold your shoulder and push you. You travel many miles to reach Tirupathi, many hours to reach up to that point, but you are allowed to stand there in front of the Idol for no more than TWO seconds. I also complain about this. But with the millions visiting each day, there is no other alternative. The only thing I wanted was for the volunteers to be not so rude. Perhaps if they were polite, they cannot not control the flow of the devotees. I am sure each devotee would like to stand there for a long time. In spite of all this, the place is charged with energy and I felt the goose bumps every time I was there. Anyway, we had wonderful darsans and returned to her place for more rest.
Now that our yatra portion was over, we visited our respective families. My sisters, my niece and Rao's side of the family (all of them in Andhra Pradesh) before returning to the USA.
I had to rush through my posts at the end. I cut down on many details. But, I sincerely hope that all of you that went through my posts of this trip found something interesting, useful and enjoyable. Please don't forget to join me on my next trip to Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka Temples which took in November - December of 2007. I will try to post them very soon.
P.S. I could not elaborate on many names, but just search on the Google and you will get ample information.
Thank you all for traveling with me in spirit !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
At Puttaparthi (Prasanthi Nilayam)
As soon as we entered the Ashram, it was a calming feeling. We had been there many times before together and separately. But this trip was with Mohan and Priya. We went straight to the building where the registration and allocation of rooms was done. Rao and I hold USA passports. So, we were given accommodation in a certain building. Our photos were taken for IDs. We were given a room with four beds and one bath room. Very simple, yet comfortable. We took bath, got ready for Baba's darsan.
For anyone more interested on how they operate the discipline etc. here, please visit Sai websites like radiosai.
As men and women were to be sitting in separate sections, Priya and I went in our own way. We stood in line and the volunteers carefully did the security check and let us into the Sai Kulvant Hall. The system was not new to either one of us. Due to the stiff joints, I opted to sit on the bench against the wall.
As usual, there was a long wait and then a sudden lull and everyone's head turned toward the side entrance. Some tried to stand up to see. The volunteers rushed to them to make them sit in their place. Swami was coming. Tears rolled over from my eyes. This happens every time I have His darsan. I folded my hands in reverence and prayed for my family and friends. He came in a slow moving vehicle and I had the most wonderful darsan. I always felt that He was looking at (only) me!! The clean ashram, the quietness of the place turns you automatically towards your spiritual side. Again, that is how I felt. It is possible for others to feel differently!!
We were there for 3 to 4 days. It was the same routine. Breakfast, darsan and in the evening around 4 p.m. darsan and walking, shopping and phone calls if any. Rao had his own small group who conducted a study circle. he would go there. Mohan took his walks and we all were sure to meet by night.
Leaving Parthi was always hard. But we had to. We returned to Chennai and from there went to Tirupathi.
For anyone more interested on how they operate the discipline etc. here, please visit Sai websites like radiosai.
As men and women were to be sitting in separate sections, Priya and I went in our own way. We stood in line and the volunteers carefully did the security check and let us into the Sai Kulvant Hall. The system was not new to either one of us. Due to the stiff joints, I opted to sit on the bench against the wall.
As usual, there was a long wait and then a sudden lull and everyone's head turned toward the side entrance. Some tried to stand up to see. The volunteers rushed to them to make them sit in their place. Swami was coming. Tears rolled over from my eyes. This happens every time I have His darsan. I folded my hands in reverence and prayed for my family and friends. He came in a slow moving vehicle and I had the most wonderful darsan. I always felt that He was looking at (only) me!! The clean ashram, the quietness of the place turns you automatically towards your spiritual side. Again, that is how I felt. It is possible for others to feel differently!!
We were there for 3 to 4 days. It was the same routine. Breakfast, darsan and in the evening around 4 p.m. darsan and walking, shopping and phone calls if any. Rao had his own small group who conducted a study circle. he would go there. Mohan took his walks and we all were sure to meet by night.
Leaving Parthi was always hard. But we had to. We returned to Chennai and from there went to Tirupathi.
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