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Odisha Part 6: The Yogini Temple of Hirapur

I fell in love with this temple the first time I set eyes on it. Back in 2017 , I had been excited to see yet another Yogini temple, when I visited Puri. The resort I was staying at (and writing for), had arranged for a car and driver to take me around. The driver was happy to take me to most of the places I wanted to go, but when it came to Hirapur, he was appalled. He knew of the temple, but had never been there. It was a tantric temple, one not visited by women, and certainly not women travelling alone. He tried to convince me not to go, but my stubbornness and persistence paid off, and he reluctantly agreed when I told him that if he didn’t take me, I would find another driver who would. All along the way, he kept going on about the sinister things that happened at the temple, the tantric rituals that were performed at night…. An Odisha brahmin who took his religious duties very seriously, to the extent of stopping the car to perform the sandhyavandam when he deemed it time, he...
2 comments

Hoopoe

The Hoopoe is said to be quite a common bird, usually found in fields. However, to those of us who get to see it rarely, it is as good as any of the exotic birds!! We first saw hoopoes on our trip to Binsar, but this time, at Jaipur, we got to see them in large numbers. I saw plenty of them, but photographing them turned out to be a challenge!! They moved so quickly, that most of my images came out blurred. Here is the one decent image I managed to click.....





And here is one I clicked while visiting a temple near Jaipur. The sun was shining brightly in my eyes, and I wasn't even sure I would get a decent shot, but I clicked anyway, and here is the result...



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Comments

  1. AartiMay 25, 2012 at 10:59 AM

    This was the 1st bird i spotted when i began bird watching and then in Hampi i spotted not one, but 5 of them one after the other... joy knew no bounds:))

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarMay 25, 2012 at 11:25 AM

      wow!!! we didnt see a single Hoopoe at Hampi! but then we didnt see as many birds as u did there ;( but they looks so beautiful!

      Delete
  2. Santosh BsMay 25, 2012 at 6:08 PM

    good images, for moving birds switch to Tv mode on your camera and increase the shutter speed to say 1/500 or 1/1000 or higher and then you freeze the birds in motion.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarMay 25, 2012 at 7:18 PM

      Thanks so much, Santosh!!! will write this down and try it out with the birds I see at home...

      Delete
  3. Samaresh BiswalMay 25, 2012 at 10:22 PM

    beautiful pic

    ReplyDelete
  4. HaddockMay 26, 2012 at 5:41 AM

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarMay 26, 2012 at 10:10 AM

      Hey, Haddock, sorry your comment just disappeared..no idea what went wrong. one moment i was approving it and the next moment it vanished... but i did read it and thanks so much!!!! would love to see the pics u take with the technique santosh mentioned!

      Delete
  5. IndraniMay 26, 2012 at 8:13 AM

    Great captures.

    ReplyDelete
  6. AshJune 1, 2012 at 4:06 PM

    Excellent pics!

    ReplyDelete

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