A 5 am departure from Bangalore and we were on our way to the Hassan District of Karnataka on the National Highway 75. It was seat of the Hoysala Empire which at its peak ruled large parts of south India from Belur as its early capital and Halebidu as its later capital during the period 1000 - 1334 CE. It has … Continue reading Temples of Mavinkere and the Hoysala Temples in Malnad Region, Karnataka ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Temples
Temples of Bangalore- The Kalika Durga Parmeswari temple, Vidyaranyapura ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Navaratri- the festival to celebrate the feminine energy or Shakti has just gotten over, but we need the grace of the Mother Goddesses at all time. The term Shakti refers to multiple ideas. Its general definition is dynamic energy that is responsible for creation, maintenance, and destruction of the universe. It is identified as female … Continue reading Temples of Bangalore- The Kalika Durga Parmeswari temple, Vidyaranyapura ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Temples of Bangalore- Kote Venkataramana Swamy Temple ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
The Kote Venkataramana Swamy Temple, near the K R Market, Bangalore, brings back a lot of childhood memories of when I would accompany my grandmother during many Vaishnava festivals, especially Vaikuntha Ekadasi. One of the oldest temples of Bangalore, it has a lot of history associated with it. In 1686, the Mughals under Aurangzeb won … Continue reading Temples of Bangalore- Kote Venkataramana Swamy Temple ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Pearls Across Penna- Day 2 (part 4) Tallapaka – the birth & seat of bhakti ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
From Attirala, our next stop was to Tallapakka, which is the birth place of the great saint and composer Annamacharya, who has written more than 32 thousand kirtanas / hymns on Sri Thirumala Venkateshwara. 6 kilometres, 12 minutes The place was earlier known as Tatipaka, which translates as people who live in huts made from … Continue reading Pearls Across Penna- Day 2 (part 4) Tallapaka – the birth & seat of bhakti ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Pearls Across Penna- Day 2 (part 3) Bhuvanagirigutta Lakshmi Narasimha Temple, Attirala
Chitvel to Rajampet - 26 kilometres and time taken 40 minutes Bhuvanagari Gutta: Taking off from the last blog, after the visit to Chitvel Varadaraja Temple, we drove towards Rajampet. Just eight kilometres outside the town is the hilltop Bhuvanagiri Gutta, where a Lakshmi Narasimha Temple is situated. It is believed that 300 years ago, … Continue reading Pearls Across Penna- Day 2 (part 3) Bhuvanagirigutta Lakshmi Narasimha Temple, Attirala
Pearls Across Penna- Day 2 (part 2) Chitvel Bhadrakali Veerabhadraswamy temple & Varadarajaswamy Temple ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
After the wonderful darshan at Penchalakona and a delicious breakfast at the 'chatram'/ guest-rooms, we drove to Chitvel- a drive that took us over an hour. Chitvel is a small town in Annamayya district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. The village sits between the Sheshachalam Hills and the Velikondas, the southern part of the Kadapa … Continue reading Pearls Across Penna- Day 2 (part 2) Chitvel Bhadrakali Veerabhadraswamy temple & Varadarajaswamy Temple ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Pearls Across Penna Trail – Day 1 (part 1) SriKalahasti Temple & Kalamkari Artists ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
The 'Pearls Across Penna' travellers in the corridor of the SriKalahasteeshwara Temple, Srikalahasti Two groups converged from Chennai and Bangalore at SriKalahasti to what was the beginning of the 'Pearls across Penna' trail. The trail was named after the 'Pennar' River, which is a unique river in itself. It originates at the Nandi Hills, which … Continue reading Pearls Across Penna Trail – Day 1 (part 1) SriKalahasti Temple & Kalamkari Artists ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
The Aprameya Swamy Temple at Dodda Mallur ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Today is Guru Purnima (July 13th, 2022), the full moon that occurs in the Hindu month of ‘Ashada’. ‘Gu’ means darkness and ‘ru’ means one who removes the darkness; hence a Guru is a soul that helps in leading from darkness to light and I bow to all who have helped me do so. India … Continue reading The Aprameya Swamy Temple at Dodda Mallur ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Thirunallar – Shanishwara and Darbaranyeshwara Temple ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
I hope you all liked reading about Shani Shinganapur. As Part 2 of the Saturn Temples, this article is about a temple in Thirunallar, a small town in the Karaikal district of the Union Territory of Puducherry. We had driven down from Bangalore to Tharagambadi (Tranquebar) for a visit (more on this in another post) … Continue reading Thirunallar – Shanishwara and Darbaranyeshwara Temple ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Shani Shinganapur- the village with no locks ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
Shani Jayanti Today May 30th is observed as Shani Jayanti. Lord Shani, as you know is the ruler of Planet Saturn and the seers have said that he is the son of Lord Surya or the Sun God. Shani Jayanti is also known as Shani Amavasya, as it falls on the Amavasya (new moon) Tithi during … Continue reading Shani Shinganapur- the village with no locks ©Sangeeta Venkatesh
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