one of the main characters of the epic, Mahabharata, is a strong woman who has a very unconventional birth (born of a sacrificial fire, and not of a woman) and life, and stands firmly by her own principles. Draupadi was trained in economy and was responsible for the treasury of the Empire. Additionally, she also ran a citizen liaison. Her duties as a busy Empress are mentioned in her famous conversation with Satyabhama, Krishna’s favourite wife, during their exile. Her political plans were firm, including revenge on the Kaurava who attempted to disrobe her (see below). The Wiki entry says:
” In Hinduism, she is extolled as one of the panchakanya (young girls), archetypes of female chastity whose names are believed to dispel sin when recited. In some parts of the sub-continent, a sect of Draupadi exists, where she is worshipped as a goddess.
“The Mahabharata includes an exceedingly flattering description of Draupadi as she arose from the fire, “The fire-born woman was extremely beautiful. Her eyes were black and large as lotus-petals, her complexion was dark, and her locks were blue and curly. Her nails were beautifully convex and bright as burnished copper; her eyebrows were fair, and her bosom was deep. Indeed, she resembled the veritable daughter of a celestial born among men. Her body gave out fragrance like that of a blue lotus, perceivable from a distance of full two miles. Her beauty was such that she had no equal on earth. Like a celestial herself, she could be desired (in marriage) by a celestial, a Danava, or a Yaksha (Mahabharata. Adi Parva. Chapter 169:3)”
On a visit to Sarakki Kere recently, I saw this idol of Draupadi Devi, which had been installed on March 13, 2023.
The idol was adorned and decorated in connection with the
that had concluded the previous (full moon) night at Thigalara Pete (area of the Thigala community) in Bangalore, and at several locations: Narsapura, Varthur, Ramagondanahalli, Rajakallahalli, and Bangarpet.
The word karaga means water pot in Kannada. The karaga carried by the priest, is itself, a mud pot, on which stands a tall floral pyramid that is balanced on the carrier’s head. The contents of the pot have remained a secret down the centuries. The carrier’s arrival is heralded by hundreds of bare-chested, dhoti-clad, turbaned Veerakumaras bearing unsheathed swords.
Another major incident in Draupadi’s life was her being dishonoured in the court of the Kauravas, and the attempt to disrobe her in the open court by Dusshasana, which was unsuccessful as Krishna came to her aid, providing her with an unending saree.
The word karaga means water pot in Kannada. The karaga carried by the priest, is itself, a mud pot, on which stands a tall floral pyramid that is balanced on the carrier’s head. The contents of the pot have remained a secret down the centuries. The carrier’s arrival is heralded by hundreds of bare-chested, dhoti-clad, turbaned Veerakumaras bearing unsheathed swords.
Another major incident in Draupadi’s life was her being dishonoured in the court of the Kauravas, and the attempt to disrobe her in the open court by Dusshasana, which was unsuccessful as Krishna came to her aid, providing her with an unending saree.
I clicked a set of dolls recreating this tableau (these sets are displayed during Golu or Navaratri in people’s homes)
You can see the pile of material, with Draupadi holding her arms folded high in prayer, and Krishna, standing behind (probably) Bhishma, blessing and rescuing her. This unravelling of the saree was, in a lighter vein, remembered when my young friend Dolphin unravelled the leaf covering on her
It was just sheer chance that, having enjoyed the beauty of this heritage house, popularly called “Jinke Mane” (Deer House), I clicked it out of a running car on 11 May ’14:
I was then a hapless witness to its destruction for the upcoming Metro train line.
The house was named Jinke Mane, as the window ledges had ornamental deer. Here’s my photo of one such ledge, with the deer already damaged:
Half of the house was razed first.
With the rest of the house becoming unusable, the full demolition followed:
“Jinke Mane has an illustrious history. It belonged to Jodidaar Munibyregowda, who laid the foundation stone for a palatial 10,000 sq.ft house in 1933. The bungalow was constructed in the 1940s. The huge house had one-and-a-half feet thick walls, Madras roofing, heavy wooden work, spacious living rooms and bedrooms,shiny red oxide flooring, wooden pillars and beams and an underground area,” says the article.
If we had a little imagination and a sense of heritage (or aesthetics), this building and its beauty could have been saved. An important question…how many other structures like this are we losing to “development”? The article mentions another heritage house called Veda Vilas on K R Road. I wonder how many others we have lost, in our once-beautiful city.
Here’s another beautiful house, further on Kanakapura Road, that I clicked in 2015:
Disgusted with the crowds at the top of Nandi Hill, we came down and had breakfast, with Padma bringing out a cake for Jay (who had her birthday on Dec 7)
We went to visit the Bhoga Nandiswara temple instead:
On one side, these stone wheels have faded colours, but on the other, they are bright:
The deities:
A strange creature depicted on the rathA:
We stopped after crossing the railway line near the temple (to get back to the highway)…and the birding was very satisfying there! (see second eBird list)
Large Grey Babblers:
A Lesser Grass Blue suns itself:
This rock, painted with the Karnataka map and colours, is something new:
I suppose many of my friends know my liking for clicking the colourful buses that ply in and around Bangalore.
Many of them feature flowers, abstract designs,temples, landscapes, gods, goddesses, birds and animals (sometimes real, sometimes imagined)…but occasionally I come across buses that have other references. I had recently posted one”Fast and Furious” bus.
This morning, I clicked this one….the text says, “Jelly Cut”.
The words have been anglicized. The reference (see the painting of the bull below the bus windows) is to the rural sport of “Jallikattu”, where bulls are raced, in Tamil Nadu, typically as part of the Pongal festival. A bull usually one belonging to the Pulikulam or Kangayam breeds) is released into a crowd of people, and multiple human participants attempt to grab the large hump on the bull’s back with both arms and hang on to it while the bull attempts to escape. Participants hold the hump for as long as possible, attempting to bring the bull to a stop. In some cases, participants must ride long enough to remove flags on the bull’s horns.
Amidst all the Dove, Lux, Hamam, Chandrika, Medimix, Cinthol, Lifebuoy and others that I have used… this soap, made for the last 106 years, still stands out!
Started by Sri Thittai Srinivasan Rajagopalan, in 1909, the company is now 113 years old! I used their talcum and face powders many years ago, for a long time.
It is an ancient temple built about 1100 years ago.
It is called the Panchalingeswara as the temple has fiver separate shrines for Lord Shiva – Nageswara, Nagareswara, Choleswara, Karaneswara and Kali Kamateswara – 5 distinct temples along with Nandhi in front.
Two shrines within the temple complex, the Nageshvara and Nageshvarasvami were commissioned during the rule of Western Ganga Dynasty Kings Nitimarga I (also called Ereganga Neetimarga, r. 843-870) and Ereyappa Nitimarga II (also called Ereganga Neetimarga II, r. 907-921). The remaining shrines are considered a later day legacy of the rule of the Chozha Dynasty over the region.
The “chira deepa” that is kept burning constantly:
The temple was built and developed by the Ganga, Chozha and Chalukya dynasties. The Chozheswara (Choleswara, as the “zh” sound is not properly represented in Roman script) linga is so called as it was named after the Chozhaa king.
Here are the depictions of the kings of the Ganga, Chozha and Chalukya dynasties, and one queen (I don’t know which dynasty she belongs to!)
Carvings on the pillars of the temple:
In our culture, all the byproducts of a cow (reared at home, not the street cows) are valuable as medicine, and are still sold:
Parvati’s shrine:
We also looked at the ancient hero stones, and the 9th century inscription which refers to “Bengaluru”, proving that Bangalore, as a city/town existed well before Kempe Gowda I, who probably developed it.
Tamizh inscriptions inside the temple:
The ancient stones that have been carefully set up in the temple area, with clear descriptions:
An Old Kannada inscription, dated c. 890, that describes a “Bengaluru war” (modern Bangalore city) was discovered in this temple complex by the epigraphist R. Narasimhachar. The inscription is recorded in “Epigraphia Carnatica”
The ancient garbhagraha in the middle:
A peaceful, meditative morning, when I sang at the shrines of Shiva and Subramanya.
Ganesha, the elephant-headed Hindu god, is held to be the remover of obstacles. But On the way to Aiyur, Tamil Nadu, for our bird/nature trip, on 030922, we had to take diversions or navigate through no less than 17 processions being taken out for the ‘visarjan’ (ritual immersion) of the idols of Ganesha. The festival seems to have become a huge community event in our villages and small towns now. We took 2 hours extra to reach Aiyur…so Ganesha became an obstacle (or 17) Himself, in an ironic twist!
Ganesha is made up in various forms, and the grandeur of the rathA (chariot) is awesome, though all these were being drawn by agricultural tractors.
I took 21 children and 3 teachers (Chethan, Hari Prasad and Kalpana) to the Kadu Malleswara Temple area, which has 4 temples: the 500 year old Kadu Malleswara temple, and the more recent Lakshmi Narasimha and Gangamma temples. The antiquity of the Nandi Teertha cannot be determined, as the temple and the spring of the Vrishabhavathi river pouring through the mouth of Nandi on to the Shivalinga below, was discovered during excavations in 1997.
Thanks to a snafu, the replacement bus arrived late and instead of 8am, we started at 9.30am!
Kalpana clicking the children before the entrance of the Kadu Malleswara temple:
Ravana, the anti-hero of the Hindu epic, Ramayana, was a great devotee of Shiva. I have not come across instances of his figure being used as a processional vehicle for the god, but I found it at the Kadu Malleswara temple (here he seems to have only 9 heads instead of the usual 10!)
The small Shivalinga at the temple:
The beautifully-made processional umbrella
Depiction of Sri Narasimha, who punished Hiranyakasipu, who said there was no god other than himself (which a lot of politicians and godmen today are saying, without being punished!) Standing next to them is Prahlada, the son of Hiranyakasipu, who defied his father and spoke the name of Vishnu. Hiranyakasipu, a great devotee of Shiva, had, after penance, asked for this boon: “I should not be killed by man or an animal, not by disease or by a weapon, not in the daytime or the night time, not indoors or outdoors”. He thought he had his bases covered, but the Lord appeared as Narasimha (half man, half lion, set him on his lap at the doorstep, at dusk, and used his claws to rip him open, and wore his entrails as a garland. Quite a gory story!
Ganga Devi, presiding deity at the Gangamma temple
The spring (source of the Vrishabhavati river) which pours out of the mouth of Nandi, at the Nandi Teertha:
Turtles in the temple tank
The Pramiti children looking at the turtles and fish in the kalyani:
Flower garlands at Malleswaram market
A shopful of lotuses! They are being made into garlands for all the temples nearby. I was told the flowers come from Hosur!
These women,who are religious mendicants, carry the image of a goddess and a whip, too, which they crack to call attention to themselves.
A group of children, rested and refreshed, post-lunch,after their long (2.5km!) walk from the temple to the restauran (New Krishna Bhavan, which dates from 1954)
I also clicked several Bangalore landmarks. Here is the temple at the end of all that remains of the once-large Sampangi Tank:
I took 21 children and 3 teachers (Chethan, Hari Prasad and Kalpana) to the Kadu Malleswara Temple area, which has 4 temples: the 500 year old Kadu Malleswara temple, and the more recent Lakshmi Narasimha and Gangamma temples. The antiquity of the Nandi Teertha cannot be determined, as the temple and the spring of the Vrishabhavathi river pouring through the mouth of Nandi on to the Shivalinga below, was discovered during excavations in 1997.
Deponti to the world 