Odisha is a state I have visited twice . The first time was a sponsored trip, visiting a resort to write about them, as well as some of the more popular places to visit. I wrote the required content, but never got around to writing about the trip on the blog. This May, I visited Odisha for the second time, this time with family. The timing wasn’t great – it was either raining or it was terribly hot; besides, I wasn’t in the best of health and I couldn’t quite do as much as I liked. Despite all the challenges, it was a pleasure to explore the beautiful heritage of this state, and do things I couldn’t, the first time around. There is much I want to write about – the gorgeous temples, the sculptures, the museums, the natural beauty….. and yet, as I sit down and think about where to begin, there is only one place that I want to start with – the place we stayed at, for one part of our visit – Svanir . The story begins long before our trip actually happened. As Samhith and I went back and fo...
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...

Awww, really you were intruding in privacy... I can see that ! :P
ReplyDeletea lucky capture indeed ! Beautiful pic :) You do seem to have a very steady hand :)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful click, I like those who ignore my presence!
ReplyDeleteExcellent shot.. Loved the pink flower .
ReplyDeleteNice Shot :)... He didn't really like it is it?
ReplyDelete@Nisha: what to do???? we are getting to be more intrusive with our cameras!
ReplyDelete@Lavanya: thanks.... i took two shots and the first didnt come out so well... so its still trial and error!
@Mridula: thanks..... totally agree!!!
@Chitra: thanks!
@Shilpa: thanks..... no he really didnt! u should have seen the way he buzzed at us!
lol, how do you know it is a 'he' :P nice pic!
ReplyDelete