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Odisha Part 2 - Puri: The Experience of Jagannath

The temple of Jagannath at Puri is one of the four most important temples across India. Sometimes called the Char Dham – Badrinath in the north, Rameswaram in the South, Dwarka in the west, and Puri in the east – these temples mark four corners of our country, and each of these temples has a connection to Adi Shankara. He is said to have travelled to each of them, thus marking a sacred geography of India, long before the country actually existed. Among these 4 temples, 3 are dedicated to Lord Vishnu, while only Rameswaram is dedicated to Lord Shiva, though the lingam there is said to have been installed by Rama. Further, Shankara set up Mutts at 3 of these sites (or very close to these sites, like at Badrinath, where the mutt is at Joshimutt), while the mutt in the south is at Sringeri in Karnataka, quite a distance away from Rameswaram. Coming back to the topic, I have visited Rameswaram most often, Badrinath during my childhood, and Dwaraka a few times, but Puri had stayed out of re...
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Little Green Heron

Walking around the Club Mahindra Cherai Beach Resort, I noticed a flash of feathers as a bird rose out of the water and flew to a tree. Curious, I waited till the bird returned, and I realized that it wasn’t wading in the water as I had thought, but stood at the edge of the water, on the boundary wall….




Even as I watched, it stretched out its neck, and pecked off something from the surface, and flew back to its perch, to eat in peace!



I was so fascinated by the sight, that I stood there for quite a while, watching the Little Green Heron catch its breakfast!



I spotted it again, later in the evening, this time perched on one of the Chinese Fishing Nets.




The Little Green Heron is apparently quite a common bird, seen frequently in these parts. For me, however, this was a first time sighting, one I thoroughly enjoyed! 

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Location: Cherai Beach, Vypin, Kerala

Comments

  1. SumitOctober 8, 2014 at 1:19 PM

    Great example of photography. Loved each one pics. Thanks for sharing this.

    ReplyDelete
  2. divsiOctober 10, 2014 at 7:49 PM

    Lovely capture. This is also commonly known as the Pond Heron?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anuradha ShankarOctober 10, 2014 at 10:25 PM

      Thanks Divsi, but nope, this isnt a pond heron.. a close cousin though :D

      Delete
  3. krishnaOctober 13, 2014 at 5:34 AM

    Beautiful bird.. also beautiful writing and photography..

    ReplyDelete
  4. Marcia @ CuracaoVacationAccommodationOctober 16, 2014 at 1:52 PM

    And I have also seen this bird for the first time through your photos. Thank you for that.

    ReplyDelete

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