03 Mar

The Southern Sojourn – Kanyakumari

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It was close to 9.00 p.m. and with hunger cramps, I told Rajah to stop at a good eating place in the next town en-route. We landed at a small time restaurant – Shanti Bhawan (?) at Sayalgudi, a very small Panchayat town. The place looked clean, but the restaurant owner told us that the place was “full”. There were around 40 Ayappa Swami Devotees already seated and they were to be served first and our waiting time could be more than half an hour. While talking to the owner I was surprised to see the pictures of Kabaa, the holiest place for the Muslims along with some of the Hindu Gods. I asked him if it was a Hindu hotel. He said it was a Muslim Hotel. When I pointed to the wall hangings, he said “Sir, we worship all the Gods”. I was touched by his reply to the hilt and almost embraced him. I wish people all over the country had the similar feelings and then this divide between the religions would probably be non-existent. Thankfully the things appeared to be much better in Tamil Nadu as people of all the religions eat the same food, drink same toddy, speak Tamil and wear the same dress – lungi / dhoti and shirt.

Outside the restaurant, a group of Swamis (devotees of Lord Ayappa) were standing. I was told that they were coming from somewhere in North Tamil Nadu (after a couple of drinks, one tends to forget the names sometimes) and were heading for Kanyakumari,

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How I Managed To Trek Kheerganga With My 8 Year Old Daughter!

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There are two different legends that explains the origin of Kheerganga – One says that Lord Shiva meditated here for thousands of years and another says that Kartikeya, son of Lord Shiva and Parvati meditated here and the natural spring was emerged when Shiva struck the ground with His trishul on Parvati’s request as she was worried that her son wouldn’t get anything to eat here.

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Bhalkimachan – the royal bear hunting grounds

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The Zamindars and the royal family members of Burdwan used this place as a hunting spot and constructed several Machans for their convenience. Thus Bhalki and Machan combined to give the place its current name Bhalki Machan. The etymology can be broken down into Bhalu ki Machan. Bhalu means bear. Machan means an elevated resting place for the hunters to hunt down wild animals.

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A Small Slice of Athens

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The view of Athens from here is quite splendid. An immediate circle of red-tiled roofs gives way to more modern structures spread all around. Mt. Lycabettus sticks out of this jumble glowing under a slant of sunlight that has lanced through a cloudy sky.

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Kushinagar – Where Buddha breathed last

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The actual cremation ground is a bit away and I didn’t go there this time. The area has lots of temples built by many countries which practice Buddhism. There are good hotels as well, including Taj and I clearly remember that there were internet kiosks five year back.

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Roma – where Gods still linger

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As we walked towards Piazza Venezia,we were greeted by a majestic white monument. The Vittoriano built to honour Victor Emanuel II, the first king of Italy, offer some breathtaking views of Rome . Built of white marble, the monument invited controversy for destroying a large portion of the Capitoline Hill . It also has the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

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माँ चंडी देवी, हरद्वार की यात्रा

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माता के जिस स्वरूप की हम बात कर रहे है उसका थोड़ा व्याख्यान करना तो बनता है। तो प्रिय पाठकों माँ चंडी देवी का मंदिर नील पर्वत पर स्थित एक सिद्ध पीठ के रूप में प्रसिद्ध है। कहा जाता है की आठवीं शताब्दी में प्रसिद्ध हिन्दू धर्म गुरु आदि शंकराचार्य द्वारा माता की मूर्ति की स्थापना यहाँ पर की गयी थी। इस स्थान से जुडी एक पौराणिक कथा यह है की शुम्भ-निशुम्भ नामक राक्षसों, जिन्होंने इंद्रा का साम्राजय अपने अधिपत्य में ले लिया था, का वध करने के बाद माता चंडी देवी, जिनकी उत्पत्ति देवी पारवती के अंश से हुयी थी, यहाँ पर कुछ समय के लिए विश्राम करने हेतु रुकी थी।

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Khana Mihirer Dhipi

Chandraketugarh – a tryst with the mystical ancient history

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When king Chandraketu was ruling the kingdom, a Pir named Gorachand arrived from Arab and tried to convince the king to convert his religion to Islam. During that time, he showed several magical tricks. One of the tricks was that he bloomed Champa flower during off season on the Bera (fence). From that time, the place is called Berachampa.

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शिंगणापुर यात्रा – जहाँ शनि देव विराजते हैं

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आपको फिर बताना चाहूंगा की साई आश्रम में दर्शन की बायोमेट्रिक सिस्टम है जो में स्तिथ है और रिसेप्शन से सुविधा मिल जाती है ताकि अगर आपने ऑनलाइन पर्ची नहीं ली तो आप आश्रम में ही बॉयोमीट्रिक्स करवा के शाम या सुबह की मंदिर प्रवेश की पर्ची प्राप्त कर सकते हैं । इससे यह सुविधा मिलती है की आपको फिर मंदिर के गेट १ & २ के सामने लाइन से पर्ची लेने में जो समय लगेगा वह समय बच जायेगा और एक बार प्रसादालय से प्रसाद ज़रूर पाए, यह एक डिवाइन अनुभव होगा ।

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Dhanushkodi – No Land only Sand

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We reached Rameshwaram from Madurai about 3:00 PM, we planned to visit Rameshwaram temple in the morning, so we asked our taxi driver Kannan if there is any beach nearby, he nodded his head and said “Yeeessss” (I liked the way he used to say Yeeessss”), it is 13 kms from here and is called Dhanushkodi.
Well, we reached the beach in about 45 minutes, on the way, we also visited a temple where Lord Rama performed the “Raj Tilak” of Vibhishan. Kannan told us that this is the beach, it was very deserted. We found an Indian Navy post there, a tea stall and a snack shop. The Indian Ocean was beautiful, roaring and with high waves. We dared not go too deep inside and also asked the kids to stay off.

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शिरडी , जहाँ साई बसते हैं

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आपको बता दूँ की ऑनलाइन पर्ची वालों के लिए गेट नंबर ३ या शनि गेट से एंट्री होती है जलपान होने के बाद हमने मंदिर संसथान के सामने ऑटो करने का फैसला किया पर सामने तांगेवाले को देख के मन ललचा गया और बुक करके मंदिर की और चल पड़े, मंदिर संसथान से १ किमी दूर है और १००० मीटर आपको पैदल चलना होगा रस्ते में दुकान वाले आपको चादर और प्रसादी के लिए बोलेंगे पर आप सिर्फ चादर और गुलाब का फूल लीजियेगा क्योंकि बाबा को प्रसाद बाहर का नहीं चढ़ता सिर्फ फूल और चादर चढ़ती है,

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