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Odisha Part 10: Bhubaneshwar – the city of temples

Bhubaneshwar is often called the city of temples . It is impossible to know exactly how many temples there are, but it has been estimated that there might be over 700 temples in the city. This number, while impressive, is just a fraction of the original number, which, sometime in the 13 th century, would have been about 7000. Wikipedia has a page dedicated to the Hindu temples of Bhubaneshwar , where 93 temples are listed. All these are ancient temples, built between the 7 th and 13 th centuries CE. Bhubaneshwar was once known as Ekamra Kshetra , the sacred mango grove. We know this name from an inscription at the Ananta Vasudeva temple, which mentions the name of the place, and the main temple (that we now know as the Lingaraja temple) in the mango grove. Ananta Vasudeva Temple, with a sculpture of Trivikrama in the niche It is extremely interesting to note that the Ananta Vasudeva temple is the only temple to Lord Vishnu in this city. Varaha, Ananta Vasudeva Temple Located v...
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A day out....


Christmas vacation is on, and our long vacation has been cut short to just a few days... more about that later... but as of now, we are stuck at home, with only trips to the ration office to look forward to (Ration card verification is on, you see, and there are forms to be filled.... papers to be attested.... and finally documents are to be submitted... amidst many arguments in hindi/marathi of course.....).

We decided to take a break and head out to some temples within Bombay - Siddhivinayak, Phanaswadi (Venkateswara Temple at C.P.Tank), and Mahalakshmi..... While I did click some pics of the first, I was dissuaded from using them, thanks to a couple of the army officers asking me not to click pics, so I am not going to put them up. There were no such restrictions at the other temples, but I stuck to just the outer view, and did not even try for some more....

But here are a few glimpses from our day out....


I have always been fascinated by the old houses and buildings of Bombay, and how they have taken on an entirely new look in the face of modernization....here are just a few I managed to capture on this trip....







The Phanaswadi Venkateswara Temple....




..and Mahalakshmi Temple... probably the most famous temple in Bombay. 




According to one of the legends surrounding this temple, the goddess Lakshmi was roaming around, looking for a place to rest, since it was one of "those 3 dreaded days" of the month...... and all over, she was barred from entering the house. When she reached this place, she was welcomed into the house of one kind family, who cared for her, and thus she decided to bless them and stay on here for ever..... This is one of the reasons why Bombay is considered to remain wealthy at all times...

Incidentally, as the story goes, no one is ever barred from here for any reason.. what a great contrast to this day.. when we seek to separate people on the basis of religion, language, caste.....  I wonder how long the Goddess would continue to remain here in this situation!!!



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Comments

  1. AnonymousDecember 23, 2009 at 11:23 PM

    Nice post Anu.. Lucky you!! I'm fascinated by the old homes as well.. the first pic is awesome..

    ReplyDelete
  2. A journey called LifeDecember 24, 2009 at 5:09 AM

    im really amazed Anu, at the kind of travel you do, be it within B'bay or outside..and then u do these lovely write ups, that makes me feel like im wasting a LOTTTTTTTTT of time, just mopping indoors.. sighh..

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anuradha ShankarDecember 24, 2009 at 1:59 PM

    @ Pat: thanks.... every time i pass these buildings, I think of taking pics, but this was the first time i had my camera with me....

    @AJCL: actually, id rather be outside the house than inside, at any given time... am not a great one for any household chores.....

    ReplyDelete
  4. Aarti BadamikarDecember 25, 2009 at 6:40 PM

    This is very striking Anu. Interesting know-how of goddess Lakshmi and Mumbai! Truely loved it :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anuradha ShankarDecember 26, 2009 at 6:40 PM

    @Aarti : thanks..... it is an interesting story, and is relevant even today.. so just felt like sharing it...

    ReplyDelete
  6. SrinivasDecember 29, 2009 at 9:13 AM

    Your posting about the temples in mumbai brings back my memories during my days in mumbai, I really miss it!!! Oh, I love old houses too...

    ReplyDelete
  7. SrinivasDecember 29, 2009 at 9:14 AM

    Your posting has brought back my good old memories in mumbai..I like old houses too..

    ReplyDelete

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