Karla revisited

We visited Karla after almost more than a decade. And we loved every minute of it.  

We drove down from Mumbai on the Expressway and the drive was uneventfully peaceful. 

Our first stop was Narayani Dham. Narayani Dham is a popular temple, built in 2002, located

in Lonavala, Maharashtra, dedicated to Goddess Narayani, an incarnation of Goddess Durga. The temple is beautifully designed with grand architecture and has an aura of divinity. 

The main deity of Narayani is flanked by Lord Ganesha and Hanuman on either side. There was a notice which stated that one could take photos of the deity but strictly no selfies! It is a practice which I feel all temples should follow.  

The interior decoration is typical Rajasthani and so are the priests. The temple attracts a large number of devotees from all over the country and is recognized for its peaceful ambiance and the sense of spiritual tranquility it offers.  

After paying obeisance to all the deities, we visited their Goshala (cow shed). It was spotlessly clean! 

Now it was time to put our growling stomachs to rest so we drove down to Manashakti

Research Centre canteen where we had amazing spicy batata wadas and sabudana wadas (with sweet curds) followed by a cup of hot Chaha.  

Next, we headed to MTDC Karla resort and checked into a lovely cottage. It was clean and what I liked was the check in process was totally paperless since I had made an online booking. The resort was as rustic as it was decades ago but the facilities were all modern. The staff were gracious and smiling. The only thing missing was an intercom in the cottage. Despite the fact that there weren't many people staying in the resort, their restaurant had all the listed menu items available, freshly prepared. Had a yummy lunch and a good siesta. 

In the evening, we took a walk to the Indrayani riverside which runs through the resort and

spent a lovely evening watching a beautiful sunset. 

Next morning we woke up early to catch the sunrise and we were not disappointed. 

After a heavy breakfast of Kanda Pohey and puri bhaaji in the MTDC restaurant we visited the

Durga Parameshwari temple. The idol is beautiful. This temple also houses the samadhi of Shrimath Parijnanashram Swamiji of the Chitrapur Saraswat community. After spending some meditative moments in the temple, we left for lunch at Siddhu Punjabi Dhaba.  

The ambiance and the food transported us to Amritsar as we gorged on Sarson da saag, Makay di roti and Missi roti followed by a tall glass of Lassi! There were cots there next to the dining tables where the diners could snooze before driving ahead.  

Spent the rest of the day exploring the MTDC resort surrounded by nature. It was a wonderful way to conclude our Karla visit.    

Linking to Mosaic Monday

Temples in Mangaluru

Had passed Mangalore city a number of times during my visit to Vittal for the annual Shashti festival but unfortunately never stopped by to explore Mangalore.

So, this time we decided to visit Mangalore for a day and check out the three temples that everyone talked about and of course have a seafood meal in one of the most hyped restaurants. 

Since there is enough information about the temples that we visited I will not go into much details but just give my view of the temple. In none of the temples that we visited was photography allowed hence all the photographs are from outside.

The first temple we visited was Mangladevi temple in Bolara. It was this temple that gave Mangalore, now Mangaluru, its name. 

The temple is dedicated to Shakti in the form of Godess Mangladevi.

As per one legend it was supposed to have been built by Parshurama, one of the tenth avatar of Lord Vishnu and later developed by Kundavarman, of the Alupa dynasty in the ninth century.

The engravings on the pillar, the exterior walls of the temple and specially at the entrance are beautiful.

The next temple we visited was the Gokarnanatheshwara Temple, otherwise known as Kudroli Sri Gokarnanatha Kshetra,  which is in the Kudroli area of Mangalore. It was consecrated by Narayana Guru and is dedicated to Gokarnanatha, a form of Lord Shiva. This temple was built in 1912 by Adhyaksha HoigeBazar Koragappa.  

It is a beautiful temple complex with various temples dedicated to various Gods apart from Gokarnatha.

There was the Hanuman temple, Shirdi Saibaba temple and the Krishna temple too and some beautiful

carvings around the temple pond.

The last but not the least temple that we visited was Kadri Manjunatheshwara temple in Kadri. It is estimated to have been built in the tenth or eleventh century and converted into a stone structure in the fourteenth century. It is dedicated to Manjunatha (another name for Shiva).

There is a natural spring, at the back of the temple at an elevation, called Gomukha. The water flows out of a cow's mouth. It is believed that the water originates from the river Bhagirathi river in Kashi and hence called Kashi Bhagirathi Teertha. 

This water is then directed into nine ponds where devotees can wash their hands and feet before entering the temple. 

The annual Jathra Mahotsava, a nine day festival is held every January beginning on Makar Sankranti. People from all over come for this festival and is celebrated with great religious fervour.

When we visited the temple, the Ayappa festival was on and a lot of people who are on their pilgrimage to Sabrimalai stop by to pay their respects.

All this visiting had made us hungry and so we decided to visit the most talked about seafood restaurant 'Girimanja's' to end our short day trip.

We had fish thalis and fried fish. 

The fried fish (mackerel/bangda and Anjal/surmai/kingfish was very tasty but soaking in oil. 

The ambiance is good and the service staff very attentive and friendly apart from being efficient! 

Linking back to Mosaic Monday

Khajuraho

Khajuraho, famous for sexually explicit sculptures on temple walls, has many other beautiful temples. Of a total of eighty five, only around twenty two are in reasonably good condition now and Khajuraho has the stamp of a UNESCO World Heritage Site now. The temples date back to 950 – 1050 AD.

As you near the famed city you will be surrounded by ‘Guides’ who promise to show you all that is there in Khajuraho. But very few of them are authorized to enter the Western group of temples complex where all the prominent temples are. They will only guide you to the Eastern, Southern and Jain group of temples. So if you are going to hire a guide please keep this in mind.

In the morning we covered the Eastern, Southern and the Jain temples and in the evening we did the Western group. The ‘Eastern’ ‘Southern’ and ‘Western’ refer to the direction in which they are situated as all these temples are in an area of around six kms.

Our first visit was to the Vamana temple in the Eastern zone. It is dedicated to Vamana incarnation of Lord 

Vishnu. It has beautiful carvings on the outer walls.

The next stop was Javari temple that is dedicated to Lord Vishnu built during 1075 and 1100AD. There is a 

headless idol inside the temple.

Then we went on to the Chaturbhuj temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu, which dates back to 1100AD. This is 

the only temple in Khajuraho that lacks erotic sculptures. It is located in the Southern zone.

We moved on to the Duladeo temple next, dedicated to Lord Shiva, that dates back to early 12^th century.

The Jain temples were next.

 Adinath temple dating back to the latter part of the 11^th century AD and the

 Parshavnath temple built during the 10^th century AD.

Then we moved to the temples in the Western zone. The first temple we saw there was the Lakshaman 

temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, built between 930-950 AD.

Opposite the Lakshmana temple is the Varaha mandir. Varaha is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.

The Kandariya Mahadeva temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva, built between 1025-1050 AD is the largest 

monument in Khajuraho.

The Jagdambi temple was originally dedicated to Lord Vishnu now named Jagdambi for the image of Parvati 

enshrined in the sanctum.

The Chitragupta temple resembles the Jagdambi temple, and is dedicated to Surya.

The Vishwanatha temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, built in 1002AD is one of the finest in Khajuraho.

Khajuraho is not only about erotic sculpture but also about fine architecture and exquisite artisanship.

  

Getting there:

By Air: Khajuraho airport is well connected to all major cities in India, like Delhi, Mumbai, Varanasi, Bhopal, Indore and Allahabad.

By Rail: Nearest railway station to Khajuraho is Mahoba which is around 77 km from Khajuraho. Harpalpur is another station that is well connected to most of the major cities in India and is 90 km from Khajuraho

  

By Road: Khajuraho is one of the cities well connected by public and private buses. Private tour service operators arrange deluxe AC and Non AC buses to Khajuraho from various cities including Jhansi (177 km) and Delhi (594 km).