Prayagraj Khusro Bagh

– From A Tumultuous Past To A Peaceful Present

By Meera

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Walking and treading on old pathways in historical old cities, one can feel the vibes of that era that may have been joyful or tragic. One such garden in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, India gives you this feeling of having lost many things in life. High walled gardens with imposing entries are very rare but this one makes you take a peek around the 40 acres of peaceful oasis that hides the tumultuous past of one family.

 

The entrance

Smooth Coated Otters - Journey To Their Abode

By Tharangini

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The morning was already well spent watching flamingos from the most scientifically and delicately balanced boat. Our weights were equally distributed and even a single untoward movement would have sent the entire boatload for a nice dip in the Tungabhadra backwaters. As the only one of the entire lot, whose swimming skills had not progressed much beyond the doggy style paddling, I think I was the bravest to undertake this adventure. But that is a story for another day.

Flamingos in Tungabhadra Backwaters

Smooth Coated Otters - The Adventure And The Sighting

By Tharangini

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Thanks for joining me here from Part I.



We were barely a few meters away from the shore when a crocodile gently broke the shimmering water and announced its presence. Its eyes and snout glimmered through the liquid gold texture surrounding it.  Bracing myself, I just managed to get a shot when I felt my feet get wet.

A Crocodile in the waters of Tungabhadta

Agrasen Ki Baoli – An Age Old Step Down The Wells Of Delhi

By Meera

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Now how did people fulfill their water needs in the dry and arid regions?  In Indian sub-continent at least, one can see a plethora of ancient reservoirs of water since the time of Dholavira or Mohenjadaro. Be its capital Delhi or the neighboring dry regions, one can see step wells (or Baolis) across the northwestern parts of India. Agrasen or Ugrasen’s Baoli is one of the most beautiful structures and today, it is a popular destination for youngsters.

Sri Chamarajeshwara Temple - Musings Of A Divine Interference

By Tharangini

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Sri Chamrajeshwara Temple
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Tamilyomen

Long long ago, roughly about a decade and half back, I used to make an annual trip with my uncle to assist with his auditing work. My work was to cross check various calculations and other data verifications, data entry etc. and my incentive was visiting a new place each year. This was much before my peruse of our history and heritage and hence the conspicuous absence of any image in this write up.

So what is this article doing in this blog?  As I sat bundled up in my jacket, staring at the pretty determined rain outside my window that was going strong since morning,  I was reminded of one of my most memorable visits to a temple during one such auditing trip.  With the lockdown having pretty much turned spotted owlets into sitting ducks, I felt it may be a good idea to share this eventful visit with you.

Bannerghatta Dolmens – The Need For Studies And Protection

By Meera

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The dating of the dolmens of Bannerghatta is a bit hazy and they are said to belong to the early Neolithic period that is 4000 to 3000 BC. It is amazing how they have survived all these years on hills that are frequented by wildlife and humans and of course, stone thieves.  On a trail across the Doddibetta hill ranges, the existence of large herbivores and carnivores can be clearly seen.

A view of more dolmens on the northern part of the hill

Bannerghatta Dolmens – The Ancient Face Of Bengaluru City

By Meera

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Searching for dolmens, menhirs and other very ancient structures has become a passion for me and Tharangini but it never struck my mind there was one in my own backyard. To my amazement, this is just about 25 kilometers from my place where once ancient people had resided and left the footprints of their existence in the nearby forests.

The first view of a Dolmen

Koodli Temple – An Ancient Story From The Verdant Malenadu

By Meera

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Situated in the heart of Malenadu, the ancient place of Koodli beckons one with its verdant paddy fields, areca nut plantations and shimmering sunsets. Driving through these regions, one soaks in the serene and hilly landscape that is teeming with water birds while in the fading light, the larks make their own songs heard mellifluously over the mesmerizing paddy fields.

En route to Koodli

Lakshmi Narasimha Temple - The Man in the Long Coat And More

By Tharangini

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Though regular pooja happens inside the temple, the work of overzealous devotees who conduct their own mini poojas on the carvings outside,  has made them red and yellow. Incense sticks were also lit up right next to these carvings. Little did they realize that though their hearts were in the right place, their actions were doing more damage than good to the temple.

One unfortunate aspect with no escape from, are vandals. With initials and proclamations of love adorning certain patches, this temple has also attracted its share of defacing. But it is certainly doing much better than the Navalinga temple at Koppal where the vandals have been a lot more destructive in their efforts.

The man in the overcoat

Lakshmi Narasimha Temple - The Jewel Of Bhadravati

By Tharangini

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After our rendezvous with Amrutheswara temple in the morning,  we reached Bhadravati by noon for a brief sojourn at the Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple. The modest temple with a rich history, tucked in the center of the town was abuzz  with the footfall of the morning worshipers  when we reached there. They were trying to finish their prayers, worships,  pooja and get the blessings of the lord before the temple closed for the morning.

Front entrance to the temple

Annular Solar Eclipse – The Rare Dance Of The Ring Of Fire

By Meera

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Video Credit: Revanth Rajeev

It was the thought of ‘Ring of Fire’ that kept me awake throughout the night and I was hopeful of seeing it properly even if it was a cloudy day and the sky was not clear. Thousands of people across many cities were glued to the skies through various formats – if some were at planetariums, astrophysics centers, others congregated in small selective gatherings at river banks, educational institutions due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The deadly virus did not dampen the spirits of many who managed to get a plethora of celestial images of the annular solar eclipse on June 21 from various places across India.

Konark Temple -The Intricate Designs Of Day To Day Life

By Meera

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It is not just the erotic figures that dominate the Konark temple, but the everyday life of the common man has been etched in every wall and mandap. It takes a lot of time to see this temple as right from the base of the temple to the first floor, the outer walls are covered with different kinds of carvings. Now each set of big figures are decorated and embellished by rangoli patterns.

Konark Temple – Unparalleled Carvings From An Open Society

By Meera

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Although the Konark Temple may be famous for its sundials thereby, attracting many connoisseurs to study the unique chariot wheels, there are many other aspects to this temple that one needs to study which is possible only through keen observation. The detailed description of life through its carvings on this temple is in fact, unparalleled and one cannot find such a description of  life anywhere in the world.

Konark Temple –The Mysterious Time Keeper On The Eastern Coast

By Meera

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It was more than a century ago that the workings of the sun dials, that is the stone chariot wheels of Konark Temple was discovered. It is said some yogis and sadhus were seen calculating and deciphering the sun dial but they would not reveal the actual functioning of the complicated structure. One thing which everyone knew was these wheels are sun dials and it can accurately measure time to the minute which our guide clearly did and demonstrated it to us.

Konark Temple - Tick Tocking For Centuries

By Meera

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With many monuments and temples in India lying in a state of ruin and having fallen prey to marauding invaders, looters and cultural destroyers from foreign lands since the 9th century – thousands of such heritage structures come to mind be it in Delhi, Hampi Varanasi, Srinagar or Dwarka. Some have been restored while some have been forgotten and lost forever.

Koodli - Where Tungabhadra Begins Her Journey

By Tharangini

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For part I click here.

The two trees and a shrine on the northern side of the temple

After the pooja  we stepped out through the northern door that led us to a small lawn. Two massive trees fast outgrowing the cemented seat at the base of their trunks stood there. The warriors from days of yore, immortalized in the hero stones, were resting here, weather worn and telling stories of their life and death. Those few who have the time and patience to linger a bit longer in their presence, might get to learn more about these centuries old brave-hearts who lay down their lives for various noble causes.

Koodli - The Ramesvara Temple

By Tharangini

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This was the last visit for the day. The universe has a way of bringing us to the right place at the right time, even if we are oblivious to its ways of working. This was one such visit and I was one such oblivious soul.

We were in Koodli at the Ramesvara temple, near the  point where the rivers Tunga and Bhadra join to embark on their journey together as Tungabhadra - an incredibly holy place. Also the place where people come to offer prayers and bid adieu to their loved ones. The place harboring a very different kind of energy, with Koodli literally meaning  'the confluence', the name itself says everything.

Koodli Ramesvara Temple

Le Jardin Botanique - French Connection And More

By Meera

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Walking amid the quiet solitude of the Le Jardin botanique, I wondered why is that a Botanical garden was developed in Pondicherry and for what purpose? Also,  I don't how many of you are aware that the famous Hollywood production "Life of Pi" was shot in this very garden but there is no tangible evidence of the movie' shooting here.

Le Jardin Botanique

A Mesmerising Walk Amid Ancient Trees Of The French Era

By Meera

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It was not a planned visit but roaming around the quaint colonial city of Pondicherry.  I thought of taking a peek into a garden that had literally no tourists or visitors. Now imagine my surprise of a scenario where a landmark natural heritage saw just a few local people drop in the evenings to take rest or chat with their friends without realizing the worth of the botanical garden.

Amrutheswara Temple - Stories Of Krishna And More

By Tharangini

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Welcome to the last part of the stories from the Amrutheswara temple. Last of this series and last from me for now. All these parts put together however do not even begin to scratch the surface of everything that this temple has to offer. The secrets left to be understood and uncovered and the tiny little signature hints in each carving left to be interpreted still await the curious eyes of its visitors.  I wonder if even a 30 part series can do justice to the magnitude of elegance that has been cramped into one temple, tucked away in Southern India.

As the warm February sun was busy tanning my skin multiple times over, I ignored the sweat pouring down my back while tales of Lord Krishna's childhood kept me captivated. Starting from the very beginning...

Frame 1 -

As each child was born to Devaki and Vasudeva , a donkey positioned outside the cell would act as the   harbinger of childbirth.  The donkey was said to be sensitive enough to detect the mother in labor. Its not so subtle heralding was a signal to Kamsa, Devaki's brother,  to rush to the cell and kill the baby. This was in a bid to escape the prophecy that Devaki's eighth child would be responsible for Kamsa's death.  Better safe than sorry, Kamsa made it a point to kill every child born to his sister rather than target just the eighth one. Just as the eighth child, Krishna was born, Vasudeva prostrates before the donkey requesting it not to alert the evil king about the birth. Though I had never heard of anyone else assisting Devaki or Vasudeva with the birth, this panel seemed to be pretty packed with a whole lot of characters. Baby Krishna is next to his mother on the cot, three ladies attending to Devaki, two guards and of course  Vasudeva and the donkey. There is also a comfortable mattress that shows slight indentation under the mother and baby. That is a lot of details in a single panel.