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Orissa Trip Day 1 – Lingaraj Temple

The readers of this blog know, that we plan our annual vacations meticulously. We choose a different country every year and we start planning 6 months ahead. This year we chose Thailand – Bangkok and surrounding areas to be precise. But it was not to be. The Chao Praya river started flooding Bangkok and Ayutthaya. Even after the flood waters receded we heard that Bangkok had mounds of garbage on the streets & Ayutthaya remained closed to visitors.

“Why not choose a place in India, particularly, a state that we don’t know much about, a state with rich cultural heritage, we thought”.

We zeroed in on Orissa, the Land of the Kalingas, and the birthplace of the Odissi Dance.

The day we landed, we decided to visit the Lingaraj temple, the most famous temple in Bhubaneshwar [http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lingaraja_Temple]. It was built by the King Yayati Keshari (Keshari Dynasty) in the 11th century AD and is an excellent example of the Kalinga style of architecture. It was originally intended to be a Shaivite shrine but since the Vaishnavite sect was becoming stronger in Puri, it was converted into a Hari Hara (Shiva – Vishnu) temple. They perform both Shaivite & Vaishnavite rituals every day. For example, they do Anna prasad for Vishnu & Abhishekam for Shiva, Vilva leaves for Shiva & Tulsi leaves for Vishnu… Incidentally, the Abhishekam is done with milk, water, honey, – and Bhang 🙂

Many people had warned us about the Pandas (brahmin priest) beforehand. Little did we know that the Pandas rule the temple. There’s no use trying to sneak the guides in, for the Pandas will never let them in.

This would be okay if the Pandas had knowledge about the architecture, history etc. But that’s not the case.

All they know are the rituals around the temple and the superstitions involved, such as, hugging the sthamb (column) in the main courtyard will cure you of gastric trouble.

So, unless you are a devoutly religious person, give the Lingaraj temple, the skip. There are other more beautiful temples in Bhubaneshwar without the din & chaos of Lingaraj. More on that in later posts.

I used to think that the Parthasarathy temple in Chennai was unclean. But where garbage & stench are concerned Lingaraj is really the Raj. Why the pious would keep a 1,000 year old temple in such squalid conditions is beyond our imagination. Shame on the ASI (Archaeological Survey of India).

In all old Hindu temples, the sanctum santorum has a “special” smell – the smell of vibhuti (sacred ash), rancid oil, milk, burning camphor etc. But the stench in the holiest of holies in the Lingaraj was literally gut wrenching. Our 4 year old daughter squeaked “mom, I have to vomit”. It looked like we were the only people having a problem with the stench.

There are 108 small temples in the Lingaraj temple complex. Most of them had no Hundi, and people had dropped their coins & notes on to a cloth spread in front of the temple door.

Another interesting observation is the garb of the priest. In the South, priests mostly wear white or off white dhoties. In the Lingaraj temple, most of the priests wore pink or pink & white checked dhoties. Our guide said that the priests wear different colors based on the deity they manage – white for Shiva, saffron or yellow for Vishnu, and red or pink for Mother Goddess.

From a symbology perspective, on top of the tower above the sanctum sanctorum, Shiva temples have the Trident, Vishnu temples have the Chakra. Lingaraj is a Hari Hara temple and hence the top of the tower is adorned by Lord Rama’s Bow. In the sanctum sanctorum, the usual base of the Lingam is present, but the actual Lingam has been replaced by a shapeless rock symbolizing Vishnu. The priest said it is a Shaligram, but it didn’t look anything like one. Instead it looked like the vertical (phallic) part of the Lingam had been smashed and the remnants are now worshipped as Shaligram.

In the exterior of the main tower, we could see several erotic sculptures. Perhaps the substratum influence of the old fertility religion. Unfortunately, no photos allowed. The guards frisked us to make sure we couldn’t take even our cellphones inside.

Later on in the tour, we managed to take a picture from a viewing platform built for non-Hindus who are not allowed inside. The view was magnificent. We’ll share it alongside the photo essay later on.

– jointly written by Sukumar & Priya

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FTOTW22 – best links of the week ending 15-January-2012

Prolog

Here are the best links shared on my tweet stream this week.

Best Links

1. rsukumar: The American Scholar: Solitude and Leadership – William Deresiewicz FTOTW Link 621 ~ brilliant /Via @milindsathe-linkedin

2. rsukumar: RT @Papulli: 106 Excuses That Prevent You From Ever Becoming Great FTOTW Link 622 ~ brilliant compilation.

3. rsukumar: RT @edyong209: This year, the Ekso Bionics exoskeleton for paraplegics hits the market FTOTW Link 623 ~ Amazing

4. rsukumar: How To Be More Interesting (In 10 Simple Steps) – Forbes FTOTW Link 624 ~ brilliant /Via @TeaeMKay

5. rsukumar: RT @SudhaKanago @NilimDutta: The Kasomari Monoliths: Re-exploring Kachari Grandeur FTOTW Link 625 ~ vv interesting & fascinating

Epilog

Hope enjoyed the links? Did you come across any good links you want to share? Please share in the comments below.

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FTOTW21 – best links of the week ending 8-January-2012

Prolog

Here are the best links shared on my tweet stream this week.

Best Links

1. rsukumar: RT @brainpicker: 5 unsung heroes who shaped our lives FTOTW Link 201 ~ brilliant finds.

2. rsukumar: RT @jobsworth: Knowing how & knowing y vs. knowing what: what makes a good question FTOTW Link 202 ~ brilliant.Has neuroscience basis.

3. rsukumar: RT @PriyaRaju @S_Sivakumar: To learn a language faster, gesture! FTOTW Link 203 ~ vv interesting

4. rsukumar: RT @purusothaman: Here’s How to Get a Big AHA! FTOTW Link 204 #innovation #creativity ~ vv insightful

5. rsukumar: RT @prakasank: #Innovation on Low (or No) Budget; good read, the point we need to emphasize always.. FTOTW Link 205 ~ vv insightful

6. rsukumar: /Via @prakasank MIT Sloan: why market dominance may force your customers to defect FTOTW Link 206 ~ vv insightful

7. rsukumar: RT @arunavabose: How Yoga Can Wreck Your Body FTOTW Link 207 ~ vv insightful & scary must read for yoga practitioners

Epilog

Hope enjoyed the links? Did you come across any good links you want to share? Please share in the comments below.

References

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FTOTW20 – best links of the week ending 1-January-2012

Prolog

Here is wishing all the readers a spectacular & swashbuckling new year 2012. Thank you for the support & encouragement throughout the year.

Here are the best links shared on my tweet stream this week.

Best Links

1.      rsukumar: RT @rKrsna_kk: Steve Jobs and the Eureka Myth: FTOTW Link 160 v insightful ~ vv insightful indeed
2.      rsukumar: RT @purusothaman: Achievement vs. Success FTOTW Link 161 ~ vv insightful
3.      rsukumar: RT @purusothaman: The dark side of creative people FTOTW Link 162#creativity #innovation ~ vv          interesting.
4.     RT @danariely: Refueling Options at Hertz http://wp.me/p5oiR-HA ~ vv interesting5. RT @bijli: Captain Haddock’s Drink problem: Fascinating look at how Tintin depicts alcoholism: http://slate.me/tZilqr ~ vv interesting #tintinology

   6. RT @ralph_ohr: Daniel Goleman on ‘What Moves Us?’ –http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-brain-and-emotional-intelligence/201112/motivation-what-moves-us #motivation ~ vv insightful

   7. RT @prakasank: http://onforb.es/vdBImh Why “Yes” is a Better Answer than “No” I think we should ban the word NO for leaders! ~ vv insightful

   8. RT @grantmason: RT @m1ke_ellis: RT @newsycombinator: the 5 regrets people make on their deathbed http://j.mp/sJ92un ~ vv interesting

   9. RT @tdebaillon @CreatvEmergence: The Wisdom Of Trees (Da Vinci’s pattern) – NPR: http://n.pr/vWmJGw via @Jason_Silva ~ amazing

   10. RT @yarapavan: Overjustification Effect http://j.mp/vFExQ1 ~ essay on money & happiness from @notsmartblog ~ brilliant +exlnt citatns

   11. RT @purusothaman: Why Organizational #Innovation Is So Difficulthttp://ow.ly/89JKR ~ vv insightful

   12. RT @Papulli: China Makes Almost Nothing Out of Apple’s iPads & iPhones http://onforb.es/ujzqzg ~ vv insightful. same with ipod also.

    

Epilog

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FTOTW19 – best links of the week ending 25-December-2011

Prolog

Here are the best links shared on my tweet stream this week.

Best Links

1. rsukumar: RT @wimrampen The Amazing Power of Deflationary Economics for Startups FTOTW Link 158 by @msuster ~ brilliant /cc @ericries
2. rsukumar: To Develop Expertise, Motivation is Necessary but Insufficient « Freakonomics FTOTW Link 159 ~ vv insightful /via santosh kumar
3. RT @GautamGhosh: Great read on gamification RT @armano: Social Media’s Envy Effect http://pulse.me/s/4fjFK ~ vv insigthful
4. RT @edyong209 @RichardWiseman: The best advice on creativity what I have ever read http://bit.ly/hUUzI5 by @austinkleon ~ brilliant
5. RT @gvaidees: http://bit.ly/sIWEbD – Asian food tastes good as it avoids ‘food pairing’. Interesting possibilities ~ vv interesting

Epilog

Hope enjoyed the links? Did you come across any good links you want to share? Please share in the comments below.

References

I use a certain ratings scale for my annotations which are explained here.