Raju's Temple Visit Website link

Hi friends,

Please check this link:

http://shanthiraju.wordpress.com/

Lots of information is given about temples. It's an exhaustive database. All directions, informations, specialities about temples are given in this link. Please find time to go through the website line-by-line and character-by-character, otherwise we all would be missing something.

We must appreciate the time and effort taken.

Regards,
Krishna Kumar.S

My Thoughts-Random updates from my end

Got nearly 17 travelogues pending. It's been a month and I haven't moved out anywhere. There wasn't time even to update/modify grammatical errors in my travelogue. Planned to read about temples in a weekend and even that was not possible. Hopefully, when I get time next I must finish the long pending tasks of writing travelogues. Working as a developer in Indian service industry could be challenging and not many know about it. But I love my job.

* My ambition now is to work hard and save money for a DSLR camera. I don't want to use the money in my savings or ask my father. I must work with dedication in the righteous manner and save for the camera. Hopefully, during a lean period I could travel to Kumbakonam, Sirkazhi, Tirunangur, Thanjavur and Tiruchi again with my camera.

* The cost is my 26th birthday this time due to sudden work. I would be completing 25 years and I did celebrate the silver jubilee year in style traveling, working, interacting with various communities. I would be very busy this time for my birthday and it is likely to be a silent affair. It's disappointing that I can't sign off in a grand manner. But never know about the last minute surprises! I am no shy person, when it comes to birthday celebrations. I had been to my favourite temple at Madurantakam every time since 2009 on my birthday. This time it would be Bangalore and I would be celebrating it with my colleagues. It is disappointing that I can't be at Madurantakam for my birthday.

* I think considering the difficulties, occupational hazards, ill-luck I have faced in life, I think I have extracted the most from life to reach a stable situation all alone by myself. I know I could do better than this.

* I take immense pride of being a citizen of Tamilnadu. Am happy that I got a chance to visit few temples of Madurai, Tiruchi, Thanjavur, Kumbakonam, Kanchipuram and Mayavaram. I have seen only a few and the list is endless.The architecture of temples are fantastic, amazing, speachless and awesome. The sculptors who lived many thousand years ago had the vision to depict the Gods in idols. They are true architects. I was living life in a simple way, but I grew ambitious in my career to become an architect in software industry after visiting these temples. There is not much of difference between architects of temples and software. Both needs following qualities:

1. Complete ownership of the task and responsibility to deliver.

2. Aesthetic sense to imagine and create value-add's. Let it be a simple 'Kamadhenu' statue or a J2EE application.

3.  Purity in oneself. This reflects dedication. No one can create a Shiva idol, unless they enjoy visualizing the God. Most of all, one needs to be pure at heart to imagine God in mind and sense before taking his tools to shape the stone. Likewise, a software engineer needs to be pure in his thoughts too. Knowledge should be his priority. Onsite chances, money, H1B filling nor perks shouldn't be his priority.

This is what it takes to be an architect or a technical leader in any field. One should cultivate the habit of creating solutions. I know I lack this a bit. I am currently working on it.

When anyone visits any temple in any India, one should appreciate the architects first. They are the ones who were able to visualize God. Even God believed that they deserve a lot in life and hence appeared in their vision to allow them to create an image. What the architects saw in their divine vision is what appears as image and we see them today. We should be thankful to them. I take immense pride and motivation from the temples. Whatever I have done in software industry so far, is a tribute to the sculptors of temples of Madurai, Tiruchi, Kanchipuram, Kumbakonam and Mayavaram. I want to dedicate my achievements to them. I am motivated to create solutions from them by seeing their images and drawings on the walls of temples.

These temples have given me mental peace, happiness and satisifaction since childhood. I think now it is time to return the debt. I wanted to create a blog and share information with general public. This was done. But a website sounds more good ? I always dreamnt that I could create a website exclusively for temples sharing information about legends, its significance, sthala puranams, story of existence, good photos, its specialities and praise the presiding deity. I hope one day I would be a good software engineer who could design and architect the temple website building it from the scratch by deploying my own frameworks and database technologies. It involves a lot of complications, requires patience and most of all time. But it would be unfair on my part to betray the sculptors this honor.

At least to achieve this, I must succeed in my career. For my God at least.

It's been 25 years and I have traveled to quite a few places. It is time to show maturity. Considering the fact that I have lived with various linguistic groups, I have learnt a lot from them. Going forward, I must display character and honor all those who have created me. People should proudly say,''This man lived with me and he is my friend". I must develop patience and be kind to everyone even at times of high pressure. What is the use of seeing places when I can't develop the art of keeping myself in control ? I should prioritize values over monetary benefits. Whatever knowledge I have, I must share.

Hoping one day I would make my home state Tamilnadu proud...

Signing off,

Birthday boy.....

a.k.a Junior KK

Enchanting Tamilnadu-Kumbakonam & Mayavaram

Someswar Temple premises, Kumbakonam.

17th June, 2011.
Bangalore, Karnataka.

I had limited time to make a decision. My work got over as per my expectations and I had free time. I was wondering what to do in the weekend and I decided that I should travel to Kumbakonam to see few temples in neighbouring state of Tamilnadu. Travelling by trains in Indian Railways is advisable and it is more safe. It is also cheap. Bus fares are pretty much expensive and to reduce cost I generally travel by ordinary buses even though long journeys are full of discomfort as seats don't have push-back facilities. Since I work in Bangalore now (Karnataka) and considering the fact that there is only one train that connects me to Tiruchi, Kumbakonam, Mayavaram and Thanjavur, most of my journeys to these places are by buses as I rarely get tickets by train. Most of my journeys are unplanned and cancelling tatkal tickets could be costly just incase if I had work.

Someswarer Temple, Kumbakonam.

Few points which I would like to express:
1. Biggest constraint is time. I feel that 24 hours is not enough for me. My hobbies of playing computer games, reading in wikipedia/googling about temples, googling about various cultures, sleeping, blogging, progamming at workplace keeps me busy always. During the times of work pressure, I keep myself self motivated and cheerful by having a look at photos taken during my past travels. I thoroughly enjoy all of my travels to villages, temple towns and cities of India. It has been a great source of learning by interacting with various people belonging to different ethnicity and cultural groups. It has helped me shaping my career as well. Whenever I approach a problem or a task, I approach it with certain interest, dedication, responsibility and most of all consider it as a learning experience. The case was different when I was at school where I studied and believed that marks mean a lot. In those days recognition was important to me. But as days went by, when I started travelling and came across various people, I learnt that life was a journey and not a destination. There are few tasks which would still be incomplete always and it is not possible to achieve everything. I accepted/learnt the fact that the journey called life was a learning experience and it would be so till the soul departs the world. My ambition is to see the entire country 'India' and visit atleast one important place in every state. Even this seems to be tough now, especially when I become a family man in the next couple of years. It's not easy to take my wife wherever I go,few places aren't safe, dangerous, undeveloped and climatically not suitable for women. It would be unfair to leave her at home and see places on my own. So whatever I see during my bachelor days is a benefit. After that things would be selective. Slogging for 12 hours in workplace, studying for competency improvement, family would definitely take priority over my hobbies. I don't regret nor feel for it as this is the law of nature. That's my strong belief. Everything needs to be experienced, maybe not all can be enjoyed in a complete manner. Seriously, 24 hrs is not enough for me practice my hobbies!!

Someswarer Temple, Kumbakonam.

2. The second constraint I face is finance. I strongly believe in savings and a good amount of money should be saved for future. Due to tight work schedule, most of the time I book tickets for my travels only two days in advance. Even if I book in advance, I am canceling at the last moment(cancellation charges apply) as sometimes I work in weekends. If I am booking only two days in advance, there is no availability in trains and I travel by buses whose fare are generally twice that of train fare. Ordinary buses are economical, but are of less comfort. Night journeys could be a nightmare! A travel to Kumbakonam from Bangalore in Karnataka state owned KSRTC bus costs Rs.500/- plus (one way) and accomodation/food expenses ranging from Rs.200/- to 500/- per day(food expense and lodge charges varies depending on choice). If you are rich enough to rent a car, the charges are Rs.800 for half day and Rs.1500/- for the entire day. However, if I was lucky enough to plan in advance and take a train, I would be saving close to Rs.600/-in travels !! There is also one more disadvantage that the train that connects Bangalore with  Kumbakonam/Tiruchi is 6231/6232 Mysore-Mayiladuthurai Express departs Bangalore at 19:05hrs whereas my work officially ends at 20:00 or at 20:30hrs.

3. Another disadvantage is Indian mentality and corporate culture. If you leave office at 6PM, it is considered early. Taking leave is considered a sin! As per company policy, I am entitled for 21 planned leaves and 5 sick leaves. That makes a total of 26. Last year, I had used only 7 or 8 and rest lapsed (as per policy). I can't even take a couple of days off and enjoy visiting these places peacefully. I still remember once I got a call from one dumb guy when I was having darshan of Tayumanavar swami on top of Tiruchi rockfort. Without any sense of regret, not realizing the fact that I was OFFICIALLY off business, the guy was blaming me for no fault of mine. For rest of my vacation, I was wondering what was happening in my absence and even worried as most guys generally adopt to unfair means of getting a 'good name' at workplace when an employee is not around. Sometimes when I visit temples, I do pray to God to save me from all these inconsequential maniacs, creatures who really don't have enough of maturity and broad outlook in life. I don't mind getting a call asking for solution, or for help or even for assistance, but talking without sense is not acceptable.

Covering temples of Madurai, Tiruchi, Kumbakonam, Thanjavur, Mayavaram, Sirkazhi and Kanchipuram is now my dream. There are lots of temples and these shouldn't be visited for the sake of numbers! Temples should be visited and enjoyed in an aesthetic sense, studying,/analyzing the story and legend behind it. It would take several weeks, months and many days to see the above mentioned places properly. It is also practically a bit impossible.

Someswarer Temple, Kumbakonam.

For those who are planning to see the above mentioned 6-7 places in Tamilnadu, my best advice is take a week off and book your tickets in train. Covering each place separately is considered the best option as it is humanly impossible to cover them all in a single visit. Collect information well in advance! If you are taking car, then it could be expensive but task becomes a bit easier. For those who are renting cars or travelling by bus please prioritize your temples. It may not be possible to visit all temples in one go or one trip, but still you can always come back multiple times and cover them all in steps just like what I intend to do in future.

For example: I have visited Kumbakonam twice now, but managed to cover 9 Navagraha temples and temples inside Kumbakonam. I plan to cover the remaining in subsequent trips! The same holds good for Madurai, Tiruchi, Kanchipuram and Mayavaram where I have seen a few and missed a lot. Hope to cover them in future.

Kumbakonam has always been a delightful experience. Sarangapani Temple, Kumbakonam.

I think I have given quite an elaborate introduction before I start my travelogue! The reason is travelling is not easy. I need to face all the above constraints(mentioned as 1,2 and 3). Amidst all such constraints I started my journey to Kumbakonam from Bangalore for a 2-day trip. The plan was to cover close to 15 temples, but ended covering only 10. I also preferred not to hurry up for the sake of numbers, but instead spent quality time at the temple and enjoying. My bus's departure was at 22:00hrs at Shantinagar Bus stand and I arrived nearly 1 hour in advance. One thing I need to appreciate about KSRTC is that ticket checking is promptly done. Photo ID proof is mandatory and even PNR numbers are checked/compared! Drivers are also proud and they bear "KSRTC" tag on their shirts. I even noticed one having the state name "Karnataka" inscribed beautifully on the shoulders. I got impressed with KSRTC by seeing the uniform.

Sarangapani Temple, Kumbakonam.

We had an on the dot departure at 22:00hrs. The journey was a bit slow as the bus negotiated through Wilson Garden, Madiwala and Hosur road. Bangalore had a lot of traffic in such places even at midnight! As my bus entered Hosur Main Road, the traffic jam eased a bit and my bus picked up speed. Since my childhood I always had a fascination to observe the border post between two states. Generally, I stay awake and watch the "Welcome to Tamilnadu" sign and then prefer to sleep! Roughly around 23:00hrs, my bus crossed Karnataka-Tamilnadu border and entered my beloved homestate Tamilnadu. I was awake till Hosur and then dozed off. When I woke up my bus was somewhere near Namakkal. I opened my GPS in mobile and found that I still had more than 200km to go to reach Kumbakonam.

The bus reached Tiruchi at 06:00hrs. The ride between Tiruchi and Tanjore was fantastic. Roads were wide, clean and my bus kept 60kph consistently. The journey between Tanjore and Kumbakonam wasn't so great as the roads were not so good, but considerably good. It was 0815hrs in the morning when my bus reached Kumbakonam. I managed to get an accomodation near the bus stand itself in a hotel called MIM Park for Rs.199/- per day. It was a single room and toilets were good. I couldn't afford to spend much on accomodation and also it wasn't a wise choice to go for deluxe/AC/luxury as most of the time I was expected to be out travelling.

Kumbakonam has always been a delightful experience for any traveller.

My first aim was to have coffee and some good food. Vada, Pongal, chutney and filter coffee made my day. Kumbakonam coffee is quite famous and I am happy that I got another chance to taste it. I had already visited Adhi Kumbeshwarer, Ramasamy, Oppiliappan, Nageswaram and Ayyawadi. So my wish was to see other temples. Hiring an auto could be expensive, so instead I preferred to walk on foot. I also got a chance to witness some town life. People looked amazingly simple, cheerful and energetic. That's one of the many things which I enjoy observing in towns of Tamilnadu.

I did have an knowledge about location of temples, but not a map. I consulted the general public for directions and found my way.

Animals inside Sarangapani temple.

Here is a brief description about the temples I visited:

* Someswarer Temple, Kumbakonam.
The first temple which I visited on that day was Someswarer Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. While I didn't make a note of 'Swami and Thayaar's name', I enjoyed the darshan and the environment. Someswar temple is located near Sri Sarangapani Temple. The architectural style and element of this temple resembles the Dravidian Architecture of 13th Century of the Chola period.

Kasi Viswanathar Temple, Kumbakonam.

* Sarangapani Temple, Kumbakonam.
Sarangapani Temple is located at Kumbakonam Bazaar Street, dedicated to God Vishnu. Perumal is in sleeping posture. It is one of the Pancha Ranga kshetrams.

* Nageswarer Temple, Kumbakonam.
Nageshwaran temple is dedicated to God Shiva in the guise of Nagaraja, the serpent King.

'Dwajasthambam' of one of the temples at Kumbakonam.

* Chakrapani Temple, Kumbakonam.
The main deity is Lord Vishnu with Sudharsana Chakra.

* Kasi Viswanathar Temple, Kumbakonam.
Kasi Viswanathar Temple is located very near to the Mahamaham Tank. The main Deity is one of the Shiva Avatar Kasi Viswanathar & Visalakshi.

Though I didn't visit Adi Kumbeshwar and Ramasamy Temple during this visit, I would like to mention a few words about them as well.

* Adi Kumbeshwarer Temple is related to 'Pralayam'. It is believed that all seeds of life forms were kept in a pot(kumbham) by God as a safety vault. When 'pralaya kaalam(destruction)' came the world got destroyed due to storms, floods and extreme natural calamities. All life forms were destroyed but to start the process of creation again, seeds were needed and these were present inside the pot. The pot floated on water towards Kumbakonam. Lord Shiva in the form of an hunter shot an arrow to break the pot and living beings were born from the seeds. Gradually, the world became inhabited again with life. Hence the place is known as Kumbakonam as 'Kumbham' refers to the pot in Tamil language. There are beautiful paintings inside the temples depicting this story.

* Ramasamy Temple is dedicated to Lord Ram and it is located near Adi Kumbeshwarer temple. The entire story of Ramayana is depicted on the walls of the temples. There is a good hotel named 'Archana' on the same street from the entrance. I enjoyed having Chilli Parotta here.

Timings of Nageswarer temple, Kumbakonam, Tamilnadu.

By 1PM, I returned back to my lodge near bus stand in a mini-bus. The ticket cost Rs.2/-. It was better compared to auto which would have cost Rs.40/-. Enjoyed Parottas for lunch and after taking rest for a couple of hours at around 15:40hrs, I started towards Mannargudi. This was a good journey amidst lush green fields, wells, goats, cattle and dogs. State highways and roads in rural Tamilnadu look beautiful. The trees on either side with a white band on its body(waist) adds more beauty. All these were small things which I enjoyed watching.

Kasi Viswanathar Temple, Kumbakonam.

Most of the bus conductors were kind and gentle unlike the one in cities who drive with a lot of frustration. Unless one is really unlucky, you will never find a bad guy. At around 5PM, I reached Mannargudi after travelling close to 35km from Kumbakonam. The temple was huge and beautiful. It was dedicated to Lord Vishnu and lot of paintings related to Krishna, Ram were found on the walls. The darshan was satisfying. The Lord was seen with His consorts. There was a painting which described the story of 4 different youth who prayed to Lord Rajagopalaswami and became Engineers, Doctor, Scientist and a professor respectively. There was another painting which described the story of a young women who prayed to God and got a good husband. It is also believed that childless couples would get a progeny by praying at the Lord's lotus feet!

By 8PM I was back at Kumbakonam and was lucky enough to taste Chilli Parotta at Hotel Archana. My day ended!

19th June, 2011 was a Sunday. I got up early at 4AM. At around 04:45hrs I managed to board a bus bound towards Chidambaram. The next temple in my list was Tirumancheri Kalyana Sundreshwarer near Kuttalam. The distance between Kuttalam and Kumbakonam was close to 20km. At Kuttalam Junction, I managed to board a share taxi for Rs.30/- and travelled to Tirumancheri which was 4km away from Kuttalam junction. Eventhough, I reached the temple at 6AM, it took 3.5 hours for me to complete my darshan.

I noticed one malpratice here! A garland, two coconuts, tamarind/vermillion power, banana cost Rs.120/- ! Government itself sells flowers, garlands, coconuts inside the temple, but that shop opens only after 8AM. The temple opens only at 7:30AM. Even though I reached early, lots of time was wasted and pooja became only at 8:30hrs. After having darshan at all sannidhi's, I immediately left the temple in a hurry to cover some temples in Mayavaram. On the way back, visited Uktha Veedishwarer temple near Kuttalam Jn. The temple looked a bit old. As I entered the temple, I saw abhishekham being performed on the lingam. I was able to feel the presence of God. After deepa aradhanai, I took a stroll around the temple and clicked some photos. I prayed to God that I should get a good increment so that I could buy a nice digital SLR camera or Point & shoot camera through which I could take good photos of temples.

There is no point in asking my father. He would definitely give me. But what is the fun in that? I must learn to priroritize my life. Save some for future, save some for my kids, put it in Fixed Deposit, work hard at work place, tackle occupational hazards in the righteous sense as far as possible, save the rest and then buy a camera. It would give a sense of satisfaction as well.

Kasi Viswanathar Temple, Kumbakonam.

Catching a bus I reached Mayavaram at 10:00PM. Had ghee roast and it was fantastic. By 12'o clock all temples would be closed and I had very limited time. I knew that I can't cover entire Mayavaram now, instead visited Mayooranathar and Parimala Ranganathar temple alone.

Ramasamy Koil, Kumbakonam.

It was really great to see Perumal in lying posture. It was so majestic. I was certainly a changed man when I walked out of the temple. Nowadays everyone believes Information Technology and Computer Science are the only course in colleges/universities which gives boon and money. Maybe yes, but such people can't really comment those in Mechanical or Civil Engineering branches as losers. Even God himself, took avtar and built a bridge between India and Rameswaram in Treta Yuga during Ramayana period. Even the country which outsources i.e US's premier Space agency NASA has accepted the legend of Ramayana. If He had felt that Java, .NET, javascript, Oracle to be the  only means of future he would have certainly designed a computer virus to destroy Ravana's empire. Whenever he takes avtar, he comes in different roles, takes different designations to prove a point to mankind. It is not wise to comment anything negative about any Engineering or science/field that we aren't aware of. Everything is good, but it depends on how one takes it.

Now, if a 20 year old youngster reads this post, he would think I am crazy and nuts. I don't really bother about it. I am free to talk about my Creator. But the irony is a 40 year old person in United States or even non-Indians would agree to this, but sad part is the ex-Chief Minister of Tamilnadu would question,"In which Engineering college did Lord Ram graduate from ? " This incident really happenned some time back setting an abysmal example of culturally rich Tamilnadu.

Nowadays, in the Indian marriage market a boy having an H1-B visa is preferred. Nothing wrong in that opinion. But is it wise to comment about anyone earning less and working in Government sector ? Only great Lord Ram of Madurantakam must bless such people with wisdom. LOL !

Raja Gopalaswami Koil, Mannargudi, 33km from Kumbakonam.

A short note on Mayooranathar Temple, Mayavaram(Source: Google):
This is a vast and well maintained temple with a beautiful tank, several gopurams and mandapams in the town of Mayiladuturai (Mayuram). This is a temple of great religious significance and is a hub in the temple belt of Tamilnadu. Several Shivastalams are located in the vicinity of Mayiladuturai. Legend has it that Dakshayani (Parvati) took the form of a peacock after her father’s Daksha Yagnam and worshipped Shiva here; Shiva is said to have taken a peacock form, performed the Gowri Tandavam and united with her here. Mayuranathar is believed to have quelled the Kaveri floods to make way for Sambandar.

Gopuram of Mannargudi Raja Gopalaswami Temple.

A short note on Parimala Ranganathar Temple, Mayavaram(Source: Google):
This is considered to be one of the 5 Pancharangams, the other four being Srirangapatnam (Karnataka), Srirangam, a temple near Anbil and Kumbakonam(Sarangapani) (along the course of the river Kaveri).

Gopuram of Mannargudi Raja Gopalaswami Temple.

Legend has it that the demons Madhu and Kaitabha stole the Vedas, and disappeared into the sea; Vishnu came down in the form of Matsya avataram and restored the vedas, and restored their fragrance, hence the name Sugandharanyam and Parimala Ranganathar and Parimala Ranganayaki. Legend also has it that Chandra (the moon) was cured of an affliction after bathing in the Kaveri and offering worship here.

Gopuram of Mannargudi Raja Gopalaswami Temple.

There are many more information available about these temples in Google. Few information could be wrong, but we can always consult known people and learn about glorious tales of Kumbakonam and Mayavaram.

Elephant at Mannargudi Temple.

On my way back, I had a cool drink at Najim's store. Najim was a Muslim and was well versed in temples. He directed me for cost effective mean to reach Vallalar Temple, but it was already 12 so dropped the plan. Najim was certainly a great person. I would like to mention his words here,"Ayya, I am Muslim. But I still know some thing about other religions. There is nothing wrong in learning about any God. I know the names of my ancestor for past 5 generations. Someone 5 generation back would have converted to Islam". This was the first time, I came across a person who was frank when expressing his opinions about religion.

Kalyana Sundereshwarer, Tirumanancheri.

After visiting these two temples at Mayavaram, I went to a small hotel on the road side. It looked decent and hygienic. I ordered for one Ghee roast and 2 Parottas. Raita was tasty. Really enjoyed the food. In one-hour, I was back at Kumbakonam. I knew I can't cover Kumbakonam or Mayavaram in a single trip. Considering the number of temples, it may take several visits/lot of leaves from office work. But I want to enjoy and visit temples, not for sheer numbers or for count of Divya Desams/Thevara Padal Petra Sthalams.

Turkey !! Location: Tirumanancheri.

Uktha Veedishwarer Koil, Kuttalam Junction near Mayavaram.

Uktha Veedishwarer Koil, Kuttalam Junction near Mayavaram.

Side-entrance to Mayooranathar Temple, Mayavaram.

Parimala Ranganathar Temple entrance, Mayavaram.

At around 8PM in the night, I had dinner of Masala dosas and 2 vadas and boarded a KSRTC bus back to Bangalore. At around 5:45AM, the bus crossed the Tamilnadu-Karnataka border. A sign board read,"Thanks for visiting Tamilnadu". A few drop of water rolled down from my eyes.

-Krishna Kumar.S
a.k.a Junior KK
IRFCA-SBC