October 4, 2015

Rameshwaram Jyotirlniga

Lord Shiva's jyotirlinga at Rameshwaram

Rameshwaram is one of the 12 jyotirlinga. The temple is situated on Rameshwaram island in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. The temple has the longest corridor among all Hindu temples in India.
 Rameshwaram Shivlinga Rameshwaram Jyotirlniga
 Rameshwaram Shivlinga


 The Temple

 
The primary deity of the temple is Ramanathaswamy (Shiva) in the form of lingam. There are two lingams inside the sanctum, one built by Goddess Sita, from sand, residing as the main deity, Ramalingam. Second one brought by Lord Hanuman from Kailash called Vishwalingam. Rama instructed that Vishwalingam should be worshipped first since it was brought by Lord Hanuman - the tradition continues even today.

Rameshwaram Jyotirlinga temple of Lord Shiva Rameshwaram Jyotirlniga
Rameshwaram Jyotirlinga temple of Lord Shiva


Rameswaram Temple is spread over an area of 15 acres. The temple has high compound wall on all the four sides, measuring about 865 feet from east to west and 657 feet from north to south. It has with huge towers (Gopurams) at the east and west and finished gate towers on the north and south.The outer set of corridors is reputed to be the longest in the world. The total length of those corridors is thus 3850 feet. There are about 1212 pillars in the outer corridor.The main tower or rajagopuram is 53 m tall. Most pillars are carved with individual composition.
An ancient time image of the temple corridor Rameshwaram Jyotirlniga
An ancient time image of the temple corridor

Modern time image of the temple corridor Rameshwaram Jyotirlniga
Modern time image of the temple corridor


The temple also has several mandapams with mini shrines to other deities. There is a huge Nandi measuring 12 feet in length and 9 feet in height.


There are sixty-four Tīrthas (holy water bodies) in and around the island of Rameshwaram. According to Skānda Purāṇa, twenty-four of them are important. Bathing in these Tīrthas is a major aspect of the pilgrimage to Rameshwaram and is considered equivalent to penance.Twenty-two of the Tīrthas are within the Rāmanāthasvāmī Temple. The number 22 indicates the 22 arrows in Rama's quiver. The first and major one is called Agni Theertham.
Legend behind the temple


According to Ramayana, Rama is believed to worshipped and prayed to Shiva here to absolve sin of killing a brahmana, committed during his war against the demon king Ravana. Rama wanted to have the largest lingam to worship Shiva. He directed Hanuman. to bring the lingam from Himalayas. Since it took longer to bring the lingam, Sita, built a small lingam out of the sand available in the sea shore, which is believed to be the lingam in the sanctum.
Another Story


According to another popular legend, It is believed that the Ling was installed by Lord Rama, himself. On the way to attack Ravana, when Lord Rama reached this place he started drinking water at the sea shore. There was a celestial proclamation, that "You are drinking water without worshipping me". Then Rama made a linga of sand and worshipped Lord Shiva, and asked Shiva to bless him to defeat Ravana. Lord Shiva blessed him accordingly. Rama also requested Shiva to reside there eternally for the benefit of mankind. Lord Shiva then manifested himself as the Lingam and got installed there for eternity.
Significance of the Rameshwaram Temple Jyotirlinga


Significance of the Rameshwaram Temple Jyotirlinga has been described through a shloka in Manas.

Je rameshwar darshan kari hahi |

Te tanu taji mam loka sidaari hahi ||


Meaning: Those who go to Rameshwar and seeks my blessings, shall always reside in Shivloka.It is said that there is greatness associated with the ceremonial bath given to the linga by water of the Ganga.

Unknown Facts from Mahabharata


Few interesting facts from Mahabharata, which are not known

One warrior from Shri Krishna's army did not fight alongside Duryodhana, contrary to the arrangement

This is a well known fact that Shri Krishna promised his army to Duryodhana, and he said that he will accompany Pandavas in the war, yet there was one person from his army, who helped Pandavas. He was Satyaki and he was like a disciple to Arjuna. He has helped Pandavas greatly when Drona was trying to capture Yudhishthira with the formation of chakravyuha. Satyaki was rescued by Arjuna when Bhurisharava was trying to kill him and eventually Satyaki killed Bhurishravas. This happened on the fourteenth day of Mahabharata war.
 

Satyaki defeated Drona


Satyaki even engaged in a long fight with Drona, in which he breaks Drona's bowstring 101 times successively. Drona gets so frustrated by Satyaki, that he even uses divine weapons, which Satyaki counters using his knowledge of divine weapons from his education under Arjuna.

Another fact about Satyaki


When Shri Krishna went to Duryodhana for one final attempt to maintain peace, Satyaki accompanied him. It was then when Duryodhana ordered him to be imprisoned, Satyaki draws his sword to fight. But Shri Krishna holds him back.
Krishna and Satyaki Death of Satyaki


Krishna and Satyaki 
 

Death of Satyaki


Satyaki dies when the curse of Gandhari came to its fulfillment. Satyaki in anger said that he would kill Kritavarma for slaying the warriors of the Pandava army while they were asleep. Having said this he rushed towards Kritavarma and severed his head with a sword. He then started killing the warriors who were on Kritavarma's side. Krishna then ran to stop Satyaki.

The Bhojas and the Andhakas incensed at Satyaki surrounded him. Krishna knowing the character of the hour stood there unmoved. The Bhojas and Andhakas started striking Satyaki with the pots in which they had been eating.
Bhagdatta and his eyelids

There is an interesting story of Bhagdatta's eyelids. Bhagdatta was a fierce warrior who fought from the side of Duryodhana. He used Vaishnavastra on Arjuna, but as Lord Krishna was there, it fell upon him as a garland. Shri Krishna then advised Arjuna to first cut the support to his eyelids, as Bhagdatta was old and his eyelids were blocking the vision. He used to tie them up so that he could see properly. Duly, Arjuna cut the ropes holding his eyelids. This made him virtually blind, and then Arjuna killed him.


Arjuna kills Bhagaddatta Bhima was captured by a python - Nahusha

Arjuna kills Bhagaddatta 
 

Bhima was captured by a python - Nahusha


There were few times in Mahabharata, when even Bhima was helpless. One was a great lesson of humbleness with Lord Hanumana. Another is presented here. What happened that there was a king named Nahusha, who became the gods of devtas. He became arrogant and wanted to marry Shachi. Shachi convinced him to come in palanquin, which should be shouldered by great sages. Nahusha did the same and even went one step further by kicking Sage Agastya. By doing this, he lost all his virtue and also became a python by the curse of Sage Agastya. But he was told that when Yudhishthira explained him the virtues of good king, he will become a man again.


Nahusha's downfall When Lord Krishna moved calendar

Nahusha's downfall 
 

When Lord Krishna moved calendar


Sahadeva, the youngest Pandava was a great astrologer. Once, on the request of Duryodhana, he advises Duryodan the most auspecious time for stating the war will be the amavasya day. Lord Krishna overheard this and plans to do what next. Krishna performs amaysya tarpan one day earlier to the scheduled data and seeing Krishna performing tarpan one day earlier everybody starts doing the same. Seeing this, moon god and sun god comes down and ask Krisna why he is performing tarpan one day earlier .To this, Lord asked when does Amavasya happen? It is not when sun and moon face each other? They replied yes. Then Lord said that then today is amavasya since both you are facing each other. Unfortunately Duryodana also performs tarpan on a day prior to real amavasya and brings his downfall.

Balaji Temple and the story of marriage of Gods

Balaji Temple at Tirumala hills


Balaji temple is one of the well known temples of India. Unlike some of the other temples, this inspires awe and grandeur and sometimes known as the richest temple of India. This temple is situated on Tirumala hills.

The main temple of Tirumala Tirupati lies on the seventh hill called Venkatadri, which is why this holy Tirumala Temple is also called "The Temple Of Seven Hills". Lord Sri Venkateswara,also known as Balaji and Govinda,is the presiding deity of this holy temple.

Today,if we go by the available statistics,about thirty to forty million pilgrims, from all over the world,visit this holy temple every year making Lord Sri Venkateswara the most worshiped Hindu God in the world and Tirumala the most visited place of worship.

Legends behind Balaji Temple

There are numeros legends associated with the manifestation of the Lord in Tirumala. According to one legend, the temple has a murti (deity) of Lord Venkateswara, which it is believed shall remain here for the entire duration of the present Kali yuga. There is an interesting story related to Lord Venkateshwara and Balaji Temple.






Lord Balaji


Why married couple visit this temple

Tirupati, the Home of Lord Venkateswara has long been the destination of many a newly wed couple. The temple is believed to have a particular signification for newly weds as it is believed to be place where Lord Venkateswara married Padmavathy. 

Goddess Laxmi leaves Lord Vishnu

An interesting tale forms the backdrop to the temple. Quarrels are not unknown between happily wed couples and the divine ones are no different. Following a spat with Lord Vishnu, Goddess Lakshmi left her heavenly abode and came down to the earth. Here she stayed in a hermitage on the banks of the Godavari.
Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva tried to help

Missing his beloved, Lord Vishnu went to search of her and this search brought him to earth. Ultimately his quest brought him to the Seshadri hills where he stopped to rest in an anthill. Upset by the separation between Vishnu and Lakshmi, Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva decided to intervene. Taking the guise of a cow and a calf they went to live at the place of a Chola king.

The cowherd took them everyday to graze in the Seshadri hills where the cow would secretly visit the anthill where Vishnu was living without sustenance. Emptying her milk, the cow would then return to the palace.

The cowherd was angry as the cow never yielded any milk to him. He watched movements carefully and his explorations brought him to the anthill. In trying to ascertain what lay beneath the anthill, he struck it with an axe thus injuring Vishnu on the forehead.





Tirupati temple
Lord Vishnu is injured

In search of herbs to heal the wound, Lord Vishnu wandered far and wide. His wanderings brought him to the Shrine of Sri Varahaswamy - the third incarnation of Vishnu as a boar. Here, he sought permission to stay, but Varahaswamy wanted a rental to be paid; Vishnu pleaded that he was poor now and needed rent free accommodation. To reciprocate this gesture of goodwill, he said he would tell his devotees to worship Varahaswamy before they worshipped him. The contract sealed, Vishnu built a hermitage and lived there waited on by a devotee, Vakuladevi who looked after him like a mother. In a nearby kingdom ruled King Akasha Rajan.
Devi Padmavathy

Childless for many years, he had one day found a beautiful baby girl sleeping on a golden lotus in a golden box while ploughing the fields. He had named her Padmavathy. A beautiful and accomplished girl, Padmavathy had been granted a boon in her earlier birth that she would be married to Lord Vishnu. One day, Vishnu, who had been renamed Srinivasan by his devotee and foster mother Vakuladevi, went hunting in the forest. His wandering led him to a garden with a pond. Srinivasan was thirsty and tired. After drinking from the pond, he rested in the shade of a tree. Soon the soft singing of Padmavathy who was dancing in the garden with her companions roused him. He was stunned by her beauty and drawn to her. She too seemed to be drawn to him, but the angry attendants thinking him a mere hunter drove him away.

Depressed and unhappy he poured his troubles out to Vakuladevi. Now for the first time, he revealed to her who he really was and also told her the story of Padmavathy. In the meanwhile, Padmavathy was dreaming of Srinivasa. She had no idea who he really was and knew that her parents would never let her be married to a hunter.

Srinivasa urged Vakuladevi to approach Padmavathy's father, Akasha Raja, with the marriage proposal. In the meanwhile he disguised himself as a soothsayer and went to the court of Akasha Raja. There, he assured Padmavathy that the hunter she had fallen in love with was no ordinary man but the Lord and told her that the worries would soon be over. Padmavathy too poured out her heart to her parents. At about the same time, Vakuladevi arrived with the marriage proposal. After consulting with the sages Akasha Raja accepted the proposal and invited Srinivasa to attend the wedding on Friday, the 10th day of Vaikasi.

Srinivasa now had arrangements to make. He sought a loan of one crore and 14 lakh coins of gold from Kubera and had Viswakarma, the divine architect create heavenly surroundings in the Seshadri hills.

The day of the wedding arrived, Lord Srinivasa was bathed in holy waters and dressed in jeweled ornaments befitting a royal bride groom. Then he set off in a procession for the court of Akasha Raja. There Padmavathy waited radiant in her beauty. Srinivasa was hailed with an arthi and led to the marriage hall. There the queen and King washed his feet while sage Vasishta chanted the Vedic mantras. Soon the wedding was over and it was time for Padmavathy to take leave of her parents.

Together, they lived for all eternity while Goddess Lakshmi, understanding the commitments of Lord Vishnu, chose to live in his heart forever.
Kalyan Utsav celebrated union of Lord Vishnu and Goddess Laxmi

Tirupati, today, stands as a special place, commemorating the marriage between the two. Everyday, a kalyana utsavam celebrates the divine union in a celebration that stretches to eternity. Even today, during the Brahmotsavam at the temple, turmeric, kumkum and a sari are sent from the temple to Tiruchanur, the abode of Padmavathy. In fact Tirupati is rarely visited without paying a visit to Tiruchanur.

In the light of this background, it has become the favored destination of many newly wed couples who pray for a happy wedding - a wedding like that of Srinivasa and Padmavathy.





October 2, 2015

Sri Guru Raghavendra Thirtha

Sri Guru Raghavendra Thirtha

Sri Guru Raghavendra Thirtha

Sri Guru Raghavendra Thirtha
Raghavendra Theertha is the patron hindu saint at Mantralayam is verily the wishing tree, divine jewel all in one, fulfilling the righteous desires to all those deserving souls, who visit mantralayam (Picture on the side: Brindavan of Raghavendra Swamy at Mantralayam) and pray for his benevolence. No one has returned disappointed as the sage who is verily present to this date(from:1671 AD) in the Holy Brindavan answers all the prayers, grants all desires and makes the devotees happy. He recommends his deserving devotees for Moksha [Theory of school of thought where God and any other thing is not one. God is supreme, independent doer of every thing (Sarva Karthru) and is controller of
Sri Guru Raghavendra Thirtha all from his consort Lakshmi Devi tothe lowest living or non living thing. He is ocean of all the finest attributes and is the friend philosopher and guide to the worthy for their remption and grant of Moksha). Numberless celestials right from Goddess Lakshmi devi to the lowest straw await his orders to serve him and have his grace and stand reverentially aside in great respect and awe]. Moksha giver is Lord Hari .Sri Raghavendra is a proponent of Madhva 's philosophy Dvaita. He also gives importance to correct knowledge or understanding of God and has a great affection for seekers of knowledge. He has written numerous works, elaborating on several aspects of Dvaita . He is kindest sage, who showers blessings irrespective of religion, cast, creed or Race. The Picture above (Top Left) represents Guru Raghavendra as a Kamadhenu (Wishing Cow) and Kalpahavriksha (Wishing Tree), celestial cow and tree which gives whatever you wish.


Shunku Karna (A Devta) was cursed to be born, into the world, as Prahladha, son of demon king Hiranyakashyapu, who had extreme devotion to Sri Hari. Lord Hari took Narashima Avtara to Kill the demon King 
Sri Guru Raghavendra Thirtha(his father) .In his next birth, he was born , as Bahlika during the Period of Mahabharatha, he fought against the pandvas, but he was a great Hari Bhaktha, he was willing to die at the hands of Bheema (One of the Pandavas). In his Next birth, he was destined to be one of the the great Madhwa saints, Vyasaraja . Displeased with the amount of seva he performed for Hari, he was born again as Venkatanatha, who became Guru Raghavendra, one of the greatest madhwa saints. Guru Raghavendra is not visible to us now but was visible to Sir Thomas Munroe, the collector of India about 150 years ago when British Ruled India. He is very much present in the Brindavan alive (in athma form) at Mantralayam to this 332nd year of entry into his Brindavan as on 15.8.2003.He is still performing many miracles ,it is said Deserving Blind get their Sight, Deserving Deaf and Dumb hear and Speak, all evils vanish by saying "OM SHRI RAGHAVENDRA" with devotion and by pleasing Guru Raghavendra . Devotees pray to Sri Raghavendra by chanting the famous shloka"...pUjyAya rAghavendrAya satyadharmaratAya cha | bhajatAM kalpavR^ixAya namatAM kAmadhenave ||durvAdidhvAntaravaye vaishhNavendIvarendave |shrIrAghavendragurave namo.atyantadayAlave ||". Sri Raghavendra is considered to be magnanimous and benevolent. Countless devotees of his testify to the miracles he has performed (humble attempt has been provided, to elaborate a few in the miracles page).