Taken October 14, 2013 in Old Delhi.
This is the view roughly northward from the minaret of the Jama Masjid.
DAILY PHOTO: Delhi From the Minaret
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Tag Archives: India
DAILY PHOTO: Albino Black Buck
Taken November 29, 2013 at the Mysore Zoo.
There’s something about this picture that strikes me as not of this world. The albino creature contrasted against the earth-tone environment. One expects to see a deer in a verdant patch where it can meet its grazing needs, not on barren, stony soil. Then there are those wicked screw-bit horns, seeming a little out of place on bambi–like fangs on a butterfly.
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DAILY PHOTO: Saint Philomena’s of Mysore
Taken on November 29, 2013 in Mysore.
This neo-Gothic cathedral sits in downtown Mysore. It was built in 1936 and its design was influenced by the cathedral in Cologne.
The saint for which it was named was a martyred Greek princess.
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DAILY PHOTO: Dariya Daulat Gate
Taken November 29, 2013 in Mysore
[I missed my Daily Photo post yesterday due to being on the road to Mysore, so I’m doubling up today.]
Dariya Daulat is Tipu Sultan’s palace at Mysore. There’s a similar structure in Bangalore, where the Sultan conducted meetings while in town. The Mysore palace is much more impressive from the inside. The murals have been restored and there are exhibits of furniture, arms, and artworks from the era.
However, the outside the structure is much less impressive because of ugly green blinders that are used for the twin purposes of keeping the light and tourists photos out. (There is no photography allowed inside.)
This is the gate which stands inline but opposite Dariya Daulat.
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DAILY PHOTO: Pigeon Town Hall Assembly
Taken October 14, 2013 on Chandni Chowk in Delhi.
The base of this statue of Swami Shraddhanand (1856–1926) is a popular point for feeding the birds. It’s located in front of the Town Hall building on Chandni Chowk.
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DAILY PHOTO: Jain in White
Taken November 23, 2013 from Shravanabelagola Hill
The other day I posted a pic of the gigantic statue of Bahubali that’s located on Shravanabelagoli Hill. This is the view from the hill looking down toward the village. A Jain adherent was standing on the edge of the temple base looking down at path up to the temple.
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DAILY PHOTO: An Emperor’s Jail
Taken on October 12, 2013 at Agra Fort.
The top of this tower is where Shah Jahan was imprisoned by his son, Aurangzeb–the latter being the 6th Mughal Emperor. The 5th Emperor’s “cell” offered a great view of the Taj Mahal, the monument that Jahan built to his wife, Mumtaz Mahal.
This just goes to show that just because one kills off one’s brothers who are ahead of one in line for succession, and imprison one’s own dad, doesn’t mean one has to be completely heartless.
This is what Jahan would have seen– except from about one story up and a couple hundred feet to the left.
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DAILY PHOTO: Shiva Dancing in an Elephantine Demon
Taken November 23, 2013 at Halebidu.
This frieze is located at Hoysaleshwara temple in Halebidu. Hoysaleshwara is dedicated to Shiva, and was finished in 1121AD–though many believe it was not actually finished. It’s one of the largest temples to Shiva in southern India and is actually a double temple–the inside being split between the king’s temple and the queen’s temple.
This is a depiction of Shiva dancing inside a vanquished elephant. It may seem mean to kill an elephant and dance inside it, but this particular elephant was a demon or possessed by a demon. Of course, the question remains as to why one would dance inside a slain enemy. I guess it’s a little like dancing on your enemy’s grave, but a lot stinkier and messier. It’s just weird no matter how you slice it.
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DAILY PHOTO: Chennakeshava Temple at Belur
Taken November 23, 2013 at Belur.
Chennakeshava temple at Belur is a Hoysala era temple to Vishnu–the deity of the Hindu trilogy responsible for processes of sustenance and evolution (as opposed to creation or destruction, which are the bailiwicks of Brahma and Shiva, respectively.)
This temple and its sister temple at Halebidu, Hoysaleshwara temple, are probably the most ornate structures I’ve seen anywhere in the world. They are covered with soapstone carvings arranged in several tiers. For example, the bottom layer is a series of elephants, each one unique. There is a layer that tells tales from the Mahabharata in pictures.
Soapstone is soft and easily worked when quarried, but it becomes hard enough to survive everything but looters as it’s exposed to the elements. You’ll note the “windows” carved in the rock to allow in light and breezes.
Close up
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DAILY PHOTO: Gomateshwara of Shravanabelagola
Taken on November 23, 2013 on Shravanabelagola Hill
[As I was on the road yesterday and missed my Daily Photo post, I’ll double up today—if I can. I’m iffy because Bangalore got 2” of rain in an hour last night (which we arrived home in; I saw a city bus literally—no hyperbole here whatsoever—half underwater in an underpass.) Anyway, my internet connection is spotty at the moment, and could go out permanently at any moment.]
The Gomateshwara (a.k.a. Bahubali) sculpture at Shravanabelagola is the world’s largest monolithic stone sculpture. Gomateshwara was a Jain Arihant, and was said to be the second of 100 sons of the first Tirthankara.
An Arihant–literally a “vanquisher of enemies” (a rather bellicose title for a sect that won’t eat onions because the plant must be killed to harvest them), is one who has defeated anger, ego, deception, and greed. (Oh, THOSE enemies. you say.) A Tirthankara is a special kind of Arihant that appears every so often to revitalize the Jain community.
Shravanabelagola is not a well-known site. Being in rural Karnataka, and not on the regular tourist loops, it’s easy to miss. However it can be grouped nicely with trips to the temples at Halebidu and Belur.
Tip 1: You’ll have to walk to the top of a rather large hill in bare feet, so be prepared. On the bright side, the steps are quite clean and devoid of the usual multi-species feces common to footpaths in India.
Tip 2: Jains, like Hindus and some Buddhist sects, utilize the swastik emblem heavily. Despite the ubiquity of what some call the “twisted cross” or “swastika,” you are not in a den of neo-Nazis. That emblem, and its mirror-image, was used for thousands of years in South Asia before Hitler co-opted the symbol—presumably misinterpreting its meaning (as he misinterpreted so many things.) Ironically, it means a wish for good fortune.
Tiger Riding for Beginners 