Kurukshetra

Walking in the biting cold, teeth chattering, with Rajan my travel companion was an exhilarating experience. We are headed towards Brahma Sarovar in Kurukshetra and are eager to reach this humongous water body created especially for providing water to the crores of animals and men engaged in the Kurukshetra war.

We are in Kurukshetra, a small town about three hours drive from N. Delhi. This is the place where wehere the Mahabharatha war between the Pandavas and Kauravas took place.  We left N. Delhi at 5:15 PM by the Kalka Shatabdi to reach Kurukshetra at &:15. The weather is very cold though N. Delhi had been somewhat warm. The Kurukshetra Railway Station platform is nice and neat and is quite broad. Though Make My Trip shows 14 Hotels in Kurukshetra, the locals directed us to the Pearl Marc hotel not very far from the station. After checking in and relaxing a bit we decided to take a walk to the Brahma Sarovar. The people are quite friendly and were more than happy to guide us to the gates of the huge Sarovar. On the way we passed by Arjun Chowk with a statue of the Mahabharata hero.

The huge water reservoir in the darkness with a few lights blinking on the opposite shore so far away. It is indeed a Sarovar. According to local tradition, it was first excavated by King Kuru and is associated with Prajapathi or Brahmaji who first performed a sacrifice here. On one side of the huge tank is a statue of Krishna and Arjun on a chariot. This is well lit in the night and is a sight to be seen.

Millions of people flock to Kurukshetra during a solar eclipse to take bath in this tank.

The next day we started early (eight O’ Clock is early in winter!) to reach Jyothi sar. About 6 Kms away, this is the spot where there stands an immortal banyan tree which bears witness to the Gitopadesam or the teaching of the Bhagwad Gita by Krishna to Arjuna. The name Jyothi Sar is a corruption of the word Jyothishwar which is the name of the Shiv Ling which is situated here in a temple near the Banyan tree. In fact there is one more banyan tree near the Shiv Mandir that bears witness to the ravages of the Foreign invaders. This place has withstood alkl these onslaughts and stands witness to the ancient culture and tradition of the Indian Sub-Continent.

There is a large water tank here too which we perambulated to reach the Banyan Tree. Near the Banyan tree is a marble statue of a Chariot with four horses wherein the images of Krishna and Arjuna are placed, the former imparting divine wisdom and the latter absorbing it with folded arms and rapt attention. This statue has been placed here by H H the Shankaracharya of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham.

We sat beneath the immortal banyan and meditated on the verses of the Bh. Gita, allowing the vibrations of eons of spiritual wisdom to wash over us like the cold breeze on that late-winter morning.

Onward to Bheeshma Kund in Narkthari Village, Kurukshetra, where the Pitamaha Bheeshma fell on the Tenth day of the war. There he lies on a bed of arrows with a pillow of arrows created by the great warrior Arjun. When Bheeshma wanted water, Arjun directed his arrow consecrated by the mystical formula called Parjanyaaasthra into the earth at the right-side of the Grandsire. Immediately there welled up a jet of nectar-like and fragrant water which fell into Bheeshmas mouth. Legend has it that Mother Ganga flew out of the earth to quench her son’s thirst. The Grandsire quaffed the drink to his hearts content. This spring of water is now a deep tank near the temple.

Kurukshetra is famous not just because it is the location of the great and glorious battle between right and wrong (Dharma and Adharma). It was already a famous place consecrated by Kuru the founder and fore father of both the Pandavas and Kauravas. Kuru had sought and received a boon from Vishnu that anyone who died at Kurukshetra would attain moksh immediately. This is why Dridharashtra selected this place for the war, hoping half-heartedly that the sanctity of the location would reform his erring son.

More importantly, Kurukshetra is the place where two of the greates spiritual  treasures of Hinduism were born. One, of course, is the Bh. Giota which is God speaking to Man. The other is the Vishnu Sahasranaamam or the Thousand Names of Vishnu which is man singing the praise of the One Supreme Being.

Beeshma Kund Shrine

This spot, Bheeshma Kund is the exact spot where Bheeshmachrya responds to Yudhistra’s spiritual query, “ Kim ekam daivatham loke, kin va api ekam Paraayanam..?” i.e. “Who is the Single or Only Deity suited for Human Beings to always meditate upon?” Bheeshma identifies Krishna-Vishnu single, sole Brahman or Causeless Cause that is worthy of praise and prayer. He then identifies the Lord by his One Thousand Names.

At Beeshma Kund

Rajan and I meditated in the shrine that cold wintry morning upon the Vishnu Sahsranaamam as it was played on Rajan’s mobile phone. Then we poured the water from the Narkathari Tirth on our heads and with all respect and reverence made our way out of the Holiest Place. 

Kurukshetra also has a Shakti Peeth. North India has a total of 52 Shakti Peeths. These are places where the body parts of Devi fell when they were cut by Vishnu’s Chakra and thrown about. Kurukshetra is the spot where the right ankle fell. There is a Badrakali temple on this spot. We visited this also.

Badrakali Temple

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.

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.

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.

In search of the Striped Cat

I am at Bhandara to conduct a programme on Financial Awareness for the engineers od Ashok Leyland at the Bhandara unit. I decided to use Saturday to visit a few places of interest near Bhandara. Bhandara is very near the Tiger territory. Large reserves like Kaanha and Bhandavgarh are not very far. But the nearest and most feasible visit was to Nagjeera about 70 kms east north east of Bhandara.

The wildlife park is accessed by a well maintained road. Private vehicles are allowed inside provided they are accompanied by a guide. I took a guide as wellas the jeep with open roof and raised seating in anticipation of a face to face meeting with striped cat! But I had no such luck. There were reports of a sighting at waterhole at 8:00 AM that morning of a mother and two cubs. There are about twelve of these beasts at Nagjeera together with a whole lot of fauna like owls, eagles, deer—both Chital and Sambhar, bear, leopard, gaur and of course the ubiquitous langur. A wildlife spotter must have keen eyes and patience. This is because most animals have hides and featrhers that are camouflaged and meant to fade into the background of russet brown and faded green.

I did get a nice shot of an owl inside a hole in a tree. The owl was sleeping with its head sticking out of the hole high on top of a tree.

I also saw herds of Chital. I had a magical moment when a herd of Chital crossed the road and went grazing on the otherside. I stood up for a better shot and the herd started running away. One of them, a doe stood, turned her head srraight at me and posed for a perfect shot. Since I used my Sony DSLR and not the Canon EOS 450D, the shot is a bit grainy. But still it is a real wild life shot and arguably my very first.

As I wended my way back to Nagpur airport without having glimpsed even the tail of a live wild tiger, I made up my mind that one day somewhere or the other I will shoot a real, live, tiger I the wild from at least twenty feet.

Korambhi

12.11.2011

I am at Bhandara to conduct a programme on Financial Awareness for the engineers od Ashok Leyland at the Bhandara unit. I decided to use Saturday to visit a few places of interest near Bhandara. Bhandara is very near the Tiger territory. Large reserves like Kaanha and Bhandavgarh are not very far. But the nearest and most feasible visit was to Nagjeera about 70 kms east north east of Bhandara.

Before leaving for the Tiger reserve, I visited the temple of Amrutha Devi at Korambhi. Near the banks of the Wain Ganga perched atop a hill is the Temple. From the hill there is a breathtaking view of the river as it bends around a curve. At the foot of the hill ias a bathing ghat and boat jetty.

There about 150 stairs making for a strenuous but short climb. I enjoyed the view from the top and spent a few serene moments in front of the deity and invoked her blessings on my endeavours. The pujari was a friendly chap whio readily agreed to permit me to take a photograph. At the entrance of the temple before approaching the main entrance is a small shrine on the left dedicated to Kala Bhairav. The idol is terrifying and symbolic of the primordial energy that is uncontrollable and unpredictable.

After the visit I came down and walked to the river bank to have glimpse of the Wain Ganga. Thereafter we left for Nagjeera.

Sojourn in Serendip – II

A Buddhist Kerala

Take a chunk of the hilly regions in Kerla like Kottayam or Munnar; remove the hindu temples and put budhist Viharas in their place and voila you have Srilanka. A Buddhist Kerala is Srilanka. The same greenery; coconut and banana trees; rubber plantations; elephants; small rivulets and brooks gurgling on their way to the sea! The water from the King Coconut is sweet like nectar and is a must-drink for every visitor to this emerald isle atleast twice on every day of the visit!

Daytime is pretty warm even on the hills. The even

ings bring sudden bursts of rain and a mild cold that makes the weather pleasant. From the high eyrie of the balcony in Randholee Resort, Kandy we could see a large part of the city of Kandy. As the twilight and mist make it darker the lights of the twinkle down below like the gems and jewels for which the island of Taprobane (another name for Srilanka) is world renowned since ancient times.

The same view offers a different tapestry in the early morning as I walk out on to the Balcony after a refreshing sleep. As the mists swirl below around the domes of the Buddhist temples and the red tiled colonial houses the new day is ushered in by the sun as it licks awayu thew mist with its glorious rays. The distant mountains are surrounded by clouds and only the high summits and peaks are visible. (The Sri Lankan name of Kandy is Kanda Uda Rata which mens the Hill Country.)

One of the important places to be seen is UNESCO Heritage sight of the Temple of the Tooth Relic. The shrine contains the tooth of the Buddha as a relic. Buddhists do not worship any image. Nor do they make offerings to “God”. The Tooth Relic Shrine is simply a place where devout Buddhists go to experience the presence of The Enlightened one so that they can reinforce themselves in their own search for Parinibban, the supreme goal of every Buddhist.

A Word of Warning!

If you are posing for a photo near the image of the Buddha in Srilanka, please avoid standing in front of the image with your back to it or by the side of the imge. It is better to stand with your profile to the camera with hands folded in prayer. The Srilankans are strict in preventing people from turning their back on the image for a photograph as it is a sign of disrespect.

From the Tooth Relic Temple, a huge Buddha statue can be seen on top of a neaby hill. The image of Buddha in seated posture faces the Temple. This mountain top was the place where the death penalty was actually executed in those days! As the peak was clearly visible from the Kandyan King's palace adjacent to the Tooth Relic Temple, the King could assure himself that his sentence has been carried out by looking at the peak of this mountain where the grisly sight of the hanging corpse could be seen! Thus this was rightly termed the Peak of Death.

Later, with the advent and growth of Buddhism, the death penalty was abolished. The deathly gallows were replaced by the Benign Image of the Buddha in seated position facing the Tooth Relic Temple and reminding monarchs and Governments alike down the ages of the value of forgiveness and forbearance.

Fear not Dear Brother!

The approach to the Tooth Relic Temple is through a pathway set amidst green lawns. On the p[athway and around it are numerous statues of famous personages. While each one has a story to tell, I was impressed by the statuette of a young boy set on a high pedestal.

The boy, Madduma Bandara of Ehelepola was the second son of a revolutionary Sinhalese who had criticized the rule of the then Srilankan King. The father was to be beheaded for his seditionary statements but he ran away. His family was then sentenced to death on 17^th May 1814. Madduma’s elder brother was frightened at the thought of death and hesitated when the Eight-year-old yet Lion-Hearted Child Hero Madduma Bandara came forward with supreme courage to face the executioner’s sword first with this exhortation to his elder brother:

“Fear not, Dear Brother, I will show you how to face Death!”

As I said earlier, the Weather is warm during day with intermittent showers in the evening. So we were constantly carrying umbrellas agaist the possibility of rain. We had lubnch at another restaurant with a view. This time we gazed at the panoramic view of the lovely city of Kandy spread out in concentric circles from the Kandy Lake. The lake lies gleaming at the centre with the Tooth Relic Temple on oneside. The circular roads wind up and around the city on the slopes.

Green Demesnes

Later we strolled through the Royal Botanical Gardens, Peradeniya. The Gardens are spread over 147 Acres. The Garden traces its origin way back to 1371 under when it was first established by King Wickramabahu III. Later in the reign of King Kirti Sri from 1747 to 1780 this was made a Royal Garden and from 1780 to 1798, King Rajadhi Rajasinghe resided therein, where a temporary residence was erected for him. The noteworthy feature of the Royal Botanical is the Orchidarium which houses exquisite and beautiful specimens of every colour and hue.

I could not help compare this Garden with the Lal Bagh Gardens in Bangalore. The Lal Bagh is bigger with 240 acres. But it is not as well maintained or luxuriantly green as the Periyadana Gardens. Yet the horticultural attractions have similar background and History. Both Gardens were originally commissioned by Oriental Monarchs for their personal pleasure. The Lal Bagh was begun by the ruler of Mysore, Hyder Ali in 1760 and was completed by Tipu Sultan, his son. Both the Gardens came under British Possesions and were under the care of successive British Superintendents who were successful in converting them into objects of admiration. The Royal Botanical had Mr. Alexander Moon, while the Lal Bagh had Mr. James Cameroon.

In the evening we witnessed a performance of traditional Kandyan Dances. The performance culminated in grand finale when a few of the performers did a fire walk through a blazing fire.

Sojourn in Serendip - I

Introduction

This year I decided to spend Diwali in Srilanka en famille. The decision was obviously serendipitous as Chennai experienced extreme rain and inclement weather right on Diwali day! So here are some tidbits from my sojourn in Serendip or Srilanka, as it is now known.

A Little Late is Alright

Our Srilankan flight UL 122 arrived a bit early at The Banda

raNayakeInternanational Airport, Colombo. Our Guide-cum-Chauffeur Sumedh (aka. Bandhu), was quite surprised to find his national airlines arriving on time! The Flight numbers of Srilankan used to have the prefix AL which was expanded as “Always Late”! Now they have been changed with numbers prefixed by UL whicgh is “Usually Late”! Definitely an improvement! Incidentally our return flight too was almost on time! Thus we experienced a bit of Serendipity right at the beginning of our sojourn in Serendip!

Poo Paper and other Pachydermic matters

Woud you like to see a group of abouy fifty to sixty elephants of various sizes and ages bathing, frolicking and simply having a lot of fun in the waters of a running brook? Then, you should visit Pinnewala Elephant Orphanage. The Orphanage on the banks of the Maa Oye houses a huge contingent of about sixty-five of these gentle pachyderms which have been either abandoned or wounded or injured and left to die in the wild. The Elephants here range in age from newborns to elderly matriarchs. Pinnewala claims to have the world’s largest collection of captive elephants. (Note: This claim needs verification as Punnathur Thota in Guruvayoor Kerala is another place which has a sizable captive-elephant population. These are not abandoned wild elephants, but rather tame elephants donated by thankful devotees to the Guruvayoor Templew. Notable among the inmates at Guruvayoor was Kannan the elephant donated by the current CM of Tamilnadu.)

We had lunch at the restaurant overlooking the Maa Oye. From the restaurant on the balcony, we could see the elephants of all shapesand sizes sporting and playing in the water. The really enjoyable sight were the little baby elephants running here and there under the huge feet of the elders. Occasionally they had mock-fights and tussles which were easily subdued by a nearby elder or the Mahouts who were close by and watching carefully.

They make paper and other handicrafts out of elephant dung at Pinnewala. The paper which is hard, tough and ideal for packing material is alliteratively called Poo-Paper! As elephant dung is highly vegetarian and is mostly leaves, shoots and bark, a lot of fiber can be recovered from it when it is boiled and filtered. The resultant fibrous pulp is soaked in water and made it into pulp. The pulp is then subjected to a process very similar to the making of hand-made paper used at Auroville in Pondicherry. The only difference is the source of the pulp! We visited a Poo Paper workshop where we saw how the paper is made. (Believe me, the paper does not stink!)

On the way to Kandy, we halted at one of the numerous spice gardens that line the route. The prices are sky high and even the temptation of the miraculous cures promised by the “Spice Doctor” does not loosen our purse strings. Purchases are the prerogative of foreigners, I suppose.

Pichavaram--Still Moments among the Stilt Mangroves

I have heard a lot about the back waters and Mangroves of Pichavaram near the Temple town of Chidambaram and I have always wanted to visit. I managed this finally as, duly approved by the beetter half, we made our way to the backwater from Big Beach Puducherry. On the NH 45A after crossing Cuddalore one has to take a left near C-Mutlur (Okay there is an B--Mutlur but we never saw an A--Mutlur!) Pichavaram is situated in Kille thaluk.

The Boat House and Restarant are Okay. As we reached there mid-morning, the heat was terrible. We took a motor boat and traveled down the back waters. The ecosystem is essentially Halophytic or salt water tolerant. A peculiar flora of the region are stilt mangroves that are essentially inter-tidal marine plants mostly trees bordering coastal areas. In India they are found only in PichAvaram and the Sunderbans. The Mangroves consisting of plants like Rhizophora Apiculata or Rhizophora Mucanota grow on exposed roots that raise the plant above the sea level. The stems are able to exchange gases and as the tides raise every day they also take in water-borne nutrients. . The roots are embedded in the water-soil, and are similar to the Banyan Roots.

For an extra charge the boatmen will take you throgh canals with overhanging branches of Mangroves forming a tunnel of cooling shade.

Pichavaram may be visited once to see this unique eco-system in action.

Kanipakkam

During a recent visit to Chittoor in April, I visited the Ganesh Temple at Kanipakkam. This is a famous temple situated about twelve kilometers from Chittoor. It can be accesed from the Bangalore Bye Pass road as well as from the city. As we travel towards Chittoor on the Bangalore road, just before entering Chittor the road forks. The right hand of the fork leads into Chittoor town; the left goes onward to Bangalore. Journeying down this road for about three kilometers we reach the right turn for the Thirrupathi bye-pass. The sign post for Kanipakkam is clearly displayed and after a drive of about twelve kilometers we reach Kanipakkam which is on the left hand side of the road.

The temple has been beautifully renovated and the temple gopuram is elegant and imposing from the distance. Apparently, the temple attracts huge crowds as there are provisinons for handling long winding queues. Luckily, we had no problems as the day we visited was the date of the Final World Cup Cricket Match!

Opposite the main entrance which is reached by a covered pathway from both North and South is the temple tank. We washed our feet therein and thus purified entered the temple. The temple as such is slightly below ground level possibly because the original sanctum was once a pool of blood. The sanctumis a small shrine and the murthy is swayambhoo; a rock formation resembling the elephant headed God with a huge golden crown atop the “head” of the image.

On the way back after Darshan one of the priests who was distributing the holy water was kind enough to relate the sthala puranam or “story of the place”.

The Kanipakkam Sthala Puranam

The land where the temple is now situated had originally been donated to group of handicapped people by the local king. They were suffering from a diverse set of disabilities such as blindness, hearing impairment and so on. One day as they were digging a well for water, the trowel hit a rock. Blood spurted out from the place where the metal had made a gash in the rock and splattered on the handicapped people. Lo and behold they were made whole and regained their faculties. The blood gushing forth from the “wound” spread out and intermingled with the coconut water from the coconuts that devotees broke near the shrine. This liquid got collected in shallow pool which had an area of about a Kani (one and half acres) of land! Thus was derived the name Kani Paarkam or water occupying one kani of land. Eventually the diety was identified as Ganesh from the distinct ewlephat head and trunk. The miraculous property of this “water” flowing from the idol spread far and wide and people with incurable maladies flocked t o Kanipakkam for relief from their sufferings and a cure ofor their unfortunate condition. The water flowed freely and entered the nearby Bahula rive which was earlier flowing qqquite near the temple precincts. It has currently receded further.

How the river got its name is another miraculous story. Two brothers had wandered into a chieftain’s mango grove. Being extremely hungry, the younger of the two ate a mango. The owner who was the local chieftain ordained that the handsand legs of the “thief” be severed from his body! Thus cruelly mutilated for a minor offence, the younger brother was taken by the elder to Kanipakkam where they placed their complaint at the santum of Lord Ganesha. When the water of the river touched thw body the younger brother regained his limbs . In Sanskrit, Baahuy means hands or limbs and as it had made the limbs grow again this cleansing and curing river was henceforth called “Bahula”.

This story also gives credibility to a prevailing belief that people who are unjustly punished or accused can pray to the deity and obtain relief. Similarly a confession made openly and sincerely at Kanipakkam absolves the commiter of the offence from the sin or Papa. Under the Evidence Act a confession made before a maguistrate alone can be enforcedas evidence in a court of law. But British judges and subsequently Indian courts have consistently allowed and admitted as evidence the statement of a person who had heard the accused make an open confession at Kanipakkam! Nowadays the statement is taken as a relevant fact or corroborative evidence.

There is a temple to Hanuman nearby on a small hillock called Ardhakonda (Or part of a mountain). Thisd is in allusion to the popular belief that this hillock is a piece of the famous Sanjeevani Hill that fell down in this area while Hanuman was porting it to the battle field in Lanka. Due to paucity of time we could not make it there.

The temple is open almost throughout the day. The sanctum is open till 4:00 PM when it is closed for an hour to perform Abishekam. Avoid Sundays as it can be quite crowded on that day.

The Badugas—Simplicity and Happiness

During my trip to Coonoor in January this year, I had the opportunity of visiting a community of Badugas and interacting with them. The Badugas are Veera Shaiva Lingayats who fled Karnataka to escape the persecutions of Tipu Sultan, the then muslim ruler of Mysore.

Here are some tid bits about the Badugas:

• There are both Vegetarians and non-vegetarians among them. The Veera Shaiva Lingayats are pure vegetarian. An essentially agrarian community, they are fiercely loyal to their identity as Badugas. The youngsters and elders form a seamless chain through which traditions, customs and usages have been passed down since time immemorial.
• They are a simple contented people. They are patriarchical and large families live together in peace and harmony with common kitchens and common lands. They strictly prohibit marriages within the same Hatti or village. So a man from one hatti, say kallatti, has to search in another hatti for a bride. This prevents consanguinity and promotes biological diversity while at the same time preserving the close-knit nature of this community.
• There is no concept of dowry or exorbitant demands from the brides family. In fact the entire marriage cost is borne by the groom!
• Five or seven elders of the groom’s village go one day before the marriage to to the bride’s village with a symbolic Ana Kaasu or small gold coins as gifts. They are treated with respect when they reach the bride’s place where they seek the consent of the bride’s family to take the bride to their village for the marriage function. They visit every house in the Hatti and take consent! The bride too has to visit every relative, fall at their feet and take blessings. The bridal party then proceeds to the groom’s village where the nuptials take place.
• The Badugas are world famous for their hospitality. In fact UNESCO has recognized them as the most hospitable community in the world! We experienced this first hand in the Hatti where, at every house we were “forced” by the host to eat or drink something. A baduga delicacy is Thupputhittu (it literally means dipped-in-ghee) a sweetmeat made of flour. It tastes best when dipped in hot tea!
• The hatti is situated right in the middle of a valley surrounded by the Nilagiri hills. Thew Hatti consists of arrays of houses built one above the other with each house having a huge courtyard in front where the Badugas can meet together and have fun. The houses are essentially small because they have to retain the warmth. Each unit has a small hall, an inner room with a wooden platform for receivng and seating close guests, a small alcove for pooja and a kitchen. The Bedrooms are on the first floor and are accessed by a wooden step ladded. The comfortable beds are laid on the wooden flooring to increase the warmth. Each house faces east and has a window in the first floor giving a magnificent view of the surrounding hill side. So every one wakes up in the morning every day to a panoramic view of sunrise on the mountains! What can money provide except a false sense of security. The lifestyle of the Badugas epitomizes the value of simplicity and the benefits of aligning our life with nature.
• The badugas being Lingayats, carry a saligramamon their person in small siver casket. They carry this wiuth them permanently. The men wear the casket knotted to their sacred thread which is worn like cross belt across the body from left to right. The women wear the casket in their mangal sutra or on a chain around their neck.
• Whwen a Lingayat is finally summoned from this sublunary abode, his body is buried in a seated position with legs in the lotus position and the hands held in front of the body palms upward. Finally after the body is interred into the triangular catacomb, the saligramam or lingam that the Lingayat has been carrying throughout his life is placed inside the mouth and then the body is buried. This, in my opinion is another symbolic reference to the oneness of creator and created. Jeevathma Paramatma Ikyam.

Varkala—God Proposes; Wife Disposes

2011 seems to be the year for visiting Thiruvananthapuram. Here I am again in the sleepy-headed somnolent capital of God’s own country. I am here to attend a professional conference. The city is interspersed with quaint two-storey buildings with sloping red-tiled roofs. Some of these date back to the Travancore era when colonial structures were built side-by-side traditional kerala houses. The old secretariat building is a white colonial structure that is quite imposing and a relic of a Trivandrum that could absorb western intrusion without losing an iota of its essential Malayaleeness!

I personally feel Trivandrum would always be caught in a time warp. We can step back into the past to about a hundred years ago by simply taking an unplanned detour from a main thoroughfare into the side lanes and streets with their arrays of ancient houses amidst lush green coconut trees.

This time thanks to the enthusiasm of a couple of professional friends, I went to Pazhavankaadu Ganapathi Temple and Sree Kandeswaram Sivan Temple. The Shivan temple which is a short walk from the main Anantha Padmanabhaswamy Temple is small but sanctified. The idol was totally encased in sandal paste with the face of Shiva with Trinethra clearly delineated. We also witnessed the Seeveli or the ritual perambulation of the idol around the temple precincts. This is an important ritual in the Kerala temples and is the last one for the day. After this the main door is closed till the morning Nirmalya Darshan. The idol is taken three times around the sanctum affording everyone an opportunity to have a clear dharshan. Larger temples in Thrissur and Guruvayoor use elephants to carry the idol. Here the idol was carried by the main thanthri by hand. This temple has a pure white decorated bull that walks majestically in front of the seeveli possession. The bull is an alternate symbol of Shiva as it is the vehicle or Vahan of the God.

During my New Year visit to Trivandrum we did visit the beach at Varkala. The place is famous for its white sands and we found tourists from abroad flocking here too, though not in such large numbers as at Kovalam. The place is also an important religious shrine and is known as papanaasam. This is because of the Janardhana Swamy Temple which is situated on a hillock nearby. Last time I could not visit the Temple and have darshan of the Lord who is believed to accompany the departed soul on its last journey to the nether worlds. God beckons and Man proposes but Wife Disposes!

Not being accompanied by my wife, this time I made it. The main entrance is from the Agraharam on the Eastern side. There is a wide flight of stone steps leading up to an entrance mandap. The roof is made of wood and the walls have nice carvings on them.The more popular entrance is a narrow and steep staircase on the northern side as the buses stop here on the way to the beach.

I saw a bas relief of Lord Rama, an obedient Hanuman with arms folded in salute and a larger image of Garuda ready to fly on the pedestal bearing the entrance Mandap. The Nine Prajapathis were once cursed by Brahmaji to be born on earth. Sage Narada threw down the dress of Bark or Val-kala he was wearing as a symbol of renunciation and advised them to go down to the world to the spot where his Val-kala or dress of bark fell down. That place became Varkala. The connection with Rama is described thus. Rama could not attend Brahmaji's Yajna at Varkala on his way back to Ayodhya as he was in a hurry to reach Nandigram and relieve Lored Bharatha. But instead he did attended through his doppelganger, a brahmin called Janarthana. The idol of the Lord Janarthana in the Temple has one of the hands of the deity carrying the ritual water offered by Brahma to be drunk after the meal to its mouth. Tradition has it that this hand is slowly rising towards the mouth and that when it finally reaches the mouth of the idol, the Pralaya or Apocalypse will ensue!

The sunset at Varkala beach is a divine sight.

I made a third visit to Thiruananthapuram in February to attend a Masonic meet. This time it was pure business. Before leaving I dropped in on the Masonic temple a t Trivandrum.

Coonoor

Ootacamund is polluted and congested. Denuded of tree cover, it has become a highly commercialized concrete jungle. The Ooty lake (No! the Ooty pond!) with its amusement arcade and food stalls completely covering the lake front is a parody of the place I enjoyed visiting as recently as in the late eighties or even early nineties. The Botanical Garden retains and reflects a little bit of the former splendor possibly due to its protected position behind walls.

For the discerining traveler to the Nilgiris, Coonoor is a better option. Coonoor, which was formerly the commercial and trading centre is now emerging as a viable alternative to Oooty as a hill resort. The pleasant town built on the slopes of the surrounding hills is similar to Shimla or Kohima where scenic beauty and day-to-day commercial life go hand-in-hand.

For those of us who decide to eschew the beaten “tourist” track to Ooty, a good idea is to take the toy train from Coonoor to Ooty and back. This historical track was laid in 1897 by the British. It is, today, a museum piece. The stations are preserved almost in the same condition in which they were originally built more than a hundred years ago. The route cuts across valleys and runs thrugh tunnels which cut into the intervening hills. The stations between Coonoor and Ooty are Wellindon, Aruvankadu (there is a cordite factory here), Keti (the famous last scene in Moonram Pirai was shot here) and Lovedale.

Asthamudi

Asthamudi is a huge lake near quilon. The lake is connected to the Arabian Sea by waterways and canals. It also has connections with the backwaters criss-crossing the region between Kollam and Kochi.

The eponymous Club Mahindra property where I stayed is a long stretch of palm-lined flat land on the banks of the lake. From my room, which has a nice sit out, I could see the waters of the lake glistening in the early morning sun. Small wavelets surge and subside on the surface of the lake which stretchews out in all directions right up to the distant horizon.

It was literally like spending a few days in paradise. The weather was cool with occasional heat. I spent the time catching up with my reading while sprawling on one of the hammocks lining the waterfronmt! Sometimes we went for boat rides out to the Arabian sea or on the canals and waterways running through the villages.

Thiruananthapuram--New Year 2011--First Visit

It is my usual practice to take a week off at the end of every year and use the opportunity to review the past 365 days as also plan how I would optimize the forthcoming year.... I invariably leave Chennai and spend the week in a remote location, ideally near nature and temples...This time, I spent the New Year 2011 in Kerala...with my family.

I spent some time at Kovalam near Thiruananthapuram...

• We stayed on the Vilinjam Beach in Sagara Resort. The sickle shaped beach curves beautifully with a walk way and glittering shops and hotels serving freshly caught fish. As the sun went down into the Arabian Sea, the place was a colorful sight with neon bulbs and signboards everywhere. The foreign tourists wandering all over the place gave the feel of Pattaya Beach, Thailand. The only thing missing was "Walking Street"! :-)
• The mornings were spent bathing in the sea. The waves are gentle here and just standing in the middle of the rolling smaller waves with water up-to one's hip and then rising with a larger wave moving towards the shore is a delightful experience. The coastline forms a nice inlet or cove at Vilinjam with rocky promontories on either side holding a huge body of water between them. It is upon the southern promontory that the Lighthouse stands.
• On the afternoon of the second day I climbed the Vilinjam lighthouse with my children. The tedious climb up the winding staircase was worth it because the view was great. From the circular turret we got a glorious view of the beach and surrounding areas in the east and the large expanse of sea on the west. Fropm atop the ligyhthose we saw a kite circling the ocean. As we were above the Kite, we got a Birds Eye View of the Bird!
• Later in the evening we went to Attukkal Bhagavathy Temple and then Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple. In the outer corridor of the Attukkal Bhagawathy temple, which holds the Guinness record for the Largest assembly of women in a singkle place for Pongala, there is a concrete image of Hanuman on one of the pillars. I was truly facinated by the image. The Deity is depicted majestically upright with tail raised above the head and legs apart. The right hand holds the lowered mace or Gadhayudham and the left is on his hip. The head is lowered as if looking down at the devotee paying obeiscance to him. It is a great and unique figure.

Maruthamalai

I was in Coimbatore on 13^th January. I visited the Temple of Lord Muruga on Marutha Malai. AS the temple was almost empty we had a lot of space to move around and enjoy the divine experience. My earlier trips to this shrine had been quick on-the-way to Ooty visits when I had no opportunities to savour the ambience. Moreover I could see huge improvements in the place. The rough-hewn steps leading up to the main shrine have been replaced by broad granite ones. The view of the main Gopuram Structure (Raja Gopuram - which is still under construction) from the car park is superb as the elevation rears up majestically with the mountain ranges towering up and above in the backdrop.

There is a separate shrine for Shiva and one for the divine mother Parvathi too! Apparently Murugan is a dutiful son here sincerely taking care off his parents. Ganesha the Big Brother is as usual ubiquitous. There is huge Ganesha idol just next to the sanctum and a beautiful Valampuri Vinayagar with trunk twisted to the right near the Dvajasthambam. As we get down from the main shrine, we can see the Pancha Vrksha Vinayagar at the base of five intertwined trees with dendritic profusions all around. Nera the Pancha Vrksha Ganapathi is a stone slab with an image of Murugan in bas relief. The sculpture depicts the Warlord sitting on a peacock with its tail feathers spread out like a fan behind the Lord. The Vel or spear in his hand is directed downward as idf piercing our ignorance (maya) and Ego (ahamkara)!

This sculpture reminded me of the pillar sculpture at Perur where Arumuga Nayanar or Murugan is depicted in three dimensional splendor seated on a peacock. The craftsmanship is so exquisite that the sixth head is carved on the reverse side and can be seen from behind the pillar! The Perur temple has been recently renovated.

A little down is the Adhi Moolasthaanam where the swayambhu idols or stones representing Muruga, Valli and Devayanai are enshrined.

About sixty steps or so further down is a shrine to Pambatti Siddhar, one of the Eighteen Seers who are renowned in the Sidhha Lineage. Due to lack of time (!) we couldn’t go there. I made up my mind to visit this shrine as well as the Shiva temple at Perur on my next visit to Coimbatore.

Thuravoor Narasimhaswamy Temple

09.12.2010

There are numerous temples for Krishna and Bhagavathy Matha in Kerala. Temples for Shiva or Mahadevan as he is known here also abound. But a temple for Narasimhamurthy (The man-lion deity)? My curiousity being aroused by Mr. Unnithan I decided to visit the Narasimhaswamy temple at Thuravoor on the way back from Kayamkulam to Kochi Airport.

The temple is quite visible from the main Highway. There is a huge temple tank and behind it the Temple in typical Kerala style. Adjacent to the main shrine there is anot

her for Sree Krishnan. This shrine is a cylindrical or rounded structure with a conical shikhara. There are a few interesting murals (wall paintings) of Narasimhavatar. One depicts the lion face with the body elided. The rakshasa king Hiranyakashibu is on the lap of the deity and

two of the eight hands of the Lord are tearing out his entrails. The lowest pair of arms hold the body firm. The third pair is depicted as taking the entrails to the gaping leonine maw with sharp pointed teeth. The upper most pair of arms is raised aloft holding the symbols of Vishnu, the Disc and the Conch. A truly gory depiction bringing out the Ughram or ferocity of this anthropomorphic incarnation. And below this bloody spectacle stands Baktha Prahalad hands clasped in devotion and eyes closed in the ecstasy of Love for the Lord.

Thuravoor is a main area of the Gowda Saraswath Brahmins. The temple was built by one Ravi Naik a devotee of Lord Narasimha who was told by the Lord himself to install an idol at the location of the present temple. The Lord also sent two divine sculptors to carve the idol. The sculptors worked in secrecy and instructed Ravi Naik not to peep. The overenthusiastic devotee hearing no noise from inside, could not resist himself and peeped in at the last moment. The sculptors were gone but the idol of Lord Narasimha was there almost complete and wondrously beautiful, except for the tip of the finger of one foot. The temple is now under the control of the Ko0chi Dewaswom Board. The original Narasimhar idol was moved for safety to the Anantha Narayanapuram Temple in Alapuzha.

Sky and Water from speeding train

28.11.2010 5:45 PM

I am in the Ernakulam-Bangalore Superfast Expres travelling towards Coimbatore. It is always an enjoyable experience to sit at the window of a speeding train gazing out at the passing scenery and landscape. As the train hurtles past the huts and houses every scene is a brief vignette of a long story in someone’s life, here this moment gone the next, leaving us to wonder what happens after that.

After we streamed out of Ernakulam Town and headed north beyond Idapally, the scenic beauty of coastal Kerala could be viewed again. Backwaters and inlets; green fields; yellow flowers; and of course swaying coconut trees fringing the banks of the water ways.

As we crossed Aluva station and crossed the Periyar Bridge, I glimpsed the enchanting vision of a bend in the Periyar river. Twilight is a great time when nature uses the setting sun and the clouds to paint infinite colors and hues on the canvas of the sky. When we add the reflective capability of a large body of water such as the broad Periyar river as it flows past Aluva, we have a great montage of sky, water and not incongruously for Kerala the twinkling lights of a high rise buildings in the back ground.

Walk on Marine Drive--Ernakulam

It has always been my desire to take a long walk on Marine Drive in Ernakulam. My usual visits to this town are invariably pass throughs on the way to a training program or Sabhari Mala. This time, with a whole evening at my disposal, I decided to do it.

My walk on Marine Drive was indeed a pleasure. I went into the Subhash Bose Park and walked along the wall abutting the sea. In the distance, I could see the ferry boats carrying passengers to Bolgatti and Vypin Islands. In the dimming twilight of dusk, the scene presented a calming sight. I sat on the wall with huge expanse of the Arabian Sea behind me. I sat communing with my inner self with the dense vegetation of the park before me and beyond that the speeding traffic on Marine Drive.

The park is mostly in a state of extreme disrepair. Some of the art noveau sculptures lining the walkway are deformed or rusted. Those parts that are not in extreme disrepair are under repair! Pits have been dug up everywhere, tiles stacked on the lawns and pipes strewn all around. The park is divine and calm. It is worth better maintenance, upkeep and care.

I, then, moved on to the boat jetty. There, from a raised platform nearby, I got a magnificent view of the ships and the sea. I walked back to my Hotel with sense of fulfillment and felt at peace with myself.

Kochi--Nature and Pollution

27.11.2010

I am here at Kochi to attend the Southern India Regional Conference of the ICAI. I am staying at Bharat Hotel one of the most popular, if not the best, travel destination in Ernakulam. I asked for and got a sea facing room. The view, such as it is, is of a wide expanse of water with cranes and jetties visible. In the extreme horizon I could see a few ships.

Most towns in Kerala have a village look with moss covered tile-roofed buildings rubbing shoulders with ultra-modern high-rises. Ernakulam is no exception. Eventhough it is the commercial capital of the state, it used to maintain its sylvan atmosphere till very recently. Kochi is paying the price for progress. Many BPO and Tech Towers have come up. While the greenery is almost intact in the outskirts, the mid-city area especially near the railway track is congested and devoid of any green vegetation. The pollution and ambient temperature levels are quite high. But as we leave the snarl of the main city and its congested lanes and go into the outskirts, nature reclaims her right to God’s own country and the surroundings become again verdant and picturesque.

The weather at Kochi is balmy and cool. It looks like rain, but there were no major downpours. Much of Ernakulam town is tree-covered, esp., Marine Drive the long road on the sea shore near Bharat Hotel. Marine Drive is lined on either side by old trees with overhanging branches that form a veritable tunnel of green.