Temple Lights Deepam 2007

The below photograph is of Arunachaleswarar Temple decorated with beautiful Karthigai Deepam Lights. The view is from Arunachala looking down at the 2007 Lights.

click on photograph to see enlarged view

India TV Series

[This article recently appeared in a National Indian Newspaper]

“Michael Wood is ecstatic about the reactions to his mammoth six-hour, six-part television series, “The Story of India”. He had been dreaming of this project for 15 years, and when it came through, all he had to do was pack his bags and co me to India and shoot for 20 months. Sounds easy! But, for Wood, it was the most daunting task to condense such a vast history into six hours, yet say it all with feeling and factual accuracy. With this series he has drawn more than his usual fans into the magical ring that only he is capable of creating. Says Wood: “It was a big responsibility. We love India so much, even six hours seemed not enough. We wanted to do much more. I can’t wait to get back to India again and do a Nataraja series.”

Wood’s film can quite simply be called an “epic”. The vast sweep of time and space that the series covers is breath-taking. One can see his special pre-occupation with Tamil Nadu as he lingers in Thanjavur, admiring the famous “Rishabantaka”-Chola bronze of Shiva, and goes on to show the entire process of bronze-casting in Swamimalai. Wood is at his best when he goes on a bus trip to the “Karthigai Deepam” in Tiruvannamalai and gets intensely involved in the excitement, jostling with thousands of devotees. He draws the viewer to discover what he has discovered in the length and breadth of India, and needless to say, he does it with such passion that no one can resist responding to his compelling story. Wood emphasises that the regional cultures of India are civilisations in themselves.

The six parts are — Origins and Identity, The Power of Ideas, the Growth of CiviliSation, Age of Gold and Iron, the Great Moguls, and Freedom. Each episode spans vast periods, and gives us a wide perspective of our history. “India became a free nation only 60 years ago, but in a real sense it has existed for thousands of years”, writes Wood in the book which accompanies the series, published by the BBC. Wood’s mammoth film and the book are undoubtedly the best celebration of India. “We got an amazing re-action, our viewership rating was 88 per cent,” exclaims Wood. His idea was to “inspire people to look for more”. His film is not the typical journalistic attack on India’s social inequities or the caste system. He deliberately sets out to share his “amazement” at so many things with his viewers. There are “brand-new discoveries” he talks about, and asks with the enthusiasm of an explorer: how many people know what Ashoka did for governance and welfare? Or for that matter what Akbar did, or where Kanishka came from? Who but Wood would tell us that Patna is such an interesting and historic place? He says that if he should write one detailed book it would be about the history of Patna. “Scratch the surface and you will find that the imperial capital of 300 B.C. is still there. Off the cuff we found a power house of Hindu, Buddhist and Muslim history waiting to be explored”, comments Wood.

Keeping an eye on the current tastes of young audiences, Wood has used film clips to illustrate many a historical character. What better visual can accompany Wood’s words about the Kama Sutra than Sharukh Khan and Kareena Kapur cavorting in the midst of a water-fall! Strains of A.R. Rahman’s music can be heard in many instances, giving that essential ethnic touch to the sound-track. But the bouquet must certainly go to the Royal Philharmonic’s haunting orchestral music. It lingers in one’s ears for long.

Film-making is a team process. Wood and his team, particularly the cinematographer and his mates, leave us with awesome images from the Himalayas to Kanyakumari. “Everybody responds; India is so film-savvy that even the priests in the temples suggested what we should shoot,” laughs Wood. Historians, scientists, archaeologists, writers, freedom-fighters and princes speak in the film. “The main voices are ordinary Indians from all walks of life,” says Wood, who has a knack of spurring on their enthusiasm. School boys, pilgrims, travellers in a train, holy men, housewives, all respond with such uninhibited ease, at times providing a touch of humour not lost on Wood! Throughout the series he keeps up his infectious energy, making his viewers run with him to see the next most amazing thing about India.

The visuals of the great historic sites in India, Pakistan as well as Afghanistan are splendid large canvases. The Mahabharata, Ramayana, and the life of the Buddha are contextualised in these famous locations. We see Wood talking to famous inheritors of legacies in places to which no camera crew has ever been before. The film follows the trail left by migrations, conquests and holy wars. Among the many fascinating encounters is our introduction to the Gardezi family of Multan (in southern Punjab, Pakistan), who can trace their ancestry to the very beginnings of Islam in India. They guide Wood through the beautiful monument built over the tombs of their ancestors and show him priceless illustrated manuscripts still in their possession.

Finding that the DNA of a certain community in Kerala still retains the original DNA of pre-historic migrants from Africa may astound some viewers. In search of the elixir of the gods, “soma”, Wood ends up in an Afghanistan bazaar, sipping a strange herbal tea! Leafing through old books and precious manuscripts in various libraries, he criss-crosses the sub-continent, and comes up with unforgettable nuggets of information — Serfoji’s Saraswathi Mahal library in Thanjavur is older than the Bodleian. Kalidasa was court poet to Kumara Gupta rather like Virgil was to Augustus Caesar. India welcomed Christianity long before Europe embraced it. Ayodhya’s greatest Hindu temple, dedicated to Hanuman, was paid for by a Muslim Nawab. The film is sprinkled with several amazing details that would certainly motivate young Indians everywhere to explore their own heritage.

The series is scheduled to be telecast in America in early 2008. Wood hopes it will be shown in India too, very soon. “The Story of India” as told by Michael Wood is “a tale of incredible dreams, great inventions, enormous diversity, phenomenal creativity and the very biggest ideas”. Michael Wood has paid a loving and rich tribute to “one of the world’s emerging powers” with class and style.”

[By Lakshmi Viswanathan]

Deepam Lighting 2007

click on photograph to see enlarged view

Eucalyptus - Tiruvannamalai District

The 7 acre farm in front of my house used to cultivate multiple rice crops throughout the year. Interesting to see that they have now planted Eucalyptus saplings throughout their land. There are numerous Eucalyptus plantations in Tiruvannamalai District, a number of which are located close to Arunachala. The Eucalyptus Tree which is indigenous (with a few exceptions) to Australia and Tasmania, has now been introduced throughout the world. Thinking of all the blights caused by the introduction of non-indigenous crops and animals made me wonder whether “Is local best”.

It seems that this is indeed a relevant question considering an ongoing insect threat which now exists in India caused by an insect pest which came in with the Eucalyptus Tree.

To read of problems in the U.S. go to ‘Letter to Federal Agencies Requests Investigation Concerning Public Health & Environmental Risks of Cryptococcus gatti’. The letter in part discusses “Cases of C. gattii disease have been increasing in number and also spreading geographically, along with the introduction of Eucalyptus species worldwide. C. gattii has been isolated from Eucalyptus trees in India, Spain, Colombia, Brazil, Paraguay, Africa, USA (California), Mexico and Southeast Asia”

In some parts of South India farmers are being encouraged to abandoned their traditional farms and specialise in extensive tree plantations. In this respect, environmentalists and international justice groups are voicing their concerns over proliferating tree plantations, as developing countries try to profit from a growing carbon trade. The India Tobacco Company claims to have stepped into the carbon sinks business in order to benefit village communities. For an interesting article on this subject which questions "Who really profits?" read: Indian tobacco giant turns carbon philanthropist

The next Arunachala Grace News, which will be sent out at the end of this month, has an article on the Eucalyptus and the many beneficial properties of the tree and its leaves. If you are not yet a subscriber, you can sign up (at the subscribe facility on the left margin of this site) for a free monthly Arunachala Grace newsletter sent direct to your inbox.

Deepam Lighting Arunachala 2007

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Muniraja Uncle

Talk to just about anyone who has relocated to Tiruvannamalai and you will find an interesting story of what attracted them to Arunachala and what made them stay. When I used to live in an area called Rajiv Gandhi Nagar (a mile west of Ramana Ashram in Ramana Nagar) I used to notice around Full Moon each month, bustling activity around a small shed on the side of the road.

Om Namah Shivaya

After observing the activity over the course of some months, one day I stopped by and started to chat with the man in charge. The shed belongs to a man called Muniraja who each month arranges prasadam (food offerings) to be given to pilgrims performing giripradakshina during Full Moon.

Brahma Kumari (from Rajasthan)

Muniraja was born in 1945 in a place in Tamil Nadu called Dharmapuri and worked for 30 years in Chennai for Hercules Cycles. Between the years of 1991-1998 Muniraja travelled by bus each weekend from Chennai to Tiruvannamalai and returned in time to resume his duties at work each Monday morning. It wasn’t until 1998 that he retired from his work and moved permanently to Tiruvannamalai.

Saint Vallalar

In 1999 he started his service of feeding pilgrims on the day of Full Moon each month. Since that time each month he spends Rs.4,000 per month to feed about 700 people performing giripradkashina and this Deepam 2007, he spent Rs.15,000 to feed 2,000 pilgrims dishes of both savoury and sweet rice.

Vasiyogam Shivananda Vadigri

Muniraja, who asked I not take a photograph of him, told me that he has been studying breath control and yoga throughout his life and as part of his sadhana he was instructed to perform feeding of pilgrims each month whilst living at Arunachala. As well as giving free food, Muniraja also arranges clean drinking water to be always freely available at the site of where he gives out the food each month.

Tent for Pilgrims for Prasadam

While speaking to him he told me that during his spiritual life he has had four gurus; Om Namah Shivaya, Vasiyogam Shivananda Vadigri (a Yogi from Kerala who has been dead for 90 years), Brahma Kumari (from Rajasthan) and Saint Vallalar (famous throughout Tamil Nadu).

So you see an ordinary person walking down the street and suddenly you find a fellow sadhaka who has been on their own pursuit of Truth for most of their life. Interesting place this Tiruvannamalai.

Gecko Incidents

I suspect the sort of gecko (type of lizard) commonplace in India is also found in many countries throughout the world. I made an earlier posting about the nature of geckos and the amazing “Van Der Waals Forces” which is the atomic force that allows geckos to stick upside down to walls. For more on this read posting.

There are may geckos resident in my home and very nice they are too – with their scampering about, charming click-click noises, and also their talent of ridding my house of undesirable termite pests. Maybe its because they are left undisturbed to roam about at will that suddenly I am experiencing an explosion of ‘gecko incidents’ in my home.

A gecko on my wall

A couple of weeks ago a gecko fell into the water-filled kitchen sink. The poor little thing got the fright of his life. After rescuing the drenched and spluttering creature from the water I placed him on the counter and performed the life-saving technique of pushing his little chest in and out with my finger. Well it seemed to work and gradually he started to revive and after time I left him on the counter on a clean cloth to allow him to recover in his own time. When I next looked the gecko was gone, hopefully to resume a less accident prone life.

Last night I found a gecko stuck in a puddle of sunflower oil under the stove. It was really sad to see such a tiny little thing with wee arms and legs stuck to his oily sides. After carefully taking him out of the oil and patting him down gently with clean cotton cloths, there was really nothing else I could do but hope that somehow he would make a recovery.

This evening I noticed a large piece of fluff on the floor. On investigation I found my gecko from the night before with his little still slightly oily body covered with fluff and lint from floor and furniture. Although he seems to be in a better condition he is obviously in no fit shape to navigate the perilous world on his own. Presently our friend is swaddled in cotton in a large, lidded plastic sandwich box awaiting the morning and off to the animal hospital with him. We love our geckos!

Caste Divide

The subject of caste is a strong one upon which people hold varying opinions. As Tiruvannamalai is a friendly, peaceful town it is easy to forget the exclusion of various castes in certain situations. My most recent experience of caste discrimination was when I rented a large lorry to move large, heavy potted plants to a new location. Along with the rented lorry I also hired a group of about 10 Dalit workers to help load and unload the gigantic pots. After several hours of dedicated and careful work, I decided to treat the tired workers to coca cola and sticky buns. As funny as that sounds, it’s in fact a real treat as a day-labourer would generally never buy themselves such items, as the cost comes to a kg of rice – thus assigning pop and sweet buns to a frivolous ‘luxury item’ classification.

The shop I selected was located on Chengam Road near the Ashrams, so positioned in a busy and well populated area – not exactly an isolated Indian village. As I neared the shop with my workers following close by, the owner of the store came out and harshly told me that he didn’t want the day-labourers near his shop and asked me to send them off. After a certain amount of manoeuvering it was finally agreed that the shop owner would sell me what I wanted for the men as long as they ate and drank the purchases far away from the shop front.

A very tiny victory in terms of social progress but the workers at least got to enjoy their treats. But probably the saddest part of the encounter was that the workers didn’t seem to notice the discrimination or harsh words – it was almost as if it was the normal thing for them to endure.

Further to the subject of caste divide, an interesting article by N. Ravikumar appeared in an Indian paper yesterday regarding caste and the generation gap:

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Caste divide widens the generation gap

Tiruvannamalai Dec. 3: “Young Dalits in a village here are outraged for being denied a hair cut of their choice in the salons meant for upper castes, but the older generation thinks it is a trivial issue to pick a quarrel with them. In the village of Velunganandhal, haircut is seen as a symbol of revolt by elders, while the same had become a symbol of dignity and equality for Dalit youths.

Dalits in a village here are considered untouchables who are not allowed to enter the salons used by upper caste people. Getting a haircut is a costly affair as it involves travelling to the town which is about 50 km away.

Most of the 1,500 families who live in the village of Velunganandhal belong to the backward communities. Dalits, belonging to the Arundhadhiyar community, here live in separate areas earmarked for them, far away from the main road and the village temple.

Every government office including the panchayat office is situated in areas where upper caste Gounders live and hence could not be accessed by Dalits. All the shops for consumables are also situated near the residence of upper caste people. Though the Gounders, a section of Vanniyars, are considered backward by Brahmins, the Gounders consider Dalits untouchables. The Gounders wield political clout in the village and they own most of the agricultural land.

But, above everything, what has hurt the feelings of Dalit youths is the untouchability practised in salons. For these youngsters, who want to follow the hair style of their matinee idols, haircut is a big issue. “When upper caste youths can trim their hair once a week, in the latest fashion, an ordinary haircut for us is a very expensive and time consuming process”, they complained. “See how we look. Will any girl look at us”, complained Kathiravan, a Dalit in his early twenties.

“We are youths. We want to appear fashionable and trendy. Why should we be forced to go to the town for a haircut. Why are we inferior?” asked Natarajan, who had just joined a diploma course in polytechnic in Tiruvannamalai town.

However, old people did not take it seriously. For Kaayaamboo, a 70-year old Dalit, who is living in the village since his birth, not being allowed to enter salons seems natural. He even justified it saying “how can we sit in the same chair and use the same scissors and blade used by Gounders?”.

“You see how the Gounders treat the Brahmins, who are superior to them. When Gounders treat Brahmins with reverence and respect, is it not a lesson for us how to behave with Gounders”, he said. “If everyone violated the age old customs, there will be no peace and discipline in the village”, he reasoned.

“Is haircut a very big issue, so as to pick a quarrel with upper caste people and earn their wrath?”, he said. “Cinema has spoiled our youth very much”, he lamented, however, the zeal for cinema and the craving to imitate film stars had really made the Dalit youths take a serious view of their condition and think of their dignity and self-respect. For them, not allowing them to have a haircut in their village has become the crudest form of oppression.”

New Videos

Today I changed the Video Pod at the bottom left hand margin of Arunachala Grace and currently the videos are;

Ramana Maharshi: Including footage of the great Saint

Reweaving Shiva's Robes: Fascinating narrative about the creation of ecological consciousness at Tiruvannamalai and the formation of the ARS (Arunachala Reforestation Society)

2001 Deepam: Footage taken on top of Arunachala during the lighting of the 2001 Deepam Cauldron.

Journey Through Universe: And just to keep things in perspective a very nice video presentation describing the size of the Universe

Mooji, 2007 Satsangs at Tiruvannamalai

We have been requested to post information about upcoming Mooji satsangs to be held at the foot of Arunachala.

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"Mooji is a direct disciple of Sri Harilal Poonja, the renowned advaita master, or Papaji, as his followers call him. In 1987, a chance meeting with a Christian mystic was to be a life-changing encounter for Mooji. It brought him, through prayer, into the direct experience of the Divine within. Within a short period, he experienced a radical shift in consciousness so profound that outwardly, he seemed, to many who knew him, to be an entirely different person. As his spiritual consciousness awakened, a deep inner transformation began which unfolded in the form of many miraculous experiences and mystical insights. He felt a strong wind of change blowing through his life which brought with it a deep urge to surrender completely to divine will. Shortly after, he stopped teaching, left his home and began a life of quiet simplicity and surrender to the will of God as it manifested spontaneously within him. A great peace entered his being, and has remained ever since."

Mooji will share satsangs in Tiruvannamalai from the 22nd of December 2007 to the 3rd of February 2008, daily, 10 a.m.-12 noon, with the exceptions of the following days:

Thursday Dec. 27th, 2007
Wednesday: Jan. 2nd, 2008
Tuesday: Jan. 8th
Monday: Jan. 14th
Sunday: Jan.20th
Saturday: Jan 26th
Friday: Feb. 1st

(Satsangs are in blocks of 5 consecutive days with the 6th day off.)

Venue: S.P. Guest House
No.63/N Perumbakkam Road
Tiruvannamalai 606603

Directions and up-to-date information may be found on the schedule page of the website :

http://mooji.org/schedule.html

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November 20, Deepam Light

Wasn't able to take very good pictures with my digital camera but am hoping to post some really excellent snaps in a few days of Deepam. For the time being I took these yesterday evening from my house as dusk turned into night.

To the naked eye the Deepam looks much larger than as shown in the below digital photo - hopefully the upcoming photographs taken by a professional with a good SLR Camera will be a BIG improvement. Keep checking back.

Deepam Festival – Another Legend

Long ago, King Vajresan of Panchala who was childless, was blessed with a son after having darshan of the Arunachala Deepam in the month of Kartika. The son was named Shatrujith. The prince grew up to be lecherous man. He once eloped with the wife of a Vedic scholar and came to Tiruvannamalai and entered the Temple of Arunachaleswarar.

It was the day of the festival of the beacon. The paramour made a wick out of her sari and lit the lamp with castor oil. At that moment the Vedic scholar came there and in a fit of rage stabbed his wife and the prince. And in turn the prince killed him.

Since it was a gruesome murder committed in the sacred precincts of the Temple the three were about to be taken to hell by the messengers of Yama, lord of death. At that moment the messengers of Siva intervened and claimed the prince and the woman as their own and took them to the abode of Siva. Their blasphemous acts were condoned by Arunachala Himself because the wife made a wick and the prince helped her to light the lamp for the Supreme Lord.

But the Vedic scholar was puzzled, as he was held by the messengers of Yama. The prince, moved by the plight of the Vedic scholar, ordered the vessel used for lighting the Karthika lamp to release the scholar. Immediately the Vedic scholar was liberated. Thus all the three, despite their misdeeds, were taken to the abode of Siva, as the merit gained by the simple act of lighting a lamp on Kartika day in his Temple outweighed their devilish acts.

The Glory of Arunachala

[Skanda Upapuranam]

Jnanasambandar

Sri Ramana Maharshi said in the course of a conversation that Thiru Jnanasambandar had sung in praise of Sri Arunachala. He mentioned the story thus:

“Jnanasambandar was born in an orthodox family about 1,500 years ago . . . he became one of the most famous bhaktas and was much sought after. He led a vigorous and active life; went on pilgrimage to several places in South India. He got married in his sixteenth year . . . In one of his tours he had come to Ariyanainallur or Tirukkoilur, eighteen miles from Tiruvannamalai. The place is famous for its Siva Temple.”

(It was here that Ramana Maharshi had a vision of Light on his way to Tiruvannamalai in his seventeenth year).

Sri Ramana continues with his story:

“When Jnanasambandar was staying in Ariyanainallur an old man who carried a flower-basket came to him. The young sage asked the old man who he was. The latter replied that he was a servitor of Sri Arunachala the God residing as the Hill here.

Sage: How far is it from here?
Old Man: I walk everyday from there to here collecting flowers for daily worship. So it is only near.
Sage: Then I shall go with you to that place.
Old Man: A rare pleasure, indeed, for me!

They went together, with a large crowd following the Sage. After walking some distance the Sage wanted to ask how much further the place was. But the old man had disappeared in the meantime. Soon after a gang of robbers waylaid the pilgrims who surrendered all they had with them. They plodded their way and reached their destination. The young Sage fell into contemplation. God appeared and said that the robbers were only his Followers and that his needs would be met. Accordingly, the group of pilgrims found all their wants. The Sage had sung hymns in praise of Sri Arunachala. In one of the stanzas, he says:

‘You are a dense mass of jnana, capable of removing the ‘I-am-the-body’ idea from Your devotees! Herds of gazelles, of boars and bears come down Your slopes in the night to search for food on the plains. Herds of elephants go from the plains to Your slopes where they may rest. So different herds of animals meet on Your slopes.’”

Sri Bhagavan continued: “So this Hill must have been a dense forest 1,500 years ago. It has since been denuded of the forest by the woodcutters and agriculturalists, through these centuries.”

Abridged from
‘Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi’ # 529

Premananda Arunachala Retreat 2008

We have been asked to post details of the upcoming Retreat at Arunachala of spiritual teacher Premananda.

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An intensive three weeks Retreat focusing on Self Enquirywith the spiritual teacher Premananda - 30th Dec 2007 to 20th Jan 2008

"Satsang offers an end to suffering
It points to your true nature,
unencumbered by believing
you are someone you are not."

In Satsang we experience a profound connection to the stillness within ourselves. Arising from this stillness we experience a deep sense of peace and bliss that simply wells up from within. For no reason at all. Through years and years of not understanding, not Knowing, and at the same time, having inside ourselves some sense of almost Knowing, or of a knowledge that had been known and since lost, we have been searching. Satsang is the experiencing, that in fact, we are uniquely connected to everything. There is no separation. We are one with the whole existence.

Teacher Premananda
with ajja-ananda

Arunachala in Mist

Bullock Ride

Participants' Kids in previous Retreat

Puja at Ramana Ashram

Swami Dayananda

Dialogue and Laughter

Compilation

Morning Meditation on
Sri Nannagaru Ashram rooftop

Guided Tour of

Inner Mountain Path

Teacher Premananda

Teacher Premananda

with Tanzen

2008 Retreat and Travel Information:
Arrival date: 29 December 2007
First day of Retreat: 30 December 2007
Last day of Retreat: 20 January 2008
Departure date: 21 January 2008

Venue:
Sri Nannagaru Ashram
Ramana Maharshi St. 2
Rajiv Gandhi Nagar
Chengam Rd, Tiruvannamalai
Tamil Nadu 606603 India

Info & Booking:
Satsang Office
Tel: 0049 2173 40 99 204
Mobile: 0049 178 44 13 704

E-Mail:

office@premanandasatsang.org

Website:
http://india.premanandasatsang.org/

Recommended Blog

If you love Arunachala, Animals and Sri Ramana Maharshi, then please visit the recommended blog entitled Ramana's Meditator Creatures of which this is the current posting:

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The Light on the Hill Top

This was the first time that the little cubs were seeing the Deepam light on the top of the Arunachala Hill. They were all awe-struck at the sight.

The older cubs were telling the youngest one, six-month old Spotty, the story behind the fire on the hill-top.

Each one was telling his own version of the story and little Spotty was listening to each version with complete belief, unmindful of the inconsistencies.

Arunacub, who loved the Mahabharata, was telling Spotty of Vishnu and Brahma fighting with bows and arrows. Tirucub talked of Nandi the bull as Nandi the Hippo.

Mum Lioness had a difficult time controlling her laughter at this one. To read more, go here.

Temple Chariots

If you wish to get a full list of processions during the Deepam Festival please check the earlier posting at here:

Today, 28th November actually marks the end of processions for this year's Deepam with Sri Chandikeswarar Festival this morning and Sri Chandikeswarar Utsavam in the evening. Although the processions may be over, the light on top of Arunachala (lit on November 24th) is still alight and remains so for anywhere between 8-10 days. I hope to post a couple of photographs of the light on top of the Hill over the next few days.

In the meantime a collection of photographs of various functions of the Deepam Karthigai Festival.

Generally I don't promote photographs of Rukku, the Temple Elephant, but in this case as she is getting lots of nice exercise and looks extremely perky, am happy to do so.

Arunachaleswarar and his Goddess Unnamulai on the Silver Bull - Periyar Rishaaba Vaganam of the fifth day.

On the same day Ambal on a Silver Bull.

Below an amazing photograph of the biggest and grandest processon which takes place on the 7th day of the Karthigai Festival of the Maha Radham (Big Wooden Chariot) which is pulled by devotees around the perimeter of the 26 acre Big Temple and through town.

The below is of the Thanga Rishaba Vaganam (Golden Bull) which is taken out late in the evening of the 10th day (the same day of the lighting of the Deepam).

10th Day Deepam Murthis

Today I met with Bhaskaran a local photographer who is making a pictorial chronicle of this year's Karthigai Deepam. The photographs I am now posting were taken by him and his photographer father Sethu. Hopefully in the course of the next few days I will be able to get more photographs of this year's Deepam including aerial shots of the resplendently lit Arunachaleswarar Temple, pictures of the crowd climbing Arunachala Hill and also the actual lighting of the Deepam flame. I haven't reduced the photographs before posting, so when you click them they will open up to their original enlarged size.

In the meantime the following:

Photographs of the murtis of the morning of the 10th day of Karthigai Festival. The first picture is of Sri Vinayaka.

The next photograph is of Arunachaleswarar and the Goddess Unnamulai.

The third photograph is of the Goddess Ambal.

Bharani Deepam

The below photographs are taken of the 10th day of Karthigai Deepam Festival.

"The chief priest has just finished a simple ritual called Bharani Deepam and now ceremoniously waves a huge camphor flame in the direction of nearby Arunachala mountain. Although he is chanting Sanskrit slokas, he cannot be heard amidst the deafening furor of devotion that surrounds him. Finally, he touches the flame he is holding to the wicks of five huge, earthen, ghee-filled pots, representing the sacred elements earth, air, fire, water and ether. As these five flames loom up with red-yellow light, the famous, one-day, South Indian festival of Krittika Deepam officially begins."

"A flame taken from the five earthen pots that were lit just after the early morning temple ceremony of Bharani Deepam is kept burning in the Temple throughout the day as a symbol of the merging of manifestation back into God, the one source of all."

The priest under the umbrella is now holding the Bharani Deepam that will be transferred into a protected container and then brought up the mountain by the fishermen and used to light the huge Deepam Cauldron in the evening.

Investment in Tamil Nadu

The below report does not specify the location of the intended mining operation in Tiruvannamalai District. Taking into consideration the scarring of the land, contamination of the water supply and disturbance of the eco-system, one would wish that the operation does not take place in Tiruvannamalai District or anywhere else. From the report it certainly sounds like objections are expected.

Indian Press News Report
Monday, 26 November, 2007

The Sajjan Jindal-owned JSW group, with interests in steel, power and industrial gases, has chalked out an ambitious plan to expand its steel plant capacity and also start a power plant in Tamil Nadu at a total outlay of Rs.7,500 crore.

Addressing a press conference in Chennai, JSW Steel Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, Sajjan Jindal, said the Company proposed to double the capacity of its Salem-based Southern Iron and Steel Company (Siscol) from the present one million tonne at a total investment of Rs.3,000 crore*. Siscol, which produces round and long products for construction and engineering applications, was recently merged with JSW Steel. The company was acquired by JSW Steel in 2004.

The Company's plant at Mecheri in Salem would become the largest integrated steel facility in South India once the capacity was expanded. The expansion would be taken up involving an investment of Rs 3,000 crore.

However, the total investment of Rs.7,500 crore depended on Tamil Nadu Government's permission to grant iron-ore mining rights in Salem and Tiruvannamalai Districts in the State and approval for setting up a 1,000 MW power plant. The Company had announced its intention to invest Rs.700 crore in this project and start mining operations after two years recently.

Sajjan Jindal plans to meet Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi later on Monday evening to finalise mining rights in the Districts where 640 hectares* and 340 hectares of land had been identified respectively. If the state government allowed mining, the Company would set up a Rs.400-crore plant for segregating low-grade iron ore that remained unexplored in these Districts.

The Company would also seek approval from the Chief Minister for building a 1,000 MW coal-based power plant, to be set up preferably near the Ennore Port in North Chennai with an investment of Rs.4,000 crore.

* A hectare is 2.471 acres
* One Crore Rupees is U.S.$ 251,290
* Rs.3,000 Crore = U.S.754 Million

Episode at Mahadeepam

It is estimated a crowd in excess of a million attended the 2007 Mahadeepam lighting function at Arunachala. However the occasion was not completely without incident.

Just before the lighting of the flame which occurred shortly after 6 p.m. on November 24th, a flame appeared on the Hill directly below the area containing the Deepam cauldron. The flame was so large that some people even thought that it was the Deepam light itself.

Miscreants allegedly set fire to the dry grass on the Hill, a few minutes before the sacred lamp was lit.

Six photo-journalists, who covered the lighting of the Karthigai Mahadeepam on Saturday, found themselves in the midst of a fire which broke out on the hilltop.

One photo-journalist said; “We were scared when the fire encircled us. There was no way of escape for us except to backtrack on our path. Luckily, it changed course. We reached the plains after a lot of difficulty since we missed the path while trying to avoid the fire,” Devotees also faced difficulties due to the fire.