Skip to main content

Featured Post

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 - Reflections in Wayanad

Reflections on the Kabini River in Wayanad......






Be it the hard rock or the ephemeral cloud, both looked just as beautiful as reflections in the water. The stillness of the water accentuated their presence...just as each one of us has our place in this world.. a presence just as special, just as unique.... which is what makes life so interesting... even on the days when 
nothing seems to be happening!

The last week or so I haven't been able to write a word on the blog. Lots of things have been happening. Some good, some not so good. Today, sitting at my computer after a long time, thinking about what to write, to break the silence, these were the photos which captured my attention. Which is why, for Skywatch Friday today, you find me in a reflective mood! 

Labels:
Location: Kuruva, Kerala

Comments

  1. MridulaJune 28, 2013 at 4:12 PM

    Take care Anu and do keep writing. Life is I guess about good and not so good. I hope your good always remains more than not so good.

    ReplyDelete
  2. 'TsukiJune 28, 2013 at 5:30 PM

    Phenomenal view !

    ReplyDelete
  3. Bindhu UnnyJune 28, 2013 at 5:38 PM

    Nice! In the first photo, the water looks polluted. Is it so?

    Hope you come back to the writing mood soon. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJune 29, 2013 at 4:57 PM

      Thanks Bindhu! there was a bit of pollution in the water, but not too much.

      Delete
  4. TravelNinaJune 29, 2013 at 12:24 PM

    Hi

    Amazing photograph!

    ReplyDelete
  5. ArtiJune 29, 2013 at 1:32 PM

    Love the reflections, Anu both in the water and in your mind. May the best of good always be with you, come back in full force soon :)

    I have been following all your wayanad posts and all of them have been truly enchanting, many thanks for sharing all the beauty.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarJuly 1, 2013 at 7:31 PM

      Thanks so much, Arti! I have missed a lot of your kerala posts. have loads to catch up.. but looking forward to it.

      Delete
  6. R Niranjan DasJune 29, 2013 at 2:10 PM

    Nice shots!

    http://rajniranjandas.blogspot.com/2013/06/elephanta-island-cave.html

    ReplyDelete
  7. Travel Lover AnuJuly 1, 2013 at 1:51 AM

    Hello Anuradha,
    Magnificent shot!!! I love this cloud combination with reflection in water. Its so nice. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Veneer Pressing MachineJuly 17, 2013 at 10:58 AM

    Nice captures.....

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thanks so much for stopping by. Please leave a comment for me so that I will know you have been here....

Popular posts from this blog

Gokarna Part II – The Five Lingams

We continued our Gokarna trip by visiting four other Shiva temples in the vicinity, all connected to the same story of Gokarna. The story of Gokarna mentions the Mahabaleshwara Lingam as the one brought from Kailas by Ravana, and kept at this place on the ground by Ganesha. (See my earlier post- Gokarna – Pilgrimage and Pleasure). However, the story does not end here. It is believed that, in his anger, Ravana flung aside the materials which covered the lingam- the casket, its lid, the string around the lingam, and the cloth covering it. All these items became lingams as soon as they touched the ground. These four lingams, along with the main Mahabaleshwara lingam are collectively called the ‘ Panchalingams’ . These are: Mahabaleshwara – the main lingam Sajjeshwar – the casket carrying the lingam. This temple is about 35 Kms from Karwar, and is a 2 hour drive from Gokarna. Dhareshwar – the string covering the lingam. This temple is on NH17, about 45 Kms south of Gokarna. Gunavanteshw...
10 comments
Read more

Newasa - Encountering an unique form of Vishnu, and Sant Jnaneshwar

The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
9 comments
Read more

Review of Executive Lounges at New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS)

During my recent trip to Uttarakhand , I was faced with a problem I had never encountered before. We were passing through Delhi, but we had hardly any time in the city. On earlier visits when I have had to change trains/flights at Delhi, I have always arrived in the morning and left again at night, visiting relatives in between. This time, I was arriving in the city at night, and leaving again early in the morning. There was hardly any time to visit people. I would only have a couple of hours with them before I’d have to leave again. For the first time, we considered booking a hotel, but there again, we were hesitant about the actual hotels, the costs involved, and the logistics of getting from the airport to the railway station and then back again from the station to the airport.  That’s when we remembered reading something about a corporate-managed lounge at Delhi station. We soon figured out that we could book online and pay by the hour. Besides, we also learnt that there wasn’...
2 comments
Read more