Bhagavad Gita Introduction

BHAGAVAD GITA INTRODUCTION

The Bhagavad Gita was originally compiled by Ved Vyas as a separate text. Later, when he wrote the Mahabharat, he embedded the Bhagavad Gita in it.

The Mahabharat contains one hundred thousand verses, and is therefore, the largest poem in the world. It is seven times bigger than the Iliad and Odyssey put together and three times bigger than the Bible. 

Along with the Ramayan, it is accorded the status of Itihās, meaning historical manuscript of India. Its stories and moral instructions have fashioned the fabric of Indian culture for thousands of years.

The Mahabharat is divided into eighteen sections. The Bhagavad Gita is set in the sixth section, which is called the Bheeshma Parva. It comprises eighteen chapters of the section, beginning from Chapter Twenty-five, and continuing until the Chapter Forty-two.

guru-graha-mantra.wmv

Listen to the Mantra for Jupiter.
The List of Mantras corresponding to the nine planets have been recorded by myself.
For all other mantras, please listen http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=BAAE8AFA299C57D2

Murdeshwar - 5

 

                     Blessed by Lord Shiva with the “Athma Linga”, The great King Ravana starts his journey to his palace. The lord Shiva, before handing over the “Athma Linga” to Ravana had told the King that the “Athma Linga” should not be kept on ground and if done, then it will be permanently forced to stay there the moment it touches ground.

                     All the Gods became more concerned that the “Athma Linga” had fallen into the hands of the King who was known for his villainous acts. They all went and begged to Lord Ganesh to ensure that Athma Linga does’nt stay with King Ravana for long.

                    Lord Ganesh takes the form of a cowherd and keeps walking in Gokarna along with his herd. It was evening and just about the time for the Great King to attend to his evening prayers.King Ravana was known for his devotion to God and he would never miss his prayers. The great king was worried about his prayers as it was getting late.

                    At that time, He saw a young cowherd who happened to be a Brahmin passing by. He immediately caught hold of the Cowherd and asked him to hold the “Athma Linga” with great care so that he would finish his prayers and come back. The cowherd told the great king that he should hurry. He also told Ravana that he would call his name thrice and that if he did not return within that time, then he would place the “Athma Linga” on the ground. the  king agreed and hurried to take bath and attend his prayers.

                 Lord Ganesh knew that this was the time for him to deprive the great King from possessing the “Athma Linga”. After some time, the cowherd called the king by his name three times and Ravana finished his prayers and started running back to get hold of the “Athma Linga”. By this time, the cowherd, as agreed had called Ravana three times and since Ravana had not collected the Athma Linga, he quickly put the Athma Linga on the ground of Gokarna.

                King Ravana was furious with the cowherd and he started thrashing the cowherd without knowing that the cowherd was in fact Lord Ganesh. He was so angry with the boy that he hit him with great force on the Head. At that instance, the cowherd took the form of lord Ganesh and became an idol( Can be seen in the picture below.). The great king tried in vain to lift the Athma Linga from the ground. All his efforts failed.

That is how the “Athma Linga” found its place at Gokarna.

Murdeshwar - 4

  

The Great Kings Mother requests him to get “Athma Linga” for which King Ravana starts penance again. The mighty King is seen standing on one foot and all his Ten heads and 20 hands visible.

  

He went to the extent of cutting his Heads with his own hands to please Lord Shiva. In the above picture, The Great King is seen cutting his heads and standing on them. Finally pleased with his penance, Lord Shiva hands over the “Athma Linga” to King Ravana.

Murdeshwar - 3

 

Finally unable to bear the intensity of the Great King Ravana’s penance, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati appear before him and ask him to end his penance and promise that whatever he wishes for, it would be granted.

In the above picture, Sage Narada is requesting King Ravana to put an end to his evil deeds. The most important thing that should be observed in this picture is the Arms that are hanging around the waist of Goddess Kali.

The wedding of King Ravana and Mandodari.

Murdeshwar - 2

 

This post is dedicated to the genius of Mr. R.N.Shetty. In my earlier post about Murdeshwar, I had written about the Temple, The beautiful Beach and the gigantic statue of Lord Shiva built by the able financial support of Mr. R.N.Shetty.

Under the gigantic statue of Lord Shiva is a circular shaped museum where the story of Murdeshwar has been narrated in detail with the help of some exquisite statues of Lankan King Ravana, Lord Ganesh and Lord Shiva. All these statues were developed under the financial aid given by Mr. R.N. Shetty. Below are the pictures of the statues. The statues are made of Plaster of Paris.

   

In the above picture, Lankan King, Ravana the great is in deep meditation and praying to please Lord Shiva so that the Lord grants him a boon. The statue is such a marvel that one feels that he is staring at King Ravana himsef. there is so much life in the statue.

 

While King Ravana is in deep meditation, Sage Narada is seen in the above picture narrating to Lord Vishnu, who is resting under the hood of Snake, Adhishesha. Sage Narada is telling Lord Vishnu the purpose of King Ravana’s Penance and the consequences if King Ravana succeeds in Pleasing Lord Shiva with his penance and is granted a boon. Goddess Lakshmi is seen in the picture.

Even after praying to Lord Shiva for many years, the lord was not pleased with King Ravana. Out of anger, the mighty king is seen in the above picture lifting Mount Kailash (abode of Lord Shiva) alongwith Lord Ganesh, Goddess Parvati and Nandi ( the divine Bull). All the ten heads of the mighty King and the twenty hands are clear visible and this statue, according to me is a master piece.

Murdeshwar, Karnataka. - 1

The Small town of Murdeshwar is located on the South-Western coast of India. The town is at a distance of 210 Kms from Mangalore and the nearest District headquarters is bhatkal at a distance of 12 Kms.

Murdeshwar is home to one of the oldest Temples dedicated to Lord Shiva. It has been in the spotlight lately since the last 2 decades when a big NRI Businessman, Mr. R.N.Shetty, who is based in Dubai set foot on this Town and has since been undertaking Developing works in the area. In fact, to many of the localites, Mr. Shetty is considered a God.

The most enchanting part of this town is the place that is is situated. With the Arabian Sea kissing its shores and a natural Crescent shaped Beach with Golden sands to support, Murdeshwar is now on a Must-Visit list of places to see in India.

The gigantic statue of Lord shiva, Installed on top of the hill behind the main temple is the main attraction of this Temple town.

Just below the hill is the ancient and powerful Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, by the name of  Murdeshwar.

Sri Jaganmohana Ranganatha Swamy Temple.

                        As we are all aware, Lord Vishnu has taken various forms for the welfare and protection of various creations of Lord Brahma. One such Temple is Sri Jaganmohana Ranganatha Swamy Temple at Shivanasamudra in Mandya District of Karnataka State. The presiding Deity of the Temple is Sri Ranganatha, A form of Lord Vishnu sleeping on the bed of Adishesha, the sacred snake of Lord Vishnu himself with his Hood providing shelter to the Lord. The Temple is located on the banks of the river Cauvery.

                    

The Main Entrance to the Temple.

                               Altogether, there are 3 most sacred, powerful and important temples of Lord Ranganatha and each of them is known by a different name. The three temples are located at Srirangapatna, Shivanasamudra and Srirangam.It is beleived that on any given day starting from Sunrise to Sunset, if one visits all the three Temples and worships the deities and seeks the blessings, his Sins are washed off and he is blessed with Peace,Happiness and abundant wealth.

The Sanctum Sanctorum main Tower.

                         Inspite of his hectic Schedule,the Priest of the Temple, Sri K.Madhav Bhat was generous and humble in sharing some important facts about the Temple. This Temple was constructed by the Famous Chola Kings and is more than 1600 years old. The Sri Jaganmohana Ranganatha Swamy is fondly addressed as "Madhya Ranga" in Kannada which in English means "Middle Ranga". Why is the deity known by this name? I have already mentioned the importance and significance of the Three Sacred Ranganatha Temples. The first being the "Adi Ranga" which in English means "Foremost Ranga" is located in Srirangapatna.(Please refer to my earlier post) and the last of the three is called  the "Anthya Ranga" which in English means "Final Ranga", located at Srirangam in Tamil Nadu.

                      The sacred Deity of Lord Ranganatha known as Madhya Ranga worshipped and decorated with Flowers, Thulasi, etc. One can notice the Lord sleeping on the bed formed by the Sacred snake Adishesha. The speciality of this temple is that the snake is seven headed whereas in the remaining two Temples, the snake is five headed. The idol is believed to be a Shaligrama Shila or in other words a Black Fossil Stone.

                   The Lamp post and the Flag post at the entrance to the Sanctum Sanctorum of the Temple.Both the Posts have the carvings of the Main symbols of Lord Vishnu, The Sacred Shankha(Conch) and the Disc(Chakra). Please refer the Pictures below for the carvings of The Conch and the Disc on the Posts.

  

                        

These are the pictures of the carvings of the Sacred Conch and Disc on the 

Lamp Post and the pictures below are the ones carved on the Flag Post.

 

The Sacred Lotus Feet of the Lord carved on a Stone

Lord Hanuman carved and decorated with paint on the Lamp Post.

                     The Chola kings were the first to introduce their own style of Architecture and this Temple stands a testimony even after 1600 years displaying the grandeur of the Chola Dynasty.

The World famous Gagana Chukki and Bara Chukki Falls.

 

          Shivanasamudram is home to the Asia's first Hydro Electric Power station. The project was started in 1902 by His Excellency Sri Sheshadri Aiyer, the then Diwan of Mysore and Kolar, a small city near Bangalore was the first beneficiary of the Power supplied from Shivanasamudram Power Plant. Shivanasamudram is also famous for the Vibrant and most energetic waterfalls, considered the eighth biggest waterfalls in the world. There are two falls spanning a distance of 10 Kms between and they are known by the names of Gagana Chukki, also known as Eastern falls and Bara Chukki known as Western Falls. It is beleived that the sacred Seven Hermits or Sapt Rishis did penance at Barachukki.

Thirunakkara Mahadevar Shiva Temple, Kottayam

Thirunakkara Mahadevar Shiva Temple at Kottayam is one of the oldest shrines in the city that was built about 5 centuries ago. It was constructed by Thekkumkoor Maharajah.

Thirunakkara Mahadevar Shiva Temple claims a special mention among the numerous tourist attractions of Kottayam, due to its rich architecture. The interior walls of this temple are decorated with striking, colorful and enticing murals. The Temple has been built with elegant Kerala style of architecture. The sanctum sanctorum or the innermost shrine of Thirunakkara Mahadevar Shiva Temple is adorned with impressive images of epic characters from the Hindu mythology.

Enshrined with the idol of Lord Shiva, Thirunakkara Mahadevar Shiva Temple in Kottayam hosts a popular festival in the middle of March. The atmosphere of the festival gets charged with the captivating performances of Kathakali dancers and Velakali. The other attractions of the festival are the stunning performances of drummers and processions of ornately decorated elephants.

The Main entrance to the Deity & Ancient Stone Lamps for Lighting Oil Lamps.

The prominent and convenient location of Thirunakkara Mahadevar Shiva Temple in Kottayam has made it easily approachable from all part of Kerala. Tourists coming from other states of India can directly reach Kottayam by rail or road transportation services.

A large number of devotees and pilgrims from various parts of India visit Thirunakkara Mahadevar Shiva Temple Kottayam as it is one of the significant religious tourist spot in Kerala.

Sri Keshava Temple, Somnathpur

Karnataka is probably the only state in India where a number of exquisitely sculpted rock cut monuments of the historical period are present. Karnataka is rightly called the abode of stone architecture by historians. One temple that has stood testimony to the above claims is the

Sri Keshava Temple at Somnathpur. It has also stood the testing times of Nature and Natural Calamities for nearly 8 centuries.

The first sight of the Splendor of Hoysala Architecture.

The Lamp Tower

The main of the three Sanctuaries

Somnathpur is a small village located near the Karnataka-Kerala border. The village is situated on the banks of river Cauvery and a drive of around 140 kms south-west of Bangalore takes one to this village which is frequented by all the patrons of Architecture and sculptures.
I was surprised to see the historical facts relating to the Somnathpur temple inscribed on a stone slab at the entrance of the temple. Written in Old Kannada script (which is the local language), it informs that the King who ruled during the time the Temple was built was Narasimha III (1254-91 A.D.). The brainchild for the construction of this temple was the Commander of the Army, Sri Somnath. The Sri Keshava temple at Somnathpur is regarded for its precision in symmetry with exquisite stone carvings.

The Somnathpur temple stands in the middle of a walled compound. The star shaped temple has carved pinnacles. The star-shaped sanctum – sanctorum and low elevation today stand as testimony to the style of Hoysala architecture.

The surface of the outer walls of the Temple is covered with beautifully sculpted plaques of stone depicting various Gods and Goddesses in different postures. Most of these plaques have been inspired from Ancient Hindu scriptures. Another striking feature of the temple is that it has 16 different ceilings - each ceiling depicting various stages of a blooming plantain.

This is an Idol of Lord Krishna surrounded by attendants, playing the flute beneath a tree.
The Lord’s dress and crown are richly ornamented with highly sensitive carvings. This typical ornate and intricate style of sculptures makes the Hoysala Architecture styles one of the easiest styles to recognize in Indian art.

This is one of those exquisite carvings that i came across during my visit. On the left is the Idol of Lord Ganesh in Dancing postures. Lord Vishnu seated on the sacred serpent Sri Aadhi Shesha. Between the panels is a female drummer. Another aspect of these Temple is that the sculptures are signed (Square Panels at the foot of the idols) under each main panels by the respective sculptors who worked on that particular panel. One name that occupied almost all the signatures in the temple was that of the great sculptor of that times Mallitamba.

Sri Lakshmi Narasimha

The Meditating Vishnu

The above 2 idols were the ones that took my breath away. I was so fascinated by the beauty and delicacy of the carvings that these 2 idols need a mention. The one on the Top is that of Goddess Lakshmi seated on the Lap of Narasimha( One of the Incarnations of Lord Vishnu).

The other idol is that of Lord Vishnu in Meditation. this particular idol reminded me of
Sri Buddha who happens to be one of the Incarnations of Lord Vishnu himself.

Truly, I realised that i am really blessed by the great Gods to be Born on this Earth that has a lot on offer. It's such a beautiful World that a mere 100 years of Life is not enough even to read about the places on this earth forget about visiting.