Skip to main content

Featured Post

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 ...
Post a Comment

Sunset at Somnath

We recently visited the Somnath temple during Samhith's short year-end break. We arrived at Somnath in the evening, and rushed for a glimpse of the deity, and then hurried to get my camera to capture the sight of the sun setting behind the temple...





As the sun moved slowly towards the horizon, we walked along the path leading the beach, where Samhith played happily in the water while I clicked the sun!







For more beautiful skies from around the world, visit Skywatch Friday!


Labels:

Comments

  1. MridulaApril 20, 2012 at 4:22 PM

    Very beautiful temple silhouette and a very beautiful sunset.

    ReplyDelete
  2. cfp123April 20, 2012 at 4:30 PM

    Pretty…
    chennaiflowerplaza.com

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousApril 20, 2012 at 6:22 PM

    Glorious shots. Love the silhouettes in the first one.

    ReplyDelete
  4. P.N. SubramanianApril 20, 2012 at 7:35 PM

    Beautiful. The temple looks great with that background.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousApril 21, 2012 at 12:27 AM

    Wonderful color in the sunset,magical!

    ReplyDelete
  6. R Niranjan DasApril 21, 2012 at 1:02 PM

    Beautiful photography!!

    www.rajniranjandas.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  7. Indian WeddingApril 27, 2012 at 5:16 PM

    Wow, we are such a beautiful country! Each and every picture is inspiring me! www.bigindianwedding.com

    ReplyDelete
  8. HostingMay 1, 2012 at 8:52 PM

    Wonderful shots! I really enjoyed the way you presented them.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thanks so much for stopping by. Please leave a comment for me so that I will know you have been here....

Popular posts from this blog

Gokarna Part II – The Five Lingams

We continued our Gokarna trip by visiting four other Shiva temples in the vicinity, all connected to the same story of Gokarna. The story of Gokarna mentions the Mahabaleshwara Lingam as the one brought from Kailas by Ravana, and kept at this place on the ground by Ganesha. (See my earlier post- Gokarna – Pilgrimage and Pleasure). However, the story does not end here. It is believed that, in his anger, Ravana flung aside the materials which covered the lingam- the casket, its lid, the string around the lingam, and the cloth covering it. All these items became lingams as soon as they touched the ground. These four lingams, along with the main Mahabaleshwara lingam are collectively called the ‘ Panchalingams’ . These are: Mahabaleshwara – the main lingam Sajjeshwar – the casket carrying the lingam. This temple is about 35 Kms from Karwar, and is a 2 hour drive from Gokarna. Dhareshwar – the string covering the lingam. This temple is on NH17, about 45 Kms south of Gokarna. Gunavanteshw...
10 comments
Read more

Newasa - Encountering an unique form of Vishnu, and Sant Jnaneshwar

The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
9 comments
Read more

Rama Temple, Gokarna

To my right , the waves rush to the shore, eager to merge with the sand. To my left, the same waves crash against the rocks, their spray diverting my reverie as I ponder over the beauty of nature, and wonder what first brought people here. Was it this beauty that encouraged them to build a temple here, or was it the fresh, sweet spring water flowing from the hill here that made this place special? No matter what the reason, I am glad my auto driver brought me here. We are at the Rama temple in Gokarna, just a few minutes away from the Mahabaleshwara Temple, yet offering so different a perspective.
7 comments
Read more