Married - Three Years Later

Still married. Happier!

Kaaval Deivams.

Kaaval Deviams are gods that are considered the guardians of villages in South India. These snaps are a few taken in the Salem / Dharmapuri district of Tamil Nadu in India and depict the various forms of these gods.

Generally, these gods are depicted with some kind of weapon, short sword, long sword, trident, or sometimes even guns. Most of them are called "Iyyanaar", though they are also known as "Muniyaandi", "Muniappan" in some places.

These pictures were taken on the way to Hogganekkal from Dharmapuri in North Tamilnadu.

The following pictures were taken on the way to Yercaud from the town of Salem, Tamil Nadu.

Married

It has been a long time since I had posted something on my blog. In the meanwhile, a lot of changes have happened in life. I got married. I am also determined that I will stick to a job for a longer time and not change frequently.

My wife is a great person, full of love and affection. A trained musician, she is a pleasure to listen to..... The beginning is very good. Hope we keep up the steam throughout.

It is really a different feeling being married. You suddenly start thinking about your behavior, dresses, eating/drinking habits. Hmmmm. Things have changed for the better. I am not allowed to be sloppy, however, she has made me lazier. I was 80% before, she has made me 100% now........ I enjoy the attention though. Now that my house is no longer mine alone, there is someone to share it with - for better or for worse - it is a great feeling.

From the time she has come to my life, I have started to understand the special bond that develops with couples with deep love for each other. There is some kind of magic that is happening when you see a beautiful smile that comes from the depth of the other person's heart and you feel compelled to gather that person in your arms to reward with a good tight hug. You feel someone is watching you and find your partner looking at you with a big smile plastered on the face. It is bliss like no other.

You come home to find a person waiting for you, to fuss over you, ask you how your day went. Hmmmm. May be this is what is called love?

Beauty

This was in reply to a question posted to me by Dolly, my friend.

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Dolly,

Hmmm. Nice question. Needs a long walk to think about.

The perception of beauty per se is very individualistic. What you might perceive as beauty might not be so for me. So how do you come to a common definition of beauty? But tell me, what gives you pleasure, what calms your troubled mind, what gives you a sense of extreme happiness? In my case, a beautiful thing that makes me look for words to describe
it. Be it a person, a thing, or a moment of time.

Beauty is also a cultural thing. For example, in Brazil and Latin American countries a voluptuous woman is considered a beauty, however, in America and Europe, a thin waif like woman is considered a beauty. So what is the common line that you can derive out of this. In some tribal cultures, neck extensions using rings (this practice was popular among some tribes in Burma) or small feet (this was practiced extensively in China) were considered things that were beautiful. Some of these practices we find totally strange, but who are we to judge?

In todays world, exposing your body, piercing your body in odd places, all, convey a sense of beauty, to both the viewer and the wearer. So are these expressions of self worth really wrong? Nope, personally, I feel that beauty is very personal, both to the person admiring and the admired. How many times you would have looked with envy at some person and at the same time your friend might not find the same person attractive? So a common definition of beauty is out of the question and perhaps would not be general enough and right.

My perception of beauty, as I told you earlier, is something that brings me extreme joy, something that leaves me speechless, wondering on the work of the GOD above.

And no, you were not asking too much. Because I find you a beautiful friend.

Venkat

Dolly wrote:
> Whts your idea of beauty & how do u define it? Hope I'm not asking too much tho.
>

Us in perspective

I received an interesting main as a forward from a friend. The topic was "Great Perspective on the size of the Universe". Though I generally ignore these mails and process them when I have some free time, I was intrigued by the title. On opening it, I was properly put into my place.

Seems that we are the size of a grain of sand when compared to the Sun, which would on the same scale be larger than football.

What really put me in place was that, the Sun itself would be the size of grain of sand when compared with the star Antares which would be the size of a large exercise ball, when using the same scale as comparing earth to Sun. I know that the universe is large, but WOW, I could not
imagine the spread and size of it as described in that mail.

This set me wondering, what the hell, we are so insignificant when seen with respect to the whole universe that we would be like a mustard seed in a warehouse full of footballs, exercise balls, and other such massive objects. Then why are we talking about conquering other nations and people. We have enough weapons to destroy our planet many times over, many many times over. Would it matter in the whole scheme if we existed or not? I believe not.

If we are not able to understand this, we are not fit to exist.

This whole thing was also reinforced through an excellent book - Contact, by Eric Segal. Though the movie does not do justice to the book, it is a good watch. The book deals with the subject of our place in the whole universe. And the same idea is presented by the author.

Then why are we fighting within ourself, killing/maiming our kin, destroying our environment, polluting the very air, earth, and water that sustain us. Why are we running behind money - an invention of ours-? Why why why?

This raises another question in my mind. Is this universe accidental? Or is it evolved? Or is it created? Who will answer this question?

Change of Job - 2

Change of Job - 2

Well, I changed my job again.

This company is into RFID and WIFI area. Lets hope things would be better here.

New Year Trip - 2

The next day, Jan 1, 2006, we left early to go around Mysore. We decided to start the day and the year by visiting Chamundi Hills and have adarshan of the Goddess Chaamundeshwaree. This temple is situated on topa hill just outside Mysore. A distance of about 8-10 kms from the heart of the city.

The climb to the top of the hill is really beautiful. It was misty and a bit chilly that day. Though we were early, there were a few braver souls than us that day. A small queue had formed even before the temple was open. On the way up to the shrine, we were over taken by a couple on a
bike. The guy was driving really well, his bike a off the shelf 100 cc one. The lady on the pillion caught the eye of Nalin my companion and we raced them to the top.

After darshan, by coincidence, we both - us and the couple - started togather and rode. We just waved and stopped alongside them. Got to know that they were brother and sister and had come to the temple for darshan. Ms. P and Mr. N helpled us with an itenary for visits to places around Mysore.

This photo was taken from a ledge above the Nandi that is situated on the way down from Chamundi Hills.

From there we went to Srinrangapattina which was the capital and strong hold of Tipu Sultan. This place is about 30 kms from Mysore on the way to Bangalore. Srirangapatna is an island on the river Kaaveri. There is a Ranganaatha Swamy temple located here. Another interesting place to visit is the Sangamam where the two branches of the river meet. This place is about 3 Kilometers from the temple.

At the sangamam one can have a Parisal ride to the mid of the river and back. The cost is about 30 - 40 Rs. for the ride. A Parisal is a saucer like boat made of reeds woven togather. Depending on its size, it can carry between 5 -20 people.

The ride is really harrowing if the water is swift and with a large number of swirls and strong current.

The parisal ride took us to a small lingam situated at the middle of the river. The photos show the progress. Note how close we are to the water. A fully loaded parisal rides low, really low - a bit scary at times.

The following photos were taken during the Parisal ride at Sangamam at Srirangapattinam.

All photos taken by a Nokia 6600 mobile phone.

New Year Trip - I

On the way to Mysore to welcome 2006, me and my colleague Nalin stopped at Kanva to find it rejuvinated. After spending some time there we proceeded to Melkote for a darshan of Cheluva Naaraayanar. A few things about Melkote.

Melkote is located about 45 / 50 kilometers from Mandya and about 60 / 70 kilometers from Mysore. It is a lovely village located at the foot of a hill. This village is very important pilgrim center for us Sri Vishnavaas as it is the place where our Guru Raamaanujar stayed for a period of time.

The lord appears as Cheluvanaaraayanar at Melkote and is a sight that cannot be described. Atop the hill is the sannidhi (sanctorum) of Narasimhar. A climb of about 100 steps lead you to this temple.

The road from Melkote to Mysore through Paandavapura is not very good. We had a few escapes during this journey as the road was being laid afresh.

We stayed overnight at "Nalapad Residency" in Mysore. Decent accommodation at exorbitant rates (was this due to the New Year ???). However, the room was neat and hot water was available.

A party was going on at the hotel and we went. Loud music, drunken dancing, insipid food is what I remember of this evening. Left early so that we could leave early for our Mysore tour.

All photos taken with my Nokia 6600 mobile.