The absence of ancient Hindu structures in Kashi is something I have always lamented about. The shrines are certainly ancient, and that is something that has always attracted me to the city. However, I miss the beauty of the ancient structures that we see at other sites. This feeling is intensified when I see marble and concrete and tiles in temples that once would have been beautifully adorned with evocative sculptures, and worn by the passage of time, touched by the hands of seekers who came before. This time , this desire to see some remnants of an ancient Hindu structure in Kashi came true when I managed to visit the Kardameshwar Temple. The Kardameshwar temple is not one of the main temples in the city. It is part of the temples on the Pancha Kroshi yatra, a pilgrimage which takes one on a circumambulatory tour of the whole city. The temple is located on the outskirts of the city, on the western bank of a tank called the Kardama Kund. The Kardameshwar temple is one of the...
The Summer of 2015 was a memorable vacation. We set out on a trip which took us across the country, starting from Tadoba in Maharashtra to Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh, and finally, Kanyakumari in Tamilnadu. This was the trip I literally travelled all the way from the Himalayas to the Indian Ocean! The trip lasted all through the month of May, but the resulting posts kept me occupied for the rest of the year. I completed the series just before the year ended, and here is a look at the whole journey.... first, through my attempt at Storifying the series.... and with links to all the individual posts...
- The Himachal Series
- The Southern Jaunt
- Our Tirunelveli Temple Run
- Part 1: Introduction and Nellaiappar Temple
- Part 2: Valliyoor, Thirukkurungudi, Kalakkad, Athalanallur
- Part 3: Thiruppudaimarudhur
- Part 4: Sorimuthu Ayyanar Kovil, Mannarkovil, Tenkasi, Kuttralam
- Part 5: Nava Tirupati
- Part 6: Tiruchendur
- Part 7: Nava Kailasam
- Part 8: Karungulam
- Part 9: Sankarankovil
- Part 10: Some Temples around Sankarankovil and thoughts on our disappearing heritage
- Part 11: Kazhugumalai
Nice trip!! and good photos!!
ReplyDeleteThank you. Aravind!
DeleteThere are so many great stories and snaps just in your condensed version! I'm looking forward to the detailed blog posts. As I was looking through your pictures there were a lot of dramatic skies with all the rain you encountered. I know it was probably dismaying to have to deal with the bad weather, but it made for some beautiful photo compositions. And your sister-in-law's gardens are absolutely gorgeous! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much, Natalie!!! and yes, the rains were actually welcome... we expected it to be burning hot, and the rains ensured that the weather was perfect!
DeleteWonderful teaser. Look forward to those lovely stories. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you Niranjan!!!
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