Blogs from India, Asia

Mumurtivasam, Kanchipuram (Abode of the Trio) The Ekambareshwar (Shiva) temple, Kamakshi Amman (Parvati) temple and the Varadaraja Perumal (Vishnu) temple together are popularly known as the Mumurtivasam (Mu - Three, Murti – Idol/Deity, Vasam - Aroma. Ekambareshwar temple – Once, Parvati was performing penance on Shiva in the form of a Prithvi Lingam, made out of sand under a mango tree, to expatiate herself from a curse. The Vegavati River (which was years ago created by Shiva to satisfy a sage’s thirst) overflowed and was about to destroy the lingam. Parvati hugged the lingam to protect it. This gesture of Parvati touched Shiva immensely and he materialised in person in front of her and she was liberated from the curse. The mango tree where this happened exists in the temple and is believed to be several ... read more

Lord Brahma once performed penance to see Lord Vishnu’s original form. After several years of penance, Vishnu appeared in front of Brahma in a Ranga Vimana – a special chariot of the Lord carried by 4 Veda deities on their head and sleeping on the coils of the serpent Ananta Shesha. The Ranga Vimana was worshiped by Lord Brahma who later gave the Vimana to King Ishwaku (Lord Rama’s ancestors) on Lord Vishnu’s (Ranganatha) desire. The Vimana was worshipped in Ayodhya by the Ishwaku dynasty and finally by Lord Rama. Lord Rama gave the Vimana to Vibhishana – the brother of Ravana – at the Pattabhishekham, the ceremony where he was crowned as the king of Lanka after Ravana’s death. This ceremony was held at Dhanushkodi Tamil Nadu, near Rameshwaram, after Lord Rama returned from Lanka. ... read more

Goddess Shakthi separated from Lord Shiva to help Lord Brahma in creating the universe. In order to re-unite with Shiva, Shakthi was born as Daksha’s (Lord Brahma’s son) daughter - Sati. When Sati grew up, she fell in love with Shiva and wanted to marry him. However, Daksha was furious with Shiva as he had cut Brahma’s fifth head to curb his unholy behaviour in the past. Thus, he was against this marriage. Sati went against the wishes of her father and married Shiva. One day, Daksha arranged for a grand yajna and invited all the devas but intentionally left Shiva and Sati out of the invite list. Sati wanted to attend the yajna and went ahead even after Shiva tried to persuade her against it. Daksha insulted Shiva in the presence of Sati and all ... read more

Renuka ji the hidden jewel of Himachal Pradesh Hidden amidst the thickly forested serene hills is set one of the prettiest mountain lakes in india and the biggest in Himachal Pradesh,India is Renuka Ji. Renukaji lake and temple are a well kept secret of Himachal Pradesh. Renuka ji is situated in sirmaur district of Himachal Pradesh in India and is approx around 672 m or around 2132 Ft above sea level. This place is around 37 kms from Nahan. We wanted a quick easy weekend trip and also to rejuvenate ourselves we planned a trip to Renuka ji. My trip started from New Delhi and i travelled alongwith my family by my own car. This was my first visit to Renuka ji although i have travelled a lot in Himachal Pradesh. Sirmour District is least known ... read more

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