Strange Dream on IPL

My dreams are never about real things. They used to be very fictitious. But yesterday I had a dream about the IPL match, adhuvum finals.. enna kanraavi idhu.. idhula if I had dreamed of my favourite team winning naalum paravaa illai....I dreamt that KKR is winning the IPL this time.. edhuku indha maathiri oru kodumaiyaana dreamnu theriyala.. Current statistics a paathaa, they are in 2nd position and Delhi is the current leader. Adhellam ok dhaan...But there are a lot of matches coming up yet and things can change in the later stages of the game too. I still want CSK to win (naanga rombha loyal). KKR!!!.... what is my link with KKR, nothing.. its not even (one of ) my favorite team. .I remember very clearly my disgust that this team won it and I woke up with a bad feeling.. ennavo poangappa.. vara vara dreams la kooda ennaku logic illama poachu.

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Updated on 29th May

Finally KKR won the IPL this time and my dream did come true. Very Strange!!! Even though I was not in town to witness this, I wish my dream had not come true, because CSK had marched to the finals in full glory and it would have been a spectacular hat-trick for them. I am not undermining KKR's performance at all. They have come to the finals through brilliant effort, no second thoughts about it. But since I am such a fan of CSK, I just can't give them up. ;) Sorry boss!!

Short trip to Thiruvannamalai

Ever since I had been in Bangalore, there have been lot of plans to visit this temple (especially with my sis who is an ardent devotee of Shiva) and every time one thing or the other came up and it got postponed , for ever. Since my sis was here with her kid for more than a week, we decided that we will do this trip even though it is blazing hot at this time of the year. 

திருவண்ணாமலை represents the Fire element of Shiva's பஞ்ச பூத ஸ்தலம் . They say that it is because of the element it represents, this place is always hot, irrespective of the change of seasons.சும்மா தக தகன்னு எரியும் பாருங்க ...வேற என்ன உடம்புதான் . For people who live in Bangalore, this place feels like a tandoori kadai... But in spite of all this we decided to visit Him. Again there was some confusion on when to go and how will my brother in law join us etc.. When we almost decided on when and how, my maami pitched in to the game as she also wanted to visit with my maama's family. Again some confusions, but later by Friday, it was decided that both families (around 8 adults and one kid) will be travelling in a Innova to Thiruvannamalai on Saturday afternoon. Since my maami had been to this place quite a lot of times, she suggested Ramanashram for the stay, but due to recent renovations, we couldn't get accommodation at a short notice. So we settled for Sheshadri Swamigal Ashramam (next to Ramanashram). After the last minute drop out by maamaa and paati (maami's mom) we started out @ 2.30 pm on Saturday evening to Thiruvannamalai.

Lot of people warned us about the route from Krishnagiri to Thiruvannamalai as it was supposed to be very jerky with lot of potholes. There is no second opinion on that.. appadi our aatam.. appadi our kulukkal.. mudiyaladaapa saami.. especially in the back most seat, the jerks were felt very badly.. But since it was a big car, it was manageable to some extent. After a short tiffin break and other delays (thanks to the road conditions and a small accident en route which blocked the traffic for almost half an hour and some delay in the check post) we reached the ashram at around 8 pm.  The ashram is very small, but maintained better. It is not as big as the Ramanashram, but the rooms are categorized as A/c and Non-A/c (in Ramanashram, currently there are no a/c rooms). A/c rooms cost 600 Rs (for 4 beds) and 400 Rs (for 2 beds). Non a/c rooms cost around 150 Rs (for 2 beds). They also have a small in house canteen, with 10 chairs, which has limited menu items available.

A quick dinner (vayiru kaaliyaa irukum poadhu saamy thozha mudiyaadhu ennala...) and then, except for my sis and her husband (both took up the task of feeding their son...), we all went for a quick darshan as it will be less crowded.

Nalla dhivya darisanam. No crowd and no rush. niruthi nidhaanamaa swamiya paathoam.. adhuvum rombha pakkathula..  rombha thripthiyaa irundhadhu. There is a security check in the entrance (we went through the north entrance and came out through east entrance). Even though I had my camera, there is a check for cellphones and camera. naan dhaan rombha nalla pullaiyaa photo edukaama vandhean.. Everyone was taking it otherwise. naanum eduthirukalaam..somehow I didnt feel like violating the rule.. Its not like I am not the person who doesnt violate.. I just didnt feel like it , that day , that place avlodhaan.

Came back at around 9.30 pm and played with my nephew for sometime. We then planned for the next day's trip. Myself, my cousin (maamaa ponnu) and my brother in law were the participants for the small trek to Skandashramam before visiting the temple. Frequent power cuts @ night and the heat delayed the start of our journey by an hour. We were scheduled to start the trek by 6.30 am , but ended up starting @ around 8 am. There are two paths. One is near the temple's entrance (Ammani ammal gopuram side) and the other is from inside the Ramanashram. We decided to go through Ramanshram and end up in the temple side, so that the others can join us to the temple from there. Leaving others behind and having a quick breakfast (adha mattum naanga vidalaye) we visited the Ramanashram, saw Ramanar's samadhi, meditated for a few mins (naan illai..the other two did it), looked around the ashram (it is very very big..and they are building accommodations near by too..you can see a lot of foreigners here too) and then started our climb @ 8.10 am exactly. By that time, the sun was fully out and we had already started to sweat even before the climb.

Ramanar's samadhi - place to meditate

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Start of the climb

the natural stairs

We hadn't even crossed a few steps, suddenly a person who was on his way down, offered us some magnetic stones found in the hill (we couldn't test it ) and told us that we were very lucky to get it as he found them just then... (very old trick.. he could have tried something else)...but he was so persistent that he gave each of us one stone and got 10 Rs (for his tea)....enna kodumai sir.. begging la idhu oru style... We were the only souls climbing from this end. Konjam poaga poaga.. path became little steep and only 15 mins of walk and I was fully drenched as if I had just dipped in the Ganges...We kept climbing and climbing and the view became better. The place surrounding the path was very dry. I had to stop frequently for water. I was getting thirsty because of the heat. On the way we saw a localite selling stuff made of stones on the stony pathway. enna oru nambikai.. After almost 40 mins of walk we came to the view point from where the temple was fully visible, as was the whole of Thiruvannamalai.

 The sun was almost at its peak by then and we couldnt get a proper shot. But the view was very good. Then, from there a small descend and you end up in Skandashramam. This is the place where Ramanar stayed for 7 years where he was joined by his Mom. This was built by one of his disciples when he was doing tapas in the Virupaksha cave and it became too small for the number of devotees.

 
This place is now maintained by ASI (archaeological survey of India) and has a room where Ramanar stayed and also a nearby room where he meditated. People did maintain silence there and you get a very good view of the whole thiruvannamalai from this place. After sitting here for a few minutes, we started our descend on the other side which was a little steeper. This descend now takes you to the Virupaksha cave , where Ramanar renounced the world and came and did tapas. 

It is a very small cave which had Ramanar's photos in it and the place where he rested. People came here to meditate. This place is also maintained by ASI. Again after a few minutes, we started our climb back down. It was almost 9.10 am by then. When we came down a few steps, one paati asked us to use the other way which had some habitation rather than the stony route and got 10Rs for her tea (adhenna kanakunu theriyala.. even for a small advice..they asked money for tea or tiffin). We werent sure but still followed her advice. On the way we saw a amman temple and a big well called mulaipaal theertham . It was a very huge well (obviously almost dry)

After that the descend was on cement stairs and surrounded by houses. We came down to the other side of the entrance to Skandashramam from the Ammani ammal temple gopuram entrance. 

We were joined by the rest of the group and we went for the morning darshan. It was already 9.30 am. It was a good trek, even though it was small. If not for the heat and the dry surrounding, it would have been a nice one. But I am glad that I could do it. I wanted to test my stamina.. paravaa illai.. konjam try panninenaa I can.. I just have to take some precautions and I should be good. Next konjam perisa try pannanum. The heat did have an impact on my mom. She almost fainted inside the temple. But otherwise we had a nice darshan and my nephew had a blast watching the monkeys and their gimmicks. There were so many monkeys inside the temple premises.. Thankfully they had put some mats surrounding the temple for the devotees to walk. We literally had to run to save our feet from the burns, in places where the mats werent placed. appadi evlo veyyil....kozhuthi edhithiruchu.. The only irritating thing was the people who were cleaning the premises asking us for money for tea. I almost lost my temper to one person. Because it was a temple, I had to control myself and let it go.. Even though the temple was kept clean and tidy, asking money from every person visiting it is too much... When one lady asked money for food, my maami offered her to buy one food packet. That was when she backed off saying that she will take care of her food and it will be enough if we gave her money.. enna logic idhu.. 

It was almost 11.30 am when we finished our darshan and had our lunch (sort of). Then we headed back to the ashramam. My maami, mom and my sis were about to make a trip to the Ramanashram. But by the time we arrived, the Ramanashram was closed as it was already 12 pm. We rested for a while and decide to start back at 3 pm doing a Girivalam in the car itself. But again we got delayed by an hour. The heat drained out everyone's energy. We started at around 4.30 pm and went around the Girivalam route seeing various lingams and temples on the way.

 There is this place just after Nrudhi Lingam temple, which is called as Nandhimukha. From there if you see the Hill, it looks like the shape of Nandhi (I couldn't get a good picture of it due to the trees in between)

no need for any caption/comment here :D

 This pillayar temple is a unique one. This can be seen almost at the end of the girivalam route. It is called Iduku pillayar kovil. Do you see a small gap (iduku) beneath the letter OM ? It seems that you have to go through that gap in order to get the blessing of the Ganesha. Seems like my cousin had tried it. Eppadi mudiyumnu theriyala. edhukum visha parichai venaamnu naanga yaarum try pannala.. my maami was insisting that we should try.. asku busku..engala vachu comedy panna paathaanga.. mudiyave mudiyaadhunutom.. enna oru kolaveri ivangaluku.. :D. If we had enough time and some more energy we could have tried, atleast for the fun part of it.. But we were all drained out of energy.

After that we started our way back to Bangalore slowly and after a few breaks reached home @ around 10.30 pm (It wouldnt take that long, but had to make a few stops in between for the kid and provisions purchase by the elders in oothaangarai..tamarind was very cheap there compared to Bangalore prices...viduvaangala ivanga..) We thought of taking a short detour to Sathanur dam...but because of the heat, we decided that it wasn't worth the effort as there may not be enough time for us to enjoy the place. All of us had to be back in Bangalore by night.  We hardly had time to unpack when we reached home.

It was a good trip even though it was a very short one. I got to do some trekking, albeit the weather conditions which was worse (ivlo verthadhuku oru kilo kammi aayirundhaa paravaaillai.. adhenga... hmmm..) I had a very good darshan of the Lord. And my sis's wish to visit the temple, for the past 7 years, was fulfilled. If we had enough time we could have visited some nearby places like Vellore, Sathanoor Dam, Sengi Fort etc.. Its ok, I have got enough time ahead of me.. 

Test of my patience

There was this post where I was worried that I will not be able to express my pent up frustration and anger on some one. But I had a very strong feeling that there will be a time for me but I never knew that even if I want to let it go, the other person would come asking for it and help me out (idhuku peru dhaan valiya vandhu aapu adichukaradho?).

Since last Friday night, I was feeling very weird. I wasn't able to place it correctly. It was as if I would go really mad and for some damn reason I was getting very angry on this person. May be because this person was repeatedly troubling me for the whole week. But since Friday, there was an unrest within me.

Don't know why, on Saturday, I just felt like getting away to some place and hide myself in a small cave and not come out for a day or two.. The feeling was just terrible. I was worried if something wrong is going to happen to my family members.. I have had this feeling before and it never isn't a good sign.

I tried to keep my calm as usual and went on with my work. I also tried my level best to cheer myself up on Saturday, by watching OKOK (oru kal oru kannadi) movie with my friends and their families. kodumai kodumainu koviluku poanaa anga rendu kodumai jingu jingunu aadichaam.. andha kanakaa.. indha movie seriyaana kodumai.. light aa irukumnu poanaa.... ada poangappa.. 

Sunday morning, this person again crossed my path to the extent that I had to complain to my association and asked them to intervene and resolve it sooner as my family members (bro's family & sis' family) were due to arrive on Sunday afternoon for a week's vacation (for them). But since this person was unreachable in the morning, I left the issue as is and went on with my work. Sometimes my intuitions never go wrong. So I try to be prepared in case I sense something wrong. But if things have to go wrong.. well what can we do.

I went to the railway station and was waiting for their train to arrive. I was there an hour early (ennoda driving la ennaku avalavu nambikai... am not a bad driver, but just a little precaution as kids are also coming and I didnt want them to wait because of me). I was waiting for the Brindavan express to leave the platform and once it left, there was enough space for me to relax. Suddenly from somewhere, this short guy came and sat beside me. He was dressed in sort-of-rags. No luggage, nothing. There was a elderly couple sitting on the other side of the bench. This guy sat in between and looked @ me and then after some effort, took out a shaving razor.. He had nothing else with him, except a pen and a razor... I had my phone in my hand as I was getting calls from my family members regularly about their whereabouts. indha aalu.. enna paakaraan, en phonea paakaraan. enna paakaraan en bag paakaraan. apparam andha razor evlo sharpaa irukunu paakaraan... He was short and thin.. If I had to catch him I can easily hold his neck by my hand.. I was like.. "irudee.. nee mattum edhavadhu try pannu unnaku innaiku iruku.. already sema kadupula irukean.." He then turned around and was checking something. I wasn't sure what to do.. So, for any emergencies, I kept my water bottle open.. If he tries something, atleast I can create a diversion by throwing water in his face la (edho movieku screeplay ezhudharadhaa ennaku nenappu... I was thinking of all possible ways to prevent his attack, if he had ever planned one) This happened for almost 10 mins.. And suddenly my phone rang and my brother had called up to tell that the train is entering the platform. That was when I decided to leave that place and go to the coach to receive them.

I wasnt sure what his intentions where or if he just happened to do the wrong thing in the wrong place. But one thing I realized was that I wasnt afraid. That was something new. Everytime when something remotely like this happens,  I used to be scared, but not show it. But this time, I wasnt afraid a bit. When I told this to my parents, they, as usual, scolded me for sitting there that long.. and their usual pulambals.. But may be I was expecting something to happen so that I can have an excuse for my bad feeling that I had been having for the past few days. But no, that was not the incident.

When we reached home, this association person came to resolve the issue with this person.. I instantly knew that it was bad.. very bad..  It would have been just another day if this person knew the limits and refrained from using foul language. For some reason, as soon as this person saw my brother, sparks (!!!) flew , so did the foul words.. I don't know how one can use foul words on others and expect them not to return them. Even though my brother is younger to me, he always behaves like an elder one. His protective instincts are too high. I never knew that my brother knew so much foul words. If it was just words, it would have been different. But as soon as this person heard my brother use foul words equal to what he used, he used physical violence. Well that was the end of the words. Next came blows and then came family members from my home to prevent each other.. God.. just one word and a few secs, things went out of hand. So did my patience. I knew that this was what I had feared. Once this person was done getting enough blows from my brother (this person should really have thought twice before raising hand on my brother..) attention turned towards me and that was when I knew that I got my chance of redemption. Little did this person expect me to raise my voice like the way I did on Sunday. I saw this person cowering when I met eye to eye   and questioned all that were there with me all these four years....What a relief it was... This was totally unwarranted and was not initiated by me or my side. But when things have to fall in place, well, it will. No one can stop that. None of  them there had witnessed my anger till now (not even my brother in law or sister in law) but that day they saw a different person out there. I knew I was out of my control but if I am proud of one small thing, it was that in all the uncontrolled events that took place, I controlled myself from using foul words. That is something I do not believe in. It is not that I have never felt the need to use it. But I just do not want use it.. My anger left this person speechless. I was angry because I had tried to prevent this. I tried all civilized ways of handling this issue. But this person believed that since I was trying to avoid any confrontation, I was afraid of this person. Little did this person realize that what I did was for his own good.

Once the whole episode got over, it was time for another visit to the hospital. First time ever in my life, my blood pressure shot up and remained high for almost 5 hrs later. Well, it is a sign that I am still human and not a stone :D. Its almost close to a week now since the incident happened. But now when I look back @ it, I am happy that it happened and that things were settled in one aspect and sad that it had to happen during my family's visit.

I knew that my family members were both mentally strong (they have to be, because they have to handle me...) but this incident was a proof that they are also physically strong :D.

I will always love you guys :D

Kaasi yaathrai - Varanasi - Day 3

After the end of the 2nd day, we had landed in Varanasi @ around 9 pm (with the stop over for dinner). It was very dark, but we could figure out that there is no such thing called traffic control in that area. Once we left the highway, I guess it took more time to reach the mdam (Kanchi sankara mdam). The roads are very small with enough billboards giving you the directions of the different ghats and the temples that we would be visiting the next day. We were too tired to really notice anything else. The last stop for the car driver was to drop us in the kanchi mdam and then we paid him in full (11000Rs) and bade him goodbye with a thanks for the safe journey. 

The kanchi mdam is very near to the Kanchi temple and you can see more south indians (mostly vaadhiyaars) out here. Even the hindi speaking guys understand and speak a little tamil and telugu (as far as I heard). They gave us a room in the ground floor (thankfully) and we unpacked and were wondering what our next day's program was when one vaathiyaar who does the local tours there for the visitors knocked our doors and asked us to get ready by 6 am or earlier and that we would be visiting the temples even before the ceremony starts. There was strict instructions on not to carry the cellphones or any leather items. Even money should be very limited. If possible, change for Rs 100 should do and some money for autorickshaws. 

The room was spacious and clean and well maintained. They also have water filters and a temple inside (no slippers near the inside temple). We got ready by 5.30 am (naanga rombha punctual) and he was surprised when he paid a visit to wake us up @ 5.30 am. So we started off in a auto exactly @ 6 am and visited the following temples 

a)The KaalaBhairavar temple (one of the to-be-seen temples in Kaasi) 

b) The Annapoorneshwari temple 

c) Kaasi Vishwanathar temple (had high security and checkings..)

d) Devi temple (exact name I forgot)

The roads to these temples are very very narrow and is full of building on all sides. You wouldnt guess which gali will lead you to the temple. The roads are very dirty and you can see cows every where (not just here.. the whole of the Varanasi). Everywhere you go, please stare at your purse to see how much money you have and how they can take all of that. That is why the guide vaathiyaar asked us to get change for 100 Rs and not take a purse at all. 

After that we returned back, and I had my breakfast (2 vada's in the nearby stall and a coffee) and the ceremony started. Here we did the Hiranya Shraddham and once that is done, we took the avisu (the cooked rice..) to do the other rituals in the Ganges. 

We walked to the Shivala Ghat (picture below) which was very near to the mdam only to find that the purohit who was supposed to do the rituals for us, had been waiting for us since 7 am (as was instructed to him) and we had reached by 8 am (after our visit to the temples). So he got pissed off and he went and sat in a far off place not willing to do the ritual for us. We were shocked by this behavior. Because we werent aware of this miscommunication. So we waited for the guide vaathiyaar to handle the situation as they felt correct. He tried to convince the purohit and since he was stubborn (and he had another customer coming @ around 8.15 am) he didnt want to come. So they arranged for the vaathiyaar who had done the hiranya shraddham in the mdam and he came in short notice. This was the small glitch in the whole story. And then the events continued as usual. 

We were supposed to do the Shraddham in 5 ghats (owing to the time limits...) They were

a) Assi Ghat

b) Dashavamedha Ghat

c) Trilochana Gat

d) Pancha Ganga Ghat

e) ManiKarnika Ghat

We have to proceed towards the Assi river side of Ganges and start from there and then proceed back to Varuna river side where we do the rituals in Pancha Ganga Ghat and come back to ManiKarnika and then back to Shivala Ghat. 

I asked the vaathiyaar, if I should take a dip in Ganges too. He said he would let me know which ghats I can take a dip. So I was waiting for his nod. This is a picture of the ghats and the Ganges from the Assi Ghat.

This is the Harishchandra Ghat, where there were a few dead bodies which were burning and which were ready to be burnt too. 

Once we came to the Pancha ganga Ghat, the vaathiyaar asked us to visit the Vindhu madhav temple which is situated almost 100 stairs above (little steep). So after the dip (including mine) and the rituals, we went and did the darshan and came back.

This is the ghat where the Ganga Aarthi is performed during Sunset everyday. They say it is a beautiful ceremony which should not be missed. But we would miss our train, so we skipped it.

I had my dip (not so good one) in Pancha ganga, where I sort of tricked myself and did a partial dip (I am scared of water!!!) and convinced myself that I had bathed in Ganges :D. Then again Manikarnika, they asked me to take a dip. This is the other ghat , other than Harishchandra ghat, where the dead bodies were burnt and their ashes mixed in the Ganges. Inga dhaan sema comedy. My dad realized that I wasnt doing the dippy thing properly.. He was asking me to do it well. But I asked him for a mug so that I can pour the water over my head and I would be done. But everyone (including the boatman) were encouraging me to do a proper dip..But everytime I tried, somehow my hair stayed dry. Realizing the fact that I wasnt going to do it on my own, my dad came forward, and pushed me inside three times. It was scary the first time, but then it was better for the next two dips. I was more scared that water will enter my nose and ears, more than anything else. After that, well I was my usual self. But then, when they were doing their rituals, there came a north indian family (mostly women) who were doing the dippy dippy like me and then to everyone's surprise, they took out a mug and started pouring water on their heads with it. I was looking @ my mom who was shocked to see this and didnt know what to say. But atleast I did the proper dip with some help. I am glad about that.

We finished our rituals and came back @ around 12.30 pm and had our lunch and rested for a while and packed our stuff for our train @ 6.30 pm and then again @ around 2 pm the guide vaathiyaar came to pick us up for our local tour. 

First stop was BHU... evalavu periyaa university..yappadi .. auto la dhaan poanoam..university kulleye 10-15 mins round adika vendiyadhaa irundhichu. They had a beautiful temple (picture below). But this is more of fancy temple. Some how I dont feel like praying in temples made of marble. May be because I am more used to the older stone temples. Especially if the vigrahams are made of marble, I rather look @ it for it beauty than pray. 

Then we went to Tulasi manasa mandir, where the whole of Ramayan written by Tulasidas is inscripted in the whole building. They had two floor. Again little on the fancy side. If you want to have a look @ the Ramayan inscriptions, good place to visit. My mom wanted to visit this because her friend had told her that this is one of the not-to-be-missed places in Varanasi. I wonder why!!! 

Next stop was a Hanunam (Sankat mochan) temple where we are not allowed to take the camera or cellphones. After that we went to Adiparasakthi temple or Durga temple which was colored in dark red (as seen below). Looked like a very old temple, but recently painted. They say that the goddess here is very powerful. 

The last stop was the Choliamman temple, who is said to be the sister of Kashi vishwanath. They say that unless you see her, your trip of Kaasi is not complete. Why Choliamman? Here you pray with the choli (I dont know the english name of it.. its a small play thing that is commonly used for dayakattam.. ) We use that instead of flowers and they give us one each to be placed in our pooja room. 

It was almost 4.30 by the time we reached back to the mdam, settled the accounts, got the night dinner packed (idly with chutney powder) and came to the station @ around 5.30 pm itself.

A few things about Varanasi:

Its dirty, but not as dirty as Allahabad

There are cows everywhere.... and in equal population to the men who come there.

Foreigners are so attracted to the Ganges even inspite of the uncleanliness in the ghats, that I see most of the sitting by the river and meditating

The place in between the two rivers (Varuna and Assi) is called Varanasi. 

There are more then 64 ghats 

The guide vaathiyaar has been there for 3 years now (doing seva) and spoke so little hindi. And when he heard me speak hindi to a dukaanwala, he was so surprised and appreciated me for speaking it so well. (ennaku dhaan theriyum yen hindi yoada azhagu)

Everyone was money for everything, including the guide vaathiyaar (He does seva in the mdam and doesnt get paid..but gets food, shelter and clothing.. so only with the money he earns as guide and as a vaathiyaar, he has to buy things for himself and his wife...ellarukum oru story..) 

I hardly saw one or two traffic policemen and 1 traffic signal. Unless you are careful, you will be runover. Be careful there.

You will get Tea easily when compared to coffee. 

We saw people getting dead bodies from nearby places to be cremated in Ganges. Ideally, unless the dead person is a child of less than 7 years, all bodies will be burnt and ashes thrown in Ganges, but if the dead person is a child they will immerse it as is in Ganges. That is what people informed us there. Also people who are expecting their death come to Varanasi to die near / in Ganges. 

Ganges is highly polluted, but there is something out there which makes you feel different (atleast made me feel different and want to take a dip there). Do not take the dip near the Ghat.. Go a little further and do it. The places near the ghat is the one which has more garbage. 

The proper city (not the ones where the temples are located) looked more or like a slightly older version of the BTM layout except for the language. 

Everyone, almost everyone, chews paan. I hate that smell (one of the very few smells my nostrils react to) but you cannot avoid that. 

As per our guide: The Kaasi vishwanathar temple has a darga (mosque) next to it. During the invasion, the then Raaja took the lingam and hid it in a well to prevent it being desecrated by Muslims. But then later a muslim lady found it and re instated it. You can also see the gold plated domes donated by a Hindu Maharani 

As per our guide: You can do the kaasi yaathra rituals based on your convenience. You can do it in three days (minimum like we did) to three years. Some people stay there for a year and do the elaborate rituals...(appadi enna dhaan pannuvaanga theriyala..I dont know about these things well enough to comment..) But if you want to do it, you should always start @ Allahabad or  @ Gaya and not in Kaasi 

One small conversation between me and the guide vaathiyaar:

Our Guide: ennoda oru chinna logic pathi solavaa kozhandhai.... inga irundha indha 3 varushamaa naan evalavu kathundean theiryumaa

myself: appadiyaa (!!!!!) .. sollungo maamaa. 

Guide: nammavaalaam swamiya thodaamadhaane thozhuvoam.. inga mattum yean ivaa ellam swamiya thadavi koduthundu thozharaa theriyumo?

myself: theriyalaye.. neengale sollungo maamaa.

Guide: yeannaa.. Raamar enga porandhaar ? sollumaa

myself: ayodhya

Guide: krishnar ?

myself: mathura

Guide: chamathu.. Shiva enga irukaar?

myself: imaalayam

Guide: paathiyaa.. naama thozhara ella kadavulum inga dhaan porandhirukaa.. adhanaala ivaa ellam avaala thannoda irukara thaan kooda puzhangina oru aala paakaraa, adhanaaladhaa thottu vanangaraa.. nammaku appadi illai..kadavulaadhaan paakaroam.. adhanaala thodaama thozhudhutu poaroam. 

ippadi pala conversations nadandhadhu.. but ippo adhigam nyabagam illai.. vandhadhum update parean.

All in all , a satisfying and successful journey to the Ganges. My mom was quite happy that she could do it in her time and that when she is healthy enough to do it too. My dad was content that his dream had come true. I was at peace because I visited new places , especially holy places and had my dip in Ganges, which I didn't ever dream of.

Kaasi yaathrai - Gaya - Day 2

They say as part of the Kaasi yaathrai the rituals you do in Gaya is the most important one. This is where we do the aatma pindam ritual.

On day 1 , we started to Gaya at around 2 pm and reached the Adi sankarar mdam exactly @ 8.45 pm (including the stopover for dinner). When we came, we were greeted by a very old man (a swamiji from the mdam who was above 70 or so) who allotted a very neat and spacious room. He asked us to go and visit the Vishnu padham soon, as they would close the temple shortly and only @ night we can see the padham( பாதம் ) clearly as they would be decorated with chandan and kumkum. The mdam is very close to the temple. So we went and had the darshan and they even gave us the cloth (muslin cloth or so) which was used to cover the padham.

Once we returned, the thaathaa came to our room and started explaining the process that will be done the next day. He was very meticulous in his ways and had all the details that he had to inform us written down in a notebook and the details of payments that need to be done (not too much , but the ones to be given during the ceremony). He also explained why each of these rituals had to be done, what is their significance etc.

Seems like when we do the shraddham at home, we say "gaya, gaya, gaya" three times (I have no idea half the time about what he was talking about, but my dad seemed to understand it every word) and now that we are in gaya that will not be used. Also how they always say of Akshaya vatam and that we will actually doing the pind-dhaan in akshaya vatam tree etc etc. Also why akshaya vatam is very important in the pind-dhaan process/ritual. Then we went off to a deep slumber as we have to start early again tomorrow.

The story of Gaya and the Asura on whose name this place is called is depicted in this picture:

Gayasuran was a good but invincible asura and obviously the other devas were paranoid about it and they complained to Vishnu and he in turned asked Gayasuran to give him a place to do some yagna and he offered himself for that. Because Gayasuran was a good guy Vishnu offered him a wish by which the whole place where he laid would be called as Gaya (after his name) and that it would be a holy place. Also the place where Vishnu stood on his heart is the Vishnu padham temple. I guess you could get more detailed story of the same if you browse, but this is the gist of it

The story of Akshaya vatam goes like this
As part of Ramayan (after Sita is rescued by Ram), Ram , Sita and Lakshman come to Gaya to offer shraddham to King Dasaratha. At that time, Phalguni river was there. Ram and Lakshman crossed the river and went to get a few things for the shraddham. Varuna deva who was very happy that Lord Ram has come there, started flowing and as a result, the Phalguni river was overflowing and since Ram was in human form, he couldnt cross the river and got stuck on the other side. Meanwhile, time was running out (they say that you should do the shraddham in the specific thithi in which the person died) and Sita did not want to let the time go, so she started doing the shraddham formalities (eppadi.. andha kalathuleye idhellam nadandhiriku.... namma kitta irundhu maraichutaanga..I wonder when the concept of women not giving devasam started if such a thing was already done during Ramayana times...!!!). Lord Dasaratha's soul which was very hungry, came up from the ground and asked his daughter in law to give him food soon. Once she was done with the rituals, she kept Thulasi, Phalguni, a Cow, a Gaya Brahman and Akshaya vatam tree as witnesses and she gave pindam to her father in law. Her father in law was a happy soul now and he went back to his peace. Now after some time Ram and Lakshman came back and when Sita told him about what happened, he wasnt convinced, so he gave pindam again, but his father did not come to get it from him. Knowing that this would happen, Sita called her witnesses.

Thulasi lied (for whatever reason) that she didnt notice. Cow said that it went for grazing and hence did not notice either if Sita gave the pindam to Lord Dasaratha. Phalguni river said that since it was flowing, it did not notice too. The Gaya Brahman , who wanted to get more dakshina from Ram too, said that Sita did not give pindam. The Akshaya vatam tree confirmed that it did saw Sita giving pindam to her father in law and that her father in law accepted the same. Now on hearing this Ram was convinced. But Sita was very angry. So she cursed the four who lied. That is the reason that a) thulasi in gaya is devoid of fragrance b) phalguni river is devoid of water and is dry always c) the cow in gaya will have to be worshipped from the back and not from the front and d) the gaya brahman is never happy with what he has and will always beg for more. She also declared that people who give pinda-dhaan under Akshaya vatam will be blessed and that the pind-dhaan will reach the souls.

Day 2 started off with rituals in the sankara mdam and then taking the cooked rice we went to Vishnu padham temple and did the rituals there. This is where we prepare the pindam for all we know who are dead, till three generations earlier. This is where more importance is given to the maternal lineage also. I was glad that my dad gave one pindam for our dear dog Jeenu. You can give pindam to all the near and dear ones who have departed us and who have played a role in our lives. Also if your mother is no more, then you have to give special pindams for her for the trouble you have caused her since your inception. (I liked that part) . It is reminiscence time. This is the Akshaya vatam temple which is very very old.

After that we went for the Darshan of the Vishnu padham temple. We can see the phalguni river and the Sita temple beyond that.

Then we went back to the mdam and did some other rituals and finally, went by car to the Akshaya vatam and did the pind-dhaan there

There were other temples nearby to Akshaya vatam. We did not find time to go there. Also there was a school nearby so it was very crowded. Even though this place is of high importance, people sit in large numbers and beg. There was even a fight that got started among the ladies related to the amount being split.. Ada kadavule. And as usual, it was dirty. Though there were ladies assigned to keep it clean, they keep asking for money and do not do the cleaning work. There was a small krishna temple and a hanuman temple in the bottom of that tree.

After doing the pind-dhaan, we returned back to the mdam and completed the rituals and had our devasa saapaadu by around 1.30 pm. They also packed us some vadai for night (we should not be eating out ideally). At around 2.30 pm or so we started on our way to Kaasi (Varanasi) to complete our 3rd day rituals.

Everyone told us that Gaya would be the dirtiest place among the three. But it turned out, that this was the comparatively tidier than the others. The highways is one of the best we have been on. summa sallunu 120 varaikum poanaaru driver uncle. chance illa. There was some checking in the border though and that took us some 15-20 mins to complete. Also we saw the place where the detour to Bodh Gaya happens. Bodh Gaya is the Buddhist place and it forks on the way to Gaya. See the arch in the picture below. This is the entrance to Bodh Gaya. Since we did not plan for that, we skipped it. But I would like to visit Bodh Gaya once. There is also an airport which is seldom used by VIPs. The driver was telling us that Dalai Lama was scheduled to visit sometime this month or next month.


I was some how more satisfied and happy with the rituals performed here and rested on our way back in the car.

Yet to come is the final ritual day in Kaasi.

Kaasi yaathrai - Allahabad - Day 1

Finally, here I am with the accounts of my Kaasi Trip. 

When my dad got his invitation and tickets for his client’s son’s wedding in Delhi, he planned to complete his visit to Kaasi and complete the shraddam formalities for his parents (my grandma died 2 years ago). He had already got the sand (Sedhu madhavam) from Rameshwaram. And when he said his plan to me, it was obvious that I would tag along. Who gets these kinds of opportunities? The trip was for almost a week with three days in Delhi for the wedding and then three days for the shradham. After the wedding we started to Allahabad on 26^th Feb in Shiv Ganga express and landed in Allahabad @ around 4.30 am (train was 1 hr late). Since the whole package was pre booked with one of the known vaadhiyaar, the accommodation and transport between the places for the shradham formalities were taken care of by them (along with food).

The taxi came @ around 5 am and from there we went to Siva madam for the day’s formalities. Since it was dark we didn’t see much of the city of Allahabad. But as soon as we entered the Siva mdam (மடம் ) , we realized that it wasn’t a mdam actually, but more of a small house opposite a temple which is used for these ceremonies. They had rooms (single rooms and shared bathrooms) which were given to the yatri’s but the rooms were so shabby and untidy that I just couldn’t bear being there. I got a broom from nearby and cleaned it myself. There was no one out there to whom we can ask anything about what the procedure was. Then around 6.30 am a cook came and he made us coffee in the small kitchen that was there. Then we got some hot water from him as it was very cold and got ourselves ready and since my dad and mom were to do the shradham formalities they should not have any breakfast. But I asked him if he could make me some breakfast and he said that he could get me some upma. I hate upma.. but anything is better than nothing.. I was already very hungry. And around 9 am or so the vaathiyaar came and the ceremony started. To be very honest, I never bothered about understanding these ceremonies. I am there to help my mom..that is all. So here too I was just waiting for them to call me in case they need anything like getting the change to be given to the vaathiyaar, to get the cooked rice ( I think there is some name to it) to them so that they don’t have to walk around too much.

Once they were done, since my dad was a sugar patient, they gave my parents some oats kanji and then we were taken to the nearby Veni madhav temple (In Rameshwaram, it’s the Sedhu madhavam temple from where they are supposed to get the sand which has to be dissolved in the triveni sangham) and then from there to the Adi sankarar temple and then to triveni sangham. I cannot imagine a place much dirtier than these places around. Everything other than a lion and a tiger is out on that street and some are dead too. God, can’t they have it a little cleaner.  We went to a sleeping hanuman temple near the Ganges and then took a boat to triveni sangham. It was so huge, but again very dirty. We were going through the Yamuna river and there is so much crowd out there that early. The boat fees is 25 Rs per head and they take you to the junction of Ganga and Yamuna (and the antarvahini Saraswati) and they do the necessary ceremony there like hair cut, giving the veni madhav offerings by the ladies etc and then a dip in the sangham. The difference between the two rivers are so drastic. 

The Ganges looks white, whereas Yamuna looks dark blue most of the places. Yamuna has more waves in it and Ganges is so smooth without any waves in it. There is a clear line of separation in the place where they meet.  The water was almost knee length even though we were quite far away from the shoreline and they asked me to take a dip too. I was very apprehensive and then did a not-too-good-a dip there. Dad went along further more into the Ganges and got 3 cans of water to be distributed to people who asked for it. Once they were done with their pooja's we started back and reached the Shiva madam and did the rest of the ceremonies. Once that was done, they offered us the devasa saapadu (like what we do @ home) and after that we got ready at around 2 pm to go to Gaya in the car (it would take use 7 hrs). Thankfully the car was Indigo and we had ample space to stretch our legs and so we did not feel that tired in our journey. 

I guess in these places we find beggars in equal numbers to the tourists. I havent been to Rameshwaram, but my family and friends who have been there complained about the uncleanliness out there. But I guess in India, any popular temple is always kept unclean (or may be they just cant handle the crowd well enough to keep it clean.. the exception to some extent being the Tirupathi as far as I have seen) But they could atleast do some management near the triveni sangham. It pains you to see the kind of garbage that floats there. In fact as part of these ceremonies mostly flowers are the only ones offered, but here they cut your hair in the sangham.. If you really have to take a dip , you should go a little far and try to take a dip.

Irrespective of all the bad feel about the way the rivers and the city were maintained, I felt good about taking a dip in the triveni sangham. Naanum gangaiya thotutean :D. My mom was happy that she could do these rituals in her lifetime. And I am happy for her.

Coming up, the important ritual in Gaya.