Other Beacons

My favourite part of the movie trilogy, ‘The Lord of the Rings,’ is the lighting of the beacon on the mountain which starts the lighting of a series of seven mountain beacons calling for help in the upcoming battle. When the beacon is lit, Gandalf say, ‘Hope is kindled.’

Its impossible for me to see the below excerpt from the film, without immediately thinking of Arunachala and Karthigai Deepam.







A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location, and in the case of Karthigai Deepam, the beacon on top of Arunachala, is also used to observe and celebrate a vast amount of mythology associated with the Hill. One could also say that the Deepam, also serves as a metaphor of guidance in our own spiritual quest.