Vellaiyammal, the Big Temple Elephant (no more)

You all know that The Thanjavur Big Temple, also called as Brihadeeswarar Temple is a part of UNESCO World Heritage Site and an architecture pinnacle of Cholas, built thousand years ago by RajaRaja Cholan (in 1010). Vellaiyammal was a 63 year old elephant donated to Thanjavur Mariamman Koil Temple by veteran actor Shivaji Ganesan when she was a year old, shifted to Big Temple in later days.

I visited the Big Temple during its millennium year of built and find the Vellaiyammal blessing the devotees and tourist entering the temple, by standing between the first and second gopuram (tower). The elephant seemed very kind being, moving side-by-side constantly, wore a neatly drawn bar on its forehead and stars on each ear. I stood there sometime watching its activity and captured few shots (flash off) before moving inside the temple without a mind to move on.

During my childhood I fear a lot for elephants and every time a mahout drives elephant across our street I would go and stand on our balcony to watch it safely. Before the ban imposed on elephants being used for begging on streets in our state, we could see temple elephants drove by mahouts on streets to make their own collection out of elephant’s free time. Every time I hear a bell sound, I would rush out to look for elephant and so was my affection toward them even I still bear little fear for them, I love the pachyderm sincerely.

Vellaiyammal was suffered from knee pain for the last seven years, due to old age, made her unable to lie or sleep properly. The elephant had been on stand for last few years, slept only by slanting on the wall and was often fell ill to get treated by doctors, breathed her last after fell down at the early hours of morning today. Hearing this I couldn't avoid recollecting the moment stood in front of her and watching the majestic beauty, inviting us into the Big Temple.

Rain and Chennai - from my personal note

Pic by Jeevan

Chennai has become a cool paradise over the last few days of constant rain, due to low pressure in Bay of Bengal. It was quite pleasing these days and was inspiring a lot, despite feeling lazy to do something in sleepiest mood which remind me my school days, where I used to feel sluggish during the early hours of morning at any rainy day.  And once the fans are switched on, I used to feel like sleeping infinitely at the desk. After long time I feeling the coldness of rain, perhaps due to sand and soil environment surrounded this house unlike our early apartment which has cement floors around that keeps away the wetness and cold.

Here I could experience rain on all sides of the house rather only the southern side get wet in our early house in apartment, so it won't be cooler whether it rains or winter dews. My grandmother used to say it’s very cool at their house, but coming to our house they would experience warm in winter. Because of the position of the house, the sunlight used to fall on the walls of our house throughout the day keeps it warmth the whole night. It was an awesome benefit we lose utmost by shifting our house; the summers were never like that before, which I used to say to my cousin that how much, you pay, you could not buy this caressing wind.

We gain and lose certain aspects that used to be our favor, but doesn’t life based on balance? We experience pleasure in rain, as well it become pressure in case crosses the limit. Coming to Chennai, showering is very special as we left with brief season of monsoon and many a time rain becomes a mirage, showing its grey face but fail showering grace. At same time, moderate showering could leave the city congested with lack of proper drainage facilities and uncontrolled vehicle population always make rain fall prey down. With no space for water to drain, no use blaming the rain!  

Footnote:

Photo shot at our street light while it rains one evening. 

Random travel modes

Ashok has nominated me to participate in a Travel Photography contest by Rhino Car Hire… The theme is to depict modes of travel captured during ours… so here are my pictures based on travel from my random trips.

This picture was shot at Pulicat Lake, also called as Pazaverkadu - the second largest salt backwater lake come lagoon in India.  Before a bridge was constructed in year 2009 across the lake to connect the island village near the estuary (where lake meet with Bay of Bengal), Boats were the only sources of transport alternate to buffalo carts that wade thought water during low tides. Fishing is the livelihood of Pulicat, where they fish both on lake and sea.

Captured in Periyakulam, Theni district of Tamil Nadu, the Horse Carts are still used as transportation there apart few other towns. The horse cart, also called as Tangas in India and its neighboring countries and it is a popular mode of transportation because they are fun to ride in, and are usually cheaper to hire than a taxi or rickshaw.

While driving to Karaikal Beach, we cross the Karaikal railway station which looked deserted and a Train was stationed stretching up to the ramp of platform. We slowdown the car across the track after passing the gate; I took this shot without hurry knowing hopefully no train arrives. Karaikal is a part of Union territory of India coming under the Pondicherry administration.

Shot this picture (using mobile) at the outskirt of Chennai, where a boy riding his Cycle on the village streets… following one is from the same road, where an old man pedaling cycle, perhaps make sitting his grandson at rear carrier. Cycles are a common and basic transportation mode which has health benefits as well as eco-friendly vehicles. For kids, riding bicycles are much favorite and no one could have escaped from having fun with cycle during their childhood days and getting warrior scars.

I have never fly across the sky in a flight and I have no pictures on airways… so here is a Flight model I shot at HAL museum in Bangalore. The HAL HPT-32 Deepak ("lamp" in Sanskrit) is an Indian prop-driven primary trainer manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. The aircraft can accommodate one passenger and the student and the instructor can sit side-by-side.

At last here is my travel mode Mahindra Scorpio. We bought this car in 2011 and even before it we had a similar one, only because for my comfort we continue to choose this model. For me it’s an Indian Hummer… because it took me almost everywhere I love to travel. My cousin shot this while caught in a traffic jam at Kodaikanal.

The last four months

There was a mixed feeling being shifted to this house more than four months back. There were many ups and downs related to family and home environment, but the part of my life travels on similar path, more or less, nothing bothered me much and I don’t feel much change in my life, apart some mishap with father (who’s just back to normal after his bike fall) which led our life thought physically trouble and emotional stress. For nearly two months, mom had been the only caretaker of mine to take care of my needs indeed without the support of dad, which was the troublesome phase ever in my life.

our small backyard

Today everything seem to be nothing and the difficult times are no more, because, they are almost become a part of my practical life. Leaving those behind, life has been wonderful with pros and cons and the weather on other hand had been very pleasant these days unlike extremely hot when we shifted home back in April and followed by sultry May. The rain that make way through last two months had sent wakeup calls to mosquitoes (even though they aren’t new for us and they are almost everywhere around Chennai) we are forced to close all the windows and door before 6 pm to prevent them enough. Even we can’t sleep without fans on; glad we have an inverter to keep us asleep when the power goes off often when it rains.

 The house is well lit throughout the day without a need for lights (each room has two wide windows) only the wind couldn’t enter much unless there’s heavy blow outside. We aren’t daring to keep all windows open to make free entry for mosquitoes since we haven’t put nets for windows like how we done at our early house. Though it isn’t a matter anyway, but maintaining the house to keep clean wasn’t easy enough which was double the size of our early one and with trees around we can’t stop leaves thrown down.  But what I liked more was the small garden space of the backyard, which is enough to say than nothing, and who won’t dream of a house with garden space. I liked it much and want to see it bloom with flowers and grasses.

Before we come to this home, my bro wanted to make lawns with the open spaces around but once rain stared to pour the grasses began to grow on its own on the open space. I know they aren't the grasses use for lawns, but a kind of wild weeds growing fast to a foot now and looking for a cleanup. I suggest mom to direct a cow (those pass our house everyday and some time lie close to our compound for the shadow of the tree) to have the grasses as its breakfast, but she don’t like my idea saying that it will also eat our others plants.  

We had re-planted some of our pot plants there and there’s already a yellow flowering shrub and bougainvillea that need to grow enough to see blossom. There are jasmines, hibiscuses, anthimanthaarai (4 O'clocks flower) and button roses (check the collage above) growing close to ground. It’s so good to see them blooming like white bulbs every morning and 4 O'clock flowers in cheerful yellow, there’s also a white frangipani tree at our parking dropping fabulous flowers. Just four months old, the neighbors were still strange enough except for this only family that made touch with us, since facing our side front it was easy making friendship with them.

PowerShot Sunday - Dashboard Ganesh

Dashboard Ganesh is the name I given to this pretty little idol that embellished our car dashboard before it broke away a year ago. The idol was made of marble and about 2 inches in size!