Ganesha Chaturthi - A tour of some Ganesha Pandals in Bombay

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...

Ganesha Chaturthi - A tour of some Ganesha Pandals in Bombay

This year, I had planned to write a blog on all the 10 days of the Ganeshotsav, and take you along with me as I visited various Ganesha Pandals. However, all my plans came to naught when my internet conked off on the morning of the very second day. So, first of all, to all those who have left comments on my earlier blogs, I am sorry for the delay, but I have a lot to catch up with, and shall certainly reply to all of you soon.

Coming back to the Ganeshotsav, the pandals I visit are not the most popular ones – I certainly don’t have the patience to stand in the never-ending queues for the Lalbaugcha Raja or the Tilak Nagar Ganpati. In any case, there are plenty of photos of these Ganeshas on the net. I shall, however, like you to join me in my tour of some of the Ganesha pandals I normally visit – those near my house, as well as some others we have sentimental ties with.

Here is the first Ganesha we saw this year – this one is at thane – a new mandal, one that wasn’t there when I used to live there, but now is quite a popular one with interesting themes.

This year, the theme was the Ashtavinaya Temples in Maharashtra. Take a look.

A Nataraja at the entrance...

There are three Ganeshas we visit every year – and these are the 3 Ganeshas installed by the G.S.B. Seva Mandal at Wadala, SNDT and Kurla. While I was unable to take pictures at the second and third pandals, here are some of the first –

This is one of the richest Ganeshas in Mumbai, and all the ornaments you see on the idol are of real gold. This Ganesha is installed in the Ram Temple at Wadala.

I was introduced to the various Ganeshas of Matunga when I spent the 3 years of my college life there. I still have a soft corner in my heart for them, and as far as possible try to visit them every year. We started from the Ganesha next to Ruia College (My College!) and walked along the station road looking at all the Ganeshas on that road... Here they are……

This one is the Ruia Ganpati. This was the only one we saw with a social theme – this one was completely in Marathi – and focused on Indian achievements as well as the problems we face.

Here are a few more Ganpatis just down the same road...

A closer view of this last one...

The Matunga bazaar Ganpati had this beautiful exhibition of Ganesha drawings.

I especially liked these….

The crossword Ganesha…

And the Shivaji- Ganesha.

All these drawings have been made by a Mr. Rajan, who has his own blog. Check it out at http://rajandraws.wordpress.com/

At the Matunga flower market, we encountered a procession of Ganeshas heading for immersion, and waited while the drum beating crowd passed along………..

The flower Market Ganesha...

and the revellers...

We ended our tour with the Pramanik Ganpati.

The roads were lit up, and added to the festive atmosphere. I remember, how, as a kid new to Bombay, I would yearn to see these roads lit up, but had to come here from far off thane, and could only visit these pandals in the daytime. Yet, what stands out till today is the memory of those much-looked-forward-to visits. It makes me take Samhith to all these pandals, hoping he too will have some wonderful memories like mine…..

There are many more beautiful Ganeshas in Matunga, but we had time only for these.

Next, you can look forward to some Ganeshas from my neighbourhood. Till then, Happy Ganesh Chaturthi!!!

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...

Review of Executive Lounges at New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS)

During my recent trip to Uttarakhand , I was faced with a problem I had never encountered before. We were passing through Delhi, but we had hardly any time in the city. On earlier visits when I have had to change trains/flights at Delhi, I have always arrived in the morning and left again at night, visiting relatives in between. This time, I was arriving in the city at night, and leaving again early in the morning. There was hardly any time to visit people. I would only have a couple of hours with them before I’d have to leave again. For the first time, we considered booking a hotel, but there again, we were hesitant about the actual hotels, the costs involved, and the logistics of getting from the airport to the railway station and then back again from the station to the airport. That’s when we remembered reading something about a corporate-managed lounge at Delhi station. We soon figured out that we could book online and pay by the hour. Besides, we also learnt that there wasn’...

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.

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