Sri Nannagaru Visit

Sri Nannagaru of Jinnuru, Andhra Pradesh arrived at Tiruvannamalai this week followed by many of his Andhra devotees.

While here he will be stationed at Sri Nannagaru Ashram at Rajiv Gandhi Nagar, a short distance west of Ramana Ashram off the Chengham Road. Sri Nannagaru is expected to remain at Arunachala until the morning of the 15th August. Following his usual practice, Sri Nannagaru is expected to be available to his devotees and visitors while at his Ashram. To find more about this Advaitic Master, please check this website.

A Wedding

On August 3rd I attended a Christian interracial wedding at the Protestant Carmel Church (of the Arcot Lutheran Church) here at Tiruvannamalai.

Carmel Church, which has a large congregation, is located in a central part of Tiruvannamalai. This Church originates from 1898 when a mission station was built in Tiruvannamalai by DMS (the Danish Missionary Society). In 1905 the name of this mission station started to be called "Carmel".

The Church is bright and welcoming and had been nicely decorated for the upcoming ceremony with fresh flowers.

I like all the old fashioned touches, from the ornate wooden pews, to the very handsome rafter roof.

All the light fixures throughout the Church are decorative and aesthetic.

In the below photograph the flower decorated Church waits for the guests and wedding party.

As in all functions in India, the upcoming ceremony was heralded by traditional musicians.





The Church has filled and the congregation awaits the wedding party. And here comes the bride, Esther Deva Priya, youngest sister of Arcot's Pastor and Coordinator of Quo Vadis, Rev. Joshua Peter. Esther is accompanied by bridesmaids, some of whom were selected from the family and friends of the groom, Morten Skrubbeltrang (from Denmark).

Inside the Church, preparations are complete and all await the arrival of the bride and groom (who will be entering together).





Below the Bride from India, Esther Deva Priya stands with the Groom from Denmark Morten Skrubbeltrang in front of Bishop, The Rt. Rev. Dr. Gideon Devanesan R.J.

The service includes various Hymns and Prayers including the following:

O perfect Love, all human thought transcending,
Lowly we kneel in prayer before thy throne,
That theirs may be the love which knows no ending.
Whom Thou for evermore dost join in one.
O perfect Life, be Thou their full assurance
Of tender charity and steadfast faith.
Of patient hope and quiet brave endurance
With childlike trust that fears not pain nor death.

Grant them the joy which brightens earthly sorrow;
Grant them the peace which calms all earthly strife,

And to life's day the glorious unknown morrow,

That dawns upon eternal love and life.

*************************

After the service the usual photographs were taken outside the Church.

In the next photograph, the Groom is accompanied by his father and mother who came from Denmark for the celebrations. At the other end of the line are the Bride's father (in the white shirt) and (behind him) the Bride's mother.

Now that the beautiful marriage ceremony is complete and photographs have been taken, the flower-decorated car awaits to take the Bride and Groom to the Arunai Anantha Hotel for the reception and dinner.

Morten Skrubbeltrang will continue in Tamil Nadu for at least another year, pursuing his theological studies, afterwhich he and his new bride will spend some time in Denmark.

Its extraordinary just how many couples have met and joined up at Arunachala. And this is particularly true of interracial marriages of which there have been numerous. Many believe that at Arunachala (and other sacred sites) one will meet those with whom one shares strong karma with; so destiny will often take a hand in reintroducing friends (and enemies!) from past lives.

The Meaning

Ayers Rock, Australia

"Since prehistoric times, sacred places have exerted a mysterious attraction on billions of people around the world. Ancient legends and modern day reports tell of extraordinary things that have happened to people while visiting these places. Different sacred sites have the power to heal the body, enlighten the mind, increase creativity, develop psychic abilities, and awaken the soul to a knowing of its true purpose in life. While contemporary science cannot explain, and therefore disregards, the seemingly miraculous phenomena which occurs at the holy places, they continue to be the most venerated and visited locations on planet earth. What is the key to the mystery of the sacred sites and how are we to explain their power?

Mount Rinjani, Lombok Island, Indonesia

There is a global socio-cultural phenomena occurring which is the awakening and vitalization of an eco-spiritual consciousness. Among the wonderful aspects of this global awakening is the realization of the interdependency of all living things and the earth. Deriving from this realization is the understanding that each human, man or woman, white or black, western or eastern, rich or poor, is a child of one spirit, one energy, one god, one love. This sublime state of consciousness is the promise of each person on the planet. There are many paths to this consciousness, many methods of inner work which each of us will use during the course of our lives.

Stonehenge, England

There is also an earth-based energy available to human beings, concentrated at specific places all across the planet, which catalyzes and increases this eco-spiritual consciousness. Before their prehistoric human use, before their usurpation by different religions, these sites were simply places of power. They continue to radiate their powers, which anyone may access by visiting the sacred sites. No rituals are necessary, no practice of a particular religion, no belief in a certain philosophy; all that is needed is for an individual human to visit a power site and simply be present.

Chaco Canyon, Arizona, USA

As each of us awakens to a fuller knowing of the universality of life, we in turn further empower the global field of eco-spiritual consciousness. That is the deeper meaning and purpose of these magical holy places: they are source points of the power of spiritual illumination."

[Martin Gray]

Giza Pyramids, Egypt

To find out more about the sacred sites in your own country, as well as throughout the world, please visit Martin Gray’s inspirational and excellent website at here:

New Style Blog

Finally made a change to the colour and style of Arunachala Grace Blog and hope that this version is easier to read. The old Blog looked nice, but was actually quite difficult on the eyes and some people suggested I change it. I'm still experimenting with this new version but personally find the colours much more cheerful and pleasing and also the photographs stand out nicely.

This last week at Arunachala has been really cold as we are in the midst of a weather front that has brought with it, chilly weather and lots of rain. The weather forecast has promised us relief by Thursday and I will be delighted to see the back of this freezing cold drizzle.

I visited some newly built houses today to check rents on behalf of friends and was amazed when I heard the prices. Definitely Arunachala has finally moved into modern times! That also applies to land, but curiously it is the foreign visitors who are more shocked by land prices than the Indians. When people come from Chennai or Mumbai and hear the price of an acre, they immediately say, 'Wow, thats cheap!". However, overseas visitors are staggered by land prices at Tiruvannamalai and say, 'That's twice as much as I would pay in my own country!' A wonderful irony that the Indians think the land is cheap and the overseas visitors think it expensive!

Animal Shelter Vets

Tiruvannamalai Animal Shelter:

Dr Milind Mhatre who is 29 years old and a resident of Maharashtra finishes his one month tenure at the Animal Shelter, Tiruvannamalai on August 3rd. Dr. Mhatre, a graduate of Bombay Veterinary College, specialised in internal medicine for his Postgraduate Studies at Gujarat Agricultural University.

This is Dr. Mhatre's first time in Tiruvannamalai and although he did not have enough the leisure in which to explore the area as much as he would have wished, he was able to at least climb to the top of Arunachala at the beginning of his stay. Dr. Mhatre who is a small animals veterinary specialist proposes leaving Tiruvannamalai on August 4th at which time he will return to his own clinic, 'Complete Pet Care', (0)9850465201 at Pune, (near Rajneesh Ashram).

Permanent Veterinary Doctor:

Dr. Pushpa Latha, who is 25 years old, joined The Animal Shelter, Tiruvannamalai on July 22, 2007 as the Shelter's permanent Veterinary Doctor. Dr. Latha originally hails from Tanjore but relocated to Chennai where she undertook her veterinary studies. She studied at Chennai Madras Veterinary College (Asia's Premier Veterinary College) where she undertook her Bachelors Degree and later her Masters Degree specialising in surgery studies. Dr. Pushpa Latha worked as surgical assistant to Professor Jayaprakash at Chennai College for 3 years.

From Chennai she moved to Coimbatore to complete a 6 month tenure as Research Doctor at a 2,000 bird Poultry Farm facility. To take up the post of permanent senior Veterinary Doctor at Tiruvannamalai Animal Shelter, Dr. Pushpa Latha recently relocated with family members to this area. Although a native of Tamil Nadu, this is Dr. Latha's first time to Tiruvannamalai.

Guru Poornima

Each year the full moon day in the month of Ashad (July-August) is the auspicious day of Guru Poornima, which in 2007 falls on July 29th. The day of Guru Poornima originates with the ancient sage, Bhagavan Sri Vyasa. Who it is believed edited the four Vedas, wrote the 18 Puranas, The Mahabharata and The Srimad Bhagavata.

In honour of this divine personage, spiritual aspirants and devotees either perform Vyasa Puja on this day, or worship their own spiritual preceptor. Saints, monks and men of God are honoured and entertained with acts of charity by householders with faith and sincerity. The period Chaturmas (the "four months") begins from this day; Sannyasins stay at one place during the ensuing four rainy months, engaging in the study of the Brahma Sutras and the practice of meditation.

The day of Guru Poornima is supposed to herald the settling in of the rains and is thus a time that aspirants commence or resolve to intensify their spiritual disciplines. The Srutis say: "To that high-souled aspirant, whose devotion to the Lord is great and whose devotion to his Guru is as great as that to the Lord, the secrets explained herein become illuminated".

To find out more about Rishi Vyasa click here.

Universe Song

A FUN, light hearted, musical cartoon on the size of the Universe.

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Rajarajeshwari Shrine

In an earier posting I mentioned a few details of Rajarajeshwari Temple on the hillround roadway and its location at Parvati Hill. Below is some more interesting information about this small, fascinating Temple.

What is now the Rajarajeshwari Temple on the Girivalam pathway has been at the same .25 acre site in some form or another for the last 100 years

The family who maintain the Trust of this independent Temple is that of A.Valagurumudaliar Annaporni and comprises 7 brothers and 2 sisters, all of whom are actively involved in the running and development of the Temple. The family, who come from a merchant tradition, are Mudaliars, a sect famous for their support of Temples and Religious endeavours in many area throughout Tamil Nadu.

Of the seven brothers of the Valagurumudaliar Annaporni family, Arul Arasu, who trained as an engineer, is currently the priest and manager of Rajarajeshwari Temple.

Rajarajeshwari is held as the first God of the Devi Mahatmyam, in which all others are centred.

In the shrine room at the feet of the goddess is a Koorm Pristhiya (Meru) Sri Yantra of which you can more details at this link:

Below is the statue of Sri Ganesha which is stationed at the doorway of the Inner Shrineroom.

The next photograph is of the statue of Rajarajeshwari which is located outside the Shrineroom and is used for various other kinds of puja and processions around the Temple.

The metal carving of Gaja Lakshmi is positioned outside the Shrineroom.

Facing the Shrineroom, instead of the usual Nandi one always associates with the Shiva Lingam, is the Simha (lion) associated with the Goddess aspect, particularly that of Durga.

Below one can get a better idea of the Simha dais facing the Shrineroom inside the Temple.

The blue panel at the back of the outside of the Shrineroom is the back of where the Rajarajeshwari statue is located.

When this Temple was established a 100 years ago by the ancestors of the current A.Valagurumudaliar Annaporni family, the small pink structure was the whole of the original Temple. As time progressed what is now the current Rajarajeshwari Temple grew around the original Shrineroom below.

The next photograph is of the Goddess, in another of her aspects, located inside the Compound but outside the Shrineroom.

Currently a small Shiva Temple (i.e. Rajarajeshwaran) is being constructed adjacent to the current Goddess Shrine. The Lingam in the below photograph will get moved into its own small Temple when complete.

The Nandi below is also awaiting completion of the new Temple, afterwhich it will be positioned facing the Shiva Lingam.

A view of the small garden surrounding the Rajarajeshwari Temple.

This lovely Amman Temple is becoming increasing popular for people performing Girivalam. It is estimated each month during the day of Poornima over 50,000 people visit this Temple. The number increases to 100,000 on the day of the annual Bharani Deepam (which this year is celebrated on November 24th, 2007).

For full information of Poornima and Deepam dates please check this link.

Shiva, Shakti

Only if Shiva is united with Shakti does he have the power to act, otherwise the God is not even able to quiver.

Thus having been lauded by the creator, preserver and destroyer of the world, how can a man without virtue like myself be able to sing or to praise you?

[Shankaracharya, Saundarya Lahari 1]

I am Manifest, Unmanifest and Transcendent Divinity,
I am Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva
As well as Saraswati, Laksmi and Parvati
I am the Earth, The Sun and the Stars
And I am the also the Moon
I am all animal and birds,
And I am the outcast as well, and the thief
I am the low person of dreadful deeds,
And the great person of excellent deeds
I am Female. I am Male and I am Neuter

In the Devi's Supreme Cosmic Form,
The Satyaloka is situated on the topmost of Her head;
The Sun and Moon are her eyes;
The quarters of the sky are Her ears;
The Vedas are Her words;
The Universe is Her heart;
The Earth is Her loins;
The space between earth and sky is Her navel;
The constellations are Her Thighs;
The Maharaloka is Her neck;
The Janarloka is Her face;
Indra and the Devas of the Svarloka are her arms;
Sound is the organ of Her ears;
Fire is within her Face;
Day and Night are Her wings;
The mountains are Her bones;
The rivers are Her veins,
And the trees are the hairs of Her body.
Childhood, youth, and old age are Her finest modes;
The two twilights are Her raiment;
And the Moon is the mind of the Mother of the Universe.

[Devi Bhagavata Purana, VII.33.1-21]

Arunachala Land

Arunachala Grace Network will often post news of land for sale, in the hope that the land will be acquired by a single owner (or independent group) who intends using the land for his/their own purpose. Our belief is land at Arunachala is sacred and we need to revere and protect it. PROPERTY DEVELOPERS OR SPECULATORS NEED NOT REPLY TO THIS POSTING.

In this respect we would draw attention to a very beautiful 7 acre piece of land available on the Northwest side of Arunachala. The land is well maintained agricultural land belonging to a local, independent owner who wishes to sell. This is the view of the mountain from the land.

The next photograph is the view of Arunachala from infront of the land's tree lined perimeter boundary.

The below photograph shows some of the land which is currently under cultivation.

Another view of some cultivated acres of the land with a range of Hills (Government controlled) at the back, which fall under 'protected land' category and cannot be built upon.

The land from another vantage point.

Water is in plentiful supply throughout the land.

Below is a photograph of the agricultural well and pump house on the land.

Below a picture of the land currently under paddy (rice) cultivation.

As previously mentioned the above land is approximately 7 acres and is currently owned by a private individual who wishes to sell. The area is very silent, secluded and perfect for a Retreat Centre or Ashram.

If you wish to find out more about this land please get in touch with:
arunachalameenakshi@rediffmail.com or call +91-944-3964710

Sri Meru Yantra

In a recent posting I mentioned visiting one of my favourite Temples at Arunachala; the Temple of the Divine Mother, Rajarajeshwari. Although a small Temple set off the girivalam pathway, its quite perfect and I will be posting more information on it in future but for the time being would mention the beautiful Sri Meru Yantra located at the feet of Rajarajeshwari inside Her shrine room.

There are three kinds of Sri Yantra, Bhuprastha, Kurma Prastha and Meru Prastha. A plain Sri Yantra is called Bhuprishtha (back of the Earth), one which is raised on a tortoise back is called Kachchhap Prishtha and that which is raised fully like the Sumeru Mountain is called Meru Prishthha (like a Mountain).

The 3-Dimensional Meru Sri Yantra is a multi-Pyramid Cosmic Grid signifying unlimited abundance and positive powers. In the cosmos there are three states; Creation, Establishment and Destruction and these are represented by the three circles in the Sri Yantra which in itself is the symbol of the Universe or Cosmos.

Sri Yantra is the worshipping place of the form of the Mahatripura Sundari (Rajarajeshwari). It is Her divine abode. All Gods and Goddesses are worshipped in it and all other religious adorations are done there as it includes all conducts, learning and elements.

Koorm Pristhiya (Meru) Sri Yantra is one of the oldest, rarest and most precious Yantras and believed to have been created by Adi Guru Dattatreya for the welfare of the world. The name, Sri Yantra, which means mounted at the back of tortoise upwards is also significant because in Hindu mythology, it is believed that the tortoise lifted the weight of the earth on its back. The tortoise is particularly relevant as it is a very powerful, protected being that can live in either water or land. It is also non-violent and Nature has provided it with a strong cover or jacket to protect it from danger.

Sri Yantra designed over the back of the tortoise has eight petals as in the case of the original Sri Yantra where the Lotus flower (Kamala) has eight groups with sixty four Lotus dal. The reason the lotus flower was chosen for the base of the Yantra is that the lotus is the only holy flower believed to have originated from the navel (Nabhi) of Lord Vishnu.

The Sri Yantra designed on the mount over the back of a tortoise looks similar to the dome of a temple which is slightly mounted. It also depicts one of the fundamental of Vastu Kala which says that any residential house, palace or temple must be mounted at the centre to the top, so that the person residing in it should get more energy radiation and solar reflections from the Universe in order to ensure a life of abundance.

This particular meru inside the shrine of the Rajarajeshwari Temple on the Arunachala girivalam pathway has an interesting recent history. In 2000 Swami Nithyananada performed a homam (puja) at the Temple (on their behalf) for the purpose of expediting the successful completion of ongoing Temple construction work. In lieu of the puja, the Temple presented the then exisiting meru to Swami Nithyananda and replaced it with a new Sri Meru Yantra for the Rajarajeshwari shrine room. Thus the current Sri Meru Yantra at the Temple only dates from the year 2000.