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Odisha Part 11: Discovering the Jaina Heritage of Odisha at the caves of Udaygiri and Khandgiri

The Hindu and Buddhist history of Odisha , or rather, ancient Kalinga, is rather well known to everyone. Who hasn’t heard of the grand temples of Odisha – Puri, Lingaraj and Konark, or the great war of Kalinga which inspired Ashoka to convert to Buddhism? In contrast, very few know of the Jaina heritage of this region. This is quite a pity, since, just around 7 km from the city, is one of India’s most ancient inscriptions, which throws light on the Jaina heritage of Odisha. This inscription is the Hathigumpha inscription of Kharavela, in the hills of Udaygiri. Udaygiri and Khandgiri are two hills located opposite each other, and both are testaments to the rich Jaina heritage of Odisha. The caves at Udaygiri are older, while Khandgiri is relatively newer, but has lasted much longer, and continues to be a place of pilgrimage for Jains even today. These hills, from inscriptions and excavations of caves, shrines and rock beds, appear to have been a haven for Jaina monks, right from the ...
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Juhu Beach, Mumbai

The last time I went to Juhu beach must have been about 25 years back.... when I was in school. In fact, this happens to be the first beach I visited when I came to Bombay..... There are, however, few memories I have, about the place, which is why I headed out there in the hot sun, when I had a few hours free during the BlogCamp . Here are a few images from the trip...... Samhith has yet to visit a beach in Bombay.... its high time I take him......
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Samhith's work of art

This is one of Samhith's latest creations - he has just learnt to draw!!! Yes, at the age of 6 and a half, it is indeed a bit late, but he has never been interested in drawing or colouring! "Why should I want to draw or colour?" has been the refrain for so long! He couldn't even colour properly, let alone draw anything! Then, suddenly , last month, he brought back a perfectly coloured sheet from school, telling me that one of his friends had helped him out, teaching him how to draw within the boundaries! I can never thank the little girl who helped him out enough! And then, imagine my surprise when he brought back a note from the teacher, informing that he was to participate in a drawing competition! So, we spent Sunday morning drawing a school bus, which was the topic given. This drawing below is the one he drew by himself, as a sort of trial, and then he drew it finally on art paper, which he has taken along with him to school. I wanted to take  a pic of the ...
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Blog Camp Mumbai - Experience

Getting to the Blog Camp wa sn't as easy as I had thought! To begin with, I had to convince Samhith to let me go alone - he would have been bored there, anyway, and wouldn't have let me hear anything the other bloggers had to say! And then, getting out of the house took quite a while, and I ended up leaving home only after lunch. Imagine my predicament when I reached the event just in time for their lunch break!!!!  One hour to go , everyone busy with lunch, and me with nothing to do and all alone - so I did what I usually do - left the place and spent an hour wandering around - walked to Juhu Beach and spent some time watching a group of swifts flying overhead....... Now to the camp itself . When I first reached the venue, I felt older than ever, for all the attendees seemed so young! Most of them collegians, some in their early twenties..... I have never felt so old.... Thankfully , by the time I returned after my walk, there seemed to be more people around - more nearer m...
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Skywatch Friday

The Sunset at Alibag.... This was one of the pics we took on our visit to Alibag last year, and I especially love this one... esp since there is a couple in the frame against the backdrop of the setting sun.... romantic, wouldn't you say??? And for those of you who like to look further, there is a small bird there too.....
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Blog Camp Mumbai

I am planning to attend the Blog Camp Mumbai, at least part of it. Will you be there? BlogCamp Details: BlogCamp Mumbai is all about bloggers and sessions related to blogging. All bloggers + anyone interested in blogging (or have any queries related to blogs) can attend this event. You can also take sessions related to blogging as we will be having a white wiki (board) at the venue where you can take available slot timings. There is no FEE for this event. When? Saturday, February 20, 2010 from 10:00 AM - 6:00 PM Where? Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management & Engineering, Behind Homeopathy College, Near Irla Lane, Bhakti VedantaSwami Marg, JVPD Scheme Vile Parle 400056 India Where do I register? http://blogcamp. eventbrite. com/
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Kashi Yatra

Varanasi is a city which has always fascinated me, and I have been fortunate enough to visit it twice. The first time I was a school kid, and my memories are vague, but the second time, which was about two years back, I spent 10 memorable days there while my in-laws performed all conceivable rituals and prayers. I came back so full of information and enthusiasm, that I wrote 16 posts on the trip, and finally ended up making a separate blog for all of them.  Once I was through with it, this blog was left forgotten and never updated, since I had nothing to add! However, I have been surprised by the slow, but steady response this blog has received over the last two years. People have not just been visiting the blog, they also leave comments, and mostly write to me asking for clarifications or telling me about their experience. A few people, in fact, came back to tell me that my blog had helped them plan and execute their trip. For a blogger, there i...
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A couple of birds.....

I started getting interested in birds only when Samhith began noticing them and asking their names. When I realised that his interest made him conscious about being quiet and calm while we were looking at birds, I decided to encourage him just to teach him some patience. You can see the influence he has had on me, just by going through my blog. But you can really gauge his influence when you see the pics below. These were taken by my sister-in-law, Sandhya , when she was on a trip to Chidambaram. Till now, she has shown no interest in birds, but thanks to him, the whole family has jumped on the birding bandwagon!   I have no idea about the names of the birds, so if any of you do know, please leave a comment.... This is the best one - a bird inside its nest...... again, I have no clue as to the name..... She actually took a lot more photographs, but they were not all that clear, and I could not put them up! But as of now, thanks to Samhith, there is a whole new family ...
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Waders and Other Water-Birds --- A morning at the Sewri Mudflats

The first time we went to see the Flamingoes of Mumbai at Sewri with the BNHS , we were enraptured by these beautiful birds, and were surprised by the number of birds, not just flamingoes, which arrived in this crowded metropolis! Since then, we twice lost the opportunity of joining the BNHS on their bird watching trips, due to prior engagements. I had lost all hopes of seeing these birds again this year, but thankfully, Adesh Shivkar of the Mumbai Bird Club announced a birding trail to Sewri this Saturday, and I jumped at the chance to take Samhith along on another bird-watching jaunt. This time , I also roped along my friend, Usha , who will shortly be shifting to Delhi . She had to go somewhere else, but agreed to join me and Samhith for at least a couple of hours. So, the three of us set off at the break of dawn to see what and how many birds we were able to identify! The very first sight that met us at Sewri was a sea of pink, the flamingoes much closer than they were, the las...
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A Cinematic Experience - Harishchandrachi Factory

I am not a very regular film-goer , and actually go to see a movie only when I am sufficiently enthusiastic. The one film I had been looking forward to watching on the big screen was ' Harishchandrachi Factory '. I wondered if it would actually arrive at a theatre near me (considering that most award winning films don't really make it to the suburban theatres), and when it finally did, last week, I found myself too busy to go and watch it! This afternoon , when Shankar suggested a movie, I opened the paper, only to find not a single mention of the movie anywhere! Finally I turned to the internet, my only source of information these days, and thankfully found it playing at a theatre not too far! We jumped at the chance, and booked tickets at once! As it happened, we need not have bothered - the theatre was almost empty! There were just a few families like us, most of them Maharashtrians, I may add! Samhith for once was least interested in the movie - 1. Because he had...
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Skywatch Friday

The Bandra-Worli Sea Link.... as we passed via Bandra yesterday........The sight is still too exciting for me.... I go clickety-click everytime I go by......... For more beautiful skies around the world, go to Skywatch Friday
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Just for fun.....

Chitra , of My Pilgrimage , has passed on an award with a few rules..... 1. to acknowledge the giver, 2. to list 10 things that you like, and 3. to pass on the award to 10 others. Thanks, Chitra ...for passing this on...... You have set a big task for me... and all I can do is try!! First, about the things I like, I am going to list only 5, for those are all I could think of....... and am too lazy to go on..... 1. Reading 2. Writing 3. Spending time with my son, reading or playing with his blocks 4. Visiting new places 5. Attending Book exhibitions, concerts and visiting Art Galleries. Now, to pass this on.... I am not keeping count, but am just tagging those I think would like to continue this.... Patricia Bhavesh Flowergirl Usha  -Usha, I don't know whether you would actually like to do this, but I have added your name just so that I could see something new on your blog :) Aarti Incidentally, have any of you noticed the new pages I have added on the blog???? Please t...
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Do you know the name of this fruit?

My father-in-law is building a bridge over a river near a small village in Karjat (near Mumbai). This place is fairly remote, which is why they didn't have a bridge in the first place.... you can guess how remote when I tell you that they still don't have electricity!!!  Well, anyway , he came back home last night with a fruit the villagers had given him. he thought we would know the name, so he didn't bother to ask them. As it happens, we have no clue! Can any of you help us identify it?  It looked ripe, so we cut it, but it turns out it wasn't quite ready to be eaten. It still tastes Ok, though!!! Update: It is a Ram Phal, a variety related to the Sita Phal or custard apple. Thanks a lot, Chitra and Bhavesh for the info... Thanks to you both, I can now teach Samhith about another fruit!!
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