Many years back, when I visited the National Museum in Delhi, one of the images that I was most impressed by, was the Surya from Konark. I remember being rooted to the ground as I stood in front of the sculpture, admiring every detail, simply unable to walk away. There are various ideas of where the sculpture was placed in the temple, but wherever it was placed, there is no question that it would have drawn all eyes. I remember wondering back then, if this single sculpture was so impressive, how much more impressive the temple would have been! The first thing that struck me about the Konark temple during my first visit, was its size. I have seen huge ancient temples before – the Brihadeeshwara temple and the Kandariya Mahadev temple, to name just two. However, Konark was something else. It was awe-inspiring to even think of just how much larger the original temple would have been, with its main spire intact. So many years later, on my second visit, the size was still impressive, bu...
The month of July brings along more than just the rain – it marks the beginning of the most auspicious period of the year, a period dotted with festivals. The first of these is the Varalakshmi Puja, the south Indian equivalent of the Lakshmi Puja during Diwali. This is strictly a family festival, the right for performing the puja being handed over from mother-in-law to daughter-in-law. I would love to give you a glimpse into the grand way we perform the puja at home, but unfortunately, we are in a period of mourning, and haven’t performed the puja for the last two years. Hopefully, the period will end this year, and we can get along with our festivals… Meanwhile, I accompanied my sister to buy the flowers required for the puja. Join us in our trip….. The flower market at Dadar is certainly the most popular, the most crowded, and the place to be if you want fresh and wonderful flowers, at the best rates, of course…… Here is a photoblog of our journey… Our very first halt - all s...