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Newasa - Encountering an unique form of Vishnu, and Sant Jnaneshwar

The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
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Navaratri Day 8: A Golu which tells us a story

Finally catching up with my Navaratri posts, here is the celebration at Fine Arts, Chembur. The Bommai Kolu is just as grand as ever, the 15 steps towering over everyone!




There are three additional steps this time, added on the side! 






Here are a few glimpses of the beautiful toys that adorn this golu.








But the most interesting thing here is the side decoration, which depicts a story through hand crafted dolls. This time, the story is  - Shankuntalam!



I will let the display tell its own story....

Birth of Shakuntala

Shakuntala is raised by Kanva Rishi

Shakuntala meets Dushyanta

Shakuntala and Dushyanta are married

Kanva Rishi decides that Shakuntala be sent to Dushyanta's palace

Shakuntala loses the ring given by Dushyanta

At Dushyanta's court. he does not remember Shakuntala, till the fisherman produces the ring

Bharata - the one  who gave his name to  the country
That't it, as far as Golus this year are concerned. I will hopefully have something more to write for the last couple of days of the festival, so stay tuned!

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Location: The Fine Art Society, Chembur (E), Postal Colony, Kurla East, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400071, India

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