Names, Places, Events, Things: Ruminations and Essays on Hindu Mythology

Note: This is not written by me, but my father. He wrote this wonderful story in a mail to me. So here's to you, Baba. - Shreekant 03 August 2009 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Why I am curious about Upamanyu? Coz our 'Gotra' is Upamanyu. Who was Upamanyu? What was his significance? We have to reach Tamil Nadu - Chidambaram. The story begins in the lush green thick jungle of Thillaivanam, the place where there is 'Swayambhu' Linga. Whoever has a 'darshan' of this Linga, gets everything he desires. (Rightful & more on the spiritual side). This is the very place (and the nearby area) where Lord Nataraja arrived and gave two extra-ordinary gifts to the mankind - Music & Dance. A great sage named Madyanthinar, related to sage Vashishta, had a brilliant son, named Madyanthinar Jr. These sages were living in a small town (probably a part o...

Now this is one of the most famous legands that I have been hearing since childhood, due to my close association with the land of Konkan in general and the town of Chiplun in particular -- and also with the Kokanastha Brahmins - the Kulkarnis, Deshpandes, Patils, Inamdars, Gokhales, Phadkes, Rastes, Patwardhans, Aptes and so on ... the list is endless. The Peshwas (prime ministers) of the late Maratha empire are the most famous group of Chitpavan Brahmins in the history. This post is about how the famous warrior saint Parashurama - Rama with an axe - Vishnu's 6th Avatar, ordered the Ocean to recede and thus created the entire stretch of what is known as Konkan and Malabar. Prelude - Jamadagni and Kartavirya Arjuna ---------------------------------------------------------------------- It all started when long time ago a Haihaya Kshatriya king Kartavirya Arjuna - nothing to do with the Arjuna of Mahabharata - (also called Sahasrarjuna - purportedly with a thousand ar...

Vanasur (Banasur) - The Eldest Son of Bali ----------------------------------------------------------- In the last December, we were on a road trip in Kumaon, Uttarakhand. After spending 2 days in the regions around Saat taal, Mukteshwar etc., we decided to move further up towards Champawat region and go to a less-known hill station called Abbot Mount, near Lohaghat. This ancient region has historical and mythological importance. Champawat, once the capital of the rulers of the Chand dynasty, is famous for its natural beauty and well known temples. It is also believed that it was in Champawat that Lord Vishnu appeared as 'Kurma avtar', His incarnation as a tortoise. The River Lohawati originates near this place. Lohagarh and the nearby Tanakpur are huge marketplaces, especially of woolen clothes today. While we were traveling from Bhowali, having crossed many mountain trails and having seen the Himalayan mountain ranges filled to our heart's desire, we came to a ...