Book condemnation: The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ

Ridiculous!  

That's the word that springs to mind as you read the back page blurb; it is off-putting to know that the author later confessed to having cooked up a story as important as this.  You are left wondering if what you are reading is fact or fiction.

The way the book progresses also does not help matters.  Instead of talking about Jesus in India, Notovitch elaborately describes his own travel details.  

Right at the beginning of the book, there are two chapters of his sojourn across northern Indian and the Himalayas, with his coterie of helpers (read slaves) who translate the local language for him and attend to his every need and whom he condescendingly describes as 'my Hindu', his horror at seeing shrines dedicated to 'horrible Hindu idols', and the trouble he took in getting to the monasteries where he encountered 'ugly' Tibetans spinning the prayer wheel, and the likes.

There are sweeping conclusions about Hinduism, its caste system, and religious rituals, typically based on a western man's limited and lackadaisical understanding of these issues, which of course take on a tinge of legitimacy over a period of time, because a white sahib has written it!  

There is a laughable conclusion about the original writer of Hindu scriptures.  According to Notovitch, Krishna wrote all of them and divided the Vedas - hence he is also called Vyasa!  I rest my case.

When we finally get to the bits regarding Jesus' life in India, we are not sure how much of it to believe.  Basically it is a re-telling of the events recorded in several versions of the Bible, with the addition of Jesus' Indian experiences - his encounter with Brahmins, whom he countered by uplifting Shudras, his dabble with 'Djainism' (Jainism for you and me), and his final asceticism in a Buddhist monastery in Ladakh.  

All this is supposed to have happened during his childhood, before he returned to Israel and went about sermonising and gaining disciples, prior to his ultimate crucifixion.  There is a typically short-sighted evangelistic comment about how good it would have been if the whole of India, with its large population, had taken to Issa, and followed the 'true path'.  

That all this was investigated and ridiculed by no less a personage as Max Muller means that one can safely overlook this fact/fiction.  

This is a pretentious, bigoted, patronising drivel by a discredited 'traveller'.  

Read it only for entertainment - and that if you have nothing better to do.   

Book conversations: Marvels and Mysteries of the Mahabharata

Okay, we know the story.  Or we think we know it.  Mahabharata is so vast and so complicated, with multiple layers of plots, subplots, twists and angles, that it is open to interpretation in innumerable ways.  People spend years and a whole lifetime studying our complex epic.  

This is what this book highlights, along with characters sketches of some of its key players; notably Arjuna, Krishna, Draupadi and Yudhishthira.

The efforts made by scholars to compile an authentic and authoritative text to describe the epic in its entirety is described in detail.  The Critical Edition - compiled by the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, which takes into consideration various bits of the epic from multiple sources, the shortened version called Jaya, and everything in between is touched upon informatively.  

There is also a profile of the scholars who dedicated themselves to the study of the epic, including notable western scholars such as Alf Hiltebeitel, J A B van Buitenen, etc; as well as V S Sukthankar, who was the chief editor of the Critical Edition.

But what make the book really worth your while are the character sketches.  Arjuna's heroism and the ability to tackle each adversity head on; Krishna's brilliance and guile during the war, as well as some of his less realised and perhaps questionable tactics such as retreating from battle - that earned him the epithet ranchchod (one who left the battle) - and the bending of the rules of dharma during the epic war itself; Draupadi's suffering and subsequent emergence as a strong character, and Yudhishthira's progression in the spiritual path and moral sphere.  

It is this last achievement by Yudhishthira, which earns him Basu's admiration, who declares that he is the true hero of the epic; not only is he only one to ascend to heaven in his bodily form, but also the only one to learn from each calamity, each error, and progress to a higher plane of spiritual existence.

One tends to agree with Basu's conclusion, although the epic remains elusive in terms of any single understanding of its narrative, characterisation, or message.  This is an apt, but different tribute to the timeless, peerless, most complex, multilayered, beloved epic of ours.  

As a result, this is highly recommended reading. 

Image source: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/419h5DrO+bL._SX317_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg    

Satire: Breaking news!

Yes, we have moved ahead since the days of good old Doordarshan newscasts.  Back then, a rose-bedecked Salma Sultan would read out sedately from a prepared script in front of her, with hardly any visuals supplementing what she was reading out.

Then came the teleprompters, and anchors would read the news from the screen in front, without having to look up and down from their scripts.  I remember one of the viewers complaining through his letter that reading from teleprompters made anchors appear to have stiff necks, as they did not move their necks up and down!  But now teleprompters are the norm, of course.  As also visuals - supplied by travelling cameramen and on-field correspondents.

The studio anchor interviews the on field correspondent, who then interviews another correspondent, or comments on the goings on behind her.  There are so many questions and answers relayed back and forth that it can become exhausting - and pointless.  The only option then would be to zap them - with the remote - thank god for this invention!  Works very well with that other telly abomination as well: K-serials.

Sometimes the entire newscast is broadcast from a particular place of topical importance.  There was such a telecast in UK, when global warming was an issue - the anchors were standing in a distant mountainous area with a backdrop of melting mountain snow!  What for?  Won't we get the picture if the same visuals could be projected while the anchor speaks from the studio?  How much money did the channel spend on this arrangement?  By transporting the anchors and setting up the equipment in such a remote area, did they not ironically contribute to global warming?

The other irritating aspect of news channels these days, especially Indian ones, is the panel discussions.  First of all, they get more panelists than their air time would allow, and then the anchor interrupts them so many times, that hardly any point is put across by any one panelist, hardly any conclusion reached in the end.  Grrr...either increase the time allotted for your program or reduce the number of panelists.

Another very irritating behaviour by anchors: neverrrrrr ending questions... Or poly-thematic questions - asking about two or more issues in the same question.  An example would sound like: "what were you doing in 1987, why did you do it and what impact has this had on your career and your family life: did it improve your prospects at work and your love life, or were you left to fend for yourself?"  

Err... could you repeat that please?  

And if these sort of questions are asked to a panelist far away, with a time delay on the phone, then you, dear viewer, are in for some serious entertainment: 

"what were you doing in 1987..." 

"I had just finished the course and..."

...why did you do it and what...

...I had started a part time job at... sorry?

...yeah, why did you do it and what impact has this had on your career...

...yes, I am coming to that...where was I....yes, the part time job...what?...

...you career and your family life...

...family life...well let's see...

...did it improve your prospects at work and your love life...

...family was in India at the time and... sorry, love what?...

...your love life... did it improve or were you left to fend for...

...family... love... oh get off me!

Yet another irritant: introducing the interview standing right next to the anchor prior to starting the interview.  "Well, we are here with so and so, who in 1992 was the first person to jump off a plane and do a perfect somersault before landing on his mother-in-law's barbecue!  Now let's talk to him about his..." (okay, I made the scene up, but you get the picture).

The studio anchor has just told us the whole scenario, why repeat the entire thing before talking to the person?  Just get on with the questions!

And then there is...

Breaking news!  A celebrity sneezed today: how's that for news that could affect your life endlessly?  One of the channels also has a scheduled breaking news segment!  The only thing breaking would be the TV screen when you chuck the remote at it!

Sensationalist headlines: Bomb blast rocks Chennai!  You later find out that the blast was on a localized railway track, and a handful of passengers were injured - the rest of the VAST city went on its business as usual.  But no, in news language, Chennai was rocked!

Can we have DD and Salma Sultan back please...yes, yes, even without the rose is fine!


Image sources:
http://www.indyarocks.com/blog/50650/Doordarshan-turns-50
http://thiruvananthapuramupdates.files.wordpress.com/2012/06/3.jpg

Book conversations: Imaginary Homelands

The name is enough: Salman Rushdie.  I picked this one up just because of this, and also because I had not read any of his books earlier.  Not even Midnight's Children, which apparently was adjudged the 'Best of Booker'.  

And certainly not that one, which we all think of when we hear his name. 

This is a scathing, no-holds-barred, literary criticism of some of the best works by some of the best known authors world-wide.  Rushdie finds, in between praise for worthy contenders, errors in form, content and characterisation in just about every work that he peruses - and he does read a lot, it seems.

His ability to read between the lines and get behind the story to determine what the author was trying to say, has said, or did not say, is extraordinary.  His language, of course, is first-rate and exemplary, as you would imagine. 

He considers a long series of literary works - mostly fiction, and mostly from his contemporaries during the period of a decade - 1981 to 1991.  If you are not into South American or mainland European authors - like I am not - you can safely bypass a large segment of the book, and concentrate instead on the bits that matter - at least to me, which occur in the beginning and the end of the book.

These are to do with his take on religion, literature, English language, politics, and films.  There is a delightful essay about Indian words appropriated into English during the Raj, and later published as Hobson Jobson, which, believe it or not, is said to be a corruption of the 'Ya Hussain, Ali Hussain' cries heard during Moharram!  

He saves the best for the last.  The last major chapter of the book is about the controversy surrounding his banned book, The Satanic Verses.  I always wondered if he was affected by this controversy.  Hell, yes, it seems he was!  And you get to know just how much in this last segment of the book.  I was struck by the strangeness of the whole situation: he was a born Muslim, but he openly declared, at the age of 15 that he was not a Muslim; on the other hand he decided he was an atheist.  He demonstrated this by consuming a pork sandwich, after which, he discovered to his joy and relief, that he was not struck down by thunder or lightning.

However he had a soft corner for this born-into religion, especially towards that aspect of his faith which allowed for a liberated world-view and free speech, which he sadly realised later was never going to be a part of Already Existing Islam, as he puts it.  Finally, he was hounded by the followers of that very faith, and imprisoned in a cocoon of non-existence for several years.

There is a touching description of how he went through hell during the mass demonstrations and fatwas that called for his killing the world over, especially in the UK, where he lived in his 'bubble', as he puts it.  Here he puts forth his view, his justification for the contents of the book, and the fact that a metaphorical and fictional re-interpretation of Islam was vilified by those who never understood it, or even so much as read the book.

There is a terrific piece about how 'literalism' in interpreting the religious books is contributing to fundamentalist thought and action, and about the tussle between the mundane and the magnificent, the good and the bad, and religion and literature.

He also describes certain passages from the book, which were considered to be blasphemous at the time - this is the closest that we could get to actually reading the book as it is still banned in India.

Go for it for the language, critical views, and opinions of a master thinker and writer.


Image source: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/61kMA2RbYNL.jpg

Article on dementia

What is dementia?  How common is it?  What are the types of dementia?  Are there any risk factors for developing it?  What is the treatment?  How can one prevent dementia?

I answer these questions in this medical educational article published in Deccan Herald on account of World Alzheimer's Day 2011.

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/191338/make-mental-note.html

Books conversations: Em and the Big Hoom & Sepia Leaves (mental health themed books)

I am considering both these books together because they deal with the same genre: mental illness; and also because I read them back to back.

Jerry Pinto, who made his mark with Surviving Women presents this tale of his mother who had mental illness.  From the colourful descriptions of her condition, it appears that she suffered from bipolar affective disorder (BPAD) - a kind of mood disorder characterised by mood swings from depression to mania.  It further appears that she had a particular type called rapidly cycling BPAD - mood swinging between the two extremes at a rapid speed, or perhaps a mixed affective state - both depressive and manic phases co-existing in one episode of the illness.  

In any case, it is mental illness, and as with all mental illnesses, there are a lot of idiosyncrasies and eccentricities to cope with.  The care-givers - her family, struggle through the various phases of her mood, often finding themselves at the receiving end of her abrasive behaviour.

Inevitably, the apathy, the casual attitude, and the sheer lack of appropriate services equipped to deal with mental illness is also presented, which highlight the poor state of mental healthcare in India.  

Even more inevitably, electro-convulsive therapy, that hugely misunderstood and often misrepresented mode of management is also held up to scrutiny, not least because of the way it was administered in her case - without the knowledge of the family.

It is worth mentioning here that when used in a controlled and monitored environment, under general anaesthesia, with muscle relaxation, and in the ECT suite, it remains the treatment of choice for conditions such as severe depression.

Nevertheless, Pinto's writing style is unusual, but engaging.  He presents the main character as she was, without any explanation as to her unusual behaviour, and without trying to glorify or vilify the travails that he and the other members of the family go through.

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Sepia Leaves by Amandeep Sandhu, once again considers the author's mother's mental illness - only this time it is schizophrenia.

He presents the signs and symptoms of the condition through the descriptions of his mother's emotional upheavals and behaviour.  Also brought out, simultaneously, is her strained relationship with her husband - the author's father - who, to ensure the upbringing of the author as a child, makes the cardinal error of bringing home a maid servant.  This is when the signs of his mother's illness really burst forth, with her heaping verbal and physical abuses on both her husband as well as the maid.

Suspicions, or paranoid-persecutory delusions, characteristic of schizophrenia, are evident in these descriptions, along with odd mannerisms and catatonic postures.  

A memorable sequence of the father's unexpected death and the lack of any substantial reaction to this by the mother is used as the beginning and as a recurring theme throughout the book.  These and other moments are narrated quite simply, unlike Em and the Big Hoom, but like it, without the need for any emotional over-involvement.

But then it is the content which matters here, and it is that you should look for in this work.

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Both these works are worth going for if you are interested in mental illness - as a professional, as a carer, or indeed as a service user.  Reading them, I hope, would also help reduce stigma associated with being mentally ill, and encourage people in distress to reach out. 

I also hope that ultimately, mental health themed literature such as these would help build mental resilience in patients and carers alike.  I have explored the theme of resilience in a similar narrative of multiple mental illnesses in a family in the book, Lake Amidst The Seas.

Please watch/share my patient education videos on these topics:

Depression: https://youtu.be/8cYwQANYAy4

Antidepressants: 
https://youtu.be/tKBWRvifYRk [English]
https://youtu.be/iVUi79gp-gQ [Hindi]
https://youtu.be/RezGamhA_Ak [Kannada]

Schizophrenia:
https://youtu.be/3US7KzMth54 [English]
https://youtu.be/kIVGOX_6zFY [Hindi]
https://youtu.be/ewpwJSq9qr4 [Kannada]





Image sources:
https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1334380612i/13601144._UY475_SS475_.jpg
https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1265348892l/7695190.jpg

Book conversations: Aisle be Damned

Hilarious!  Laugh-out-loud funny - or should that be LOL?

The best way to enjoy this book is to let yourself go while reading it.  This brand of humour is right up my street and I laughed throughout this one.

With as unpronounceable a name as Krishna Shastri Devulapalli, Rishi Piparaiya takes us through the whole air travel experience - from arriving at the airport to security checks to check-in to being seated in the plane to disembarking to travelling away from the airport to your destination - thanks to his own 1000 hour flying experience.  

Every section is explained in his own witty style.  Memorable moments include tips on how to upgrade to business class, and once there, on how to influence your fellow hapless business 'classers'.
He also appears to be very safety conscious, even though he says he has spent a huge chunk of his life travelling in planes.  There is a howlarious description of how to gauge air safety with a water bottle, and how to prevent the pilots from exiting the cockpit during the flight.  

He justifies his concerns with some extraordinary anecdotes of pilots, flight attendants and passengers - drunk pilots, abusive passengers and flight attendants, and, perhaps most memorably, an inexperienced co-pilot who pushed a lever while adjusting his cockpit seat and sent the plane plummeting down by 7000 ft.  

I expected a few more anecdotes about bumping into celebrities - with Piparaiya's flying experience there should have been a cartload... err, business-class-load - but there is only one.  

Reminds me of my own hapless adventure in movie-going. 

Recommended for travellers and non-travellers - both on air and on the ground.


Image source: https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/516dPXFrdNL.jpg

Book recommendation: Phantoms in the Brain

Nothing is more complex and complicated than the human brain.  There are so many unchartered territories in this convoluted organ that we are just scraping the surface in terms of understanding it.

This book takes a huge leap forward in doing this.  It presents interesting facets of this organ, things that we did not even know could be possible.

Using his vast expertise and experience in this highly specialized area of neuroscience, Dr Ramachandran reveals some of the interesting secrets of this complex organ.  He brings out the details through several fascinating experiments and clinical scenarios.

Whether it is the brain's ability to cover for the loss of a limb, or the sensory distribution of a phantom limb in the brain area, or any of the other revelations, this is one book that everyone interested in neuroscience - students, scientists, academicians or lay - should read in their lifetime.

Along with Atul Gawande's Being Mortal, Phantoms is highly recommended reading for anyone involved in the medical field.


Image source: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/81Xpsa6tTxL.jpg

Book conversations: Half a Rupee Stories

I picked this one up with some hesitation.

Yes, the name itself should be enough to pick up this book: Gulzar.  The premier poet of the country, Grammy and Oscar winner for his lyrics.

It may be it is my own thickheadedness, but I have never really understood some of his abstract lyricism.  I am still struggling with some of his film lyrics:

'jiya jale jaan jale, nainon tale dhuan chale dhuan chale...heart burns life burns, smoke emanates from eyes' (from Dil Se)

and

'geela geela paani...wet wet water' (Satya).

What if this collection of short stories was as abstract?

Thankfully it wasn't.  

The poet begins with real life reminiscences: mostly involving his poet friends - Sahir Ludhianvi, Javed Akhtar (who we are informed is nicknamed Jaadu), and Bhushan.

Later stories appear to be fictional, although it is difficult to say which ones are made up and which ones real, as some of them give a first-person account.  

There are stories of filth, suffering, border disputes, intimate relationships and loss.  Many stories have sad and horrifying endings, which I am not particularly fond of.

The one that stands out for the sheer surprise element is that of 'Ghugu and Jamuni' - a bird which mistakes a kite to be another bird and falls in love with it - unique and touching.  

Translation by Sujoy Shekhar is terrific, and provides for a quick, easy read.

Go for it if you are into light reading, but be prepared for the bitter endings.  

Image source: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/512jVs2TzIL.jpg
     

Satire: K-Serials are putting the meaning of idiot in the idiot-box

I must say I find television very educational. 
The minute somebody turns it on, I go to the library and read a good book.
Groucho Marx, US comedian

There is no other situation where this is more applicable than with our K-serials, if you leave out irritating news channels.    

I call them so because of their common theme: all begin with 'K', thanks to the fad of a certain TV production house.  Nothing to do with K-pop, don't worry.   

Is it five-year-olds who come up with the story lines for these serials?  Probably not, because that would be like insulting five-year-olds. 

It all started with Hum Log and Buniyaad.  Later, with the advent of cable-TV, rubber-band epics entered our lives.

There was one which declared 'because a daughter-in-law was also a mother-in-law once', the title sequence of which had a current politician invite you into a large house with an extended family.

Another purported to depict 'story of every house' - heaven help us if this is really the case.

Since then there has been a never ending parade of similar cheesy, gaudy, loud, stretched-out affairs flooding each of the entertainment channels.

Yes, initially there was a novelty factor: women cried buckets over the travails of Tulsi.  But if you have to eat baingan ka bharta 365 days a year then deliciousness quickly changes to 'pukishness'.

Each of these soaps begins with a specific theme: child marriage, widow re-marriage, women's lib, etc.  But if the TRPs rise:

• the producers milk the story line to stretch and modify it beyond recognition, with more and more implausible twists added in - carefully timed towards the end of the day's episode, so that interest is maintained

• newer and irritating characters are added on, existing characters made to disappear or die, only to resurface later, until you can't be bothered if the bahu eloped with her 2nd ex-flame, or the saas threw herself off the cliff  

It is also recommended that you disconnect your brain while involving yourself in these plots:

• a lover who was once thought to be properly bumped off, comes back with a new face - thanks to the wonders of plastic surgery, which strangely also alters his voice

• the vamp's attempt to poison the patni's juice with the contents of a bottle that is helpfully marked 'poison' is foiled at the last minute

• the gaudy makeup and dress changes each time the bua leaves the kitchen to go to the toilet

• the irritating camera pans repeatedly along with a thunder-clap on each of the 21 faces every time it is announced that the bahu's child is not her pati's

Some of the gems that I have observed over the years (when I had the misfortune of encountering these sublime moments during idle channel-surfing, or when the wife insisted that we watch what she wanted to watch): 

• pink uniform for nurses working in the NHS in UK (yeah, pink!)

• a matriarch who would be at least 150 years old by a rough estimate involving the ages of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren 

• and the classic - the good doctor who declares 'mubharakho... aapki beti ma bannewali hai' just by feeling the beti's pulse

Who watches these?  Bored housewives?  Entertainment starved 'desperates'?  Desperate housewives?  

What does it say about us?  Yes we like drama, with a little bit of tadka added... make that a lot of tadka.  

But these soaps take it to another level.  To the point of being regressive and retarded. 

Soap-fans appear to have an inherent tendency to look into the other person's life, into her intimate details, into her affairs, into her failures. 

Perhaps their inquisitiveness gets a daily dose of fulfillment with these K-serials.

I would rather watch paint dry.  Or, join my daughter in the adventures of Indian cartoon heroes.

Ah well... each to his or her own.   


Resources: 
Quote: brainyquote.com
Image: https://in.bookmyshow.com/entertainment/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/desktop15-compressed.jpg

Book recommendation: Autobiography of a Yogi

Yes, this is not a book review, it is a recommendation.  I am too small to review this.  One can only learn from this classic, which has been in print for nearly 70 years in several editions, inspiring millions of Truth-seekers.

The great yogi, author of this book of life, shares his intimate life experiences, encounters with masters, seers, divine situations and extraordinary events.  One cannot go into the details of these; it is better to explore them yourself and observe the changes that occur in you while you are at it.

It comes with photographs of several great saints, some known, many unknown, but all divine.  Sri Yoganandaji gives accounts of his immediate Guru, Sri Yukteshwarji, his Guru's Guru, Sri Lahiri Mahasayaji, and the Guru of them all, the elusive Himalayan recluse, Sri Mahavatar Babaji - or Guru Babaji, who only graces his darshan on deserving seekers. 

There are memorable accounts of Sri Yoganandaji's early struggle, accomplishments in the West - particularly USA, encounters with famous personages such as Mahatma Gandhiji and Rabindranath Tagore.

Perhaps in keeping with the likes of the western readers, there is an effort to harmonise the Hindu philosophical sayings with those of Christianity throughout the book, with the use of passages from Jesus' life and the Bible, which also serves to underline the fact that all paths lead to the same goal.

Some of the many high-points of the book is the lucid description of the after-life, the law of karma and re-birth, and of course, about Kriya Yoga, which according to Sri Yogananda, is the simple, scientific, practical and effective way to God-realisation.

Get hold of a copy now, read it, experience it, and practise Kriya Yoga right now - there's no time to lose!

Image source: https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn%3AANd9GcThg4Z2MIBFu2x9tsnZ3UgsbJ5C3oZduqvsfrLrdnLlKGabVkUO09mf_3oHP-CVF_YUI2Mrgug&usqp=CAc

Book conversations: If Its Monday It Must Be Madurai

One of those rare travel-book that I have read; this one presents a different experience.  That of travelling through conducted tours, which is unusual for a book on travel wherein the author/traveller prefers going solo.

This is why it is different; it brings out the moments of interaction and a shared experience with the fellow travellers.  Sharing both time and space with a set of people leads to experiences which add another dimension to sight-seeing.  

Perur presents an eclectic mix of travel experiences, right from pilgrimages, to mainstream tourism, to NGO-developmental trips, to even sex tourism.  Even though it is called a 'conducted tour of India', the sex tourism is set in distant Uzbekistan.

While one can overlook this diversion, what I fail to understand is the title of the book: there is only a brief mention of Madurai during the Tamil Nadu temples tour, and I am not sure if the author landed there on a Monday.  

Writing is first-rate and witty.  Perur combines facts, experiences, opinions and legends seamlessly to provide a light but engaging read.

There is one laugh-out-loud moment when a novice NGO activist addresses a group of villagers and laments the lack of women (busy with their household chores) in the audience by saying: 'matayein aur behnein bhi hote tho achcha hota; lekin mujhe pata hai ki ye unke dhandhe ka time hai'!! - or something to that effect.

By far the most howlarious piece is about the sex tourism to Uzbekistan, wherein a group of middle-aged, balding, pot-bellied men go on a rollicking, tipsy and sleazy tour - so much so that one of them saunters across to the travel agent on the plane to tell him: 'dekho...hum yahan poora enjoy karne aaye hain...!' - how typically Indian!  

The book ends on a touching note when it describes the extraordinary faith and hardship displayed by the followers of the Varkari sect, on their annual Vari, or walking pilgrimage to Pandharpur.  Kudos to Perur for putting up with the gruelling walkathon, often living on the roads and fields, and even under a truck, before finally reaching the sacred destination.  

Colour photographs might have enhanced the appeal of the narrative.

Over-all an interesting book, which will be admired by travel enthusiasts and bookworms alike.


Image source: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/515uCTOq8pL.jpg

Visit to Naganatheshwara Temple

Having attended a housewarming ceremony at Sarjapur Road, my friend, with his new found interest in temple architecture asked me if could join him on a visit to the Naganatheshwara Temple on Begur Road, off Hosur Road.  

I tagged along. 

After a winding drive on Begur Road, just right off Hosur Road (about 1 km after ORR junction), and few confused stops later, we arrived at the temple adjoining the Begur Lake.  Since we arrived in the afternoon, the temple was closed, and we had to content ourselves by viewing the architecture from the outside.  

Construction material was in place, as the temple management has decided to build four gopuras - one in each direction of the main sanctum.  A few stragglers were lazing about in the shade of the sanctum, and a couple was utilising the temple off-time for 'catch-up'. 

We circled the sanctum, taking in the architecture, with my friend educating me all the while about the construction and its meaning.  We could make out huge stone blocks with intricate carvings, joined together to form the gopuras. 

Said to be 1300 years old - on of the oldest temples of Bangalore - it was constructed by the Cholas.  The five Shivalingas are said to grant specific wishes - to do with health, children, material benefits, etc. 

If you are planning a trip, start early, and be prepared for traffic jams on Begur Road, as the road is very narrow.  

Find it here on Google Maps: Naganatheshwara Temple

Image sources:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Naganatheshvara_Temple_%289th_century%29_at_Begur%2C_Bengaluru.JPG/250px-Naganatheshvara_Temple_%289th_century%29_at_Begur%2C_Bengaluru.JPG
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/9d/Profile_of_Nandi_mantapa_in_Naganatheshvara_temple_at_Begur.JPG/220px-Profile_of_Nandi_mantapa_in_Naganatheshvara_temple_at_Begur.JPG