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Odisha Part 9 : The Vaital Temple, Bhubaneshwar

The Vaital temple is of the many intriguing temples in Bhubaneshwar. To begin with, the structure itself resembles a South-Indian temple more than the typical Kalingan style that we see everywhere else in Odisha. The temple has been dated to the last quarter of the 8 th century CE. Further , unlike most of the temples in Bhubaneshwar, this temple is not dedicated to Lord Shiva. Inside the sanctum is one of the deities who is very rarely seen in a sanctum – Chamunda, along with the Saptamatrikas. This is evidently a Shakta shrine. However, the presence of Lakulisha on the vimana indicates the connection with the Pasupata sect, which is most prevalent in this region during this time period. Further, the name of the temple – ‘Vaital’, comes from the word ‘ vetala’ , referring to spirits, which were invoked by tantrics to attain siddhis. Thus, this temple is an amalgamation of Pasupata and Shakta philosophy, with a strong emphasis on tantric rituals, and this is reflected in the iconogra...
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My Photos in Print...

It has been a while since I saw my name in print.. which is why it is such a pleasure to see it once again... not at the bottom of an article this time, but on a photograph! A few of my photographs were recently published in YouthInc Magazine, and I just got my copy. The photos are of the Joshi Museum of Miniature Railways at Pune, and though the photos are small, considering that they were clicked with a non professional camera, it is incredibly satisfying nevertheless!





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  1. MridulaOctober 15, 2012 at 11:28 AM

    Congratulations Anu! I am sure this will happen many more times!

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  2. Vishal RathodOctober 15, 2012 at 12:23 PM

    Congratulations on the Wonderful Achievement. As Mridula said above from my side also May this happen many more times. Keep Travelling , Keep Sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. IndraniOctober 15, 2012 at 12:32 PM

    Congrats Anu! Happy for you!

    ReplyDelete
  4. VidyaOctober 15, 2012 at 1:55 PM

    Congrats Anu!Wishes for more to come:-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. P.N. SubramanianOctober 15, 2012 at 3:14 PM

    Congratulations. I feel happy.

    ReplyDelete
  6. NishaOctober 15, 2012 at 3:23 PM

    Hearty congratulations, Anu!
    May many more come your way. So proud of you.

    ReplyDelete
  7. SudhageeOctober 15, 2012 at 4:34 PM

    Congratulations, Anu. And with wishes for more to come :-)

    ReplyDelete
  8. R Niranjan DasOctober 15, 2012 at 5:35 PM

    Congratulations Anu! Happy to see that.


    http://rajniranjandas.blogspot.in

    ReplyDelete
  9. chitraOctober 15, 2012 at 9:35 PM

    Wow...Congrats..Anu...

    ReplyDelete
  10. AnonymousOctober 16, 2012 at 9:18 AM

    congrats! one's noticed that there is always a certain consistency in the quality of your pics embellishing the posts and this prompts the query ( if it's ok to ask!)-which cellphone do you use? best wishes for continuing good work,thanks.srinivasan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 16, 2012 at 10:25 AM

      Thanks mama! ( I hope it is you who has left this comment )... i use my camera for most pics... the cellphone pics are few and its the same as the one kanthi uses

      Delete
  11. AswathiBabuOctober 16, 2012 at 1:26 PM

    Congrats anu...

    ReplyDelete
  12. Tarang SinhaOctober 16, 2012 at 7:31 PM

    Congratulations Anuradha! Nice pictures...:)

    ReplyDelete
  13. SoulSpaceOctober 16, 2012 at 10:31 PM

    super!!

    wish i could see all you have seen!!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 17, 2012 at 4:39 PM

      Thanks so much, Sowmya!!! the feeling is completely mutual :D

      Delete

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