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The Vaishnodevi Experience 2023

My first trip to Vaishnodevi was unimpressive. Climbing was hard, and it only served to highlight how badly out of shape I was, while my in-laws managed to cope so much better. Further, I hadn’t quite realized that the cave experience wouldn’t be the same as I had imagined, since the original cave was only opened at certain times a year, and that we only entered a newly created tunnel, one far easier to access, and hence more manageable with the crowds that thronged the mountain shrine. The resulting experience at the shrine, for barely a fraction of a second, hardly compared to what I had expected / imagined / heard about. So, for me, Vaishnodevi was like any other temple, nothing to write home about, something that was reflected (though not explicitly mentioned) in the blog post I wrote then.
3 comments

Welcoming Lord Ganesha

Yesterday was a day for celebrations - and as is usual for any mass celebration in India, filled with the noise of drums and brass bands, people dancing on the streets, and loads of colour being thrown in joy! Even heavy rains didnt dampen the enthusiasm, even as Ganesha idols continued to be brought in, late into the evening!

We welcomed our own Ganesha idols rather quietly, with Samhith starting off the puja this year. After all, he had a hand in the idols too this year. We went completely eco-friendly, using the clay idols we had made.

The idol in front is the one I made..
The smaller ones behind are Samhith's

We went for a walk in the evening, in spite of the rain, hoping to see some Ganeshas, and we weren't disappointed. Some of them were still making their way to their pandal, thanks to the pouring rains and potholed roads slowing them down!



The Ganeshas were well covered in plastic sheets to protect them from the rain. Some of them had their faces covered, since some believe it inauspicious for anyone to see the face of the Lord before He is installed within the idol through the rites and rituals.



The people bringing him had no compunctions about getting wet! Their happiness was unabated as they danced....



The roads were wet, and slippery, and this is usually the most crowded part of our suburb. However, today, the Lord and his devotees had the right of way!





At our local pandal, Samhith was in for a treat. We were just in time for the puja, and the offerings were laid out, all set for the Lord to have his fill. Of course, we waited so that Samhith could get a share too!


And that was just the first day of the ten-day festival. Keep coming back for more!
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Location: Chembur, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

Comments

  1. ArtiSeptember 2, 2011 at 11:26 AM

     Great post Anu, I have been pandal hopping too!
    Lets see when I put it all together!
    And the clay Ganesha is very cute:)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Ashwini NagarajSeptember 2, 2011 at 11:53 AM

    Nice post. The eco-friendly Ganesha's are so very nicely done. Happy festivities.  The rains did not bring down the enthusiasm of the festival - very true.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Summi SSeptember 2, 2011 at 3:02 PM

    Nice post. I like the Ganesh you made :)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Anu ShankarSeptember 2, 2011 at 9:38 PM

    Thanks a lot, Arti! Waiting to see your collection soon!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anu ShankarSeptember 2, 2011 at 9:39 PM

    Thanks Ashwini....

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anu ShankarSeptember 2, 2011 at 9:39 PM

    Thanks Summi!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Mridula DSeptember 3, 2011 at 3:16 PM

    So the comments are back again! It is great to see you and Samhith experimenting with clay!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anu ShankarSeptember 4, 2011 at 12:59 PM

    Thanks Mridula, for trying again!!!

    ReplyDelete

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