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Temples of Kashi - The Kardameshwar temple

The absence of ancient Hindu structures in Kashi is something I have always lamented about. The shrines are certainly ancient, and that is something that has always attracted me to the city. However, I miss the beauty of the ancient structures that we see at other sites. This feeling is intensified when I see marble and concrete and tiles in temples that once would have been beautifully adorned with evocative sculptures, and worn by the passage of time, touched by the hands of seekers who came before. This time , this desire to see some remnants of an ancient Hindu structure in Kashi came true when I managed to visit the Kardameshwar Temple. The Kardameshwar temple is not one of the main temples in the city. It is part of the temples on the Pancha Kroshi yatra, a pilgrimage which takes one on a circumambulatory tour of the whole city. The temple is located on the outskirts of the city, on the western bank of a tank called the Kardama Kund. The Kardameshwar temple is one of the...
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Many little ducks went out one day.....

A rhyme we once learnt in school went....



Five little ducks went out to play
Over the hill and far away 
The mother duck said Quack, Quack come back
Four little ducks came running back

and so on.... till....

No little ducks came running back
Sad mother duck went out one day
Over the hill and far away
The daddy duck yelled QUACK, QUACK COME BACK!
Five little ducks came running back!





I was reminded of the rhyme when we saw a flock of ducklings being herded down a busy street on a recent visit to Tiruppur. 






I wondered  where they were headed... to a duck farm, most probably, to be allowed to grow fat and healthy,,, till it was time for them to make another trip.. to the butcher this time. I couldnt help feeling sorry for these tiny creatures, which, unlike those of the nursery rhyme, wouldnt ever come back...


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