3.10.2008

Eklingji town, Shiva temples near Udaipur, Rajasthan

The name Eklingji is not that of a temple as much as it is the name of a place. Eklingji hosts approximately 108 temples scattered around the green hilly Rajasthani countryside near Udaipur. In this untouched terrain, one is faced with low hills, lakes with proliferating wild life, thick ancient walls and narrow alleys leading into small houses surrounding stone temples...its almost dream like.

Rural Rajasthan is a quiet landscape with architecture so quaint and so different that one could live there and just admire it. Its not about forts, palaces and havelis, or the homes of the once rich and famous but about single chambered temples with a simple mandap in front, scattered every where yet sacred in themselves.

While the sun rises and lights up these ancient wonders into current times, while the lamps light up these otherwise silent interiors, they bring with them an aura of spiritualism far more active and prolific than what we probably have today. These once populous temples just remain historical wonders, waking us up only occasionally to their presence.

In this vast sea of stone structures, crowded with sculptural representations of an open society in ancient times, we have the deep under currents of faith ruling these miniature wonders. One of the most interesting temples, with a difference is that of Eklingji temple Kailashpuri founded by Acharya Viswaroopa, a contemporary of Adi Sankaracharya.

This in one word is "anokha" or unique. This temple is dotted with smaller single chambered temples along its walls that surround the larger temple with two floors in the center of this courtyard that gradually climbs the hillside.

Going back into those ancient days, where electricity gave way to fire torches and lamps lit the interiors, and folk songs echoed among these walls, the ambiance appeared almost magical. As we step into this wondrous world of dancing flames in the wind, throwing shadows of sculptures on the walls and almost bringing them alive, the drums beat reverberating through the walls and the bells ring as the flame goes up in arti, we witness a spectacle of divinity that touches our souls. Deep within the garbha griha, are the sparkling eyes of a Shiva linga, comprised of four faces each in a cardinal direction.

Silent cool pillared halls lead into this deep chamber that hosts one of the most spectacular icons of divinity. Covered by a gold triple parasol, we have all of the Gods residing within. The flames flicker on, lighting up the face of Surya to the east, Vishnu to the North, Brahma to the west and Rudra to the south, all carved into a sacred black marble stone. Decorated with precious stones that shine through like the cosmos itself, the lingam is striking, with the eyes of divinity capturing us, our senses, our minds, leaving us helpless and swollen with an emotional high of bhakti in its purest form. As we circle around this icon of divinity on earth, all forms of the Lord locked into the linga peetha, we are met with the most powerful and profound symbol of all. A sacred yantra crowns their heads, powerful and divine that rules the faith of people who visit this enchanting temple. Surrounding this divine form, resting within their niches are Parvati, Ganesha and Karthikeya.

This chamber brings alive a phenomenon, in a symbolic form. The black marble represents the cosmos, the universe itself, created and preserved by the very forms who reside within the linga, each eye glowing and sparkling waking us to that which is beyond. At its crown lies the power of the yantra, that which defines the nature of this power that has created the universe and controls it. The unique element of this yantra is that it is not embedded deep within the idol but out in the open, present for us to see, a very unique feature uncommon in Indian temples.

This linga is a reminder, that Brahma, Vishnu and Surya are a part of a larger whole, the apex of which is the divine form of Lord Shiva, embedded within the yantra, that is sacred and has been preserved through generations for worship. Indeed, with the vastness of the cosmos proliferating with life, there is indeed just one force that controls it all - Eklingji Shiva who protects all and is not just the guardian deity of the Maharanas of Mewar.

Photo courtesy: Indiantemples.com (templenet.com)

30 comments:

JC said...

Rajasthan, the land of the Rajas that is Kings, invited me in the late Fifties for four years of study and interestingly in the year when Goddess of Knowledge, Saraswati, Temple was inaugrated within Birla Institute's premises, for it was like continuity of my childhood spent in the shade of the Lakshaminarayana Temple at New Delhi!

And, it was only in 2004 (?) that 'I' visited Brahma's Temple in Pushkar, Rajasthan!

Kavitha Kalyan said...

JOshi Uncle,

Eklingji might be on the way between cities and people might not consider it important enough, but I feel very strongly, at least one day is just needed to give some justice and imbibe the beauty of this town.

Eklingji is definitely on my list of places for a vacation. Simply superb!!!

Regds
Kavitha

JC said...

Hi Kavitha, Mirabai the 'eccentric Rahputani Queen' of the 'common man' highlighted Krishna the mysterious representative of Vishnu the believable Creator who holds the beautiful wheel, that is, 'sudershan-chakra-dhari' the name derived from ring-planet-Saturn, by Yogis ot the then highly advanced 'scientists', and thus indicating planet Jupiter, also a ring planet, to represent Krishna, who was also realized to be located at the centre of our 'Milky Way Galaxy'! And hence Krishna in the Gita is seen throuigh the eyes of the wise claiming himself to be present within all, as the gravitational force in planets and as sool within 'animal forms'!

Shiva the 'Destroyer' or Rudra the angry God, being related with 'death' was mostly feared by the common man, and therefore worshipped with awe.

Sun the source of white light was realized as the provider of energy and thus the creator of physical forms on earth, or Brahma the four-faced God. And thus it is only in Rajasthan the state of valiant kings that one finds a temple dedicated to Brahma - the Raja or King of devtas, while elsewhere in north India he was called Indra, the raingod! And, the Gita had come to associate illusion or Maya with Krishna, who believably resides within all, the Anokha or unique as in, "Anokha ladala khelan ko mangein chaand," that is the 'unique child who wanted only MOON as its plaything'!

JC said...

Of course, once one realised 'Krishna', who believably appeared in human form in the 50% stage or Dwaper-yuga, (and therefore the apparent confusion between 'Vaisnavites' and 'Shaivites') - duration double that of Kali-yuga - to have eventually evolved as Trinity or Trimurty the Three-in-one God in physical form as the true image of Formless Shiva, represented by the unique Shivalinga (Eklingi) in Satya-yuga, teh 'wise Yogis' were not confused but the 'common man' continued to remain confused!

It is obviously difficult for an average man - who believes the 'present-da-man to be advancing in technology through digital computeers - to visualize human brain as a super analogous computer whose use is not known to anyone. And also to visualize that apparent time and therefore apaprent events are moving backwards - from perfect stage in Satya-yuga) to the absolutely imperfect stage (as in the present that is Kali-yuga or 'Dark Age') vis-a-vis the True Time applicable to the Formless unique Creator as zero! And hence the 'Maya'!

Shivoham! But tthe imperfect most one!

Anonymous said...

Namaste dear friends,

Once again a superb job, Kavitha didi! Very beautiful and moving, especially the description of illumination by ghee lamps, with the sound of the arotik bells, how beautiful the approach to the sanctum sanctorum.

I like your writings; is like a virtual pilgrimmage: a journey to a place deep inside the heart. It's lovely to have this virtual darshan....thanks!

And fun all the commentaries, like relaxing in Art History class with a favorite professor and enjoying the beautiful slide show, hearing many lofty thoughts. Thanks Joshi Uncle.

Today I heard a song while I was out shopping by Seal, "Love Will Help Me Know My Name." I love all these temples, all whisper to me, remind me, and call to me, in the language of the soul.

And the love of the bhaktars will help me to know my name also. Thanks to all, pranams, namaste!

The Buddha said that the Three Jewels are the dharma, the Buddha, and the sangha are the key to self-realization, but out of all three, the living sangha is the most important Jewel of all.

The heart sees these temples and rushes out to meet the Deity in Divine embrace. Is beautiful all the ways the Divine rush to meet us, as exemplified these multitude of sacred places and spaces.

Aum Namah Shivaya

JC said...

Namaste all!

'I' agreed with the Vedantis that hte universe is maya. And what one appears to see is the past to enjoy!

Aswin Kini said...

As anonymous put it simply, "It was like a virtual pilgrimage". You have beautifully described the town of Eklinji. "A place surrounded by nearly 108 temples", must have been habited by very spiritual people in the olden days.

I especially liked the description of the linga.

JC said...

Hi Aswini, Kavitha said, "...The flames flicker on, lighting up the face of Surya to the east, Vishnu to the North, Brahma to the west and Rudra to the south, all carved into a sacred black marble stone..."

The description indicates the Rajasthanis considered Sun (Brahma) as the Creator - Red colour associated with the direction East where our sun appears to rise, ie, the colour associated with minimum energy at the beginning or start. Vishnu is indicated in the North, associated with the belief that Vishnu reclines West-East along the trend of the Himalayas. Whereas, Rudra, associated with the hot sun, is represented by white light when our sun is over the head at mid-day. And, 'Brahma', in the Eklingi is represented by the apparently most mature, or the most evolved setting sun, in the West...

Sant Tulsidas said, to the effect, that everyone perceives God according to one's inclination of mind...And, 'Hindus' in 'India' therefore had the liberty to worship the 'Creator' of physical universe/ earth through any apparent physical form, but to ever remain conscious of the Creator as Formless, mysterious and, therefore, beyond human perception...The wisest of the wise however indicated each illusory physical form to be His Own Image - serving His umknown purpose!

A fakir was thus perceived by some as the happiest person, for he wasn't attached to material world...

JC said...

Hi all! Rajasthanis in the 'west' of India, apparently were inspired by Sun in its different phases as the direct and indirect source of energy. However, the Yogis in the Himalayan caves apparently realized Krishna the believable representative of Formless Vishnu/ Shiva, 'west' to be controlled by Blue colour that is Neelamber Krishna/ Kartikeya the elder son of Shiva-Parvati, as the controller of physical/ material wealth. The north was realised to be controlled eventually by Guru or the superiormost Yellow colour that, combined with red, gave mysterious 'spiritual' as well as 'material' powers to the northeast, represented by Ganesha who was blessed both by Mothers Gouri & Kali, and thus the balanced ideal to be achieved by humans...

Kavitha Kalyan said...

Hi Joshi Uncle, Aswin and Sri Anonymous,

Just want to inform you that i am not going to be online for a week from now, so i wouldn't be able to comment, and the next post is likely to get delayed by a day.

Regds
Kavitha

JC said...

Hi Kavitha! Best wishes. Hope you enjoy the vacation!

Shri Anon and others, continuing with the thought on 'Brahma', the controller of the direction 'west' for the 'ancient Rajasthanis' and Neelamber Krishna/ Kartikeya (related with Blue colour) for the 'wise' ancient North & South 'Indians' who realized essence of Mars, orange colour, housed at Mooladhar, associated with the direction north-east with direction south controlled by white colour or Sun.

The above suggests ultraviolet energy (Rahu in the words of the ancients) to control direction south-west, and infrared (Ketu, the other 'shadow') as controller of south-east, the two Gurus of the 'suryavanshi' kings (belonging to sun's family, that is, typical models of our generally cool sun, but supported by hot and powerful energies)...and neutral Green to control the north-west direction, opposite infrared in the south-east, while Orange and ultraviolet form the eternal water-cycle, or the annual southwest monsoon that is responsible for the 'golden bird' that 'India' was known to be once upon a time, which apparently attracted 'westerners' to the country from time to time, whosoever was physically more powerful - to gain spiritually in return for it!

The eight directions were also referred as the eight hands of Mother Durga (literally, a 'fort') or Parvati the daughter of the Himalayas that acted like a fort - but with its weakness, expectedly in Kaliyuga, in the form of the Khyber Pass in the Hindukhush range that acted as the entry point for the 'enemy armies' from time to time, as part of the grand design of the Formless! And, later via the sea route, the element 'water' as different from 'earth' or land route, on horse-back and iron/ steel swords that are related with Saturn and its friendly planet Venus (Shukra to the 'Hindus' who believed Shukracharya as the Guru of 'Rakshashas' or demons)...

JC said...

In retrospect, 'I' realised that 'I' was taken to the steel city of Jamshedpur that is Tatanagar during one of our 'educational tour' in the late Fifties, and later in early sixties for a longer duration as a 'student trainee' to Rourkela Steel Plant where works related with expansion of Plant's capacity were under progress.

Only later, 'I' was able to relate these vfisits with 'Neelamber Krishna' (Blue) when 'I' learnt that planet Saturn, with its blue rings, was related with the metal iron/ steel as also its essence with the nerves in the human body, and that's why perhaps a cool dude is believed to have nerves of steel!

Now, 'I' can relate the south-western coastal region of Arabian Sea close to the commercial city of Mumbai, where 'I' find myself also today because of my nine-month-old grandson, as the starting point of the eternal cycle and also relate it with planet Mercury, the number one of the planetary system.

'I' can also then visualize - moving clock-wise with Varanasi/ Kashi as the centre - to west (near Gujarat, the state of evolved Krishna), to be related with planet Venus, reflecting Saturn as its friend; north-west related with the neutral Green earth; northern Himalayas related with Moon; north-east region of the seven-sister states of 'India' related with Mars; Bengal, of Ma Kali, in the east related with Asteroids; and south-east and South related with Jupiter & Sun (navel & solar plexus, respectively in human form)...however, still not knowing how 'I' can be of help to Him to reach His intended purpose...'I' of course have learnt that Krishna says He has nothing new to find in the three worlds - there remains nothing for Him to achieve, and still He works every second without rest!

Even the wisest of the wise ancients apparently surrendered in Him and advised others also to do so and enjoy life just as one enjoys Bollywood/ Hollywood films!

Anonymous said...

Greetings Joshi Uncle,

Is that our first grandchild, the nine month old one? That must be a very mystical experience to become a grandparent.

Just thinking that it is possible I may become a grandparent someday makes me realize my time in this body is finite.

Thanks the info how you learned palmistry. How did you learn the info about the colors?

Here's something about colors used to depict the various Deities, from a book I'm reading "The Snow Leopard" by Peter Mathiessen
in a passage describing a trip to a Tibetan temple,

"...Presiding over all is...Vajradhara, the primordial Buddha of Tibet...he also appears outside the dome fresco with the Pleiades [there's Orion again!]
and black sickle moon over his shoulder; his sky blue colour signifies his eternal nature..."

JC said...

Grretings Sri Anon, As 'I' said earlier, 'I' wondered why 'I' didn't read the Gita earlier. It rested at my home in New Delhi while 'I' was out in the northeast - coincidentally (?) for just over 9 years, and my first grandchild is just over 9 years(!) and a Hindu is reminded of nine planets that is Navagraha - in Bhutan, the Buddhist country, and saw how the residents in the small place where 'I' was located with a small group of 'Indians' getting 'pre construction works' related with a hydel project done with the help of Nepalese labour force. And later my job involved technical investigations related with water resources projects...

Only when 'we' resettled thereafter could 'I' devote more time to the spiritual side vis-a-vis seeking any hidden meanings into my theoretical and practical knowledge gained particularly when 'I' had some spare time on hand.

Colours inspire everyone right from the childhood days. 'I' remember how we used to get attracted by colourful butterflies, which 'I' got the opportunity to review while in Bhutan, in the forest region where we were located on the banks of a hilly river, and also in the museum there.

More later...

JC said...

'My' first grandchild, daughter of my eldest daughter, was born in Seoul, nine years ago. 'We' saw the family when she was around 8-month-old. It is because of her that 'I' learnt about ETLT children, that is those who speak late - tehy eare called 'early thinking late talking'. My daughter thought she wouldn't speak at all! When she was 20-month-old, they visited us again. During this visit, 'I' sang songs utilizing lines based on similar but different sentences. It appears that after their return, she suddenly like a spring (font) started talking...and she learnt to say that her mother was white, her father was dark brown and she was light brown! God alone knows how or why she became colour conscious! For a few years now the family is in the USA for a few years and 'I' am nervous talking to her over phone, for 'I' hardly understand what she says in her American English! 'I' ask my daughter to tell me in simple words what she had said to me!

It was 'my wife's' Rheumatoid arthritis that brought me in contact with many practitioners of different styles of treatment -medicine, needles, temple water, some particular tree leaves used inside a pillow, copper ring, and so on. It was then that 'I' thought that our education was insufficient - 'I' was then attracted by colourful gemstones, which are a common sight in 'India', used for all problems...although it was too late, however, 'I' have apparently learnt a lot about, though still insufficient, about colours and their effect on human behaviour.

Blue is related with the element 'sky', one of the panchbhootas of Shiva the Neelkantha, the blue throated rendered thus due to absorption of 'halahal', that is, Potassiun Cyanide or KCn-like deadly poison (that sounds close to Kishan!) thanks to Somrus, the Yellow mysterious light of Guru the Moon, whose essence believably lies at the head of the human form, including that of Shiva the immortal one, the 'Baijnath' or Doctor of doctors! Yogis believe man to be made of essences of planets that are frozen in the rocks found on 'earth' by the Three-in-one Creator, Treyambakam, who reflects immortality to forms that entrap souls for a certain duration only - but in a cyclic manner as links of a single infinitely long chain!

JC said...

The wise ancients had indicated 'Krishna' that is 'Black' as the original colour, like that of the infinite universal void or space that is apparently filled with matter of innumerable shapes and sizes, out of which a galaxy is the basic unit. A galaxy primarily has innumerabloe stars, the sources of white light that hides within it various other forms of energy seen in the visible part of the spectrum, as in a rainbow for everyone to see - the apparent seven colours and parts of ultraviolet and infrared energies that also find access into earth's atmosphere, most of which are kept away by the Ozone layer in the atmosphere. The ancients conveyed this as the 'Third Eye' of Shiva that when opened burnt Kamdeva/ demon Bhasmasur!

The digital computer also suggests black colour to be made up of red and green. That is words in either of the two colours, when selected, shows the other colour. And the compound Green colour is formed when Blue and Yellow join together...Red, blue, and yellow are understood as primary colours. The ancients understood white Sun in the backdrop of blue sky as the ruler of the day. Whereas, Yellow Moon with dark sky in the night indicated moon as the king of the mysterioursly dark night, (Krishna wanted moon as a plaything - however the story of father Nanda thoughtfully arranging a pan of water in which he maanged to bring moon upon the earth, which couldn't be held in its hand by child Krishna conveys the concept of illusion or maya)!

T^he Hindu Mythological stories then can be seen read between lines to convey the 'Truth' or the untruths of human life...

JC said...

Yoga, that is, union communicated the realization of the 'wise' of physical forms as combination of the 'black' or Ma Kali (formless creator, symbolically represented by a fearful female form with red tongue) and Ma Gouri (resultant projection of perceivable forms, attributable to white Sunlight and various other colours/ energies associated with it).

The Hindu mythological stories obviously are in code words, written by 'wise and advanced ancients', made interesting for the 'common man' perhaps merely to pass time. But, these conveyed serious subject to hte concerned 'scientists' or Yogis, who had similar inclinations of mind. One coiuld perhaps get to see how red and yellow coloured threads are tied on the wrists of 'born Hindus' even today, maybe ritually and without any thought given to the selection of these two coloiurs by an average person - unless one did some in-depth study and correlate these with hot and red core of earth, attached to the earth proper in its 'heart' and kept locked up safely therein, and the detached lovely looking Moon that apparently controls the movements of earth remotely, from a distance, while near-earth asteroids are used remotely to bring change on the surface of earth and in the animal world, from time to time as per some grand design. Just as for example, scientists today visualize obsolescence of Dynosaurs some 65 million years ago...due perhaps to such an event...perhaps to remind humans of existence of the so-called super natural power...

Anonymous said...

Interesting!

I think Einstein also spoke late as a child...one famous example.

One color story I heard was Sri Radha has a yellow gold effulgence and Krishna's is bluish. So when they rush to meet each other, their effulgences rush ahead of them and meet together first.

This meeting of the yellow-gold and blue then turns everything in Vrndavana green: the plants, creepers, trees, etc.

Interesting that you got to go Bhutan!

Cheers ~
Aum Namah Shivaya

JC said...

Hi Sri Anon, Einstein was one example of ETLT. Bhutan with its Green virgin forest was seen by me as the gem, emerald...and the river on whose banks we worked was a tributary of the mighty Brahmaputra, where 'I' found myself later, for a few years, under the control of Ma Kamakhya/ Kali!

It was later when 'I' settled down a bit to seek the self that 'I' traveled within my head to know who 'I' was. Being born in Shimla in the 'present day' Himachal Pradesh'I' was apparently related with Parvati the second consort of Shiva, and another form of Sati herself! And, that 'my' parents belonged to the Kurmachal region of the then Uttar Pradesh, (now Uttarakhand), 'I' got related with the 2nd avatar of Vishnu too, that cold also be seen reflected in 'my' school up to class eleven located adjascent to Lakshaminarayana Temple, and so also the residence walking distance away from it! And, our stay in the northeast, including in Bhutan, apparently connected us with the 'mooladhar' of 'India'. And, my engineering study close to the newly inaugrated Saraswati Temple (consort of Brahma that in the form of the river formed part of the Triveni that went missing from there, to apparently reappear as Brahmaputra in the northeast, appeared to complete the whole picture - relating us with Brahma, Vishnu & Mahesha, teh Three-in-one God!

Like my sister's grandchild, 'I' too then questioned Him: Why the long physical suffering to my wife and indirectly to all the family members and our well wishers too, maybe to different degrees?

The answer also came naturally: Did Rama not suffer? Did Krishna not remain unsettled throughout his life? Did Shiva not lose Sati the original consort?

The study of the Gita and also Vedantis' realisation of illusion, although to a certain extent satisfies one, but to accept it in practice appears difficult! 'I' can remaoin detached as long as the 'painful events' are not related with 'me' or 'my close relatives'!

Krishna playing Holi with colours was realised by 'me' as explaining the different colours one find in 'Nature', and even the 'natural colours' of human skins! Krishna says (Chapter X - the Gita) he is seen to exist within everyone, while in reality all are within him! It is because of 'maya' that he is seen in so many forms - Radha thus is Peetamber Krishna Himself as teh most evolved form, represented by Guru of all colours, YELLOW, that as metal Gold and as Moon continues to fool the apparent physical forms!

Anonymous said...

Joshi Uncle, Pranams ~

Is your wife still with us, on this plane of existence? And is she still suffering from rheumatoid arthritis malady? Or has she found a cure? Or a way to stabilize the ailment?

You are very fortunate person you were able to go to so many holy places in your lifetime. The Brahmaputra River must be amazing!

Do you have any fond memories of the Laksmi narayana Temple that you would like to share? That must have been amazing to grow up within walking distance of it!

I think I understand little bit more what you are saying about the colors now. Is part chakra theory and part the different planetary gemstones. That's a nice way of looking deeply at life.

I agree with you about the nature of suffering. The First Noble Truth of the Buddha in fact is: "Life is Suffering". I hope your wife is doing better now.

You mentioned the Laksminarayana Temple of New Delhi and a few others. Do you have a/any favorite temple(s)? Or do you like them all?

Wishing you well...
Aum Namah Shivaya

JC said...

Namaste Sri Anon, Brahmaputra river needs to be seen when it is in floods to realize how even a river could look like a sea at certain locations. It is about a kilometer wide only at a few locations, where the banks are rocky and where there are bridges constructed for crossing over to the other bank. Its average width is about 6 Km and at Dibrugarh, in the Upper Assam, it is 14 Km wide - one doesn't see the other bank!

Personally, 'I' never felt any attraction to visit temples, maybe because as 'I' narrated elsewhere, 'I' virtually got crushed in the crowd as a young boy during Krishna Janmashtami. After that day 'I' was scared to go to crowded places. 'I' preferred taking care of footwears of my family members outside the temple when we visited one!

There is an old Kali Temple in New Delhi, which we siblings also used to visit with our parents in the childhood. It has now, like all other commercial establishments, expanded to accommodate various other deities. 'I' do sometimes, for the sake of company to my younger brother and his wife, do visit it when we happen to be in that region. Now that you ask me, 'I' realize that 'I' haven't visited the said Lakshminarayan Temple for very very long. After our marriage, for many years my wife used to observe fast on full moon days. Once 'I' told her that she it was on those very days she was getting irritated at the children (3 numbers), and thus it wasn't serving the desired purpose - of remaining unmoved under all circumstances! She then stopped observing fasts, although she performed the daily rituals of aarti to the numerous deities in our small temple within the residence. Although she was a very strong willed lady, she couldn't withstand the physical torture due to steroids introduced in the late Seventies, which apparently led to complications, SLE and vasculitis, and she gave up the struggle in the year '99 on 4th December, that happened to be 2 days after our 34th marriage anniversary...

Anonymous said...

Namaste Joshi Uncle ~

Wow, that is super amazing description of Brahmaputra River.
No wonder rivers are referred to as goddesses, their power and majesty so awesome!

That must have been a very frightening and traumatic experience for you to be crushed inside a temple on Janmashtami as a young kid.

It reminds me of Bengali mystic Chaitanya who left only eight verses behind in this world, no books, commentaries, bhasya, etc.

One of the verses was, "You may crush me with Your embrace or make me broken-hearted by not being present before me, but You will always be my Lord birth after birth."

Sounds like you were crushed by Divine embrace! could be one way of looking at it.

I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your dear wife, I'm sure she must be guardian angel to you and your family now, watching over everyone. And now she can have Deity darshan and do arotik face to face with her spiritual vision and spiritual limbs, with "eyes anointed with salve of devotion".

Is interesting how you see the Divine in so many phenomenon of this world, I think is admirable and perhaps a side effect of your youthful experience.

You have discovered that the worshipful Deity is inside of you, inside of everyone, inside of everything in the universe, and not just the temple. Versus the kanistha adhikari only can see the Deity in the temple.

So who knows maybe was Divine favor to you, after being crushed by Divine embrace, then you see the Divine everywhere. See I told you: like Srimati Radhika, with a civil engineer's sensibility [smile].

Did you have any experiences after your late wife passed of her communicating with you by astral or supernatural means? By feeling her presence, sending a message, hearing divine voice, etc.?

Aum Shanti Shanti Aum
Aum Namah Shivaya

JC said...

Namaste Sri Anon, My wife was the youngest, the fifth child of the fzmily. She was born after her eldest sister was married! Being the youngest she was the beloved child of the family members.

As a schoolboy, 'I' found History & Geography the two subjects that virtually scared me. 'I' therefore had felt relieved when 'I' chose science subjects from class IX. Only lately 'I' have been referring to the World Atlas and found that places, such as, Amarkantak (in Madhya Pradesh), Varanasi (in UP), and Mount Kailash (in Tibet, China), all lie close to the Longitude East with reference to '0' (passsing through Greenwich) that relates to the IST - and the location of my wife's place of birth also happened to be close to 'India's zero', which the ancients appear to have realized as the 'Absolute Zero' - related with Adi Shiva, the Ardhanarishwar!

At some point in time, any point on the globe, and particularly in 'India', appears to have been realised by the believably 'wise ancients' or Yogis to reflect the Formless infinite energy, locked up at the core of earth, on the surface also as a relatively weaker force. Different places therefore came to have their own deities. Energy appears to have been worshipped in the female form. Jagdalpur's deity is called 'Danteshwari', an image of Parvati Herself, the representation of maximum energy on earth as reflected in the form of the Himalayas in the North...Some enlightened souls therefore appear to have visualized innumerable forms of Ma Durga/ Parvati at different locations, all leading to Her as the VIP, the ruler of earth that wears a crown in the form of the range of snow-peaked mountains!

The crowd had carried me, sandwiched, up the staircase, a bit breathless in the dark, which 'I', being a child thought 'I' had died, but glad to find myself once again land on the ground in fresh air and sunlight at the top to realize 'I' hadn't in fact died!

In retrospect later 'I' associated this phenomenon with the transformation of a star to a 'Black Hole' (Krishna to me)
The report was based on the studies of stars, when they apparently reach their end, done by Shri S Chandrashekhar in the USA...

JC said...

Continuing...When 'I' got married to her and had just entered the house with her, 'I' hear my mother tell her that 'I' am not worldly wise, and till then they had taken care of 'me' and now it was her duty to look after 'me' - like handing over a baby to the baby-sitter! And, she really took care of 'me' as advised. There definitely was some natural connection in our thought processes, for many times when 'I' wanted to voluntarily help her in some daily chore, she would order me to do that very act and thereby take away the credit for the job!

Yes, you are right, although there are no direct apparent communication as such, but certain help comes at times from unexpected quarters. For example, for my third daughter's marriage my younger brother and his wife had been living in Mumbai, and were therefor handy to perform the required rites. And, now they live close by and we meet regularly and help each pother...

JC said...

'I' had earlier in some other post narrated my visit to my birth-place, Shimla in '06 for a week or so accompanied by my brohter and his wife to her father's house there. One night 'I' was awakened by a female voice. 'I' waited for some time to hear some other sounds or some apparition! But, nothing happened thereafter. The next time 'I' was awakened early morning by the sound of the radio switched on by Mr. Nobody that was operated by a battery and kept in the shelf inside the open cupboard over the head-rest of my bed!

The scientist in 'me' couldn't explain the phenomenon: who had switched it on? For it appeared impossible for me to have done it physically in my sleep...

In the morning when all woke up, 'I' asked if by chance someone had entered the room whhile 'I' was asleep alone in the guest room. But, no one apparently had done so. It was in the month of November and all used heavy quilts to cover the body...

It is however said that the thought power if used, just as Yogis apparently did, one could move a mountain! A somnambulist apparently performs actions in sleep without his knowledge. So, switching on a radio by my own spirit might be a likely possibility - perhaps to convey its preswence within me!

JC said...

All said and done, 'I' have come to believe myself as a dot, an image of the one and only dot out of innumerable dots that are used to represent the apparent Him in physical form. It can perhaps be visualised with the help of the apparent fact that each drop of milk that consititute the whole quantity of mik contains the same quantity of cream as a representative of the whole...

JC said...

'I' think it isn't necessary here to repeat sanctity of the number of temples, '108', that reflects the neutral or detached '0' in the middle, and also the right and left 'hands' of the three-in-one god, popularly called 'Treyambakam' the physical form of the Formless or Bhootnath the 'Lord of the Past' who believably reviews His past in 1,080 cycles in a day of Brahma...

JC said...

Illusion or 'Maya' then becomes easier to visualise, to understand which one could also see how the make believe world of Cinema keeps a large numbers engaged in the illusory world or heros, heroines and villains...

JC said...

Illusion or 'Maya' then becomes easier to visualise, to understand which one could also see how the make believe world of Cinema keeps a large numbers engaged in the illusory world or heros, heroines and villains...

JC said...

In so far as 'I' am concerned, 'I' have come to realize how through a character like 'me', the Bhootnath has perhaps come to see my journey from Himachal, where Shiva's 'Third Eye' believably is, to His 'Mooladhar' in the northeast, and finally back to 'Indraprastha' that is New Delhi (Dilli the heat of 'India') the seat of the Kuru kings during the last Yuga that is Dwaper, also of the British, who ruled many colonies such that the 'sun once upon a time never set in its empire' till Brahma (Sun) apparently moved still more westerly to the USA...farther from Rajasthan where it ruled once upon a time...and now under the rule of teh Formless represented by the Shivlinga or Eklingi Shiva...