tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-86255272024-03-07T12:50:52.722+05:30Of shoes—and ships—and sealing-waxforest path
<br>
with each step
<br>
a little less of me
<br>
—Victor OrtizSheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.comBlogger625125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-48678913051454038472023-10-21T13:44:00.000+05:302023-10-21T13:44:27.612+05:30 TN Tour 9: Coasting to Chidambaram<p>We made an early start from Kanchipuram to head to Chidrambaram. We were making a small detour to stop at two places en route – Pondy (to commune with the sea and have a spot of breakfast) and Pichavaram (a wonderfully serene foray into one of the largest mangroves on our coastline).</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjACsXXu4LkHZAlTY-tqLG1yEergnrJLCyoUirB_U6TsuyfYWOBtOVrFosjPRehFMgmZX4dQsnNHkqVeGrkzzFHGa2EYfW3xt7wr-idD_3keOJxU_i834cLFyVg1Pn8YEPDT5qlBlThc262gwnGRSwlZD0UpXj6ijCbm_GbHU252X-yYXGoW4glZg/s4000/IMG_20220312_081139.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjACsXXu4LkHZAlTY-tqLG1yEergnrJLCyoUirB_U6TsuyfYWOBtOVrFosjPRehFMgmZX4dQsnNHkqVeGrkzzFHGa2EYfW3xt7wr-idD_3keOJxU_i834cLFyVg1Pn8YEPDT5qlBlThc262gwnGRSwlZD0UpXj6ijCbm_GbHU252X-yYXGoW4glZg/w640-h360/IMG_20220312_081139.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7AiAl6Xsa5zYe5BpHqu6SXQQOTg3L7F7M7bYoD9XZ63mA9cWbP13z2KyEdyDoEmKQ6Y-335zvWBVvVNhulKHrRjfQ-jeOO4RFztPZTChbtdU-8pECNysTNepOohRK27RtjYiDCu1KRsxfmSSOiKXp9Qa9yelOeGmPUNCrfyol5OgEIxnaJ326Q/s4000/IMG_20220312_090100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="2252" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN7AiAl6Xsa5zYe5BpHqu6SXQQOTg3L7F7M7bYoD9XZ63mA9cWbP13z2KyEdyDoEmKQ6Y-335zvWBVvVNhulKHrRjfQ-jeOO4RFztPZTChbtdU-8pECNysTNepOohRK27RtjYiDCu1KRsxfmSSOiKXp9Qa9yelOeGmPUNCrfyol5OgEIxnaJ326Q/w360-h640/IMG_20220312_090100.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtgfXT7PKiy9y90IgyiuXQD4CH7Z3w7TnKZT9VW_jy5p1SnJH6BrDoTgr1XZNP5aiYYRdLNVVp-FiPqZM8yeSILNQ0qh52ywjQekMcQ1Hf-ex0xxniDussAtfWUGuw005KFIT2N8Mh2GdFMo8P32x6LYFUBw2zUqwEu3c9jx2QC4Isdb4yuEMQmw/s3280/IMG_20220312_124528.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1848" data-original-width="3280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtgfXT7PKiy9y90IgyiuXQD4CH7Z3w7TnKZT9VW_jy5p1SnJH6BrDoTgr1XZNP5aiYYRdLNVVp-FiPqZM8yeSILNQ0qh52ywjQekMcQ1Hf-ex0xxniDussAtfWUGuw005KFIT2N8Mh2GdFMo8P32x6LYFUBw2zUqwEu3c9jx2QC4Isdb4yuEMQmw/w640-h360/IMG_20220312_124528.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJpkTLJifNErEDLWzDXK20-3Lp4_8QisnRLVnn_NJObjOaOtIIMoZqcI6pWpr7-ubkCsCzdtmgNWq5X_GMqMkQzdbMl69BRvU2SAam-V_q_ZayMP15-V9eqwknr3pa70j5oDyeSuwQNN0HOxeiGHzBRs_oFm2NWl0_hFUky2igBItreWlAP0lx_Q/s4000/IMG_20220312_125406.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJpkTLJifNErEDLWzDXK20-3Lp4_8QisnRLVnn_NJObjOaOtIIMoZqcI6pWpr7-ubkCsCzdtmgNWq5X_GMqMkQzdbMl69BRvU2SAam-V_q_ZayMP15-V9eqwknr3pa70j5oDyeSuwQNN0HOxeiGHzBRs_oFm2NWl0_hFUky2igBItreWlAP0lx_Q/w640-h360/IMG_20220312_125406.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>We arrived in Chidambaram and were fortunate to find a hotel a mere kilometre from the temple. </p><p>We had just one day in Chidambaram, and we wanted first to pay our respects to Thillai Kali Amman, on the outskirts. She is here in two aspects – as the fiery Kali and the more serene, four-headed Brahma Chamundeswari. </p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs40yy74f8hXM18WbAXWFU7IWsWMkL1RK1frkXcLbPcZqUN-yHllInEoyGGMbn76J3a48pwr3KVRpKfVK6LOrPsl8slGLW7iXfelWWlzMXX0cqJgFvUa_rJXDpyadTLYTibqkEG2WWcagFZzLRefk6PcBq9yU-lcdb3kPUHjPWjp2f17KJmcNMVg/s538/ThillaiKaliammanTemple_Main.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="383" data-original-width="538" height="456" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs40yy74f8hXM18WbAXWFU7IWsWMkL1RK1frkXcLbPcZqUN-yHllInEoyGGMbn76J3a48pwr3KVRpKfVK6LOrPsl8slGLW7iXfelWWlzMXX0cqJgFvUa_rJXDpyadTLYTibqkEG2WWcagFZzLRefk6PcBq9yU-lcdb3kPUHjPWjp2f17KJmcNMVg/w640-h456/ThillaiKaliammanTemple_Main.jpg" width="640" /></a><br /><br />It was a special experience. Kali is a fierce roopa of the Divine Feminine and we were particularly conscious of this as we approached her. She was in head-tossy mood. We tried to light a deepam for her and struggled repeatedly to get the wick lit. Trust me when I say there was no heavy breeze that day but for this one spot. <i>Devi!</i> the plea went up. Thankfully, she was not angry, only teasing; and we were able to get it done and proffer the lamps at the altar. The <i>archaka </i>took two lemons that had been impaled on her <i>trishulam </i>and, to our joy, gave them to us. <br /><br />Next, we hastened off to Nataraja Koil only to stand stock-still at the entrance. I don’t know what I expected but it was a jaw dropping experience simply to take in this huge intricate complex, to walk through the <i>prakarmas </i>into the innermost shrine. I cannot do justice, so I will not try. Without stopping at any ancillary shrines or deities, we walked rapidly through and found, a bit to our surprise, that we had come to the very heart – the golden-domed Chit Sabha, the Chamber of Chitta, the innermost core of the mind. <br /> </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-z2UeuqyDeyqH8jTF3n02pcEltphK-p5CR4r1C9DpGmTBmTo1tuJDzfRToBMvlUb7lmWoFW1DU4g5ndQgDHTGkt1BZra3aq6YS0sKjmQMgErsZCaejodzGjJjre07IibKa6ulppa7dQnwvIym8ZVYM1tADHUVahGnNAqgW3XQWY72qDrP5YSB5Q/s3456/20220313_094910.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="3456" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-z2UeuqyDeyqH8jTF3n02pcEltphK-p5CR4r1C9DpGmTBmTo1tuJDzfRToBMvlUb7lmWoFW1DU4g5ndQgDHTGkt1BZra3aq6YS0sKjmQMgErsZCaejodzGjJjre07IibKa6ulppa7dQnwvIym8ZVYM1tADHUVahGnNAqgW3XQWY72qDrP5YSB5Q/w640-h640/20220313_094910.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiMzC0LwzONAZxJa53jraqwLbT_dZVm2I0Hp-MuKjdwhBdv5pd9MaUyuHO6YiGwFc03Ibz_OA-aSuKeHNHWlVQGIOht1_B_aVSiMI1l2cBKHx8dArH9HhwUircO_Xf9qLiYyv7rGl-hOC1rtjKr2zRhyphenhyphenKRk5PcIK9_jsP3RVFjShzMbB_MYfXQBQ/s3694/Shiva_as_the_Lord_of_Dance_LACMA_edit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3694" data-original-width="2876" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiMzC0LwzONAZxJa53jraqwLbT_dZVm2I0Hp-MuKjdwhBdv5pd9MaUyuHO6YiGwFc03Ibz_OA-aSuKeHNHWlVQGIOht1_B_aVSiMI1l2cBKHx8dArH9HhwUircO_Xf9qLiYyv7rGl-hOC1rtjKr2zRhyphenhyphenKRk5PcIK9_jsP3RVFjShzMbB_MYfXQBQ/w498-h640/Shiva_as_the_Lord_of_Dance_LACMA_edit.jpg" width="498" /></a></div> <p></p><p>Shiva stands here as Nataraja, and here also is consecrated the element of Akasha or ether – a veiled space that contains the Secret of Chidambaram, accessible only those with extraordinary perception.<br /><br />We had only a few hours in Chidambaram but we spent them all here, wandering around, prostrating at the Govindaraja Perumal temple, sitting for shoonya meditation in the outer mandapas, and returning to stand indefinitely in front of Nataraja. We spent nearly six hours inside the temple, and so habituated, it seemed familiar. We went back <a href="http://sheetalvyas.blogspot.com/2022/07/tn-tour-2-panguni-uttiram.html" target="_blank">to the hotel at midnight</a>, and returned briefly in the morning for leave-taking. <br /><br />Chidambaram is enshrined in so many songs, there is so much lore about it… consecrated by the great Patanjali himself, it is so subtle but it is addictive. You simply want more of the good stuff. </p><p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWBMDxEF7IZurGiHLsCmHKS4G1OJ4BKO_rRi3qy1HXmbL-2chZQL2WyBuzne6uZJyk5ZEHE_ejovcs8qou7PwYPhzgeBodj_MeWrdibutU9hPmyx_34pAxsML9iZ6OWYvIeTh2Uc-UMm5htnkPApg4lDZNG2EYi_vMa4VeODJwdPj6CvJ3RfvCSw/s1079/Patanjali.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="834" data-original-width="1079" height="494" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWBMDxEF7IZurGiHLsCmHKS4G1OJ4BKO_rRi3qy1HXmbL-2chZQL2WyBuzne6uZJyk5ZEHE_ejovcs8qou7PwYPhzgeBodj_MeWrdibutU9hPmyx_34pAxsML9iZ6OWYvIeTh2Uc-UMm5htnkPApg4lDZNG2EYi_vMa4VeODJwdPj6CvJ3RfvCSw/w640-h494/Patanjali.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Patanjali in Dhyanalinga parikrama, Isha Yoga Center (Credit: Isha Foundation)<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /> What a profound land this is that can put up miracles like this. <br /></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-41188770749768156952023-10-08T12:43:00.002+05:302023-10-08T12:43:39.573+05:30Dawn Chorus<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="List Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="List Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Mention"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Smart Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hashtag"/>
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<p class="MsoNormal">I have not been able to figure out a more precise pattern.
But it is always early morning, before dawn and always a Sunday. A group of
people, often about 40 in number – or as it happened today, closer to 70 – proceed
down the street in a moderate pace, singing bhajans accompanied by manjiras and
chimes. Many of them wear white. The men walk to the front and the women bring
up the rear. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I have not been able to arrive at what sect they might
belong to, or even if the grouping is just a geographical one. They sing mainly
of Vishnu, but as they passed slowly out of earshot today, I heard one bhajan to
Mahadeva as well. The whole vibe is old fashioned. The melodies are from a
former era, the style of sankirtan is gentle. The singers merely pass through,
neither looking around nor performative in their attitudes. Simply chanting.
One person leads, the others follow. Sweet, and very pleasing.</p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZGTVGLzaY9UTvXBYqijNEtafMJMc__UjVELAU9gDOmBj2yhIU6JodWLN4dmPP5_hNQUIUCQOvMwssEKx5uJw3grEl-FL7Es7rGvaqj2doXMcTwsnuh3wzmfLiI-cA0KWDBl9hSqdHNhI9SuIH-p-0WGoDstNo3-CcLZNNVQzip-4qbD76CE2W6w/s1024/Nagara%20Sankirtana.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZGTVGLzaY9UTvXBYqijNEtafMJMc__UjVELAU9gDOmBj2yhIU6JodWLN4dmPP5_hNQUIUCQOvMwssEKx5uJw3grEl-FL7Es7rGvaqj2doXMcTwsnuh3wzmfLiI-cA0KWDBl9hSqdHNhI9SuIH-p-0WGoDstNo3-CcLZNNVQzip-4qbD76CE2W6w/w640-h640/Nagara%20Sankirtana.png" width="640" /></a></div> <p></p><p class="MsoNormal">Who are these people? How are they organised? I have not
been able to ask, because a) they are singing and it seems rude to snag a
straggler and pose questions in moody, crepuscular light; b) I was still in my
night things this morning and by the time I was dressed in a more seemly
fashion, they were ambling along the next street.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">***</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It is true I have a nostalgic temperament. An old sepia photograph
of Hyderabad from eight decades ago, with wide open spaces and bullock carts,
is enough to cause a physical pang. Archival recordings of classical music
leave me extraordinarily wistful. I am appreciative of the present moment, but what
we have lost – architecturally, culturally, socially, structurally – pinches
the heart. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">(I remember some hand wringing in <a href="https://sheetalvyas.blogspot.com/2013/10/links-missing-links-and-others.html" target="_blank">this old post</a>.) <br /></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So a throwback like this one, a simple <i>nagara sankirtana</i>,
is like finding a handful of seed of some precious, long-forgotten landrace, or
a small colony of a species considered extinct. A specimen from which it is
possible to learn, draw and replicate. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">I wonder if they’ll let me join?</p>
Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-60242590433031211342023-05-24T14:09:00.000+05:302023-05-24T14:09:13.513+05:30TN Tour 8: Kanchipuram Extra<p><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<![endif]--></p><p class="MsoNormal">Isn’t it so
amazing that for a temple town with over a thousand temples, there is only one
to a feminine deity? Just the one for the lady Kamakshi, who reigns over the
kshetra.</p><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">On our
‘extra day’ at Kanchipuram, there was a long list of things to do. The Lord
Varadaraja Perumal was first order of business. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7aCXb-Lc4vx9UBWluO_KF7jE0GEJxWP7Uedi_cTPLsqg5cK8aApb5aqWVZhtcZroWu_VliP9IjU9iA5YLd5Mww1yPA4ntHgZVbW0sQ_FLG8QQZX1ld-UbiYoZtABz_oHv2Lje4_olYwfWg1tMXWvKHmNbOZgsWG3wBJIFLNeZ2IwuFj-0GsI/s3456/Varadaraja%20Perumal.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="3456" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7aCXb-Lc4vx9UBWluO_KF7jE0GEJxWP7Uedi_cTPLsqg5cK8aApb5aqWVZhtcZroWu_VliP9IjU9iA5YLd5Mww1yPA4ntHgZVbW0sQ_FLG8QQZX1ld-UbiYoZtABz_oHv2Lje4_olYwfWg1tMXWvKHmNbOZgsWG3wBJIFLNeZ2IwuFj-0GsI/s320/Varadaraja%20Perumal.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"></span><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">This is a stunning temple
complex with some highly intricate sculpture. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGT9s_4afAdSj8Fm6xmhdywtvFZ0hOF_qUvIOo37zxtGr8oVl59MiirDWW-9q_evXF_fHQMpsE6FrMbAFo6aPK4CwHZ2GDmu_RTFsJJM9zxOprcZXLvD6VgAc7r47NXvW5ecGBobYtBDFHPTvuIuRXll4brBHUxGpfAXH3AXC97F3rGSXDoKQ/s3264/Pillars%20Varadaraja.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2448" data-original-width="3264" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGT9s_4afAdSj8Fm6xmhdywtvFZ0hOF_qUvIOo37zxtGr8oVl59MiirDWW-9q_evXF_fHQMpsE6FrMbAFo6aPK4CwHZ2GDmu_RTFsJJM9zxOprcZXLvD6VgAc7r47NXvW5ecGBobYtBDFHPTvuIuRXll4brBHUxGpfAXH3AXC97F3rGSXDoKQ/w400-h300/Pillars%20Varadaraja.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> A busload of tourists had arrived
and that lengthened the queue time, during which I was able to admire the
peeling but still wonderful paintings that covered the walls. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFgp9ANdJd9uBc8gAsG1XxCBD4toG42mg8kh1385DqltGC_HC7PCvo3xhALI-ChmzPpCOhbhITLMmzI0YH8HQtc6V7MHLLvLFxB-wuYGyQIFjdEsxAoNkjXNmPKZqWTgwdV6dsK3cW6GhSECFyWXlw-gBuna0Es5HXeUKZx8uz91UcitR9L2k/s4000/Adisesha%20mural.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFgp9ANdJd9uBc8gAsG1XxCBD4toG42mg8kh1385DqltGC_HC7PCvo3xhALI-ChmzPpCOhbhITLMmzI0YH8HQtc6V7MHLLvLFxB-wuYGyQIFjdEsxAoNkjXNmPKZqWTgwdV6dsK3cW6GhSECFyWXlw-gBuna0Es5HXeUKZx8uz91UcitR9L2k/s320/Adisesha%20mural.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"></span><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhthFhnTw5yga6LgkeSd5Xnq1sXdlps7BdbPh9EqYQKSX5UgOMMUMNtVMHisDHFAiHdp_nc_CMN9RlRLu_H_8_5OVaj4r7Fl1vn1N9QI7xUkRRur6me0BV3chRjPPa38K1Ib1cSm5v3NyBTns9noqiR5HRI9BpRCFqnq-YD3AK8wLe4lDORE6Q/s4000/Mural1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhthFhnTw5yga6LgkeSd5Xnq1sXdlps7BdbPh9EqYQKSX5UgOMMUMNtVMHisDHFAiHdp_nc_CMN9RlRLu_H_8_5OVaj4r7Fl1vn1N9QI7xUkRRur6me0BV3chRjPPa38K1Ib1cSm5v3NyBTns9noqiR5HRI9BpRCFqnq-YD3AK8wLe4lDORE6Q/w640-h360/Mural1.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">We went to see
the gold and silver lizards, where there was quite a bit of silly shoving not
to mention yelling by the guards. I admit I felt a pang of worry with COVID so
recently past, to touch them but it didn’t feel right to not do the done thing,
either. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7mo1T08o-VPUqt4kzB8HXHpQg6OwQwK3Yxn18LF8E3wTvRVu-LUJngEc6YcFgThELo7p4ocaGCLDoqublkqXkfvcC85wbx4vOR2AWqPbtzYB2nYn55hWRN8GKERM2V2PLTyENr_PFvZbeY9wkscclAtJS13xHfR1sTjQTLs_sie3Stwc0xmQ/s1957/The%20lizards.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1957" data-original-width="1772" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7mo1T08o-VPUqt4kzB8HXHpQg6OwQwK3Yxn18LF8E3wTvRVu-LUJngEc6YcFgThELo7p4ocaGCLDoqublkqXkfvcC85wbx4vOR2AWqPbtzYB2nYn55hWRN8GKERM2V2PLTyENr_PFvZbeY9wkscclAtJS13xHfR1sTjQTLs_sie3Stwc0xmQ/s320/The%20lizards.jpg" width="290" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">In the main
sanctum, the Lord himself was utterly magnificent. The temple has a long
history (apparently </span>has around 350 inscriptions from various dynasties) <span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">and is one of the 108 divya desams
of Vishnu.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisZYDShF6m-rBTv8HdKICnPPU77UxCjBG1WiMsmp_5MuSoy0zfjTV4_Fb7doEBfLzJlroJ0cwL9o3KYG5bzfQ2U0BK5SjQsWSmpA3c9MbKPSIn6gf7ucQIoWejpmE9P2sXy-9UWKTBSzp9X5b6ih3_DS59LK_K57V-zRyLd2uqO89TTbgqyQ0/s720/Varadaraja.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="480" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisZYDShF6m-rBTv8HdKICnPPU77UxCjBG1WiMsmp_5MuSoy0zfjTV4_Fb7doEBfLzJlroJ0cwL9o3KYG5bzfQ2U0BK5SjQsWSmpA3c9MbKPSIn6gf7ucQIoWejpmE9P2sXy-9UWKTBSzp9X5b6ih3_DS59LK_K57V-zRyLd2uqO89TTbgqyQ0/w426-h640/Varadaraja.jpg" width="426" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"></span><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">Next we
asked Raj, our driver, to find us a way to the river. He consulted a local or
two, followed a track with some dust raised on it and delivered us, quite
without volition, at the Shri Kanchi Kamakoti Peetam. Now this is hallowed
ground <a name="about">– the </a></span><span style="mso-bookmark: about;">Peetam or
Seat was established by </span>Adi Shankara and has an unbroken lineage of
70 acharyas. <span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">We must’ve heard
that phrase any number of times in our lives. However, somehow, it was not on
our ‘Plan A’ checklist. But here we were, and since we were there, we went in. Only
to stumble upon grand jayanti celebrations marking the birthday of the
Jagadguru Bala Periyava that were underway with all the luminaries of the
Peetam on stage. A little abashed, we occupied seats and sat for a while before
crouching out in what we hoped was an unobtrusive manner. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">We visited
the brown riverbed that passes for River Vegavati, once again dismayed at the
state of southern rivers. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7soXrrJVAUDI-HhPi5YsRInQNwL9BiOT0PZAOFNr8PVAve-giK_wtV8JR9GgdMrmvPZHIKLDjl0aDXR5x_dVDxiUL-m-x5T-31AMBNLqif2y6_E3xGjp9Kt7DJDtVxsmC9x1_DXm0qflOA5DvP3TDIndubT1MqQpknE3770IRCiVX5peAkWg/s4000/At%20the%20river.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7soXrrJVAUDI-HhPi5YsRInQNwL9BiOT0PZAOFNr8PVAve-giK_wtV8JR9GgdMrmvPZHIKLDjl0aDXR5x_dVDxiUL-m-x5T-31AMBNLqif2y6_E3xGjp9Kt7DJDtVxsmC9x1_DXm0qflOA5DvP3TDIndubT1MqQpknE3770IRCiVX5peAkWg/w640-h360/At%20the%20river.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">+++</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">That
evening we made our way to the Kailashanathar koil. Words fail me as I try to
describe the beauty of this wonderful Pallava-era structure. Built with
sandstone, this is a square layout of exceptional beauty and balance. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip1HiKotZ2IDhQOIc7fdfMrq2QrLpgMYHoKw-kFxCDJMNCih_H8mtFqUrcpw61XtJqdPXBu8N7lrSxFKOVRSLwSMc7yc4hUTG3HJbkXylqcmIsBuyYiPKH0I7hxC_9HEM6bQzFAWRcyzfEw66uurxgTmVQQg_2RQZqEQyUSRnsfR7yYvA5kAw/s3436/Kailasanathar%20koil.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="3436" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEip1HiKotZ2IDhQOIc7fdfMrq2QrLpgMYHoKw-kFxCDJMNCih_H8mtFqUrcpw61XtJqdPXBu8N7lrSxFKOVRSLwSMc7yc4hUTG3HJbkXylqcmIsBuyYiPKH0I7hxC_9HEM6bQzFAWRcyzfEw66uurxgTmVQQg_2RQZqEQyUSRnsfR7yYvA5kAw/w640-h452/Kailasanathar%20koil.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg0R5CUvi91nlWOnCxGnPxLHJRQ4DdvfgxFlqPn4HXM5AXYp6z0wXX8mf2NrnLmjILcVeRALojXy67weIxnmKXEhuphvxcU5UaylTPCXODinCUwnyQZQFl7aFOSNR-ngVD4zWPZvkqsRTvJ3B6OiPPpUJTL_Xv2cxJg21Q61_XojQ1xv3gu_M/s4000/Kailashanathar.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="2252" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg0R5CUvi91nlWOnCxGnPxLHJRQ4DdvfgxFlqPn4HXM5AXYp6z0wXX8mf2NrnLmjILcVeRALojXy67weIxnmKXEhuphvxcU5UaylTPCXODinCUwnyQZQFl7aFOSNR-ngVD4zWPZvkqsRTvJ3B6OiPPpUJTL_Xv2cxJg21Q61_XojQ1xv3gu_M/w225-h400/Kailashanathar.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">The
lingam is a large and faceted one; I think they said 16, but I cannot be sure.
We met an irascible, venerable old man here, one of the priests of the shrine.
We fell to talking and he shared a little of what it was like to continue in
work that was under appreciated today, brought in far too little… but we could
see that he could not imagine his life in any other way but in the service of
Shiva. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">Around the
main shrine, built cunningly into the structure, is a narrow </span>circumambulatory
passage. You are required to crouch into the tunnel which encircles the linga,
and emerge onto Shiva’s left, a <i>pradakshina </i>that is said to give <i>moksha </i>to
those who complete it. A young man before us attempted to clamber up with his
backpack still strapped on. “<i>Id<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">é</span> eDu</i>!” our elderly priest chided him.
“Remove this! Put it down here! No one is interested in your bag.” It was
symbolic. You must drop your baggage if you set off on the path to mukti. </p><p class="MsoNormal">It
reminds me of Kabir:</p>कबीर का घर सिखर पर जहाँ सिलहली गेल<br />पाऊँ का टिके पिपील का तहाँ खलकन लादे बैल<br /><br /><i>On the very peak is Kabir’s home, and every step is treacherous<br />Even the ant finds the path slippery, how then to take a bullock-cart up?</i><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">We sat a
while in the dusk, looking at the lovely lines of the temple. It is maintained
by the Archaeological Survey of India, with the typical landscaping they deem
appropriate for every single site under their domain – lawns dotted with the
occasional shrub. But they permit prayers in here, while preserving the
structure, so I will not carp too much about that.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">We then
visited the dargah of Hazrat Syed Shah Hameed Auliya of the Qadri, Chishti
order, where we sat awhile. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAgDEINMqJmuUCuBdsYCoGqyhiOU81h_FYeCK3YUxeg-D4NpkVli6XloIu7iZBlz0E75SGbRzNxAX3hsYf4MFWMKtF5jHcQzAQguFGzgf20zwJ0zIh5e4nP2TWczuT2Dfhk10NKMmS6UiFu1XW6QPmTdJ1Ljso_3NpBFwwkvrrdYwqo7o1uU/s546/Kanchipuram%20dargah.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="546" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSAgDEINMqJmuUCuBdsYCoGqyhiOU81h_FYeCK3YUxeg-D4NpkVli6XloIu7iZBlz0E75SGbRzNxAX3hsYf4MFWMKtF5jHcQzAQguFGzgf20zwJ0zIh5e4nP2TWczuT2Dfhk10NKMmS6UiFu1XW6QPmTdJ1Ljso_3NpBFwwkvrrdYwqo7o1uU/s320/Kanchipuram%20dargah.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">Then wandered
over to Vaikunda Perumal koil, an atmospheric and very charming temple.</span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgfJ_Vwh0--zZ3Ub5O3xxti5RHIlNKVLXVKW_tGuy_6HDMWn5caO2kdSFQ73I9rBOgCUY64GrE0P9zHU_T_eJcpzo13yaWw4S3InaqaaVo74IDvWZs-1yuBwlG6ohNeZuBF0Qu7x3waqXi6GG9aiMxq2-XXDN3UuHGUXUW4aJKSvuTmX7vHc/s3456/Vaikunda%20Perumal.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="3456" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzgfJ_Vwh0--zZ3Ub5O3xxti5RHIlNKVLXVKW_tGuy_6HDMWn5caO2kdSFQ73I9rBOgCUY64GrE0P9zHU_T_eJcpzo13yaWw4S3InaqaaVo74IDvWZs-1yuBwlG6ohNeZuBF0Qu7x3waqXi6GG9aiMxq2-XXDN3UuHGUXUW4aJKSvuTmX7vHc/s320/Vaikunda%20Perumal.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdLPClP6dpq4ZC5BKPiR5JXMuAJu0VPDcdozmem8dVQ5HUYr17ccJ4x69V9RAj0gFWeY7HcUcw1c6-tu8r1_NU2QI2AM2QPuyHJWBe7eH79J16kBopfyFHmLatk9hye6oI9czZ4kcOgNnqKhyUMoefAlT60tUolYOw0rAiM0PhByoKSk8h9mE/s4000/Vaikunda.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdLPClP6dpq4ZC5BKPiR5JXMuAJu0VPDcdozmem8dVQ5HUYr17ccJ4x69V9RAj0gFWeY7HcUcw1c6-tu8r1_NU2QI2AM2QPuyHJWBe7eH79J16kBopfyFHmLatk9hye6oI9czZ4kcOgNnqKhyUMoefAlT60tUolYOw0rAiM0PhByoKSk8h9mE/w640-h360/Vaikunda.jpg" width="640" /></a></p>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7BQc2VTio4_Cg_mRoiwMsf3JlF9dQhHY6s7DJz7EMF-6ddg5pBfNilXx1ZxSPxkzMV2kM0e9wcNXOl8vaXLfcSOiyi-PfkW55gU3JOFecM9sYBZAPIj8YOLR0Nmrh8UlR16w3WhwkRWV3sOU1Ji9s6tUkhB4n2nmGceHhXAsZ4gNKSzYgqIY/s4000/At%20Vaikunda%20perumal.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="2252" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7BQc2VTio4_Cg_mRoiwMsf3JlF9dQhHY6s7DJz7EMF-6ddg5pBfNilXx1ZxSPxkzMV2kM0e9wcNXOl8vaXLfcSOiyi-PfkW55gU3JOFecM9sYBZAPIj8YOLR0Nmrh8UlR16w3WhwkRWV3sOU1Ji9s6tUkhB4n2nmGceHhXAsZ4gNKSzYgqIY/w225-h400/At%20Vaikunda%20perumal.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;"> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-IN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN-IN;">Alas,
although it was down the street from our hotel, we could not visit the
Chitragupar koil. Said to be an assistant of Yama’s, this gent is responsible
for the accounts of our destiny, entries of our good and bad deeds. It is a
rare temple and I should have liked to have seen it: Chitragupta, by logic,
is a good deity to have in your corner. It was not to be. In any case, it
would have been academic. I have turned over all my accounts books to someone else.
He will fudge them for me. </span></p>
<p></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-4824673068725455312023-04-14T14:22:00.009+05:302023-04-14T14:24:12.288+05:30 Dhanya Ananda Dina<p><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Name="List Number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="List Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="List Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="List Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="List Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="List Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3 Accent 1"/>
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<![endif]--></p><p class="MsoNormal">“There he is! Look! Oh my God, <i>ill</i><i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;">é</span> nintiddare</i>!
He’s standing right here!” Shweta and I nudged each other in quick whispers. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our first ever in-person glimpse of our beloved Guru was of his
back. We had entered the open grounds for the launch of five of Sadhguru’s
books in Kannada, and he was standing at the back of the venue, facing away
from us, speaking to a couple of people. I remembered his shawl, which had
snakes going up. In my memory over the years, it had morphed into one large, highly
striking snake but alas, the internet’s memory is as good as the elephants’. The
video I found gives my remembered image the lie – they were a series of small snakes
undulating upwards from the rich border. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Anyhow, there he was and there we were. The start of a love
saga of unexpressable sweetness. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">+++</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In Isha, people are as fond of telling their own stories as
they are anywhere else. But if there is one story that everyone will listen to
with rapt attention (in fact will poke out of you, if you’re willing to share),
it is of how you came to be with Sadhguru. Each story is unique: some are dramatic,
some more matter-of-fact, but each is arrestingly interesting to us.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">This is our story.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Our mother passed in 2009 and my sister and I dealt with it
in different ways. Shweta took up a series of work assignments, I did nothing
but stay home and stare at the walls. The sharp grief passed and at one point
we looked at each other and wondered what the rest of this life was going to be
like. Our spiritual bent was more keenly accented now, and I remember saying, “Rama-Krishna
<i>ankonDu iroNa</i>.” Perhaps just turn consciously towards the divine. It
would help find guidance in some next life, wouldn’t it? </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We were not very learned but this message had rammed home –
we needed a Guru. Not someone a little more accomplished, who knew a few more
turns on the path, but a full Satguru, the Kaamil Murshid, the Ultimate Guide, the
Perfect Master. We were particularly scared of half-baked guidance, having read
horror stories of aspirants bogged down at some stage or led disastrously astray
by their own accomplishments. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">In November 2010, still unsuspecting, I put up this <a href="https://sheetalvyas.blogspot.com/2010/11/intelligence-and-knowledge.html" target="_blank">blog post</a>. </p><p class="MsoNormal">Early 2011, we were tripping on the Cricket World Cup. And
yet, we talked about how to go about this spirituality business. Having heard that
world would have five Satgurus at any time, Shweta said somewhat wistfully, “Surely
India would have at least one!” </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">“This person who writes in the Deccan Chronicle occasionally…
he calls himself ‘Sadhguru’,” I said. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The problem with that however was that spirituality is no
better than any other area when it comes to quacks and dilettantes. Anybody can
stick a grand title to their name, and who can tell? Still… the word ‘Satguru’
is not a magniloquent word to be randomly affixed, it is a specific Office. This
man didn’t seem dishonest or so stupid as to be unaware of the consequences of
such a travesty. What if… he really was a True Master?</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">So with the excitement of the world cup playing alongside,
we started to watch some videos on Youtube. In those days, Isha’s videos had a
particular flute drift as their opening signature and that tune played out
repeatedly in our home. By the 7<sup>th</sup> or 8<sup>th</sup> video, we knew
we’d found him. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We must’ve watched 350-400 videos that month. One of the
videos had an end slide announcing an Inner Engineering program with Sadhguru
in Mysore in April. Our own people came from around Mysore, and it was Sadhguru’s
hometown, moreover where he experienced his Liberation. We registered, booked
our train tickets, bespoke a hotel room and landed there on 14<sup>th</sup> April,
a day before the program. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We saw him that very evening at the book launch, sat down
and listened as he took questions, and as he left, we followed with folded
hands as far as we were allowed. Our first acquaintance with a feeling that was
to become very familiar over the years – the wrench that happens in the region
of the heart when Sadhguru leaves a space.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">15-17 April 2011 changed our lives. We were initiated on Chaitra
Poornima. “We didn’t plan it,” Sadhguru chuckled. He never does, but auspiciousness
always happens. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">12 years (and some ¼-½) is one sun cycle. For sadhakas, this
time frame is like a probationary period. Just do what you’re told and stay the
course. What crossing it will mean, I have no idea. But it’s a milestone. </p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpsoOE1Q7ynoNbs74DDOfo_gqD5VRgmOk8B7BYNlQdPy48irF5-dw6DqhFh34lE8OH1R0NnfredgV3v7mcbG4uHJ_gZ5hfTnNkTho-z7TmNKUcp7AGP2BqUoUPx39NnQg2aWDalj6TrE474wPhjtpw7dBfKCYk9WVdaC-XelaPKCLfaBWscTA/s1024/Spiritual%20Aspirant%20Dall%20e.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpsoOE1Q7ynoNbs74DDOfo_gqD5VRgmOk8B7BYNlQdPy48irF5-dw6DqhFh34lE8OH1R0NnfredgV3v7mcbG4uHJ_gZ5hfTnNkTho-z7TmNKUcp7AGP2BqUoUPx39NnQg2aWDalj6TrE474wPhjtpw7dBfKCYk9WVdaC-XelaPKCLfaBWscTA/w640-h640/Spiritual%20Aspirant%20Dall%20e.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <br /><p></p>
<p></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-77906766008112900082023-03-13T14:34:00.000+05:302023-03-13T14:34:40.135+05:30Devis and other things<p>A new installment of the Tamil Nadu saga was ready but alas, my laptop (newish, just out of warranty period) is showing signs of distress by way of a damaged hinge. I could not take it with me to ashram when I was there for Mahashivratri and since my return to Hyderabad, I've been ill with one thing or the other. </p><p>Since then, Sadhguru has consecrated the Devi Linga Bhairavi in Nepal, and she appears to be a magnificent entity, housed in a most exquisite temple. I am most excited about what her presence will do for that region.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9KtwWJSx5bBcrD_KHinxFrpjjXMzKtxjm0PTN5wrjvN6e_iG6vAoM8U2cRJwR-FrqznbsoMYUPAO92XUZrealwILCpyAqvKRxUT7xqHu-gJ7y5uZVzXzt-9Lxf4k5MO-cE6xUcRtdCW07EMJl9XfiGgyXXrh580-ri_G-Q62q0bnXdn8ofg/s1080/Devi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB9KtwWJSx5bBcrD_KHinxFrpjjXMzKtxjm0PTN5wrjvN6e_iG6vAoM8U2cRJwR-FrqznbsoMYUPAO92XUZrealwILCpyAqvKRxUT7xqHu-gJ7y5uZVzXzt-9Lxf4k5MO-cE6xUcRtdCW07EMJl9XfiGgyXXrh580-ri_G-Q62q0bnXdn8ofg/w400-h400/Devi.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Over the Navratri in 2022, a most wonderful thing happened. I was in Bodoland for most of Dussehra and on Saptami, I found myself in Guwahati, the land of the Goddess Kamakhya. It was a particularly crowded day but I was simply fortunate to be there. After almost 9 hours of waiting in queue, I was able to offer my homage to the lady. Now with Devi Linga Bhairavi (in a slightly altered variation) joining forces in the northeast of the subcontinent... it will be interesting. Nepal is lucky indeed.</p><p style="text-align: center;">*** <br /></p><p>Are the various overlays not interesting? From seeing this land as a political entity, with its rise and fall of kingdoms, I had moved to being interested in its physical nature <span lang="EN-IN" style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">–</span> the lush fertile plains of the Ganga, the mountain ranges, the rivers that crisscross our Hindustan. Now it appears that the more subtle map of our spiritual hotspots is the thing to follow. </p><p>Where are the radiating hubs? Why are they <i>there</i>? How do they tie together? How do they work together? Is it a boundary, or a network? Where are the holy men and women? How are they dotting the geography? Which shrines are still strong? Which took the brunt of invasions and lost their power and relevance? What idols are lying in wait, hidden in streams, farmers' fields, under rubble... just biding their time to emerge? Wouldn't it be wonderful to able to see these subtle connections? Till my perception sharpens, a lively imagination and conjecture will have to do.</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-25180741252400822082023-01-12T13:29:00.006+05:302023-01-13T16:19:11.270+05:30TN Tour 7: Kamakshi and Ekambareshwara<p>Late afternoon turned to evening as we arrived at the temple of the Devi Kamakshi. <br /><br />The story goes that Parvati heard from Shiva about the technical and ritualistic worship that forms the Agamic way. The Agama traditions include yoga, self-realisation, kundalini yoga and asceticism, and she wished to worship the lord in this way. At Kanchi, Shiva had taken abode at the root of a mango tree and that is where Parvati as Kamakshi made a linga from sand and began to woo him with tapas and yogic austerities. Playfully, and perhaps also as a test, Shiva took the form of the Kamba aka Vegavati river and the waters began to surge. Abandoning all her rituals, the Devi embraced the <i>shivalingam </i>to protect it from erosion, and unable to resist her Bhakti, he melted into her. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1gvX3rtHBXUBvw1-OHUEVCyPlv2DdlyQGs8mKAtvpKerkDsC77TXQiuTdkKz2T3O5aoiU_vZGelTee3MbyDxxTR2j0VhRt7WP_JeLGV2GBwDUKF9jRiWLUe8lYtJwtnhlz5QOFgoevXr772tFHqi6quGwIL7Vn3M0Z18BEtW9dN622Vd2W_0/s1024/Kamakshi%20embrace.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1gvX3rtHBXUBvw1-OHUEVCyPlv2DdlyQGs8mKAtvpKerkDsC77TXQiuTdkKz2T3O5aoiU_vZGelTee3MbyDxxTR2j0VhRt7WP_JeLGV2GBwDUKF9jRiWLUe8lYtJwtnhlz5QOFgoevXr772tFHqi6quGwIL7Vn3M0Z18BEtW9dN622Vd2W_0/s320/Kamakshi%20embrace.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Created by me with Dall-e 2</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>At Kanchi, the Goddess sits in <i>padmasana</i>. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG0Am2ZgpHCup_FGfwpc31MhOEOWnEHW-XKDwjAuiulFHCymoDkclQoMU_3iwslH4mM6BgDl1kHMybtdUnD2EkNpCh-Wo87iOZwbvy0n8q_nqQOULeIiLNKU5T0WAINJj796qiI1Of6YiyM3rOPFYuhKsL5Azk9iLEBHEm3efKPesV7rwKWQ0/s800/Devi%20Kamakshi.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="718" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG0Am2ZgpHCup_FGfwpc31MhOEOWnEHW-XKDwjAuiulFHCymoDkclQoMU_3iwslH4mM6BgDl1kHMybtdUnD2EkNpCh-Wo87iOZwbvy0n8q_nqQOULeIiLNKU5T0WAINJj796qiI1Of6YiyM3rOPFYuhKsL5Azk9iLEBHEm3efKPesV7rwKWQ0/w574-h640/Devi%20Kamakshi.jpg" width="574" /></a></div><p> </p><p>We snaked around the shrine in the darshan queue, made our offerings, took darshan. Because the queue wasn’t too bad, we managed to sneak in for another round, hehe. One of the guards was kind to us, and indicated a quiet place on a landing in front of the shrine, permitting us to sit for a while without either being in anyone’s way or our <i>darshan </i>being blocked. She is quite something, Kamakshi.<br /><br />Adi Shankara is supposed to have installed the Sri Chakra mandala here, and there is a shrine to him to one side, with various sages and rishis depicted along the upper lintel of the structure. These were familiar names to us – the Guru Pooja we chant every day invokes a line of Gurus: Narayana, Padmabhava, Vasistha, Vyasa, Shuka, Goudapada… the Guru Pooja simply poured out of us as we stood there at the twilight hour, the <i>sandhyakala</i>.<br /><br />We had made good time and bespoke an auto to take us to the Ekambareshwara Temple but what happened there, I wrote about in <a href="https://sheetalvyas.blogspot.com/2022/07/tn-tour-2-panguni-uttiram.html" target="_blank">this earlier post</a>. <br /><br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">***<br /></p><p><br />We returned the next morning and this time, he was in residence. Hardly any people at all and we went right in. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRWtYswqFvG7dPA7DRZeWGgdlMsVMBY96u4ySSZqKm6qbcBrrJefKRygtvuf6M7ZzA_pF0GApQFhTWTITSejgfL9dsC3GQ0nwHs7rhuXtN6uHdDtIXQNQJ13d-i5-V6rmAGIUHxps6Si72XbuhvT4PBfzZ6va4qIL2f7y83Rxl2vKHAFr34Eo/s4000/Ekambareshwara%20outside.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRWtYswqFvG7dPA7DRZeWGgdlMsVMBY96u4ySSZqKm6qbcBrrJefKRygtvuf6M7ZzA_pF0GApQFhTWTITSejgfL9dsC3GQ0nwHs7rhuXtN6uHdDtIXQNQJ13d-i5-V6rmAGIUHxps6Si72XbuhvT4PBfzZ6va4qIL2f7y83Rxl2vKHAFr34Eo/w640-h360/Ekambareshwara%20outside.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI99kxkpBDYkwKr2WrulojqzIlLSOzo8a8rtSj3B1qguyC0pdrDmm0noZw4eDMLNDhlOxIz5aOa0Dg_Sx1DsDfRjhspSh6499j-ANCn-w2QYDltXGK5NRi8NAoRIdfKhw5iNb8SLygm0yNRU36wCL4RpbN_7KTSGUuXYxJr6FOF494N90iAjs/s4000/Ekambareshwara%20pushkarni.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI99kxkpBDYkwKr2WrulojqzIlLSOzo8a8rtSj3B1qguyC0pdrDmm0noZw4eDMLNDhlOxIz5aOa0Dg_Sx1DsDfRjhspSh6499j-ANCn-w2QYDltXGK5NRi8NAoRIdfKhw5iNb8SLygm0yNRU36wCL4RpbN_7KTSGUuXYxJr6FOF494N90iAjs/w400-h225/Ekambareshwara%20pushkarni.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p>Now, Ekambareshwara is one of the Pancha Bhoota Stalas of southern India, and is the deity for the element of earth or Prithvi. With <a href="https://consciousplanet.org/" target="_blank">Save Soil</a>, Sadhguru was specifically seeking the healing of the earth element. With the rampant use of chemicals, by stripping away verdure and leaving precious topsoil open to all manner of erosion, we have let soil health slide in every corner of the globe. A critical aspect of planetary health that has gone shockingly unnoticed and unaddressed – which is now slowly gaining world attention. Naturally, Ekambareshwara was a very important stop for us. <br /><br />We went up to the sanctum, requesting an ‘<i>archana</i>’. </p><p>"In whose name?" the priest asked us briskly. We looked at each other, a bit lost as to how to express ourselves. </p><p>“For everyone… for the world…” we fumbled. </p><p>“Ah, ok! Lokahitam?” he prompted. <i>Beneficial to the whole world. </i></p><p>We nodded rapidly, pleased with his quick grasp of what we needed. Barely pausing a beat, he launched into the most beautiful Sanskrit shloka I’ve heard… fresh air, he asked for, clean rivers that were neither too scarce nor too abundant, bounty for all creatures… prosperity and well-being for humans and <i>mukti </i>for each one at the appropriate time. We were close to tears by the end of it. It was most fitting. I have no idea which source that was from, I was too dazed to ask. We sat for a moment or two and were soon hustled out to make way for the next <i>archana</i>. “Go to the mango tree,” they told us kindly, “you can sit around there as long as you want.”</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtUSv5uTn0YubdE62UJ3xs7vQsXmSfp8v1tmqfGBBIlCPw4MRz8LJVtRWujEL0DguIm_jf0JcyKc7K49hMJxWwsae4eCx4UH0BwxoJKQg3PuLxQN7dmHsMO7qxdPWxbAwXpqr9t4NAiQt5jC3EDQyxIPzZVs69cjnBJeq-SAQ2rgeBBSaQoOk/s4000/The%20mango%20shrine.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="2252" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtUSv5uTn0YubdE62UJ3xs7vQsXmSfp8v1tmqfGBBIlCPw4MRz8LJVtRWujEL0DguIm_jf0JcyKc7K49hMJxWwsae4eCx4UH0BwxoJKQg3PuLxQN7dmHsMO7qxdPWxbAwXpqr9t4NAiQt5jC3EDQyxIPzZVs69cjnBJeq-SAQ2rgeBBSaQoOk/w360-h640/The%20mango%20shrine.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><p><br /><br />So we went to the ‘mango tree’ – a dignified arbour that marks the spot of Kamakshi’s penance. This is a beautiful enclosure and here also we prayed for the regeneration of the earth – its soil, its waters, a rise of empathy and consciousness, and for the safety of our Master who was risking life and limb in a brutal journey across continents. <br /><br />This is a large temple, with long corridors, beautiful columns, high ceilings… we sat for a bit, pondering the massive effort and conviction that went into making these gems that are strewn in the Tamil land. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG_4_iFUDPTLPZ2Og4ADDSgIGFt3fV43PDRYyqM5Mev-_j-J6NjKxUvN9hmJ5Ns3GpoZnWdqdo2tdyohiM4WBqdysHND9TRfBlbi9_i0ysIfpnyDubhBtwAuRmgn2NAorhVdyCklsbWTUtNY_DvsEwPhhknjmTEGPFe-8BD0KDPoHvLj4pROM/s4000/Ekambareshwara%20Temple.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="2252" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjG_4_iFUDPTLPZ2Og4ADDSgIGFt3fV43PDRYyqM5Mev-_j-J6NjKxUvN9hmJ5Ns3GpoZnWdqdo2tdyohiM4WBqdysHND9TRfBlbi9_i0ysIfpnyDubhBtwAuRmgn2NAorhVdyCklsbWTUtNY_DvsEwPhhknjmTEGPFe-8BD0KDPoHvLj4pROM/w360-h640/Ekambareshwara%20Temple.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-68796342274707869422023-01-01T14:59:00.002+05:302023-01-01T15:24:30.501+05:30My Experiments with Dall-E<p>In November 2022, <a href="https://labs.openai.com" target="_blank">Dall-E 2</a> was opened to the public without a waitlist. This is <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DALL-E" target="_blank">a deep learning AI model</a> that generates digital images from natural language descriptions called ‘prompts’. I signed up just to see what the buzz was about and since then, I have been quite <i>thoroughly </i>enjoying the artificial intelligence experience.</p><p>A new user gets 50 credits to play around with, after which you get 15 free credits every month – each prompt or variation uses one point. You can buy credits also. I have not yet explored ‘Outpainting’ which is an editor interface that lets you tweak the images that get thrown up with your prompts.<br /></p><p>Alas, I did not use my 50 credits too well. First prompts were extremely mundane – a log cabin in the woods, for instance. Nice but meh.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcvNBVTvmUxWVKNLgfBjCKqxFKrEb6tciH3zGjTNdpPo06KiG7rXq1sXifsW6dkdP-5hH0L_LfrMIyluPsS0Ja3o7as7L1sCGFdlJJFnpME9Zxq4hsaJW-MMsnrDes8SgI_3brc4MYor0b6s9Q_l7fyZh_RVecpXJabuGIvFiU9FvqesokCBE/s1024/wooden%20cabin.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcvNBVTvmUxWVKNLgfBjCKqxFKrEb6tciH3zGjTNdpPo06KiG7rXq1sXifsW6dkdP-5hH0L_LfrMIyluPsS0Ja3o7as7L1sCGFdlJJFnpME9Zxq4hsaJW-MMsnrDes8SgI_3brc4MYor0b6s9Q_l7fyZh_RVecpXJabuGIvFiU9FvqesokCBE/w320-h320/wooden%20cabin.png" width="320" /></a></div><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwTFUNANyHzM-iUXpGrcBCL4_JQhlb5NEKycAgMy3LvGoldYuk07pyr1nTmve4HhuWZ_I7yXKCJnBiAq748GKHjp-5YMMkjRHlGYrMQX7ujep-RLi7EEJvzh_DDFU0rpPrQ0j-GCSvjb0zVegwuCDJtYt90YpP2IVlbry1X3JhIA9Z5Z6t8bc/s1024/Temple%20at%20dusk.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwTFUNANyHzM-iUXpGrcBCL4_JQhlb5NEKycAgMy3LvGoldYuk07pyr1nTmve4HhuWZ_I7yXKCJnBiAq748GKHjp-5YMMkjRHlGYrMQX7ujep-RLi7EEJvzh_DDFU0rpPrQ0j-GCSvjb0zVegwuCDJtYt90YpP2IVlbry1X3JhIA9Z5Z6t8bc/s320/Temple%20at%20dusk.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>I played a bit with watercolours and some nostalgia. The effects were pretty.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB3bSuolt18rYHh8RcFjPrBoTczFhcAMrKVyG7NKsR6DsB3ZHit60qJY-mg6pKSGtw079sOiKoYNiAAkNzlTBUrtiMb3V_Pwe6WQATCTo4I6a-bRgREUHimRs0V-KJqQ_gJsVlIADpj2IseJpd8kh0FRbKV6V_DYTXk-xeg_P5v6qdpruZlPw/s1024/window%20overlooking%20lake.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB3bSuolt18rYHh8RcFjPrBoTczFhcAMrKVyG7NKsR6DsB3ZHit60qJY-mg6pKSGtw079sOiKoYNiAAkNzlTBUrtiMb3V_Pwe6WQATCTo4I6a-bRgREUHimRs0V-KJqQ_gJsVlIADpj2IseJpd8kh0FRbKV6V_DYTXk-xeg_P5v6qdpruZlPw/s320/window%20overlooking%20lake.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCeiEufZ693k6Dp13doAlQYU1mvk5ZPb1WkP8asRHK3S92-oyMaBseW70meqDC-k7PtlqGYqW8ZeBg2tYhcmC8f_7N_YSzcY03ZYYfPwDMzxkM0BSYFW1OJ0cX_RcKjvA3DKLdbYa8OiNIX9qBPqDbhnz8dcrgXOKWcDwRaFiwqw1IhNgqpk4/s1024/boabab.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCeiEufZ693k6Dp13doAlQYU1mvk5ZPb1WkP8asRHK3S92-oyMaBseW70meqDC-k7PtlqGYqW8ZeBg2tYhcmC8f_7N_YSzcY03ZYYfPwDMzxkM0BSYFW1OJ0cX_RcKjvA3DKLdbYa8OiNIX9qBPqDbhnz8dcrgXOKWcDwRaFiwqw1IhNgqpk4/w320-h320/boabab.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqPtjBiLgqldHKP5nH_6rpIgzYYPOT0Tvmp7nzkY3VllxxZoPYVBYkY04VqERBRA-lo35T4QlsECKBOTci94VFP3AlolAX5KvvdFzZaBGG4moxjoJbGD-naWngARLDqoeHO78boKkc9FrZq6BVGBN95PKzIIM8lltIykjPkUzMTBANmL7xaBs/s1024/ship%20watercolour.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqPtjBiLgqldHKP5nH_6rpIgzYYPOT0Tvmp7nzkY3VllxxZoPYVBYkY04VqERBRA-lo35T4QlsECKBOTci94VFP3AlolAX5KvvdFzZaBGG4moxjoJbGD-naWngARLDqoeHO78boKkc9FrZq6BVGBN95PKzIIM8lltIykjPkUzMTBANmL7xaBs/s320/ship%20watercolour.png" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>Photo-real images with my rudimentary prompts were a bit hit or miss.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4SNnxqK_WTGrVW4UuHgiu7JYo8JTtgixnAZ_qH0AFOYaqljGadGdCr2dwew2omwBz6rRniY_aHGvaHOoEw7qgwEY37E-4UNq1pbDwNjTXnuTu8mK8yed1IuxgYNdyXleswSON-KC7VrKEtxOAGki-X20I-H8iQxYpq5ZxIs5vdSZSivI_R4/s1024/Breeze.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR4SNnxqK_WTGrVW4UuHgiu7JYo8JTtgixnAZ_qH0AFOYaqljGadGdCr2dwew2omwBz6rRniY_aHGvaHOoEw7qgwEY37E-4UNq1pbDwNjTXnuTu8mK8yed1IuxgYNdyXleswSON-KC7VrKEtxOAGki-X20I-H8iQxYpq5ZxIs5vdSZSivI_R4/s320/Breeze.png" width="320" /></a></div><p><br />Then I learnt that with its heavy learning material, the AI interface was aware of thousands of artist styles and aesthetics. A muddled prompt for something in the Mughal Art style threw up a pretty but somewhat confused assortment of elements.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSenOesbShWbDfLmgwmoiXuGtYHwNwuwGSX3jWzen8UTLqxlvqRXbTeYwjp_ARpikVGnqA2ayhtE2Jep3FdNZ39Ya8u_-aeAAYsKWhgbi0mpp2oqUjpXrGPDyJ4MK6pc0KAFFOD5hEhPT6Ja8bxp9KgqFv1nEEDVr-kQNgJSc8xCAHWrg2EA0/s1024/Mughal%202.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSenOesbShWbDfLmgwmoiXuGtYHwNwuwGSX3jWzen8UTLqxlvqRXbTeYwjp_ARpikVGnqA2ayhtE2Jep3FdNZ39Ya8u_-aeAAYsKWhgbi0mpp2oqUjpXrGPDyJ4MK6pc0KAFFOD5hEhPT6Ja8bxp9KgqFv1nEEDVr-kQNgJSc8xCAHWrg2EA0/s320/Mughal%202.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK8iYJZ3epKtiRnrM5M8eblwjXqkqM0U16NycWjXFeOcu1ls5ibcDnd0gecDnqfX_BCZGnbwd8ijoyDsvWLo9291oHV3sOZ215-pwVzVqL8cYsQTUw3tPvEdkQf27jcEVR4K3ngrf0okNApEwk9UqOKZafk1IO2xUwy6RTeXfyo8Jy8QInuh4/s1024/Mughal%201.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK8iYJZ3epKtiRnrM5M8eblwjXqkqM0U16NycWjXFeOcu1ls5ibcDnd0gecDnqfX_BCZGnbwd8ijoyDsvWLo9291oHV3sOZ215-pwVzVqL8cYsQTUw3tPvEdkQf27jcEVR4K3ngrf0okNApEwk9UqOKZafk1IO2xUwy6RTeXfyo8Jy8QInuh4/s320/Mughal%201.png" width="320" /></a></div><p><br />I tried a couple of classical elements together: a koel, a mango tree, and an ornate window in the style of Amar Chitra Katha, and I was really pleased with these images.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8Gg75e1h7OOaRr1TSe83k2mmKm9YG8rqMY1nF7V-hQlz1vH3m-71JjtoRlVMBgdgyTafX13Yc3oQlK2sJOZwMEvTqkOKK9S4h0qoPBY3ujzWBRH2rrlUdJRegDUIDjHDlEdyPQyTpo0_58BznMyn9sAV9eF5kibZ6VofxT8oEtvYTXQ542s/s1024/Koel%202.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF8Gg75e1h7OOaRr1TSe83k2mmKm9YG8rqMY1nF7V-hQlz1vH3m-71JjtoRlVMBgdgyTafX13Yc3oQlK2sJOZwMEvTqkOKK9S4h0qoPBY3ujzWBRH2rrlUdJRegDUIDjHDlEdyPQyTpo0_58BznMyn9sAV9eF5kibZ6VofxT8oEtvYTXQ542s/s320/Koel%202.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbksKmWTOkV7RfPlguaD6KhIrgiPuyKb8o2tzx7dDxVL8pVCU-UF11qurbjIVHzRWtRTIIXUBnZg9nm3QY0gR1p3AkkYoboPccHviEsFNstEXYQpnkn90ZdErY0es3EnXmBJmcCgGZgqW1N0ywlf0BObtXfpJFa4XtNpLlr4ci-ILMgXQrm9Y/s1024/Koel%201.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbksKmWTOkV7RfPlguaD6KhIrgiPuyKb8o2tzx7dDxVL8pVCU-UF11qurbjIVHzRWtRTIIXUBnZg9nm3QY0gR1p3AkkYoboPccHviEsFNstEXYQpnkn90ZdErY0es3EnXmBJmcCgGZgqW1N0ywlf0BObtXfpJFa4XtNpLlr4ci-ILMgXQrm9Y/s320/Koel%201.png" width="320" /></a></div><p>Line drawings were satisfactory, illustrations of flowers in the botanical style were near-perfect and even this render of a phoenix was very acceptable.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixlmx0rHdemqciB58-dHDi5qpX3ltz7xolzFssmdLsLYiVr2I2HsrOUwa8okmFSpEns53UETvZXswqaLolzRbjlwYcCTXahyk2ATZAwVJCf-HaPtaQ-aOpQ5i_pj7-MGHlzn3j1Pw3wTWy_HgaBaU911vqj_F6_5aOPYT0wtMM8WBs7ttgm-M/s1024/purple%20rose.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixlmx0rHdemqciB58-dHDi5qpX3ltz7xolzFssmdLsLYiVr2I2HsrOUwa8okmFSpEns53UETvZXswqaLolzRbjlwYcCTXahyk2ATZAwVJCf-HaPtaQ-aOpQ5i_pj7-MGHlzn3j1Pw3wTWy_HgaBaU911vqj_F6_5aOPYT0wtMM8WBs7ttgm-M/s320/purple%20rose.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_iYhHHE7tJ732SmxBsO4EXnlF4-C3dq20msJJT79gZEm8FLHHyWrpkorjgSeE8SIA4J2BBjORzsa16_ajEtD_rXcOmvfWpxv_zP49z_N0Jc2uS4aC3b8ZBzRT2ObQYz1hlTxTggcnKgfaQztWHXm6Rmy9_3SbVDG7lhK8am2OOEW3Mcji_NA/s1024/phoenix%20field%20guide.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_iYhHHE7tJ732SmxBsO4EXnlF4-C3dq20msJJT79gZEm8FLHHyWrpkorjgSeE8SIA4J2BBjORzsa16_ajEtD_rXcOmvfWpxv_zP49z_N0Jc2uS4aC3b8ZBzRT2ObQYz1hlTxTggcnKgfaQztWHXm6Rmy9_3SbVDG7lhK8am2OOEW3Mcji_NA/s320/phoenix%20field%20guide.png" width="320" /></a></div><p><br />I wanted to represent the epic road trips my sister and I undertook last year and I was pretty happy with a couple of results in a cartographic rendering.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ75ZajgdM5b95jrGTVnmqL1WgHovMMWSjs4isDJSu8ONGhzzCgTf757DOzJZfmbZwX6Qv5xIzh2Jqq8TGXevRq3azZrufjkYZ1ZLcicFgNQj-q-kI5ZwmyffjhMYMqzzaSdp9dF8_-hnzeT49Nyqd42XIWyotNa-XURgljuWRc7VlFeO7KWM/s1024/Cartographic.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ75ZajgdM5b95jrGTVnmqL1WgHovMMWSjs4isDJSu8ONGhzzCgTf757DOzJZfmbZwX6Qv5xIzh2Jqq8TGXevRq3azZrufjkYZ1ZLcicFgNQj-q-kI5ZwmyffjhMYMqzzaSdp9dF8_-hnzeT49Nyqd42XIWyotNa-XURgljuWRc7VlFeO7KWM/w320-h320/Cartographic.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPVKKr1VOuN_6mMTsuzL_y6oxwv_zyYXkQkgUI3lOYNxInJsrAC4UKiCGBNVNzMPXxj-tHDCC9USHCbYeA0H20uaVZcUvdHSCqosrC19AT8_MzRc-EobzJI3-W0D039FQq0Iw9JvezBcoD2P0quK4W1uufuroVS3HgTyyMg1kNeGXqY0-3hBk/s1024/Road%20trip.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPVKKr1VOuN_6mMTsuzL_y6oxwv_zyYXkQkgUI3lOYNxInJsrAC4UKiCGBNVNzMPXxj-tHDCC9USHCbYeA0H20uaVZcUvdHSCqosrC19AT8_MzRc-EobzJI3-W0D039FQq0Iw9JvezBcoD2P0quK4W1uufuroVS3HgTyyMg1kNeGXqY0-3hBk/w640-h640/Road%20trip.png" width="640" /></a></div><p>As you see from the column on the right, I seized the chance to represent this blog’s title in an expressionist output.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirzdXWPvAGSMQ1r3dMSYp7wrgzUjAzfM9z6wW0BUkqbw_SrdaOX4ch1R4t7pwAn8JN8S_IuHnNVNaLnb9ouC97RyVPQNAQeNxPzoXQcDhsiNDZDNRrWLKQMnd6GQ5FqBAbjhjC0BYxG8t0sbdTGrAg43HEMZasGRLv00bVtvKboB_X5B2nKgc/s1024/shoes%20and%20ships.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirzdXWPvAGSMQ1r3dMSYp7wrgzUjAzfM9z6wW0BUkqbw_SrdaOX4ch1R4t7pwAn8JN8S_IuHnNVNaLnb9ouC97RyVPQNAQeNxPzoXQcDhsiNDZDNRrWLKQMnd6GQ5FqBAbjhjC0BYxG8t0sbdTGrAg43HEMZasGRLv00bVtvKboB_X5B2nKgc/w400-h400/shoes%20and%20ships.png" width="400" /></a></div><p>I explored what might emerge if I suggested ‘EH Shepard’ or ‘Raja Ravi Varma’ or ‘MC Escher’.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhovvIE-TpH2dshLOsEqWaUNclmYO1wLwUq6fmxVRrbB8kykkvxGrw8MR1--FkthZRT2cnpCj2pK01qD-g7f6WO5L7xTBG0qjxpmqezYLj_q4i4RTbUOqMTyzibhymEY6xGSsDFJYqg8nUsRaWEn0LfVHKAOdp5dqbZOGq4L3-KMOVpohaAHQg/s1024/Lamb%201.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhovvIE-TpH2dshLOsEqWaUNclmYO1wLwUq6fmxVRrbB8kykkvxGrw8MR1--FkthZRT2cnpCj2pK01qD-g7f6WO5L7xTBG0qjxpmqezYLj_q4i4RTbUOqMTyzibhymEY6xGSsDFJYqg8nUsRaWEn0LfVHKAOdp5dqbZOGq4L3-KMOVpohaAHQg/s320/Lamb%201.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqDUM1EzH31-uT8PognsgZZ6kraLRbGsP6LcTrj-G_fRDooV9Z8RQ53YaGMDRpo8zotdp3jw-TLhGq3zOEFDhhNkJ0CaL5NRDRMBmQyl2_lA1CsGlkg6sYfhlO66Ntp9Kp7ClnzyyhXYwPcipSrUGo6m6Hm1IYaNSRiS-fPHZzxRNl5GWavxs/s1024/Reading%204.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqDUM1EzH31-uT8PognsgZZ6kraLRbGsP6LcTrj-G_fRDooV9Z8RQ53YaGMDRpo8zotdp3jw-TLhGq3zOEFDhhNkJ0CaL5NRDRMBmQyl2_lA1CsGlkg6sYfhlO66Ntp9Kp7ClnzyyhXYwPcipSrUGo6m6Hm1IYaNSRiS-fPHZzxRNl5GWavxs/s320/Reading%204.png" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh15o3t6COe0URXZlWLiwslaIgWPZw-HYIEhn3YB1kDrCNm2o9r9M2qa6bQPS84sfEukcUew5LBCQq51K9O4SrpYPjRReSrz2SxRHho1RzL4EW86sOL6fICSN10yOK-vbNls1UTvEcwXBOgFz9UpzExaWMIPkkKzTvNHFXz6zzsc5mTdkeZ2P8/s1024/Reading1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh15o3t6COe0URXZlWLiwslaIgWPZw-HYIEhn3YB1kDrCNm2o9r9M2qa6bQPS84sfEukcUew5LBCQq51K9O4SrpYPjRReSrz2SxRHho1RzL4EW86sOL6fICSN10yOK-vbNls1UTvEcwXBOgFz9UpzExaWMIPkkKzTvNHFXz6zzsc5mTdkeZ2P8/w640-h640/Reading1.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAed-Fdo2aThPPD-TNKhrug_7rQ-sq6VMRi-NjTdGav1Q33fPRRZiDdw0nAHKNsay2G62YpBwTyN6IBvZLjuv9xGoLTC4f2xHBG7Og5CnZ-iZMqlRZSSseTvsZZHeQ_cY4tmlgaFb0kIzf75AJi1Ax-u_UTAdz_tjOMtid4cHoDZL-xxZxwkw/s1024/infinity%20Escher.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAed-Fdo2aThPPD-TNKhrug_7rQ-sq6VMRi-NjTdGav1Q33fPRRZiDdw0nAHKNsay2G62YpBwTyN6IBvZLjuv9xGoLTC4f2xHBG7Og5CnZ-iZMqlRZSSseTvsZZHeQ_cY4tmlgaFb0kIzf75AJi1Ax-u_UTAdz_tjOMtid4cHoDZL-xxZxwkw/w400-h400/infinity%20Escher.png" width="400" /></a></div><p><br />A photo-real request for a Pallas’ Cat (this gorgeous feline was one of the highlights of the trip we took to Ladakh in August 2022) was quite stunning. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyiQ5X87_SeOlICYUApLwYeE7gwxJzlCCgxf5mTTinrw2htY59f4oTrvfJflb6faYlJxBMfuTjWuxmYEi5WuWgOGlpM63oqaco56v3yt1GnHEUWzTmMYb60MbbtZsPxefHKcIUPYxskCBilKFWtc2Z1ghuBQ_OPdNa6opNNVyMj6vDNfO48pg/s1024/pallas%20cat.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyiQ5X87_SeOlICYUApLwYeE7gwxJzlCCgxf5mTTinrw2htY59f4oTrvfJflb6faYlJxBMfuTjWuxmYEi5WuWgOGlpM63oqaco56v3yt1GnHEUWzTmMYb60MbbtZsPxefHKcIUPYxskCBilKFWtc2Z1ghuBQ_OPdNa6opNNVyMj6vDNfO48pg/w400-h400/pallas%20cat.png" width="400" /></a></div><br />Since many users were bingeing on androids and ghostly apparitions, I didn't go down too much the futuristic route, although a neon digital art image of a mesmerising phone screen delivered to the brief. <br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcH8tyZVHBPrA5cO3QwxPrC2ww-UbvIEINTT_jdyPAOCvi698JLgKjWBJ8M6T9WphKfxWXiUkOf9WoSwbgXTeEFz1LA7FcgkV3NuyvzaoHohsGDA2bUzB0toJhvIuS1QLSzUEJ0FrycdlFgG2Chh1tq1r7ucPEJdC4RXS_r2U2CM9BH4iIoRY/s1024/Neon%20art.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcH8tyZVHBPrA5cO3QwxPrC2ww-UbvIEINTT_jdyPAOCvi698JLgKjWBJ8M6T9WphKfxWXiUkOf9WoSwbgXTeEFz1LA7FcgkV3NuyvzaoHohsGDA2bUzB0toJhvIuS1QLSzUEJ0FrycdlFgG2Chh1tq1r7ucPEJdC4RXS_r2U2CM9BH4iIoRY/s320/Neon%20art.png" width="320" /></a></div><p>As <a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/openais-dall-e-2-may-mean-we-never-need-stock-photos-again/" target="_blank">this column </a>says, we may never have to use stock images again, or struggle to express an abstract idea. I have mourned for years that I cannot draw. Now who cares?</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-17352179360768272942022-12-31T21:47:00.001+05:302023-01-01T15:02:51.652+05:30The Losing Game<p>In darshan today, my Guru said that all we ever have is time. And that, we are losing, all of us. Can't be transferred, can't be shortened or lengthened, twisted or turned. Use it or not, savour it or not, trickling away at a constant steady rate for all of us. The only thing we have, we are losing. </p><p>Good to remember on this day, this ritual we use to mark time. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdBbuShPP0B1UfQuve_G-NT0oQHAIRiCvQE8OyXeMZ_9yUwUkuqs_qwyrc3196BMbD4oew-Em7bD1HdtW51eQY8uvT6yWWN712MT7QUzOThHnT-U7awzQGKPlrkaKFG6AwF2F-3ASpIRpdvkEpcM1CFmOcOKybbu1rfsXLLBHZ_ZNmPRiWzPc/s1017/Hour%20glass.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="995" data-original-width="1017" height="626" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdBbuShPP0B1UfQuve_G-NT0oQHAIRiCvQE8OyXeMZ_9yUwUkuqs_qwyrc3196BMbD4oew-Em7bD1HdtW51eQY8uvT6yWWN712MT7QUzOThHnT-U7awzQGKPlrkaKFG6AwF2F-3ASpIRpdvkEpcM1CFmOcOKybbu1rfsXLLBHZ_ZNmPRiWzPc/w640-h626/Hour%20glass.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Created by me with Dall-E</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p>A hope and a plea for the new year.<br /></p><p>forest path<br />with each step<br />a little less of me<br /><span><span>—</span></span>Victor Ortiz<br /><br /></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-35686180413921508392022-12-27T14:21:00.001+05:302023-01-01T15:01:32.594+05:30Picking up the thread<p>It has been a month since I updated last - the gaps between posts that are supposed to be part of a travel series is much too wide. I had really hoped to write up the Tamil Nadu travelogue at a fast clip.</p><p>Work intervened, however, and I went on assignment to Bodoland, the beautiful Autonomous Territorial Region within Assam. </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTm1aQuhvbMyNhND4zkW3rvUsWYaBqTHjB-yCnO_4wni4WUyGR9zfrs62usRYqgJWNvq_vd6tBZXzPtvQrlB_DxPH8J-U2l_Y-IcSocglwGcPV23Lyu_bxmM_db3Oehsm-jpxw6DmQQ9Zn4bcOZwxYWhhxdZaOghRILSaugeGy4eA-i6UIZ6Q/s1024/Bodoland.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTm1aQuhvbMyNhND4zkW3rvUsWYaBqTHjB-yCnO_4wni4WUyGR9zfrs62usRYqgJWNvq_vd6tBZXzPtvQrlB_DxPH8J-U2l_Y-IcSocglwGcPV23Lyu_bxmM_db3Oehsm-jpxw6DmQQ9Zn4bcOZwxYWhhxdZaOghRILSaugeGy4eA-i6UIZ6Q/w400-h400/Bodoland.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Wild Side of Bodoland<br />(Created by me with Dall-E)<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Those stories had to be written and this blog series got pushed down the queue. Then Sadhguru consecrated a wonderful Naga shrine in our new, upcoming center at Bengaluru, which was an unbelievable experience. It rained through out the consecration and there were about 16,000 of us, sitting in the wet, beyond midnight, witnessing the descent of a celestial serpent being. <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfxZvlvTC-wwih5GcldHgmMSVK2CN7dX-xo9dAsBw7xAz3OAGI0xHaD_KASsfJC6_ZmzzM42fkypJnYzBFvoN9TveE8b0SVSrgPsm_AhFyL7UXIixvuRqxSPrBtSinp8FBSO3RqWKweTzQycLfW7V5CEKt0PqQsokCT7p9CYdiUh9Cn3NqPk/s1968/Naga%20Pratishta.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1312" data-original-width="1968" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZfxZvlvTC-wwih5GcldHgmMSVK2CN7dX-xo9dAsBw7xAz3OAGI0xHaD_KASsfJC6_ZmzzM42fkypJnYzBFvoN9TveE8b0SVSrgPsm_AhFyL7UXIixvuRqxSPrBtSinp8FBSO3RqWKweTzQycLfW7V5CEKt0PqQsokCT7p9CYdiUh9Cn3NqPk/w400-h266/Naga%20Pratishta.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <p></p><p>After we attended that, I seized the chance to spend a fortnight at the ashram in Coimbatore. </p><p>Long story short, we had left the story at Kanchipuram and will pick it up there again. If nothing, it gives me an excuse to pore over pictures and dwell on the trip.</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-25595032696352010322022-11-24T14:27:00.004+05:302022-11-26T20:43:07.206+05:30TN Tour 6: Divya Desam<p>It took us a while to get settled in at Kanchipuaram till we got allotted a room that suited us. A late lunch and coffee at the Saravana Bhavan down the street meant that it was only after 5pm that we set out.<br /><br />The Kamakshi temple was within walking distance. We were asking for directions and negotiating the lanes that would take us to her, when we came upon another temple. We entered, not knowing where we were. However, Kanchi has such a wealth of shrines, I doubt you could throw a peanut and not hit hoary legend. We had somehow chanced upon the fabled Ulagalanda Perumal Temple. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZHmanW-Bi5C9aebBEi6EskVdtDFfqEGJzANBse74KMIqSyW1P4zW23IhbQXUsmuGbu-TNKt1Fe1vU8iYgT-lXpLW4njxKa66Ml_Og8sw73cM_l1GjyyB9JZuGDXRE6G-ITW7_nBEy57WhRJnZXCUhUGcGpUY-xunyzO95re1g0SDDHitAn4E/s3264/Kanchipuram-temple-ulagalandar.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3264" data-original-width="1840" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZHmanW-Bi5C9aebBEi6EskVdtDFfqEGJzANBse74KMIqSyW1P4zW23IhbQXUsmuGbu-TNKt1Fe1vU8iYgT-lXpLW4njxKa66Ml_Og8sw73cM_l1GjyyB9JZuGDXRE6G-ITW7_nBEy57WhRJnZXCUhUGcGpUY-xunyzO95re1g0SDDHitAn4E/w225-h400/Kanchipuram-temple-ulagalandar.jpg" width="225" /></a></div><p><br />There are 108 ‘divya desams’ in the Indian subcontinent dedicated to the Lord Vishnu – these are spots that have been extolled in song and verse (mangalasasanam) by the 12 alwars, Tamil Nadu’s most revered poet-saints. This temple – the Ulagalanda Perumal complex, where Vishnu is worshipped as Vamana, the dwarf avatar who vanquished King Bali – houses not one but in fact four divya desams.<br /><br />My father tells me that ‘ulagam’ is Tamil for the world, ‘alandha’ is ‘the one who measured’ – therefore Ulagalanda Perumal. You know the story of the asura king Mahabali, of course, in which the Lord, in his vamana or dwarf avatar, asked the king for three paces of land. When Mahabali had acquiesced, Vishnu assumed gigantic proportions. One step he took from heaven to earth, the second from earth to the netherworld and asked Mahabali where he should place his next step. The King, bound by his promise, offered his head. He was pushed into the netherworld and the Lord gave him sovereignty over Patalaloka. </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgegbar07VN756RVl7krtrF_E8bzOW-J3w2JqaI_WWjxiEWumoa1VsRBRZKNF2Rn1IiFY9TBvAkkg1txtJ21EudE4z8TuLqV6pbcoy6ZRJIRR4jUTV_3U37zwghoMd01OGu3EzZgSplyX8O51wN4yIK9fFSP-7o_VnGak2wjvRqkWSRHa7W-s8/s1440/Vamana.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1440" data-original-width="1126" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgegbar07VN756RVl7krtrF_E8bzOW-J3w2JqaI_WWjxiEWumoa1VsRBRZKNF2Rn1IiFY9TBvAkkg1txtJ21EudE4z8TuLqV6pbcoy6ZRJIRR4jUTV_3U37zwghoMd01OGu3EzZgSplyX8O51wN4yIK9fFSP-7o_VnGak2wjvRqkWSRHa7W-s8/w500-h640/Vamana.jpg" width="500" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vamana by Keshav @Krishnafortoday<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The main shrine has the most breath-taking relief in black stone depicting Vamana with one leg held aloft to span the skies. It is believed to have been built by Pallavas, with later contributions from Medieval Cholas, Vijayanagar kings and Madurai Nayaks.<p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Zc31uGiND6vGchI7Le6n2rv28dR191loIxQzcMbYuWIycUtHToEEXCAXq3-gfgLTiqdh5FErfUjrEB_NPTKPjce_kcl1EoFv6JQmwyr22ng2XY7oCvoNYar6tgIJozFYDd36GuCHKBTPEhaYiXcxW3g52f_3uPxgdMfXUuFAqyYUltyVUeE/s960/Perumal.jpg"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="720" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Zc31uGiND6vGchI7Le6n2rv28dR191loIxQzcMbYuWIycUtHToEEXCAXq3-gfgLTiqdh5FErfUjrEB_NPTKPjce_kcl1EoFv6JQmwyr22ng2XY7oCvoNYar6tgIJozFYDd36GuCHKBTPEhaYiXcxW3g52f_3uPxgdMfXUuFAqyYUltyVUeE/w300-h400/Perumal.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><p>My breath hitched with some resonance in the temple. The worship was ardent but apart from the central shrine, the rest of the temple, the outer mantapam etc is rudely maintained, unkempt and messy. A temple of this antiquity, this stature not getting its due attention is simply saddening. It is, of course, under the grip of the notorious Tamil Nadu Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department (HR&CE) – an authority reported to have been so corrupt and inept over the decades, it is in the process of destroying all remnants of this valuable civilization.<br /><br />This was another strain that threaded our whole journey. On the one hand, we were blown away by the sheer force that the deities still wield, by the throbbing bhakti that has been kept up, in the face of monumental odds. On the other, we were frequently moved to grief at the dilapidation, the criminal neglect, the apathy… In some cases, it was callous disregard, in some others, the utter lack of understanding of what the whole temple complex represents, how it works not as ornamental levels or grandiose architecture but as a subtle energetic mandala.</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-79106127829300327162022-09-09T14:55:00.000+05:302022-09-09T15:23:25.815+05:30TN Tour 5: Arunachala<p>Before the pandemic hit, our last outing was to Tiruvannamalai early 2020. Arunachala Shiva had struck us like lightning. It had been a short trip, deeply moving but we’d not had time to collect all the ticks on the list of things to do there. There was no doubt in our minds that we would first make our way to Arunachala on this trip of ours.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdvgheqQ5lk6rja8VuRgx71wO7HP5kVOajnUsBAwT6oOr3aISmYowFRsqlrW_nLeEcn19Ct4yxqD-AiBTQgD5jv5ofCWRwek2OqIjI81sX8bviaL6YL6gfLdLy07x-Ja7jjlOmk3NQsz9nvHTfyjt0z0RIwMSUwuVX7Hbhg1BD5zs0mv4SMJY/s4000/Arunachala.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdvgheqQ5lk6rja8VuRgx71wO7HP5kVOajnUsBAwT6oOr3aISmYowFRsqlrW_nLeEcn19Ct4yxqD-AiBTQgD5jv5ofCWRwek2OqIjI81sX8bviaL6YL6gfLdLy07x-Ja7jjlOmk3NQsz9nvHTfyjt0z0RIwMSUwuVX7Hbhg1BD5zs0mv4SMJY/w640-h360/Arunachala.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p></p><p>The journey was a long one. With stops at Karur and Salem, it took us 14 hours to traverse 425km; we pulled in at Tiruvannamalai at around 7.30 in the evening. An unwise choice of a robust <i>thali </i>for lunch left us a bit nauseous and we could do nothing that day but tend to our stomachs and sleep. We knocked at the doors of Ramana Ashram the next morning. A beautiful place, where we bowed to Matrubhuteshwara, sat in the benevolent quietude, grateful for this space that Ramana has left for us to soak in.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxT5qJM0hnEta2V7OQN6vqfQ6gLvOppERd8w0Sq81R9Z4KtET2H69_2AQcobr-gbgKX_H5wkM_7do5teAkc4pjLqi9DnwmOY5jwnGevZbpNCyRmtE3HobdM4VUUoEPPRAz0YY8Up-k5udBLng4v8g1P9TS3yx2lLtSUbs5otI9JSg_0nIvFKk/s2464/IMG_20220309_082817.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2464" data-original-width="2464" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxT5qJM0hnEta2V7OQN6vqfQ6gLvOppERd8w0Sq81R9Z4KtET2H69_2AQcobr-gbgKX_H5wkM_7do5teAkc4pjLqi9DnwmOY5jwnGevZbpNCyRmtE3HobdM4VUUoEPPRAz0YY8Up-k5udBLng4v8g1P9TS3yx2lLtSUbs5otI9JSg_0nIvFKk/w400-h400/IMG_20220309_082817.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9M8NPvR-ubo_v-NlqCB0RwQ7zez_qbadZ6Ka8zx9QrKiloX5vX9SLTLRaQaODGTo8qQWhb4uMyXL9Fey2ZAX_ji7hYtj4GJ_IV2ldh2s-852Aw3vPVS8YDI19DyVMPYA8vzCgqJIT6zNt7Z2qkCH1KMOIXS3C7AIs2WboAdvXxl9RpczenXw/s2464/IMG_20220309_083606.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2464" data-original-width="2464" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9M8NPvR-ubo_v-NlqCB0RwQ7zez_qbadZ6Ka8zx9QrKiloX5vX9SLTLRaQaODGTo8qQWhb4uMyXL9Fey2ZAX_ji7hYtj4GJ_IV2ldh2s-852Aw3vPVS8YDI19DyVMPYA8vzCgqJIT6zNt7Z2qkCH1KMOIXS3C7AIs2WboAdvXxl9RpczenXw/w400-h400/IMG_20220309_083606.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDXGigJnUMDqQC1j1-GomYCw7DfHLGIja2IKqpGYAK5tV-Z1ioN1pCmxI_OAsHGz8T4k9di-wI78S_0_OGa0hfs-cLD6W0JK-jIlZIqE6BgvD_zzcPfil9orXpCIfae0wKBgN_mQSVTza0ghu831A54VKOXf9MHzgWczvic032eEYf46MjIQw/s3000/IMG_20220309_083715.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDXGigJnUMDqQC1j1-GomYCw7DfHLGIja2IKqpGYAK5tV-Z1ioN1pCmxI_OAsHGz8T4k9di-wI78S_0_OGa0hfs-cLD6W0JK-jIlZIqE6BgvD_zzcPfil9orXpCIfae0wKBgN_mQSVTza0ghu831A54VKOXf9MHzgWczvic032eEYf46MjIQw/w400-h400/IMG_20220309_083715.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p>We had plans for that day: Virupaksha caves, a visit to Seshadri ashram, a spot of lunch… but instead we sat in the hotel room, requesting to be sent several bottles of water as we puked our guts out. Around 4pm, the worst was over and we felt that we could perhaps salvage the day after all. We went first to Arunachaleshwara and straight into the inner-most shrine. Gracious, He accepted our homage and gave us leave to circumambulate the hill. <br /></p><p>Out on to the main road, and a turn right to make our way around this sacred hill that draws devotees in thousands. Eight important lingams dot the 14km route and it is customary to visit them all as you walk the path. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHokOyvXwWD0Gj48guq94e6AJ4q9E_wsE7aJ69JMg2tFd_L2KzbqpVI_XBskVXDKP7XD2atce-JhbvXN5-Fd4MB8mYL9XeRBbbKtw6fZzQNuy5nEqFYtDbS3h8Y5uMnvLxb1ri9XfzAGvbWSdrSKICsBdXIjHz_fz_AS9UFYyqjE3_bK4uPZA/s4000/IMG_20220309_181503.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHokOyvXwWD0Gj48guq94e6AJ4q9E_wsE7aJ69JMg2tFd_L2KzbqpVI_XBskVXDKP7XD2atce-JhbvXN5-Fd4MB8mYL9XeRBbbKtw6fZzQNuy5nEqFYtDbS3h8Y5uMnvLxb1ri9XfzAGvbWSdrSKICsBdXIjHz_fz_AS9UFYyqjE3_bK4uPZA/w400-h225/IMG_20220309_181503.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS6kM_IH_Enkmvx0gKrGOHZVQrKNyHl5wJAk8PGpSP4zqAQfgq1m7gfdDQY5Xky_a4gTJ8_0sTMdXOc36L0cby2DD9Z96hWWalMKjVGCtuZg1RQq6th_aBbmbVCHjdANxQNehTX02Pwv-iP2SOBNz3XAHJeCQm7fpMzHUHz-q9Q3_CGnAUkH8/s4000/IMG_20220309_183142.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS6kM_IH_Enkmvx0gKrGOHZVQrKNyHl5wJAk8PGpSP4zqAQfgq1m7gfdDQY5Xky_a4gTJ8_0sTMdXOc36L0cby2DD9Z96hWWalMKjVGCtuZg1RQq6th_aBbmbVCHjdANxQNehTX02Pwv-iP2SOBNz3XAHJeCQm7fpMzHUHz-q9Q3_CGnAUkH8/s320/IMG_20220309_183142.jpg" width="320" /></a>Soon we left the traffic behind and climbed the hill road. The road is home to hundreds of sadhus who have gravitated towards Tiruvannamalai. Some are attached to the numerous temples and ashrams that dot this entire path, some make do with rudimentary shacks of their own making. We saw food trucks from one of the ashrams make a slow trawl, offering annadanam to the holy men. We walked on, somewhat troubled by the fine gravel on the path. 14km would not have been challenging normally, but being barefoot, we discovered, added at least 2 hours to our time. It was night when we finished the circuit once again at the temple, which was closed by this time. We saluted the Lord from outside his gates, and celebrated with a light dinner comprising plain dosa and nimbu soda. <br /></p><p>Our hotel, presumably used to folks limping in after their girivalam pradakshina, had a massage chair on offer. After a bracing bath, I went off to indulge myself and was taken by this marvelous machine that knows precisely how to treat sore calf muscles. I yielded the chair to Shweta and she nearly woke up the nearby guests by squealing in ticklish joy. She hadn’t anticipated that the chair would twist her ankles quite so well. <br /></p><p style="text-align: center;">***</p><p style="text-align: left;">The first thing we did the next morning was head to Arunchaleshwara again.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVod3MbNOZVG-3EqjQuYNlse0EGMb7MSWGfpK-UXIAR6ADoNwg0Jfp90qLsFXojmr0YKEQRe1Zv2i-zL7chbChdbNqbFGVyB0Z9YUL7_j16GHOYLXxyjSBz3n28CODwUnQx7fEWJpzwFPhUGnKcHpfADTlngJtiYeAgI5rgKBx5tCJvgEbhFQ/s4000/IMG_20220310_100733.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="2252" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVod3MbNOZVG-3EqjQuYNlse0EGMb7MSWGfpK-UXIAR6ADoNwg0Jfp90qLsFXojmr0YKEQRe1Zv2i-zL7chbChdbNqbFGVyB0Z9YUL7_j16GHOYLXxyjSBz3n28CODwUnQx7fEWJpzwFPhUGnKcHpfADTlngJtiYeAgI5rgKBx5tCJvgEbhFQ/w360-h640/IMG_20220310_100733.jpg" width="360" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Approaching from the Raja Gopuram or the East Gate.</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHLYMQB9ouu6DZfqgtbxKqczgPmmk42Smcdv1eIUcVfqwsIlCKwGatcyZl1Fsr2p3QL8mu62MFMQ4UQsZKXxZSebR0y3a9hxgqlDz2-Rj6lgw3ZaYeloKb-lJkHf2I6L3WgvDOA_Wl8ncsiS0M90jiRL9b6ThKKx7NeS-3XNbqk7RjdtknFk0/s3280/IMG_20220309_162703.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1848" data-original-width="3280" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHLYMQB9ouu6DZfqgtbxKqczgPmmk42Smcdv1eIUcVfqwsIlCKwGatcyZl1Fsr2p3QL8mu62MFMQ4UQsZKXxZSebR0y3a9hxgqlDz2-Rj6lgw3ZaYeloKb-lJkHf2I6L3WgvDOA_Wl8ncsiS0M90jiRL9b6ThKKx7NeS-3XNbqk7RjdtknFk0/w640-h360/IMG_20220309_162703.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The temple complex is dazzling in its scale and beauty</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Morning darshan was quick and sweet. We reached the Devi Unnamalai Amman just as the abhishekam started; happily, the priest let us linger a little longer than usual in front of the shrine. We spent some time at the <i>patala lingam</i>, the cave temple where Ramana spent much time. Once decrepit, now restored, it is a place to linger and try to comprehend the resolution it takes to approach the Truth.<br /></p><p>This was a pattern we followed for the most part through our journey. Arrive in the afternoon, make one visit to the main temple in the evening and yet another the following morning. We spent the hot, afternoon hours on the road getting from place to place. <br /></p><p>The prasadam stall at Arunchaleshwara temple is a good one, and we asked for <i>puli sadam</i>, sweet pongal and vadai. We ate it right there in the mandapam, and in a while, washed that down with fruit juice near Seshadri ashram. </p><p>We walked over to the ashram of Yogi Ramsuratkumar, who is affectionately referred to as Visri Sami. A mystic who came from Uttar Pradesh and settled here within view of Arunachala. This is a place of serene beauty. We had prasadam here, wandered across the hall reading the wonderful life events and teachings of the master.<br /></p><p>Thanks to our lost day, we did not have time for Virupaksha cave once more. Next time for sure. We left Tiruvannamalai, craning our necks to catch final glimpses of the sacred hill. To be summoned again in a span of two years… lucky indeed.</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-46521690857437243822022-08-13T17:04:00.002+05:302022-09-09T15:24:17.994+05:30TN Tour 4: On the road to Tiruvannamalai<p><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
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<![endif]-->Our route to Tiruvannamalai, the first night-halt, was
punctuated by stops: Nerur, the <i>samadhi sthala </i>of the great saint Sadasiva
Brahmendra; and Salem, where lies the <i>jeeva samadhi </i>of <a href="https://mayammasamajam.org/about.php" target="_blank">Mayamma</a>, the wonderful
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avadhuta" target="_blank"><i>avadhuta </i></a>of Kanyakumari. Both places were magnificent.
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadasiva_Brahmendra" target="_blank">Sadasiva Brahmendra</a> finds a place among the <a href="https://isha.sadhguru.org/in/en/sadhguru/mystic/dhyanalinga-architecture-six-panels" target="_blank">six panels</a>
leading up to the Dhyanalinga at Isha. We have often heard and read stories of
his life, his complete dis-identification with his body, we have heard his
songs, typical in their laconic phrasing. His resting place I found restful,
more silent than energetic. </p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ7JJMSL7pgpaNK0bsBchQN-8ntAXUgqUC4N3_8OIkmr9hf4vQm4BLdqngXkjtHENPs0qdjXYJBkEtgybGWmeGjM1npQ9JlxZ8lZ-Yw4stuJI_EtL5tbOSTIs3VjtD-BLORbnXm3gbk7pr7iBhheQMf3I-gPXlPe9p_3z8cSObKuXy8XYL28Y/s893/Sadasiva.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="608" data-original-width="893" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ7JJMSL7pgpaNK0bsBchQN-8ntAXUgqUC4N3_8OIkmr9hf4vQm4BLdqngXkjtHENPs0qdjXYJBkEtgybGWmeGjM1npQ9JlxZ8lZ-Yw4stuJI_EtL5tbOSTIs3VjtD-BLORbnXm3gbk7pr7iBhheQMf3I-gPXlPe9p_3z8cSObKuXy8XYL28Y/w400-h272/Sadasiva.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />Mayamma’s samadhi – a smallish shrine off the Law College
Road in Salem – was a place of loving sweetness with an undercurrent of buzz.
Fittingly there were dogs here, Mayamma’s most beloved constant companions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFeeUHMdM6tLROB6R8EhlM9t5NGL_kCOtVnThGbB-0AbfOts0aLco-sk-aF5g7tDuHNN0AvLurK3j3hyFTM6daanvo8y0M7z0fMdJo0Xra_yM-hlGVTcgOEOTnAwu1iNnU6StRI1EbF3qqgGzPxkf-1wLvPEgE9IkXRR4EyRRmJsL0EPGW3Gk/s3000/IMG_20220308_160207.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFeeUHMdM6tLROB6R8EhlM9t5NGL_kCOtVnThGbB-0AbfOts0aLco-sk-aF5g7tDuHNN0AvLurK3j3hyFTM6daanvo8y0M7z0fMdJo0Xra_yM-hlGVTcgOEOTnAwu1iNnU6StRI1EbF3qqgGzPxkf-1wLvPEgE9IkXRR4EyRRmJsL0EPGW3Gk/w400-h400/IMG_20220308_160207.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisOt6t3Y7rJ6sqEbd2hE26Z4u21a82Q674kYGvARqwzqBhOfW3y1hA87fjuifP9UmaqLvU1gdF00eWAjX-wBmm2iEmtuh8Y8wCK9L2S7RuKjzGT0FP5tD1MJP6DQJoxcnkj8SRfKPDJtHnNShJDwNlVe_Y1jeT6WK11MhU1T9Jyw6oa3fJ9v4/s3000/IMG_20220308_154914.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisOt6t3Y7rJ6sqEbd2hE26Z4u21a82Q674kYGvARqwzqBhOfW3y1hA87fjuifP9UmaqLvU1gdF00eWAjX-wBmm2iEmtuh8Y8wCK9L2S7RuKjzGT0FP5tD1MJP6DQJoxcnkj8SRfKPDJtHnNShJDwNlVe_Y1jeT6WK11MhU1T9Jyw6oa3fJ9v4/s3000/IMG_20220308_154914.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisOt6t3Y7rJ6sqEbd2hE26Z4u21a82Q674kYGvARqwzqBhOfW3y1hA87fjuifP9UmaqLvU1gdF00eWAjX-wBmm2iEmtuh8Y8wCK9L2S7RuKjzGT0FP5tD1MJP6DQJoxcnkj8SRfKPDJtHnNShJDwNlVe_Y1jeT6WK11MhU1T9Jyw6oa3fJ9v4/w400-h400/IMG_20220308_154914.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">***</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">One motif running through the entire trip was the rivers, in
particular Cauvery whom we encountered time and again, crossing her course
several times. Again, a special interest for us. Cauvery Calling, the massive
on-ground movement to revive the river is supporting farmers to make a partial
shift to agro-forestry. The mission is to plant 242 crore trees in the river
basin, revitalizing the soil, and in turn, the river, which has been seeing
dangerously depleted levels. We saw first-hand the truly heartbreaking state of
the river and the smaller rivers that drain into it. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Near Karur, we went to the fascinating Agatheeswarar Temple<b>
</b>on the banks of River Amaravathi, near the confluence of the rivers Kaveri,
Amaravathi and the now-dead Thirumanimuthaar. The location was magnificent, the
sunlight was brassy gold, birds chirped and flitted, not with the frenzy of
dawn but with all the languor of the midday warmth. We’d gone prepared to take
a dip in the water but the riverbed was dry, the water just a silvery trickle
in the distance. It wasn’t even summer yet. We could see for ourselves what
Sadhguru means when he says our rivers are dying. This is not how it’s supposed
to be. A river is a huge presence, a life of its own… we have let things go too
far.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="857" data-original-width="1817" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVe0wDbwT4rOwd86dcHWP0VMc7RnzgpTfKHRJ9UM5hNHjsfjiOy25QWj-CqrH_xE7sTTjA6EwlfViYqrjbwLWN6hGcPuRWNdbaSqgwLLv3uona5VvmgLv-DzU9ncYfettVJI9GKCd0-8etZTAo19mTiU8XZyKl0a-uoBbp0rMapnY6zEOz6xA/w640-h302/Dry%20riverbed.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">The temple – built by Rajendra Chola I – is in a state of
disrepair. The inner shrine (the linga is said to have consecrated by Agastya
himself) was barred. We couldn’t go in but we met some officials there, I think
they were from the Department of Archeology; restoration, I learned, is on the
cards. In the yard, we found a Shivalinga, a samadhi and a pair of hobnailed
padukas*, belonging to a yogi who had lived here, and also left at this spot.
How wonderful if the temple and the river are restored together! Can you
imagine the powerful serenity that could once again emanate from such a
combination?</p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLQlDR6n3APFxIKgpW23c4-m75mWLk5EraS7DcRH3RYunaudADgOLQ16KWfZ18OKFDm5kalQapjQNG16Uzd8bLZBpGeyJT-SsY9flF4TPRUS61gJimAG_4oBH4ugfxVvgAzqtzAG6d1JBkOXQew86FgdOcnfgBBcG3Mvx-kqPlKNbn0F6ZIo/s3000/IMG_20220308_121008.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBLQlDR6n3APFxIKgpW23c4-m75mWLk5EraS7DcRH3RYunaudADgOLQ16KWfZ18OKFDm5kalQapjQNG16Uzd8bLZBpGeyJT-SsY9flF4TPRUS61gJimAG_4oBH4ugfxVvgAzqtzAG6d1JBkOXQew86FgdOcnfgBBcG3Mvx-kqPlKNbn0F6ZIo/w400-h400/IMG_20220308_121008.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZExsVHdWyObfcA7exyCYUivY8ix3EG2-UBLYwtBMHXvrcPhVJHDtIOUCgpajH3Rh-kRfLb4uJK4QRh5MHRzAkyRkcfZsDCslImQD7Dx5LiKn4NoSalAH3Jglw143Cru1a3_E40wSGNmuoxNfzGNyNkgXk27tgS600P80SmbAxPMfdPGAD6dw/s1818/Agastheeswarar%20temple.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1019" data-original-width="1818" height="224" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZExsVHdWyObfcA7exyCYUivY8ix3EG2-UBLYwtBMHXvrcPhVJHDtIOUCgpajH3Rh-kRfLb4uJK4QRh5MHRzAkyRkcfZsDCslImQD7Dx5LiKn4NoSalAH3Jglw143Cru1a3_E40wSGNmuoxNfzGNyNkgXk27tgS600P80SmbAxPMfdPGAD6dw/w400-h224/Agastheeswarar%20temple.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhybQbZDcPL1M3RXSliSlU5NgdMcYieM2FuuNwLk5tGnszodApbVX6yxE1fdzHct6KNV5Pa1P2SjcHGI_ZO-tGpPV8YWyweu-WP3WSyVkfDgD7kS960VPMUmUEeAKMP8pbpNLt0qAF20fI7oXLzhDjrm80MVEZFNrPlB7OO42m5ZlpFB70ExH8/s3000/IMG_20220308_121030.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhybQbZDcPL1M3RXSliSlU5NgdMcYieM2FuuNwLk5tGnszodApbVX6yxE1fdzHct6KNV5Pa1P2SjcHGI_ZO-tGpPV8YWyweu-WP3WSyVkfDgD7kS960VPMUmUEeAKMP8pbpNLt0qAF20fI7oXLzhDjrm80MVEZFNrPlB7OO42m5ZlpFB70ExH8/w640-h640/IMG_20220308_121030.jpg" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiafyRJixqDYCVodsdFAqld84Zyu8nLkjn1J3lkMRl0vUdKRzOphlQ0w2kMtGEklheSYZOEfvkI-oHS9l-DDHTH00ZBdrBpYGzC99CQJHZO0BiHccklncR_WMDugcXpnwgmv4srkXPf8h3glNygmGMLetOFFmfOQNxeiHY85rBkJ-ZlWAtNkBA/s3456/20220308_121833.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="3456" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiafyRJixqDYCVodsdFAqld84Zyu8nLkjn1J3lkMRl0vUdKRzOphlQ0w2kMtGEklheSYZOEfvkI-oHS9l-DDHTH00ZBdrBpYGzC99CQJHZO0BiHccklncR_WMDugcXpnwgmv4srkXPf8h3glNygmGMLetOFFmfOQNxeiHY85rBkJ-ZlWAtNkBA/w640-h640/20220308_121833.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHoayj2OIDKLKQoNn6P_tmv3nnSIEcfbXdIY4QMOSvqlYmxalLFKTRg3RWg4OY3EQ9OWwsWj772b_gEk-XtLZeaR2CkFhqK9eBruCQ0pWPgh_nqVPhMiEWrx6D5gOZXH0-KuekMXNguT7WQ17cDlWNLTVKLKW7Zz7uyefSAtvC3k9Vr2kbwlw/s3456/20220308_121848.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="3456" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHoayj2OIDKLKQoNn6P_tmv3nnSIEcfbXdIY4QMOSvqlYmxalLFKTRg3RWg4OY3EQ9OWwsWj772b_gEk-XtLZeaR2CkFhqK9eBruCQ0pWPgh_nqVPhMiEWrx6D5gOZXH0-KuekMXNguT7WQ17cDlWNLTVKLKW7Zz7uyefSAtvC3k9Vr2kbwlw/w400-h400/20220308_121848.jpg" width="400" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">*Edited to add: I unthinkingly called them hobnailed padukas, which doesn't describe them correctly. Hobnails were typically driven under shoes or boots, of course. These are nails or spikes embedded into the wooden base, on which the yogi walks.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><p></p>
<p></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-1618255124873298842022-08-04T16:08:00.000+05:302022-08-04T16:08:02.018+05:30Boondon ke baan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKGcwAM95k7PjQM3kLp3zLc5cIeu-y_268nNwDxXJAaHJdD2LC1ZvAfmr4DZuNTgL64BDK6n5r1IEMTWW52I_UNuxs0QCfHLD3B2_TqtB_I4Svq0t-2SahWHUzdiQgfV0PrqpYCm-mDgTj9H9YNRAoNFUNAXD8LFpZrCryJOtVb1BsFUYJLk0/s4000/IMG_20220804_142544.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKGcwAM95k7PjQM3kLp3zLc5cIeu-y_268nNwDxXJAaHJdD2LC1ZvAfmr4DZuNTgL64BDK6n5r1IEMTWW52I_UNuxs0QCfHLD3B2_TqtB_I4Svq0t-2SahWHUzdiQgfV0PrqpYCm-mDgTj9H9YNRAoNFUNAXD8LFpZrCryJOtVb1BsFUYJLk0/w480-h640/IMG_20220804_142544.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<![endif]--><span class="css-901oao"><span lang="EN-IN"><span lang="EN-IN"><span class="css-901oao"></span></span>Sitting in a house
that has been wisely built on a high foundation, on a part of the street where
the ground swells rather than troughs, I say it’s been a wonderful monsoon in
Telangana. The people down our street would come after me with their hawaii chappals,
because they’ve been inundated once too many, but there it is. </span></span>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span class="css-901oao"><span lang="EN-IN">(One wall is leaking
with the incessant dampness and the newly laid paint is bulging along a crack.
I’m suffering too, just saying.) </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="css-901oao"><span lang="EN-IN">But *backs away
cautiously* yeah, sorry, your troubles are bigger.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="css-901oao"><span lang="EN-IN">+++</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="css-901oao"><span lang="EN-IN">One week we didn’t
see the sun at all. But at least there was the reliability factor. It was
raining, that was it and we wrung everything out to the max, hung clothes on
the indoor clothes-rod and pressed the fans into service. </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="css-901oao"><span lang="EN-IN">This week, it’s been
hide and seek. A drizzle will come, everyone shouts and warns the neighbours,
the whole family rushes out to pull the clothes off the wires (added to which
is the complication of clothes pegs). I go for the drier things first, my
father aims for the nearest garments. We get in each other’s way, some more
shouting ensues. A rueful word and shake of the head to the neighbours who are in a similar flurry. Then
soon after we’ve managed to get the hangers and hoist everything up on the perch
inside, the sun comes out. C’est la vie.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span class="css-901oao"><span lang="EN-IN">To honour those grey
skies, these benevolent, fierce and moody rain gods, the sudden downpours, the raging gutters, this gorgeous haiku by </span></span><span lang="EN-IN">Susan Constable<span class="css-901oao">:</span></span></p><p><span lang="EN-IN"><span class="css-901oao">cloudburst<br />the sound of raindrops<br />changing size </span></span></p><p><span lang="EN-IN"><span class="css-901oao"> <br /></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span lang="EN-IN"><span class="css-901oao"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMdwi24zCpdZ-YvmHv3CH62szwnBQSG8E6TOTijbXUhvzlqlZTSyFqeFUbzMx7HKndmMToKmN-NIY27LhHlnm6dpNSNuSYylGe0TNnk0cC-eAC5c_OJmVFLQH9IwR2VMuBT5oGwxEKLgZ7yBmTtMzW7IuO8YHP3g1UuREsuB77pyHu4YYaSjA/s4000/IMG_20220804_142358.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="3000" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMdwi24zCpdZ-YvmHv3CH62szwnBQSG8E6TOTijbXUhvzlqlZTSyFqeFUbzMx7HKndmMToKmN-NIY27LhHlnm6dpNSNuSYylGe0TNnk0cC-eAC5c_OJmVFLQH9IwR2VMuBT5oGwxEKLgZ7yBmTtMzW7IuO8YHP3g1UuREsuB77pyHu4YYaSjA/w480-h640/IMG_20220804_142358.jpg" width="480" /></a></span></span></div><span lang="EN-IN"><span class="css-901oao"><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4EYrtti7WqanWy4LtjhMNqk2qp7EdWo4v8nk8gNyhgW08I-vH4S6FZerqmBr6tcJj0ZX2xwntbIW4lehfQAI_vj3CPFX7YJCntTyAZ-xmZ2-2e5dIhd-FmYktHNKB9MZTQhnYkJjuVEuinu973i1DObs1prF29C8aWmMFy5MEt4umXvZihso/s2592/IMG_20220804_142342.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2592" data-original-width="1944" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4EYrtti7WqanWy4LtjhMNqk2qp7EdWo4v8nk8gNyhgW08I-vH4S6FZerqmBr6tcJj0ZX2xwntbIW4lehfQAI_vj3CPFX7YJCntTyAZ-xmZ2-2e5dIhd-FmYktHNKB9MZTQhnYkJjuVEuinu973i1DObs1prF29C8aWmMFy5MEt4umXvZihso/w300-h400/IMG_20220804_142342.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5uOUFogU-x9cVG1VVq_mHxdL2epT5j5DlALlM5_m-a9G5uelLr51bWrC14Sf1YrtGZzafnEkMZfAm9kwsHAhmt3-faA3cZ26o-peN-oqTCYQXVNzEtkdTo0r2-tP_rbbNRQvl7CT_DbtLX3h0WW298RZ72Oy6jdZGjsK3gi69NbEAf_iZ650/s2592/IMG_20220804_142216.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2592" data-original-width="1944" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5uOUFogU-x9cVG1VVq_mHxdL2epT5j5DlALlM5_m-a9G5uelLr51bWrC14Sf1YrtGZzafnEkMZfAm9kwsHAhmt3-faA3cZ26o-peN-oqTCYQXVNzEtkdTo0r2-tP_rbbNRQvl7CT_DbtLX3h0WW298RZ72Oy6jdZGjsK3gi69NbEAf_iZ650/w300-h400/IMG_20220804_142216.jpg" width="300" /></a></div><br /></span></span><span face=""Calibri",sans-serif" lang="EN-IN" style="font-size: 11pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-IN; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"></span><p></p><p></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-70434014034630203852022-08-03T15:14:00.000+05:302022-09-09T15:24:32.834+05:30 TN Tour 3: The Auspicious One<p>The very first temple we halted at was significant to the purpose of our journey. Sadhguru was just setting off on a huge environmental movement, a push to make the whole planet more conscious, more sensitive to all life, all lives. On the Mahashivratri preceding this mammoth journey, Sadhguru had said, “Shiva is Pashupati, the lord of all creatures. Most earthly of all Divine entities and the master of Biodiversity.” <br /></p><p>So, in this most auspicious of starts, we halted at the Pashupatiswarar koil in Karur. This is a shrine of great antiquity, one of the famed 275 <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paadal_Petra_Sthalam" target="_blank">Paadal Petra Sthalams</a>*. So potent, the poet saints Sundarar and Sambandar are said to have composed <i>thevaram pathigam </i>here. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9lr1-zC9VScI4iR_fHNABjCjVuRFVq1jetVQ4ChXZSgxj4a3Mdy6gTkvppc0LVFt1O709ICp5lgC3YR5fwysXe_onD-UQoF1YbwMU0FWbWxon-Od-t2HTvae08D2X_SgOowYLDpDBi3phcD7WwvlEtq8UWQXrOaf7-ZOgdfwiHN6m4jUZsuE/s3000/IMG_20220308_094443.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9lr1-zC9VScI4iR_fHNABjCjVuRFVq1jetVQ4ChXZSgxj4a3Mdy6gTkvppc0LVFt1O709ICp5lgC3YR5fwysXe_onD-UQoF1YbwMU0FWbWxon-Od-t2HTvae08D2X_SgOowYLDpDBi3phcD7WwvlEtq8UWQXrOaf7-ZOgdfwiHN6m4jUZsuE/w400-h400/IMG_20220308_094443.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlQBelqUfGUCDq5-NTAkABwIHau2EIvLlTp82gITdtCfAPU-K79iU_N72ZKxgBGfp16Orn7gUCH5I-5ZTJbMXqCkOm8uVNjNmlqlm9AM-RTRjYj9cML-7xChAupak7ZK_a_LJmRgsZsjylFCNjbJGF5PiqJetBQOWaswOuI0eR8jGXc7y4uyE/s3000/IMG_20220308_094457.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlQBelqUfGUCDq5-NTAkABwIHau2EIvLlTp82gITdtCfAPU-K79iU_N72ZKxgBGfp16Orn7gUCH5I-5ZTJbMXqCkOm8uVNjNmlqlm9AM-RTRjYj9cML-7xChAupak7ZK_a_LJmRgsZsjylFCNjbJGF5PiqJetBQOWaswOuI0eR8jGXc7y4uyE/w400-h400/IMG_20220308_094457.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFTTkgoVH_jfE5meHZwDkmlM905NBhyE4GNtiwFMQfQZvmRf7v8hry6fueZeH51q6yyiXpEo5mnDBEm8Ey6ghuFDyliCG3-7tDYE1OVHxPs0xY4T2jTRsAuHcjFRxkZkkmlC0fyCAsMVa724BbMXfM8KOosb6qSPY1jyQ-jRhcwipAvgsL7iI/s3000/IMG_20220308_094640.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="3000" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFTTkgoVH_jfE5meHZwDkmlM905NBhyE4GNtiwFMQfQZvmRf7v8hry6fueZeH51q6yyiXpEo5mnDBEm8Ey6ghuFDyliCG3-7tDYE1OVHxPs0xY4T2jTRsAuHcjFRxkZkkmlC0fyCAsMVa724BbMXfM8KOosb6qSPY1jyQ-jRhcwipAvgsL7iI/w400-h400/IMG_20220308_094640.jpg" width="400" /></a></div> <p></p><p>Here, we bowed to the lord of all creatures. Our human-centric way of dominating the planet is too crude a way to live, the damage we are wreaking on the seas, on the forests, on the grasslands, on the soil is too horrendous. It is very clear we cannot go on this way. </p><p>This temple is also the spot where the great siddha Karuvurar chose to leave. One of the 18 lofty siddhars of Tamil Nadu, this man’s achievements and accomplishments are so many, it is breathtaking. He was the yogi who prompted and guided the building of the stunning ‘<i>periya kovil</i>’ at Thanjavur by Raja Raja Chola I. (But more of that anon.)</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtzGE0xi8sOE-EontOMEdXIXRpE4DegAg-30cMa14c7eR6Vs1pxAjLa37mpKR8uW2VuBvY5mgYdPkbVlC9CKwWZILuAQoq-50mpsWq1Zz0_rnCvThYVtg6cAsgpK-LPzIBbQCzLbJJUtN7BW-gp2SaSdeh3zyM_FAAoVn8tV0HHM67lhRltX4/s242/karuvurar-siddhar-history-tamil.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="242" data-original-width="193" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjtzGE0xi8sOE-EontOMEdXIXRpE4DegAg-30cMa14c7eR6Vs1pxAjLa37mpKR8uW2VuBvY5mgYdPkbVlC9CKwWZILuAQoq-50mpsWq1Zz0_rnCvThYVtg6cAsgpK-LPzIBbQCzLbJJUtN7BW-gp2SaSdeh3zyM_FAAoVn8tV0HHM67lhRltX4/w255-h320/karuvurar-siddhar-history-tamil.png" width="255" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Karuvurar’s shrine lies to a side behind the main temple and we sat for a while absorbing what we could. The universe is immense and the vessel we hold is paltry. But dissolution is possible. Peeling off a thin strip at a time will do the trick.<br /><br />+++<br />*The Paadal Petra Sthalams, also known as Thevara Sthalam, are 275 temples that are revered in the verses of Saiva Nayanars in the 6th-9th century CE and are amongst the greatest Shiva temples of the continent.</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-44190965242586361972022-07-27T14:46:00.000+05:302022-09-09T15:24:51.824+05:30TN Tour 2: Panguni Uttiram<p><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<![endif]--></p><p class="MsoNormal">We had never heard the words <i>‘panguni uttiram’ </i>before this.
We were making hotel bookings and a chatty manager of a Palani hotel told us he
was so sorry he couldn’t take our reservation, they were full up because of <i>panguni
uttiram. </i>What’s that, I asked him. Oh, a very important festival in Tamil Nadu with
special significance to Muruga, he told us. We looked at the <i>panchanga </i>for the
first time then, and found that the full moon was to fall on 18<sup>th</sup>
March. Our plans had formed suddenly – Sadhguru had left for the Caribbean on 5<sup>th</sup>
March and we had given ourselves a couple of days to chart out the itinerary, pack
and make arrangements. A purely practical plan without any reference to
auspicious days or anything.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Palani was already special to us for a few reasons, so we
readjusted our plans slightly. Since we had both been to Madurai in the past
few years, we decided to skip the overnight stay there and head straight from
Rameshwaram to Palani. It was a longish haul but we thought it would be the
perfect place to be at on the auspicious Purnima. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Turns out, the festivities for <i>panguni uttiram </i>aren’t just
on the full moon day, but occupy the entire <i>‘paksha’ </i>or waxing moon phase leading
up to it. In fact, precisely the period we were to roam Tamil Nadu, hopping
from temple to gorgeous temple.</p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">***</p>
<p class="MsoNormal">We got the perfect ringside view of the festivities at
Kanchi. We trundled off by auto to Ekambareshwara only to find the doors
barred. The god was out visiting – the <i>utsava murti </i>had been taken out for a
procession. As to where, the details escape me now but Kanchi is known as the
city of a thousand temples: through this fortnight, the deities were all out in
street processions, in a complex schedule of visits to other deities before
they returned to their own abodes. Our evening call on Ekambareshwara didn’t
yield glimpse of him, but it was richly rewarded by way of a wonderful mela (a
13-day affair, I understand) at the temple. Bright sparkling lights, milling
crowds, food of various kinds, a cultural show featuring (some rather good) Bharatanatyam
performances by a series of promising youngsters and troupes… it was heady. </p><p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfkVQb2hkiXRJVqSEnWrj20_WW1pph3_wvqy2y3jrjiJCx8uTV1iGe6aX9a2b4PdgI9FRifPXaE8-n6NizMNfYDXOOs3XnAGiQjCgYlf0FX64bW1pbhjFo-oyQbvzSAhhEXdQhnPOkXXvIXr3XmCa5wkVKI-3EHs8V_8cx7pq64bfjV4C6zpM/s4000/Dance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfkVQb2hkiXRJVqSEnWrj20_WW1pph3_wvqy2y3jrjiJCx8uTV1iGe6aX9a2b4PdgI9FRifPXaE8-n6NizMNfYDXOOs3XnAGiQjCgYlf0FX64bW1pbhjFo-oyQbvzSAhhEXdQhnPOkXXvIXr3XmCa5wkVKI-3EHs8V_8cx7pq64bfjV4C6zpM/w640-h360/Dance.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0rq7wZvHcbt2aJ9sA96UlueQDXQAG5DsFmD2wQd-xHfh-qwAwRliVYu2gOgqrnukI1_bDztEnvrfFdLRTvLxKSTGcM1TUit26U9VyVExFtM36ycSpH88b7HHcega13jPGCOnbgsJjddo58iC8kcFFPSI1vXpcUVGhYypF1Tpg9GjoFJQZ9I0/s4000/mela.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0rq7wZvHcbt2aJ9sA96UlueQDXQAG5DsFmD2wQd-xHfh-qwAwRliVYu2gOgqrnukI1_bDztEnvrfFdLRTvLxKSTGcM1TUit26U9VyVExFtM36ycSpH88b7HHcega13jPGCOnbgsJjddo58iC8kcFFPSI1vXpcUVGhYypF1Tpg9GjoFJQZ9I0/w640-h360/mela.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /> <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecORmdRC_FQtG9wnHOzwkqZS1TBqetuRvdPN5JAilcfq8vaw_9d3Pv1DWpiXVEGtHNDGuHs9uUAMYnConXxxsqWysAmK3-5WV2M9qCuIhoPGwrt_riDGS-Ask5A-c0ErYrztNSX7Be52xZFyQ8_tVxzx5bQ-nPkuLH6uo5zNWbx4d4i0xreI/s4000/IMG_20220310_203655.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4000" data-original-width="2252" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgecORmdRC_FQtG9wnHOzwkqZS1TBqetuRvdPN5JAilcfq8vaw_9d3Pv1DWpiXVEGtHNDGuHs9uUAMYnConXxxsqWysAmK3-5WV2M9qCuIhoPGwrt_riDGS-Ask5A-c0ErYrztNSX7Be52xZFyQ8_tVxzx5bQ-nPkuLH6uo5zNWbx4d4i0xreI/w360-h640/IMG_20220310_203655.jpg" width="360" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLZMxTm-Cpv7xZyTZmMnqG2HiVUbZfTH-LaISiXX5wKjZ-Zx-_Ied8aBWttVOKfuB_sRi5hA3s7vbeFrvcmDbnsM1eTj_L4ICKsKj5iwhfq5hZL2sDEAkuVxSeu4D3RLMMcPSYIkgydIm-9oZgeEc9VQ4vkZy4BiOOKIeS04RBGDOq-OQVs3g/s4000/IMG_20220310_203650.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2252" data-original-width="4000" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLZMxTm-Cpv7xZyTZmMnqG2HiVUbZfTH-LaISiXX5wKjZ-Zx-_Ied8aBWttVOKfuB_sRi5hA3s7vbeFrvcmDbnsM1eTj_L4ICKsKj5iwhfq5hZL2sDEAkuVxSeu4D3RLMMcPSYIkgydIm-9oZgeEc9VQ4vkZy4BiOOKIeS04RBGDOq-OQVs3g/w400-h225/IMG_20220310_203650.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p class="MsoNormal">In Chidambaram, we were waiting to see the final aarti and
puja where Nataraja is put to bed. We stood first attentively, then restively
and then all of us sat down altogether while the priests dawdled here and
there. Muruga of the ancillary temple was out on a social visit and till HE returned
to the temple complex, Shiva couldn’t be closed, see? We finally walked back to
our hotel by almost midnight, having missed dinner but fortified by a banana
and a mouthful of <i>prasadam</i>. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Similar scenes everywhere: Srirangam was bedecked, in
Kumbakonam, we caught the train of Lord Sarangapani as he was taken with pomp to his
Devi’s shrine and back. Things really started to heat up as we reached
Rameshwaram. Each village set out on its own procession to the nearest temple
of significance. Drumbeats everywhere, crawling traffic honking through large dancing
processions, men with sacred ash smeared on their foreheads, <i>vels </i>pierced through
their cheeks, trucks and gear being prepared for men to undertake <i>parava kavadi
</i>…. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZBRay4WGql6TpD5hMmn1jZ4aSIKKGHJVb67TsFPu4YQvj36LeZN0i9pzilHaoE45P2flwAfuIbxnLUNXbC1Y0HzPvNo-GZG8ZGEXH_e8_zmlv5u6vuWCT_TA8Kj2KoNDAtiSQoP1-3njmXguSzqkwNKtjgM1pIR6td3fRhi45jb89epSIyA/s1200/PANGUNI%203%20G.%20Karthikeyan%20Hindu.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="794" data-original-width="1200" height="424" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWZBRay4WGql6TpD5hMmn1jZ4aSIKKGHJVb67TsFPu4YQvj36LeZN0i9pzilHaoE45P2flwAfuIbxnLUNXbC1Y0HzPvNo-GZG8ZGEXH_e8_zmlv5u6vuWCT_TA8Kj2KoNDAtiSQoP1-3njmXguSzqkwNKtjgM1pIR6td3fRhi45jb89epSIyA/w640-h424/PANGUNI%203%20G.%20Karthikeyan%20Hindu.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Photo: G Karthikeyan</i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table> </p><p class="MsoNormal">The actual day in Palani was simply electric – wave after wave of devotees
came, carrying decorated <i>kavadis</i>, bearing water that they’d consecrated for 40
days for Muruga’s <i>abhishekam </i>(one man generously gave us some <i>teertham </i>to sip
at the temple), women, girls decked up in their best finery, carrying pots of milk
and water, pulsating drums non-stop. </p>
<p class="MsoNormal">It was an exhilarating atmosphere to be caught up in.<br /></p>
<p></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-696036636404442122022-07-22T21:49:00.001+05:302022-07-23T17:22:56.683+05:30TN Tour 1: The Obligatory Grand Tour<h3 style="text-align: left;"></h3><p>As I’d said many weeks ago, the ‘South Tour’ is pretty much an inevitable high school excursion in our parts and I don’t know how it came about that I missed the grand tour of Tamil Nadu’s temples. <br /></p><p>But still, the desire came and the plan formed itself. I am glad to have waited. Not to have wasted the first breathtaking glimpse of all this grandeur on a callow, self-absorbed teen but instead to approach it in adulthood with at least a modicum of appreciation and a certain capacity for awe. And also a certain ripening of Bhakti.</p><p>Ours was not an overly devout upbringing. Certainly not the temple-hopping kind. Yes, there was a puja room in the house and a certain openness to the Divine, but I was as confused as the next person about religion and spirituality. I remember puzzling over Ganesha. Was I to take him literally? Or as a reference or pointer to something more subtle? Now, after being initiated on the spiritual path, I have evolved into an even grander canvas of confusion. </p><p>So was this a pilgrimage? Yes. Adventure? Most certainly. A mission? Yes. We were setting off just as Sadhguru had left for the Caribbean for the Save Soil Movement. For the arduous, extremely demanding 100-day journey that he was embarking on, we were excited, concerned and eager to beseech the benediction of the gods. </p><p>Once we decided that we were going to do this, Shweta and I sat down to planning in a hurry – we had to do all the biggies, we had to include the four pancha bhuta sthalas in TN, we had to visit the Devis, we had to go to Rameshwaram, we had to go to Palani. Tamil Nadu being Tamil Nadu, there are a host of samadhis too and Shweta had a parallel list of various places of high energy that we had to include. And then what about all the spectacular architecture… it was a mission! But we managed to simmer it down to a workable circuit. <br /></p><p>And this, more or less is how we went about it.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQW42cJ73UyCxo8RsUH5js8xYAwYsfzxZQT_RheVs2ApebiTiIYw0Ut8T_02WZJMskeoWP0XcZEj6i2uVUdSzY8ZmedIp93tU03YdugGbawUyIKdctkt-KClj_nWkmJX5thJfAy_hZPSLSjcXrjAx9mcpPePKhbzcP6GfduekNvt5ReVL6Uiw/s1828/Final%20circuit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="913" data-original-width="1828" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQW42cJ73UyCxo8RsUH5js8xYAwYsfzxZQT_RheVs2ApebiTiIYw0Ut8T_02WZJMskeoWP0XcZEj6i2uVUdSzY8ZmedIp93tU03YdugGbawUyIKdctkt-KClj_nWkmJX5thJfAy_hZPSLSjcXrjAx9mcpPePKhbzcP6GfduekNvt5ReVL6Uiw/w640-h320/Final%20circuit.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p>*** <br /></p><p>“When God is your tour guide…” Shweta muttered once. <br /></p><p>That’s how it felt. <br /></p><p>It seemed like every step was charted out for us. Everything seemed to fall in place. The timing, where to be at what moment, where to go, where not to go. You will feel, as we did, that these are an extraordinary number of lucky coincidences for anyone to have. And yet, that’s how it was. </p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-47696919906353719742022-06-24T13:02:00.000+05:302022-06-24T13:02:17.110+05:30Beyond the hype<p>Has there been something that you never got, something so hyped that you didn’t see what the deal was, until one day, all of a sudden you went, ohhhhhhh!<br /></p><p>I must’ve been a prissy child growing up, because I thought I preferred apples over mangoes. Don’t get me wrong, I still love apples. The subtle tart sweetness, the crunch, the colour… but mangoes – the magic of Banganpalle, the glorious cream of Himayat – were only revealed to me later.<br /></p><p>Same thing with this ‘hari chutney’ business. South Indian prejudice about a North Indian favourite. Then one day, with a generous slather of mayonnaise and thin cucumber slices, I had hari chutney in a sandwich. The flavours had me closing my eyes in worship. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIwrVJhc_PgUF1XYuAFuJ-OSTp7BG-swiluS73WmY-i84ZnYAKbmSHSRHoxpPp86khzADATV_Tg5jP9c9rSDNJJtZ8KK6DJhDVe5ruxRUoHyxFnEgDH4yZTCszxRNysbALnres4lWCIyUoPh9iKmDIsj4_QWyC96YF6CQzUjaCSgpqWfAmmho/s1280/hari%20chutney.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1280" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIwrVJhc_PgUF1XYuAFuJ-OSTp7BG-swiluS73WmY-i84ZnYAKbmSHSRHoxpPp86khzADATV_Tg5jP9c9rSDNJJtZ8KK6DJhDVe5ruxRUoHyxFnEgDH4yZTCszxRNysbALnres4lWCIyUoPh9iKmDIsj4_QWyC96YF6CQzUjaCSgpqWfAmmho/s320/hari%20chutney.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Somehow I have always had trouble making it though. The coconut chutney we make almost every other day has the volume-providing coconut and roasted gram, which makes it wholesome. But the ingredients in green chutney grind themselves into an insubstantial paste. Make too much, it turns black and spoils before you can use it all, make too little and there’s hardly enough for the mini mixie jar to get its teeth into. Occasionally, I’ve even taken mortar and pestle to it, so that I can make just as much as I want. I made a decent sized batch today and I foresee sandwiches, samosa and pani-puri-at-home in the near future.</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-33177191174020909952022-06-21T13:22:00.003+05:302022-06-21T13:25:28.644+05:30Aamad Aamad!<p>Greetings, dear ones, on the occasion of the Summer Solstice.</p><p>Which also appropriately doubles up as the International Day of Yoga.<br /></p><p>And then also, today’s the day when Sadhguru returns home, after a gruelling, extremely arduous 100-day solo motorcycle journey to bring about awareness that our <a href="https://www.consciousplanet.org/" target="_blank">soil </a>is dying, and that we should do something drastic and now, if we are to save the earth from certain disaster.</p><p> </p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjaQ30qq1_Sn8hX_sci6ltrcaFTuPkUW73hUyvyXfUY5gY008F5xljtPZtb1c-966FYqV3d_O2AKe1TmQiuBtDuWDNDxInbx1p4HT4YpJSTaHitLYslFdmuLuWzKg0IG7MCSQ2ehy3xxn_yhY9JzCNecvzAn0mJsrKzNxoLI9LQM8BYFrRwOBI" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1215" data-original-width="777" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjaQ30qq1_Sn8hX_sci6ltrcaFTuPkUW73hUyvyXfUY5gY008F5xljtPZtb1c-966FYqV3d_O2AKe1TmQiuBtDuWDNDxInbx1p4HT4YpJSTaHitLYslFdmuLuWzKg0IG7MCSQ2ehy3xxn_yhY9JzCNecvzAn0mJsrKzNxoLI9LQM8BYFrRwOBI=w204-h320" width="204" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In today's <i><u>The Times of India</u></i><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj31Zc4QK_zF9GBj432PnFkLM5l0IRJ6LKvaANOjda3LZOEwGgjKGjaS_XKkU3k8RagFfqoI2o4TXUTpyxCWQPn_RITQjg6WUhTV0_-er1H2dwPAOBftbldB9e_O_e_O4AQtY87YDFc3ob31zik-drnsM0VwabVXq6ZPuCiG8QEESsX4UNQck0" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1239" data-original-width="758" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEj31Zc4QK_zF9GBj432PnFkLM5l0IRJ6LKvaANOjda3LZOEwGgjKGjaS_XKkU3k8RagFfqoI2o4TXUTpyxCWQPn_RITQjg6WUhTV0_-er1H2dwPAOBftbldB9e_O_e_O4AQtY87YDFc3ob31zik-drnsM0VwabVXq6ZPuCiG8QEESsX4UNQck0=w196-h320" width="196" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>Before he left, outlining his route through 27 nations and a variety of climates, he had asked, ‘do you think I’ll make it?’ I’ll admit now, it had struck chill in our hearts. What did he mean? Why was he even asking such a thing? Why even think of not making it? Because with assurance comes complacency. Because in safety, we are content to sit back a little. He was living life on the edge every moment, with no safety net; the next moment of life was a gift, not a privilege. So, I suppose, it is for all of us, whether on a motorcycle adventure or no.</p><p>***<br /></p><p>Somewhere on Day 2 or 3 of the journey, Sadhguru was riding through a drizzle. A volunteer in the pilot vehicle asked him over radio if he wished to pull over for a bit. There was a trace of a chuckle in Sadhguru’s voice: we have an event to get to, he’d said, let’s push on. <br /></p><p>Looking back at that moment makes me laugh – little did we know the weather conditions that awaited on the entire journey. Snow, rain, sleet, winds so strong they threatened to lift the front wheels of Sadhguru’s 350-kg bike, incessant poor visibility conditions with only one mad motorcyclist on the highways of Europe. Constantly getting from one place to the other on a tight schedule, events, meetings, interviews given on the move….<br /></p><p>Then in Arabia came the heat. 47˚C that melted the tar off the roads. I cannot even imagine being in a helmet with protective gear, poor guards against the tiny particles of sand that penetrated the nostrils and every pore of the body. Even in India, the heat continued through Gujarat and Rajasthan, and it was only when Sadhguru reached Maharashtra did the cool monsoons greet them. The last legs are done, and Sadhguru comes home today. <br /></p><p>Ask him why he goes through this, and he says it’s because he couldn’t get through to people otherwise. For us Isha walas, it’s been a restless time. Apart from raising a din about soil, there wasn’t enough to do except watch our Guru put himself through the most trying of penances. How to sleep soundly at night, knowing he’s out there riding through god knows what peril? Many stepped out on journeys of their own making, trying in spirit to be with him. One man set off from Kashi on foot to make his way to Isha Yoga Center in Coimbatore. He reached there last week. In Europe, many meditators set out to traverse parts of the ancient pilgrimage Via Francigena to greet Sadhguru in Rome. There have been innumerable motorcycle journeys, cycle journeys, marathons, padayatras across the world; one 11-year-old roller-skated from Hyderabad to Nagarjuna Sagar. <br /></p><p>It was the same spirit perhaps that had Shweta and me embarking on two huge itineraries in a span of a couple of months. Just before Sadhguru was flagged off in London, we toured the temples of Tamil Nadu, touching the four pancha bhuta sthalas (the fifth is in Andhra) and everything else we encountered en route. Then towards the end of the summer, we went to Maharashtra which holds four jyotirlingas and a rich cluster of samadhis. <br /></p><p>This morning, as I cooked, Nusrat and party sang <i>Khabaram raseed im shab ki nigaar khuahi aamad… </i>Tonight, word has come that the beloved arrives… </p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-23070409253274109722022-05-09T18:30:00.000+05:302022-05-09T18:30:00.156+05:30Part 3: Save Soil<p>Sadhguru is taking the Save Soil Movement to 4 billion people in the world. Tomorrow he will address the COP 15 at Cote d’Ivoire, urging 197 nations to enshrine policies for soil health. Already, since he set off on his lone motorcycle journey from London, Sadhguru has meandered through Europe and parts of the Middle East in a 100-day journey across 30,000 km. He has been talking to people, governments, UN bodies, media and organisations to make this come about. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1C-ZadKyW25Z1MmFzDl_6K9EgaUivpG1E1VrpB_YU0avhHiZQx8o7kIgUjaiFlOnTwPCRJ66u0xJwUL-9WyuR1UftuJivsZGBjcAol_YAQ9xrsGK7T4gRgrlNPHqsYvBkIvs8Skt62NpJWPi8KU1a4yMqWXjmrTORIwyGu_SP2FN68ts9uDQ/s3999/Sadhguru%20starts%20out%20from%20IYC.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3999" data-original-width="3200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1C-ZadKyW25Z1MmFzDl_6K9EgaUivpG1E1VrpB_YU0avhHiZQx8o7kIgUjaiFlOnTwPCRJ66u0xJwUL-9WyuR1UftuJivsZGBjcAol_YAQ9xrsGK7T4gRgrlNPHqsYvBkIvs8Skt62NpJWPi8KU1a4yMqWXjmrTORIwyGu_SP2FN68ts9uDQ/w512-h640/Sadhguru%20starts%20out%20from%20IYC.jpg" width="512" /></a></div> <p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS4MFeB_nv4WMo9cRtWiDfoOEJIN1FNc9_PF3KwlSreb8-jNICBEoVllC7eZUhEuR8GnggS1Hyb9CsEdqEmQE1k62WbevFOpr_0nrU3FsvTHatMotNwSbN_DcCNBlM42OdLrrAFKdg154o1BNVsnn6GL5ejAQbaSTaY7RZDx5r2rvWfXon4_w/s1620/Brussels%20-%20Precious%20soil..jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1620" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS4MFeB_nv4WMo9cRtWiDfoOEJIN1FNc9_PF3KwlSreb8-jNICBEoVllC7eZUhEuR8GnggS1Hyb9CsEdqEmQE1k62WbevFOpr_0nrU3FsvTHatMotNwSbN_DcCNBlM42OdLrrAFKdg154o1BNVsnn6GL5ejAQbaSTaY7RZDx5r2rvWfXon4_w/w640-h426/Brussels%20-%20Precious%20soil..jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>The response has been tremendous. It is amazing to see people so open, so willing to do what it takes to achieve this goal. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihdBoniGDwm1TSOMXe91zZ9elJdkd2jWyVm4PcWi3AlzL7XVPvU2u26i4xqf5MFpw0cSLv87vEFp8nL5bqJ8EYyo0LowLvdw9IlGQ1iJ30cnwcgdq4SdH-JEdB0XdUfgvPZTCePaQFhahINY5iZwemeW62EWJEJXu6n_1o22p0tNrDcugDzHw/s1620/Cologne%20-%20City%20Centre.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1620" height="426" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihdBoniGDwm1TSOMXe91zZ9elJdkd2jWyVm4PcWi3AlzL7XVPvU2u26i4xqf5MFpw0cSLv87vEFp8nL5bqJ8EYyo0LowLvdw9IlGQ1iJ30cnwcgdq4SdH-JEdB0XdUfgvPZTCePaQFhahINY5iZwemeW62EWJEJXu6n_1o22p0tNrDcugDzHw/w640-h426/Cologne%20-%20City%20Centre.jpg" width="640" /></a></div> <p></p><p>Please join in too 🙏! Push aside your inertia, put away your cynicism, overcome that feeling of resistance of being roped into some random do-gooding… this is REALLY important. For the sake of our children, we must do this. <br /></p><p>In about two decades or so, we will have 40% less food and a population of 9.3 billion people. It is not a pleasant prospect. UN Agencies are foreseeing civil wars, riots for food… oh, not in faraway Africa where anything can happen… they’re forecasting this for Chicago, for the USA, for the First World. Already 27 of 30 wars in Africa in recent decades have been over fertile lands. When they run out, about 1.2 billion people are projected to migrate. Where will they go? They will be at your doorstep, eyeing hungrily your morsel of food.</p><p>What we need to do right now is this: speak up and be heard by your government. <br />Here is a link: <a href="https://www.consciousplanet.org/letters">https://www.consciousplanet.org/letters</a><br /></p><p>The interface is simple. Put in your region, your name… it generates a letter that you can copy. Send it to the right people in your country with the emails provided. That is all. </p><p>Also, do speak on your social media about Soil and the crisis it is facing. The facts are all there on various UN and other informative websites. If that's all too much to trawl through, <a href="http://savesoil.org">savesoil.org</a> has plenty of shareable resources. I was shocked to learn that the situation was this bad, and you will likely be dismayed as well. However it is very much possible to tackle this if we make a loud enough din, because it just means bringing soil degradation into the narrative, which it simply has not been so far. The solution itself is simple, it's just a matter of awareness and will.<br /></p><p>When we turn around this soil crisis, you will have done something very critical for future generations: demanded a future worth living. <br /></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-55216617511919823262022-05-09T17:00:00.001+05:302022-05-09T17:00:00.166+05:30 Part 2: Holding All the Answers<p>How is the ecological crisis to be approached? Do we go on obsessing over coal and carbon, over who is to be blamed, who must bear the brunt and so on? Do we look for ways to harness solar energy and minimise our footprint? Do we research new and clean energy for our airplanes? Do we stop ravaging the seas? Do we change the way we eat? There are many discussions on many platforms but you will not have heard too many people talk of averting Soil Extinction. (Yes, there is such a thing and it is happening already in many parts of the world. About 52% of the world’s agricultural soil is degraded, severely impacting the quantity as well as the quality of our produce.)</p><p><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1L5rqNhsKDgEbl9zBuc6BTPHFc4I15mLwOpqa7xc3IfYqwI_3lafzfbvufXZ7j6Nt-4CVKYUKCZwLZWnTNQ0C62al5HtJOL8CKv_bfEm2c7c8YtZYC7kMiPROWGL2ieCycXDLCHLfY2L3yK50ruSJTtErJhLJ-z9ldL4OP-U-zetxLoFTI00/s1047/Desertification%20world.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="685" data-original-width="1047" height="418" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1L5rqNhsKDgEbl9zBuc6BTPHFc4I15mLwOpqa7xc3IfYqwI_3lafzfbvufXZ7j6Nt-4CVKYUKCZwLZWnTNQ0C62al5HtJOL8CKv_bfEm2c7c8YtZYC7kMiPROWGL2ieCycXDLCHLfY2L3yK50ruSJTtErJhLJ-z9ldL4OP-U-zetxLoFTI00/w640-h418/Desertification%20world.jpg" width="640" /></a></p><p>What does soil degradation mean? It means the lack or depletion of organic content in soil. Far from being inert, soil is a complex symbiotic system of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids and living organisms. It is alive. Take all this out, and soil is reduced to sand. A handful of rich soil contains 8-10 billion microorganisms – more than all the humans on earth. The soil is in fact an underground extension and counterpart of our own bodies, with its teeming microbial presence. After all, about 60% of our own bodies are microbes, aren’t they?</p><p>Oddly enough, soil seems to be underpinning factor for a number of ecological issues that we’re facing. Our problems with excess carbon in the atmosphere, our water scarcity, our problems with cycles of floods and drought, our dying rivers and streams, our suicidal farmers (who are finding growing food a heart-breaking business), the looming migration disaster across continents and also the upcoming food crisis. All these – I repeat ALL THESE – can be addressed by simply taking care of the soil.<br /></p><p>Rich soil, with plenty of green cover, massively sequesters carbon. Rich soil can hold eight times more water than all the rivers of the world. Rich soil feeds our rivers, releasing water slowly, sustainably. Rich organic soil doesn’t permit water run-off. Rich soil produces rich food and in turn strong, healthy human beings.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Pa_Zk9iNmG43-l_nvGQUSvd1EvmzVujYuc7tO35Sd98qGIWsNojTkrz9gn1MgbUIikU7WHA4CoCxwbBLcJAMDdZ-W-MhS5ne7z70aLk5D5QI_n8fBnTfhcsM0DTphUoIuqAJN0gFSKqz6anRQg1B8cstRzPEeTdDSpR7nvxSJtiFIxMACeA/s985/Screenshot%202022-05-09%20161830.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="772" data-original-width="985" height="502" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-Pa_Zk9iNmG43-l_nvGQUSvd1EvmzVujYuc7tO35Sd98qGIWsNojTkrz9gn1MgbUIikU7WHA4CoCxwbBLcJAMDdZ-W-MhS5ne7z70aLk5D5QI_n8fBnTfhcsM0DTphUoIuqAJN0gFSKqz6anRQg1B8cstRzPEeTdDSpR7nvxSJtiFIxMACeA/w640-h502/Screenshot%202022-05-09%20161830.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><p><br />This is what Sadhguru has taken up – a global movement to save soil. It is an awareness campaign to alert the citizens of the world to this problem and at once, to introduce it to the solution. (It is characteristic of Sadhguru that he never points to a problem without bringing in the solution as well.) In this case, it is absurdly simple: bring about policy to ensure that agricultural soil has a minimum of 3-6% organic content. This is amazingly easy to do and there are hundreds of ways to do it. There are two sources of organic content: animal waste and plant matter. This needs to go back into the soil. <br /></p><p>Governments across the world need to enshrine this into their policy – and farmers need incentives to do this. In India, a simple device like mandating a cover crop during the harsh summer months is a matter of merely Rs 450 per acre. Just throw some seed, any seed, make sure the land stays under shade, take whatever low yields there are and put the stalks and haulms back into the earth. That’s all. In 5-8 years, the organic content creeps up, enriching the topsoil and we will have successfully averted soil extinction.<br /></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-7758305323634050952022-05-08T16:07:00.001+05:302022-05-09T16:07:55.625+05:30Part 1: Sickening for Something<p>The first time I was made sharply aware that we humans weren’t doing a grand job of living in harmony with nature was when I was in high school. One of our textbooks had an extract by the fabulous Gerald Durrell, British naturalist, conservationist, and writer, from a book called <i>Catch me a Colobus</i>. The book is full of adventures in Sierra Leone, where Durrell sought rare endangered animals to bring home to <a href="https://www.durrell.org/wildlife/" target="_blank">his zoo</a>, which was intended to help conserve various species from dying out entirely.<br /><br />In the final chapter, ‘<i>Animals for Ever’ </i>he makes a desperate plea for some sense in our dealing with the world around us. He speaks of how humans drove to near extinction two abundant species that no one before could’ve imagined dying out. One of them was the Passenger Pigeon, one of the most numerous avian species ever and the other was the North American Bison. The latter was hunted as a matter of policy, and its slaughter was carried out as a way to starve Native Americans into submission. ‘Every Buffalo Dead Is an Indian Gone’ – that was the cry that led to this horrendous pile of buffalo skulls in this picture taken in Michigan, USA, in 1892.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBngF4ZJshVImjTc1Hea0xEAD8furKISb92x3E4y79om6wZ7V5LF3qWyEiTrWC7jTEMq_ihtrVbeHJSe59mfZYpGO55Q5AeFOXml3kvGy9jCj81VoXR44HWa8UzxX_Wn4XHGhh_giwfXrI4h4cBPqYgcr0Y0k1w1v_TFF2rJ98DGsWnO6x80/s650/Bison_skull_pile-restored.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="650" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaBngF4ZJshVImjTc1Hea0xEAD8furKISb92x3E4y79om6wZ7V5LF3qWyEiTrWC7jTEMq_ihtrVbeHJSe59mfZYpGO55Q5AeFOXml3kvGy9jCj81VoXR44HWa8UzxX_Wn4XHGhh_giwfXrI4h4cBPqYgcr0Y0k1w1v_TFF2rJ98DGsWnO6x80/w400-h313/Bison_skull_pile-restored.webp" width="400" /></a></div><p>A passage from his book so stirred my emotions, it awoke a gnawing worry for this planet that has never since left me. Durrell writes:<br /><br /></p><blockquote>“…even today the majority of people do not realise the extent to which we are destroying the world we live in. We are like a set of idiot children, let loose with poison, saw, sickle, shotgun and rifle, in a complex and beautiful garden that we are slowly but surely turning into a barren and infertile desert. It is quite possible that in the last few weeks or so, one mammal, one bird, one reptile, and one plant or tree, have become extinct. I hope not but I know for certain that in the same time one mammal, bird, reptile, and plant or tree, have been driven just that much nearer to oblivion.<br /><br />The world is as delicate and as complicated as a spider’s web, and like a spider’s web, if you touch one thread, you send shudders running through all the other threads that make up the web. But we’re not just touching the web, we’re tearing great holes in it; we’re waging a sort of biological war on the world around us. We are felling forests quite unnecessarily and creating dust bowls, and thereby even altering the climate. We are clogging our rivers with industrial filth, and we are now polluting the sea and the air.<br /><br />…Conservation means preserving the life of the whole world, be it trees or plants, be it even man himself. It is to be remembered that some tribes have been exterminated very successfully in the last few hundred years and that others are being harried to extinction today – the Patagonian Indians, the Eskimoes, and so on. By our thoughtlessness, our greed and our stupidity we will have created, within the next fifty years or perhaps even less, a biological situation whereby we will find it difficult to live in the world at all. We are breeding like rats and this population explosion must be halted in some way. All religious factions, all political factions, the governments of the world, must face facts, for if we persist in ignoring them then, breeding like rats, we will have to die like them also.”</blockquote><br />Grim words, but so prescient! Fifty years, he’d said. He wrote this in 1972. Exactly half a century ago. Climate change is now a fact of life, we are further devastating the planet in myriad ways, driving our fellow creatures into desperate pockets for basic survival, and in many cases towards outright extinction. Right now, of the assessed biodiversity, there are more than 142,500 species on <i>The IUCN Red List</i>, and more than 40,000 species are marked as being threatened with extinction, including 41% of amphibians, 37% of sharks and rays, 34% of conifers, 33% of reef building corals, 26% of mammals and 13% of birds.<br /><br />Our agricultural practices are so unthinking, we are losing about 27,000 species (yes, 27,000 species!) of soil microbial life every year. Sawing off the very branch that we sit on… do we really imagine we can live well without having a healthy planet as well?<br /><p></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-23391219330096211152022-03-20T09:08:00.000+05:302022-11-25T20:13:56.615+05:30Just Back<p>Just got back yesterday from a huge 12-day temple run of Tamil Nadu. <br /></p><p>A ‘south tour’ is a pretty much mandatory school excursion but I don’t know how it came about that I had never visited many of these places before. But I am glad that these were not ticked off in while in an unripe state, but instead visited with my faculties open, sharp and receptive.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgYt5cN797n49CwPEPR7eIzOvIYwROlz3wMfNmfGKcANXQ9rDKZoNHlkwbq7U_P2-BDQY6G8BZcvnQG0gIkwj9vroW2pWFpzK656EZqJXoGrF41aoZIB3BT7nxhKb-I96MxsjYpGkTk6B5ScDhPFZEDNsIDGpQr6NJEaR6foz5eyJDTPYqtcFY=s1077" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1077" data-original-width="800" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgYt5cN797n49CwPEPR7eIzOvIYwROlz3wMfNmfGKcANXQ9rDKZoNHlkwbq7U_P2-BDQY6G8BZcvnQG0gIkwj9vroW2pWFpzK656EZqJXoGrF41aoZIB3BT7nxhKb-I96MxsjYpGkTk6B5ScDhPFZEDNsIDGpQr6NJEaR6foz5eyJDTPYqtcFY=w298-h400" title="Thillai Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram" width="298" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thillai Nataraja Temple, Chidambaram<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p><p>What an experience! What to say first, how to order my thoughts, which aspects to touch on? Too much to say, too much to imbibe, too many bags to unpack, too many clothes to wash.<br /></p><p>So I’ll be doing a small series in the days to come, trying to share the most essential aspects of this memorable tour.<br /></p><p></p><p><i><span style="font-size: x-small;">(Picture: By Jean-Pierre Dalbéra from Paris, France - Le temple de Shiva Nataraja (Chidambaram, Inde), CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=37214047)</span></i><br /><br /></p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-8803640475717509662021-12-31T15:54:00.002+05:302021-12-31T15:54:27.309+05:30Phir wahi dil<p>As I made the bed this morning, loath to waste even five minutes to a mundane job, I played on YouTube the superlative ‘<i>Aawaz deke humein tum bulao</i>’. Just under five minutes and it sucked me into a vortex of nostalgia. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhSH47EBo433NQxBruFyD41zYy0CSR7clxm9beKbRdRWZuiniCEzygf2L8x-BOLCtjNG26wJ2DBD2NrsW1ZxtNv93r8KggHA_miVqCBJn98_q5TbKvOnqfjcza6podjdMS7dMGhKdwKv1K5HlkVBON3nKE_hri0MV4aLhWTTfffZLjZgVIjsPk=s1911" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="895" data-original-width="1911" height="188" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhSH47EBo433NQxBruFyD41zYy0CSR7clxm9beKbRdRWZuiniCEzygf2L8x-BOLCtjNG26wJ2DBD2NrsW1ZxtNv93r8KggHA_miVqCBJn98_q5TbKvOnqfjcza6podjdMS7dMGhKdwKv1K5HlkVBON3nKE_hri0MV4aLhWTTfffZLjZgVIjsPk=w400-h188" width="400" /></a></div><p>Movies in India have morphed so much. There are grim, dreary, bleak reflections of society, there are political statements, social statements… always, always pontificating on something or the other; revealing the underbelly of something or the other, taking a stand on something or the other. In a sense, they have all become very masculine: hard, primarily concerned with the outside, with the larger picture; rather than feminine, which is soft, and more about the particular, the subjective and individual experience.</p><p>Are we never to see any particular stories about human beings anymore? Or for that matter even a genuine lip-sync song? Have we been embarrassed out of our natural and spontaneous musicals? It seems the only songs that are sung out are those performed on stage, or item songs. The rest are background scores. Am I wrong? <br /></p><p>I don’t remember the plot of ‘<i>Professor</i>’ and don’t remember the context for this intensely romantic song set in Raga Shivaranjani. How inspired were Shankar-Jaikishan with this one… the faintly ominous large drum in the beginning, yielding space to the tabla and Lata Mangeshkar’s soaring voice… The song pulls you in, makes you wonder what is up with these two people… <br />How wonderful would it be if we could have such mellow, romantic stories made with all the wonderful filmmaking techniques and technology we have today! <br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nOTxejJPvHY" width="320" youtube-src-id="nOTxejJPvHY"></iframe><br /> </p><p>***<br /><br />I was discussing this with my sister the other day. How is it that OTT platforms, which have mushroomed in such large numbers, have not yet tapped into this wonderful bank of old classics in any language? Where are the Hitchcocks, the Gene Kelly musicals, the b/w favourites? The Shammi Kapoor hits, the Joy Mukherjee must-watches, the Best of Dev Anand, Dilip Kumar, Filmfare awardees of 4-5 decades ago? Where are the Telugu mythologicals and socials? I don’t know about the economics in connection with Hollywood fare, but surely Indian goldies must be low hanging fruit? </p><p>Maybe they'll get there eventually?</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-66147590332315204942021-12-03T15:29:00.001+05:302021-12-03T15:31:08.417+05:30Handover<p>Twelve years since these anguished posts [<a href="https://sheetalvyas.blogspot.com/2009/11/essence-of-rue.html" target="_blank">1</a>] [<a href="https://sheetalvyas.blogspot.com/2009/12/outlook-bleak.html" target="_blank">2</a>] [<a href="https://sheetalvyas.blogspot.com/2009/12/pack-up.html" target="_blank">3</a>].<br /> <br />Twelve years since my mother passed. A full solar cycle comes to a close in a few months. It seems just like the other day, and yet it feels like a lifetime or two have passed.<br /><br />I think I've said before that my mother dealt with the news of imminent death with a rare fortitude and pragmatism. She called for the ‘bank bag’, signed a few blank cheques, made sure the papers were in good order. She roughly planned the menu for the 13th day death rites. She said her goodbyes with love, and kindness almost – she left behind a legion of bereaved people, each of whom had experienced her friendship in their own unique way.<br /></p><p>As she lay very fatigued from the aggressive cancer, I remember bringing her a dozen <i>dabbas </i>from the kitchen, ascertaining the precise nature of the myriad unlabelled powders on the shelves. “That is <i>vangi bhaath </i>powder, that is Nagamani aunty’s recipe for curries… that pickle mix is old, throw it away…” A handing over of the kitchen in a manner of speaking. <br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilfIQVj8rzmZ12p9qcmU3cD13GLZaet6pGqweCfuzFHW2Doua-dNjfi-NEfFpdkUs50H6tDdI4k2Hn6UhhmsBBIoDLWzzcjSglgR16VQTotcWSbdPiPH4fz56vHI10GdVpsiiidg//" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img data-original-height="1362" data-original-width="2048" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilfIQVj8rzmZ12p9qcmU3cD13GLZaet6pGqweCfuzFHW2Doua-dNjfi-NEfFpdkUs50H6tDdI4k2Hn6UhhmsBBIoDLWzzcjSglgR16VQTotcWSbdPiPH4fz56vHI10GdVpsiiidg/w400-h266/011.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>And I took down a few recipes and ratios the way she made them – the staple <i>idli </i>and <i>dosa</i>, a couple of powders. “For <i>adai</i>,” she told my sister, “just leave it to your father. Only, he tends to make the batter a little too thick, so just add a little water when you make them.” She was so right – my father’s <i>adai hittu </i>ranks among the best in the world.<br /><br />To mark that sharply-etched time, I have Johana West’s (bitter)sweet haiku.<br /><br /><i>old family recipe<br />hoping our hands<br />are the same size</i><br /><br />From a time when recipes weren’t written in cup measures but were an intuitive affair involving a pinch of this, a dollop of that and as my mother said back then, indicating less than a quarter of her hand, ‘<i>ondu ishtu uppu</i>’ (this much salt).</p>Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8625527.post-24801626531314127442021-09-27T16:12:00.003+05:302021-10-05T18:07:41.468+05:30Ram naam ras paan<p>Kumarji has been an acquired taste for me. Although I’d hear some pieces repeatedly, the unique aesthetic that he crafted escaped me with the more technical renditions. But he’s grown on me over the years. During the Samyama program (one of the advanced programs at Isha), they played on loop a few Nirguni bhajans by him. In the state I was in – open, empty – my Master seeped into me in Kumar Gandharva’s voice.<br /><br />For a few days now I’ve had this earworm. Raga Kalyan in which Kumarji sings a small <i>tukda </i>from <i>Ramcharitmanas</i>. A gorgeous <i>gorgeous </i>piece. Someone in the comments elucidates that the whole verse goes like this:<br /><br />देखराबा मातहिं निज अद्भुत रूप अखंड।<br />रोम रोम प्रति लगो कोटि कोटि ब्रह्माँड॥<br />अगनित रवि शशि सिव चतुरानन।<br />बहुगिरि सरित सिंधु महिकानन॥<br />काल कर्म गुन ग्यान सुभाऊ।<br />सोउ देखा जो सुना न काऊ॥<br /></p><p>This, I understand, is from an episode from the Baal Kanda, where Kaushalya is given a glimpse of the Lord’s <i>vishvaroopa</i>:<br /><br /><i>She saw therein countless suns and moons, Sivas and four-faced Brahmas, and a number of mountains, rivers, oceans, plains and woods, as well as the spirit of time, the principle of action, the modes of Prakrti (Sattva, Rajas and Tamas), the spirit of knowledge and Nature and many more things of which she had never heard before.<br /></i>(Translation from Ramcharitmanas.org)<br /><br />Of Krishna’s <i>vishwaroopa darshanam </i>I had heard many times but I had not known that Tulsidasji describes Rama showing his mother the Truth as well.<br /><br />Listening to these four lines leaves me in a jumble of replete bliss scrubbed in with shades of longing, regret, and a certain grasping greed. If four lines, taken out of context can be so beautiful, the mind wishes to acquire all of <i>Ramcharitmanas</i>. It doesn’t work that way, but that is the mind’s way.<br /><br />Anyway, here it is, Kumar Gandharva with <i>Aganita Ravi</i>:<br /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyWhNcKGmHY">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyWhNcKGmHY</a></p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" class="BLOG_video_class" height="266" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cyWhNcKGmHY" width="320" youtube-src-id="cyWhNcKGmHY"></iframe></div><br />Sheetalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09510943066024076305noreply@blogger.com2