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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

Skywatch Friday - Yearning to be somewhere else!

The hectic days of the Navaratri festival are over, but the chaos in our house continues, with repair work going on. I find myself under a virtual house arrest, which, for itchy feet like mine feels like the harshest of punishments. Stuck inside the house, I yearn for the hills and open spaces.... and feel like getting away somewhere, even if just for a short while... This tiny village tucked in amidst the western ghats, surrounded by mountains, clicked somewhere near Mahabaleshwar, is just the kind of place I would love to escape to, at the moment!


Meanwhile, my post on Wai, near Mahabaleshwar, has been featured on the Club Mahindra Blog!!!

For more beautiful skies from around the world, go to Skywatch Friday!
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Location: Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra, India

Comments

  1. MridulaOctober 26, 2012 at 11:00 AM

    What a beauty! And I am exactly in the same state of mind, itching to be someplace else!

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    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 26, 2012 at 12:09 PM

      Thanks Mridula!!! i guess we cant stay more than a month or so at home before the itch sets in... or i wonder, does the itch go away at all, or do we just suppress it because we have work to do?

      Delete
  2. Julia DuttaOctober 26, 2012 at 11:03 AM

    Lovely Anu! I have been to Panchgani and Mahabaleshwar many times, but stay over at Wai, never! So is there a flight to Mahabaleshwar now? Or you were going elsewhere, flying low over Wai?
    Julia

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 26, 2012 at 12:11 PM

      Thanks Julia! No, this is not taken from a flight... but from the winding road to Mahabaleshwar! looks just like it was taken from the air, right?

      Delete
  3. R Niranjan DasOctober 26, 2012 at 11:52 AM

    Beautiful click!!

    http://www.rajniranjandas.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. Vishal RathodOctober 26, 2012 at 12:29 PM

    Wonderful picture

    Congrats on Wai .

    ReplyDelete
  5. http://www.p-ter.netOctober 26, 2012 at 3:29 PM

    A photo from the air! :-)
    Amazing shot!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 26, 2012 at 3:34 PM

      Thanks P-ter! but this is not taken from the air, but from the road!

      Delete
  6. AartiOctober 26, 2012 at 4:53 PM

    Lovely photo Anu... Have been itching to escape and it seems the more i itch, the more grounded i become :/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 26, 2012 at 5:54 PM

      Thanks Aarti!! thats so true for me too... the more I try, the more I cant escape... the less i plan, the more I go...

      Delete
  7. CarverOctober 26, 2012 at 5:49 PM

    That looks like a wonderful place to escape to. Great shot!

    ReplyDelete
  8. LizOctober 27, 2012 at 3:06 PM

    Beautiful capture! Happy sky watching.

    Skywatch

    ReplyDelete
  9. SudhageeOctober 30, 2012 at 10:13 PM

    Oh my, my. I don't think any place can beat the Deccan Plateau region in the monsoons. Beautiful capture, Anu.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 30, 2012 at 10:59 PM

      So true, Sudha! its certainly among the most beautiful places in the monsoons.. i can never tire of them!

      Delete

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