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Pandharpur Yatra 2023

The first time I visited Pandharpur was back in 2007 . The names Vitthal and Pandharpur, were just names to me. I had heard of them, but that was about it. Seeing the lord standing on the brick, hands on his hips, was memorable, but more memorable was the sight that greeted us as we walked out of the main sanctum of the temple. In the mandap just outside were a group of devotees singing abhangs , and dancing. This was the first time I had heard abhangs , and even almost 15 years later, I can remember the welling of feeling within me, listening to the songs, and how fascinated I was by the sight of the devotees dancing, lost in their love of the Lord. Over the years, as I have read more about Vitthal, and participated in Ashadi Ekadashi programmes at Puttaparthi, that first experience has stayed clear in my mind and heart. Every time I tell my Balvikas students of the saints who sang of Vitthala, it is that experience that I re-live. I visited Pandharpur again, in 2010, but that experie
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Danaid Eggfly


The more I see the more I learn, and the more I learn, the more I want to see..... 



On our Sunday visit to MNP, these butterflies were all over the place, and in fact, they seemed least bothered about us, and landed very near us, apparently in no hurry to leave....I felt they were just waiting to be photographed. Almost everyone there who had a camera took photos of these butterflies fluttering around.....
When I started writing my post about the Urban Leaves visit, I thought of mentioning the name of the butterfly, and did a bit of searching..... Much as I tried with all sorts of combinations, I wasn't able to get the exact name. An image search at last brought up some results, and the name there was not butterfly, but 'eggfly'!! I had never heard of this before, so did a search, and viola! there it was - the butterfly I was searching for - It was called the Danaid Eggfly.



Now that I had the name, it was easy to get more information, and it seems that this is quite a common one in India, but it has several interesting characteristics - for one, it is sexually diamorphic, which means that the male and female look completely different. Secondly, they are excellent mimics, which means they appear like butterflies of other species, and can be identified only by a close look. This is especially true of the females, which may look like those of other species, or in a few cases, they can look like the males themselves! Wow! What a means of camouflage!!!! Interesting, isn't it? Do you wonder now that I would love to learn more about these fascinating creatures, and see more of them? Incidentally, I still don't know why they are called 'eggflies' and not butterflies... Any ideas?

For more information, click on the links below..

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  1. AartiJanuary 5, 2013 at 11:39 AM

    Not sure why i dint see this post earlier.. LOVE LOVE LOVE it :))

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJanuary 5, 2013 at 11:59 AM

      I dont know how u missed it, aarti! with ur love for butterflies!

      Delete

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