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The Elephanta Caves

The Elephanta Caves , located on Elephanta Island, or Gharapuri, about 11 Km off the coast of the Gateway of India, Mumbai, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. A visit to these caves, excavated probably in the 6 th century CE, is awe-inspiring, and also thought-provoking. Over the years, I have visited the caves a number of times, and also attended a number of talks by experts in the fields of art, history and archaeology on the caves. Together, they help me understand these caves, their art, and the people they were created for, just a little bit better. Every new visit, every new talk, every new article I read about the caves, fleshes out the image of what the island and the caves would have been like, at their peak. I last wrote about the caves on this blog, in 2011, almost exactly 11 years ago. Since then, my understanding of the caves has, I would like to think, marginally improved. Hence this attempt to write a new and updated post, trying to bring to life, the caves of Elephan
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Finding beauty in unexpected places...

October is over and November is here. Before I know it, the year will be over! And I am nowhere near catching up with all the posts I have to write. October brought in so much travel, from the unexpected Club Mahindra Bloggers Meet to another unexpected Diwali trip to Sringeri. There is so much I want to write, but the words will take some time to come. Meanwhile, I just realised that the blog has been left alone for too long without a post, so I will be posting some random images from my trips.....

We were on our way to Nainital, when we stopped to take pics of the wonderful view of the hills and valleys. But as we clicked and posed for others, these weeds by the roadside caught my eye. 



They are just weeds - unwanted and un-cared for. Yet, they grow profusely wherever they get the chance! If we see them in our garden, we pluck them and throw them off, but look closer and see the innate beauty, the perfect geometrical shapes. Remember drawing flowers with a compass in school? Doesnt this remind you of that? And yet, this is so much more beautiful, for it is  small - the diameter would be less than a centimeter - and besides, it is alive! 

Comments

  1. Julia DuttaNovember 3, 2011 at 2:16 PM

    Are these not called Dandy Lions Anu?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mridula DNovember 3, 2011 at 9:00 PM

    I think Dandelions too is the name? 

    ReplyDelete
  3. PN SubramanianNovember 4, 2011 at 10:55 AM

    Superb! Like son the mom or is it the other way round. I admire the inquisitiveness.

    ReplyDelete
  4. ZephyrNovember 4, 2011 at 7:53 PM

    loved the last line: it is indeed alive!! It is beautiful Anu.

    Can I ask you a favour? The font is fine in the post but really small in the comment form. Could you pl. increase it? Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Anu ShankarNovember 5, 2011 at 12:10 PM

    No idea, Julia... i wondered if they were dandelions.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Anu ShankarNovember 5, 2011 at 12:11 PM

    maybe, Mridula! thinking of adding to the write up with some interesting stuff about dandelions!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Anu ShankarNovember 5, 2011 at 12:11 PM

    THanks! there is a whole lot of inquisitiveness around, both for mom and son!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Anu ShankarNovember 5, 2011 at 12:14 PM

    THanks so much! and thanks for pointing out abt the font.. will increase it!

    ReplyDelete
  9. KanthiNovember 7, 2011 at 3:15 PM

    New way of thinking about these so called unwanted part of our gardens! Doesn't this post apply to our daily lives!!!! Food for thought

    ReplyDelete
  10. Anu ShankarNovember 7, 2011 at 3:45 PM

    Thanks kanthi!

    ReplyDelete
  11. SudhageeNovember 14, 2011 at 9:30 PM

    Sometimes we need weeds and thorns to appreciate the ones that please the senses, don't we? And sometimes we need to see the neglected for what they are.

    Lovely post, Anu.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Anu ShankarNovember 14, 2011 at 9:42 PM

    Absolutely, Sudha!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Boat Tour DubaiMay 18, 2019 at 1:55 PM

    appreciate your post ,thanks for sharing a nice post

    ReplyDelete

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