Blogs from Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu, India, Asia

According to our Shiva Mahapurana, one day Vishnu and Brahma had an argument over their superiority. Shiva appeared in front of them in the form of a raging fire and asked them to each find the tip of the fire. Whoever reaches the tip would be superior between the two. Brahma went upwards and Vishnu downwards in search of the tip, however Shiva increased the length of the flaming fire continuously. After thousands of miles, Vishnu conceded defeat and returned. Brahma was getting exhausted and, on the way, saw the Ketaki flower. He made Ketaki agree to lie that Brahma had indeed reached the top where the flower had resided and got the flower from there. When Brahma confronted Vishnu with Ketaki, Shiva appeared in his true form in front of them. Shiva was angered by ... read more

14th December 2019. After spending 2 days in Kanchipuram 12th &13th Dec 2019. Started to Tiruvannamalai at 5.45 am by Selam bus reached Tiruvannamali by 9.10 am ie 3 &1/2 hours. Immediately took an auto to visit & pray Arulmigu Arunachaleshwar Temple Thiruvannamalai (http://www.arunachaleswarartemple.tnhrce.in/). It took 1 & 1/2 hours to get darshanam. There is a Rs 20 ticket for a priority queue but that is also heavily populated. You can not spend much time in front of the Diety. The temple is an excellent and good pious atmosphere. within the campus, there is Parvathy temple known as Arultharum Unnamulaiamman After having darshan Arulmigu Arunachaleshwar Temple set out for the darshan of Ashta Lingas ( 8 different Shiva Lingam small temple around Tiruvannamali pradkshinam route. The Lingas include Panchbhutam Tiruvannamalai is one of the greatest Saivite ... read more

Sometime I do a have a question for myself whether I really do believe in god or it was the myth which drives me to ‘bow’ in front of the Almighty. Life was playing a hard ball with me and I was traumatizing on how to deal with it. I knew that sooner or later I had to stand in front of any temple seeking blessings and pouring ‘amens’. This Southern part of India mainly Tamilnadu has a lot of Temples to offer. Almost all of them has some or the other religious ‘to do’s’. It was really a long list to chose from. Above all, to any temple, I just stand motionless and enjoy the architecture, the religious beliefs and moreover the colorful offerings. Don’t know if that makes my god a happy one. This ... read more

Nach nun fast 2 Monaten in denen ich unterwegs bin, gibt’s jetzt den nächsten Bericht. Zum Ende meines Aufenthaltes in Puttaparthi hab ich noch einen Ausflug zum 300 km weit entfernten Ort Sri Kalahasti und Tirupathi gemacht. Beides sind wichtige Orte für indische Pilger und in Tirupathi ist einer der heiligsten und größten Tempelanlagen Indiens. Unglaublich, welche Menschenmassen dorthin pilgern. Und absolut undenkbar für Europäer wie sich Inder verhalten, wenn sie in solchen Massen zusammenkommen. Ein Gedränge und Geschiebe ohnegleichen! Sollte jemand Platzangst haben, ist er dort an solchen Orten definitive an der falschen Stelle. Ob die Tempelanlagen dort kraftvoll sind oder nicht kann ich nicht wirklich beurteilen, denn ich hatte nicht mal Raum zum Atmen geschweige denn Raum um in die Anlagen hinein zu fühlen. Man stelle sich ein Fließband vor das nicht wirklich existiert, ... read more

As our time in Tiruvannamalai draws to an end, it seems appropriate to share more of the spiritual side of this journey with you. Once again, not your typical travel blog! Lucas shares a story which originated with Eckhart Tolle.. It is the story of a great Guru who one day announced to his following that he was finally prepared to share his secret to enlightenment. His disciples came from far and wide to hear their teachers secret. As the day approached, the excitement grew. When the day finally arrived, the Guru’s disciples filled a great hall. The Guru entered and sat in silence for many moments as the anticipation filled the air. At last he uttered the words that all had waited to hear. “I don’t mind.” Lucas and I reread Herman Hesse’s, Sidhartha while ... read more