Adam Asbond, the Co-founder of Apple Computers was raised in Tamilnadu, Thiruvannamalai as his parents were devotees of Ramana Maharishi.
He says, "The day Indians learn to have pride in their own country, the day they work together as Indians they will move out of their third world status and become one of the world's industrial powers."

PRAYER

O Lord in your infinite wisdom and mercy you must have a role for me in your Grand Design.

Whatever it may be enable me to play that role to my fullest capability.

Imbue me with courage that I may take those decisions that will lead me through the paths of Justice, Truth and Righteousness and away from selfishness and malice.

Mahabalipuram—A walking Tour

15.01.2012

The whole of Chennai is gearing up for celebrating Pongal. A long-long weekend--a carnival of fun and frolic for the masses-- Nobody feels like working. Spent a relaxed day at Mahabalipuram with a group of relatives-by-marriage at the Indeco Resort.

On 15^th January I took a walking tour of Mahabalipuram. The walk commenced on the sea shore at 6.00AM and we took a sweeping semi-circle across th

e bus stand near the Vishnu temple and after seeing the famous arjun’s Penance bas relief we walked along the hill face and past the two light houses (old and new). Thereafter we took a sharp left to reach the Five Raths, a group of monolithic temples in the form of chariots reputedly for the Five Pandav princes and their consort Draupadi.

Mahabalipuram is an ancient tamil port and derives its name, Mammallpuram from Narasimhavarma Pallavan, who was named Mamalla, meaning great wrestler due to his prowess in wrestling (Malyuddham). His father Mahendravarman was a patron of sculpture and under his rule Mammallpuram was a sculptor’s colony where master sculptors including Amarar Kalki’s fictional creation Aayanar Sirpi, worked and taught their disciples. A little distance south of the Arjun’s Penance freize is another which is half finished and unformed. This leads us to conclude that the sculpture work at Mahabalipuram is no more than practice work done by apprentice sculptors who, on completion of training moved on to places where temples are being conducted. Possibly a group of these settled down in Thanjavur and possinbly their descesndants were the architects and designers of the later chola masterpieces of Temple architecture.

Relaxed man--Obviously not married

Some girls make a man go mad by refusing to marry him;

the rest of them do it the other way.

Bird Watching in Kodagu Valley

The Kodagu Valley resort is a veritable birdwatchers’ paradise. Almost all balconies overlook dense tree-covered ravines, the avian fancier need do no more than sit on the balcony and keep his eyes open. I saw an Indian or a Malabar Grey Hornbill on the tall tree next to our balcony. The bird was quite large with curved beak and black and white tail.

Indian Grey Hornbill (Ocyceros birostris) Common Grey Hornbill R Kite- overall greyish brown plumage; with an enormous black and white beak that is curved downward, surmounted by the casque; long graduate tail, with a black and white tip. In the female, casque is smaller.Seen in the dry deciduous forest, along with other frugivorous birds in the fruiting season. Flight, graceful and undulating from one tree to the other, in the typical follow-the-leader pattern Voice: Noisy, made of shrill squeaking notes and some screams plus a loud cackling ke.ke.kke.kkae…Nesting March-June.Eggs:2-3 dull white.

Malabar Grey Hornbill (Ocyceros griseus) R Kite- similar to 146; yellow-orange bill; casque on the beak missing; white streaks on head, throat and breast; white tipped black tail except central feather. Voice: distinct, loud, puerile ayein.And loud cackling ke.ke.kke.kkae. Calls. Habits,Nesting ,Eggs similar to 146.

Courtesy: Feathered Jewels of Coorg Dr. S V Narasimhan

Sunset at Raja's Seat

This is a popular tourist destination in Mercara. It consists of a viewpoint with a nice park attached to it. Though a bit touristy, one should not miss the glorious view of the sun sinking slowly into the hillside from this vantage point.

The ideal time to visit Raja’s Seat is around 5.30 PM. As the sun moves down the western horizon, the sky slowly turns reddish. We remember the words of the popular cinema song…”Oh, this is a glorious golden evening time… the sky-maid blushes deep red as she changes dress….!” Initially the horizon is pleasantly tinted pink and violet and as the blazing sun dips over the mountains in the distance, the sky turns maroon, carmine and finally an angry red when the sun finally disappears from view on the west. The whole event, this daily immolation of the sun on the mountain-peak happens over a matter of ten to fifteen minutes. As in all hilly regions, there is no distinct twilight; night swiftly engulfs the Kodagu valley and the whole area is at once plunged into darkness except for those pockets where man has, through electric lights created artificial islands of brightness.

Scotland of the East

A Daytrip to Mercara

Later in the day, we made a trip to Madikeri town. Madikeri is a small

planter’s town in the heart of the Kodagu hills. The Koduva people who were the earliest settlors in this region are a warlike race and take great pride in their prowess in battle and combat. The “Peechekathi” a short dagger with chain which is stuck into a strip of brocade cloth tied around the midriff is a common symbol of Koduva martial pride!

Coorg is dubbed “The Scotland of India.” The Koduvas like the Scotsmen are martial and alwaysready for battle. The Scottish tartan is, here, reproduced in the long coat tied at the midriff with a brocade sash.

Our first stop was at the Abbey falls. The waterfall is accessed by a steep winding path going down. On reaching the bottom we could glimpse the falls cascading down from the higher slopes to a pool and thence as a rivulet possibly headed to join and feed the main Cauvery which has its source quite nearby at Thala-Cauvery.

Thereafter we made it to the fort with its moss-covered walls and battlements. A panoramic view of Mercara is obtained from the viewing platform on the battlements. The buildings used by the British Governor are now the Deputy Collector’s offices. The latticed balcony with the statuettes of a pair of white horses as bracket supports is a nice architectural feature of the building.

The Omkaareshwar Temple dedicated to Mahadevwas our next halt. The whitewashed walls of the buildings; four minarets with globular domes on top and the central dome (as against the typical Hindu Pagoda) give a distinctly Islamic feel to the temple. It is either an extreme arab influence through inadequate supply of craftsmen or a planned attempt at camouflaging the temple from possible Islamic attempts to demolish it as an attack against idolatory.

This temple is similar in design to the shiva temple at Mangeshkar in Goa.The huge temple tank with a central mandap housing the Nandi (a seated bull placed at the entrance of Shiva Temples facing the Lord);the narrow and steep flight of stairs leading to the Gopura Dwar and the structure of the sanctum sanctorum itself are similar. This must be a konkan style or influence as the Mangeshkar temple is quite typically Konkani. The western stretch of the Konkan and Malabar coasts is a mix and clash of cultures from Surat in the north to Trivandrum in the extreme south. These Costal regions are rich in tradition, cuisine and cuture that often overlap.

Maercara

My son, Srivatsan feeding the baby elephant

29.12.2012

I Woke up to the rustling of leaves in the breeze. As I opened the windows of our bedroom, the chill kodagu-hill-breeze brushed my face sending a pleasant tingle down my spine. The dense foliage around our building is home to a host of birds. Their fluttering and chirping are a constant background music for our morning activities. The silence of the forest and the bird song which occasionally disturb the intense stillness, tend to calm the mind and prepare it for challenges.

In the afternoon we had a sumptuous buffet lunch on a large balcony in the main restaurant. The balcony overlooks a portion of the coffee plantation.

The route from Mysore to Mercara passes through the Dubhare elephant sanctuary somewhat similar to pinnewala in Srilanka. Though we did not go there, we did see a small baby elephant which is still being fed by bottle. The poor animal has been orphaned and has been saved and brought here for caring.

On our return from Mercara we visited Byleguppe, the largest Tibetan settlement in India. The Golden Temple of Buddha at the Namdroling monastery is a wonderful sight with the three towering images of the Buddha and his disciples covered in gold filigree.

The Tibetan settlement has a nice placid artificial lake with hills in the distance.

Kodagu Valley

27.12.2012

I am here at Madikeri (or Mercara) with my family on my customary annual retreat to process the year gone by and plan for the one ahead.

The Club Mahindra Kodagu Valley Resort is nestled in a pleasant valley about seven kilometers from Madikeri town. The resort is a sylvan paradise. The absolute minimum numbers of trees have been cut to accommodate corgi-style huge two-storey buildings.

It is rightly called Kodagu Valley as it is situated at the rim of a deep ravine or valley which was formerly a full-fledged coffee plantation! (Coffee bushes are still around!)

The place is virtually bungalows inside a genuine functioning coffee estate!

The resort is an Ecotel certified resort.The accommodation is situated on the higher slopes the rest of the slopes are given over to forest and coffee plantation! So we get an opportunity to walk along forest trails and mountain paths in close proximity to the resort.

The accommodation is literally hidden by the denste foliage of the trees that loom over them. From our balcony we could gaze down at the roots of the massive trees that rear up towards the sky!

From the terrace of our building or from the raised promontory at the mouth of the valley called “the mound”, the only thing that catches the eye is the dense and verdant tree cover all around. The property is huge and well-designed. Exploratory walks around the resort are mini-adventures of discovery.