Skip to main content

Featured Post

Kashi 3.0

Memory is unpredictable . One never really knows what we will remember and what we will forget. Which is why nostalgia arrives in unpredictable waves, highlighting something and skimming over others. Recently, I have found myself thinking of how memory works, as I was assailed by nostalgia over a trip to Varanasi, a city I prefer to think of, as Kashi. The nostalgia hit right as we landed at Varanasi airport. The last time I was here, it was 1988, I was 13 years old, the airport was brand new… regular flights hadn’t started yet (I think) … flights landed about once a week, and for the rest of the time, everything was open to those of us who lived in the airport quarters nearby. There were fields everywhere, vast expanses of green… I have vague memories of corn and sugarcane… and being overwhelmed by the vastness of the fields (this was the first time I was in such close proximity to them), and the warm hospitality of complete strangers who lived and worked amidst these fields. I h...
2 comments

Ganpati Bappa Morya

It's that time of the year when the Lord turns up, at almost every house in the vicinity - small and big alike. He may be tiny or huge, pot bellied or traditional, or in a modern avatar, but his presence is visible at every corner. Since the past few years, we have made our own clay idol of Lord Ganesha at home, a task I really missed this year. However, my mother gave me the opportunity today, and here is the idol I made for her....


He is a tiny chap, small and cute (I think!!), and he would have been a simple Lord, had it not been for my aunt, who brought out these tiny little pieces of jewelry, which we then used to decorate Him. Tonight, he sits peacefully on a betel leaf, waiting for the prayers to begin tomorrow.

He is the Lord of new beginnings, the remover of obstacles. Technically, we aren't supposed to celebrate any festivals in a house of mourning, but it is in times like these that we need Him the most. I pray to Him to bestow His grace upon us all.....

Ganpati Bappa Morya!!!! 
Labels:

Comments

  1. LocomenteSeptember 9, 2013 at 1:34 PM

    Aww...
    He looks so chweeet!!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. ErcotravelsSeptember 11, 2013 at 4:18 PM

    He is cute and on the first glance, appears to be made-up of sweets
    Regards :)
    Our new post is
    http://india-wildlife-tour.blogspot.in/2013/09/an-insight-inside-dudhwa-national-park.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarSeptember 13, 2013 at 4:21 PM

      Thank you!!! that was the response I recd from many people. the dark brown colour probably reminds u of chocolate!!!

      Delete
  3. SowmyaSeptember 13, 2013 at 3:47 PM

    Very cute Ganapathi. Do u have Navaratri this year ? Am waiting to see ur preparations n celebrations .. Even we keep gombe/dolls for Navaratri n need some tips from u as we r still beginners .. Ur blog is just wonderful n we enjoy going through it. Its Awesome

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarSeptember 13, 2013 at 4:22 PM

      Thanks Sowmya. no, we dont have navaratri this year, but i will be happy to help you out!

      Delete

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...
9 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...
1 comment
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’...
1 comment
Read more