Walk along the streets of Kumbakonam - Part I

The morning began with a cup of hot Kumbakonam Degree kaapi and this time I was looking forward to enjoying it in the town it is named after. I was sitting in a small restaurant along the streets of Kumbakonam taking in the morning scenes and waiting for my Kaapi. It came in a small davara tumbler- filled to the top with froth and smelt divine.

The man who served me the kaapi said "ithu than original kaapi" . I was curious about the "degree" attached to the kaapi and when I asked around, I heard different interpretations... 

1. The word "degree" was actually referring to the "Chicory" in the coffee which was called tikeri and eventually became degree.  
2. Another was that it is to do with the temperature of milk used in the kaapi. 
3. And one more I heard was it refers to the first decoction which is sometimes called the first degree..

I didn't really care what the real story was, but I did enjoy the Kaapi- was strong and hot,albeit sweet [reminder to self: ask for sugar on the side next time]... Was a bit stumped when the bill came, the kaapi was priced at Rs30 .. *Gulp*

The Temple Tank

Once I was done with that, I set out to explore the town. The guy at the Hotel front desk told me there are more than 100 temples and I did think he was exaggerating, but then as I walked out of the hotel, I spotted not one but three temples within 100 yards, which meant he was probably right. I turned right from the hotel and there stood the infamous Temple tank was location. It was a large one, and a lady selling flowers outside a temple told me this was the infamous Mahamaham Tank where the big festival happened, with over 10Lakh people coming to take a dip in the holy water. 

The temple tank is quite beautiful.. Spread across 6.2 acres and trapezoidal in shape, the tank is surrounded by 16 small Mandapams (shrines) and has 21 wells inside the tank. The Mahamaham is the Kumbh Mela of the south and takes place once in 12 years. The Masimaham is an annual event that occurs in in Kumbakanom in the Tamil month of Maasi (February–March) on the day when the star Magam falls..

There is a legend behind this great festival -Mahamaham.The whole world became submerged in a deluge on account of the wrath of Hindu god Shiva, the destroyer for the unaccountable sins committed by humans on this earth. Brahma, the Hindu god of creation, recreated the world during the beginning of current Kali Yuga (Iron Age). Lord Shiva (Easwara) pronounced that after the end of previous era, a divine Celestial Pot  carrying nectar -''the essence of life,''would reach a holy place and rest there.The Celestial pot floated down the flooded water across several places and at last settled down at a spot near the river Cauvery where the town Kumbakonam is located.

Lord Shiva , taking the guise of a hunter, shot an arrow at the divine pot and broke it, making its contents spill and the pot disintegrate into small fragments.  The spilling of essence of life  resulted  in the revival of life on the planet. Kumbham meaning the pot and Konam meaning crooked - the pot that  was broken by Shiva's arrow. Here in the heart of the town, the pot broke into many parts and scattered around. The various spots became the sites of a score of temples in this town.  Kumbeswara, Someswara, Kasi Viswanatha, Nageswara, Kamata Viswanatha, Abimukeshwara, Goutameswara, Banapuriswara, Varahar, Lakshminaryana, Sarangapani, Chakrapani and Varadharaja,etc.  Brahma prayed to Shiva to allow pilgrims to visit the tank during the sacred occasion Maham. Accepting his request, it is believed, Shiva  along with Vishnu and other celestial deities  made their divine presence at the center of the tank. 

From Astronomy point of view, when the planet Jupiter passes over Leo on the day of the festival, it is believed, it will bring all water bodies together and enrich the tank with minerals. Similarly, a lake in Kotihar in Jammu and Kashmir gets full supply of water the same day, which otherwise remains empty during the other 11 years. 

[Content courtesy: http://navrangindia.blogspot.in/2015/02/the-interesting-legend-of-mahamaham.html]

I couldn't imaging that many people, the town is fairly small you know! 

Well, shall share more from my Kumbakonam diaries in next post... 

Salty Saturday... Battle for survival

During the Mylapore Food walk, we were walking along a narrow street, more like those alleys you see in English Cop shows and movies. It was quite narrow, and there were bikes and cycles parked along one side of the road. The other side had vendors, most of who were gypsies, selling necklaces, earrings, bracelets made from beads of all possible colours. There was one woman bang opposite the Maami's Mess and there was a little girl beside her. They spoke in a funny language, which I assume is a tribal language. 

Couple of us were standing around the stall, oggling at their wares, talking about how beautiful they were. We also tried striking a conversation with the lady, who mentioned the beads were sourced from Delhi & Agra and she sold the necklaces for Rs50-60 while few were bit higher. She mentioned how during the Mylapore festival, all the vendors are forced to move their display into these narrow lanes . Sometimes, we don't have any place and have to pack up, which means we go hungry for a few days. The little girl beside her was cute, and had a shy smile. When we pulled out our camera, the man in the next stall nudged her ahead asking her to smile for the camera. 

I wondered how hard her life was. She was all of 7yrs old, and all she did was help her mom make these pieces and guard the stall when her mother went out or walked to the streets to sell some of these pieces. The woman asked if we wanted to buy anything, a few did. She was persistent, talking about how pure the stones and beads were, how she hand made them and  that they were made with care and attention to detail. if she wasnt persistent, she would not be able to sell a thing. This was all she held onto to earn a living and care for her family. She also had a small boy sleeping behind her. 

It is amazing the different kinds of people you meet right at your backyard!! Am submitting this for Salty Saturday theme from Chennai Bloggers Club!! 

Next time you are in Mylapore, near the temple, do watch out for these women and buy something from them please!! :-) 

Celebrating Ganesha's Birthday- Vinayaka Chathurthi

 It is only fitting that i do this post today, celebrating Ganesha's birthday- Vinayaka Chathurthi as we call it. I have done a few posts earlier i recall.. Ah, here they are  ...

Today, gramma did the puja at 7am unlike the usual 9-10am. We were all up, ready and waiting for the priest by 6.30am..

I love collecting Ganesha idols,  and it has me feeling good every time someone gifts me a Ganesha idol- irrespective of what it is made of or how big or small it is. I wish i had a space to show them off, but for now some are in the living room curio, some in puja room, some near the computer and others in my cupboard.

 

Ganesha ready for the puja 

3 new ganesha's in my collection... 2 smaller ones are made of glass[shall try getting a better pic]

Ganesha reminds me of my trip to Goa. Why? well, during my visit, one day i headed out to Old Goa- where i also managed to visit an old Portugese house. I wish i had been more interested in history, would have dug deeper to learn about the owners and their lifestyle back in the days..

So, as i wandered through the rooms, noticing the little details on the curtains and sofa corners. As I turned a corner i was in for a lovely surprise. I spotted not one, but 2 small rooms with a towering cupboard fitted with glass doors. What did they hold? Shelves filled with Ganesha idols- small, big, clay, stone, metal, and just about every other material you can dream off, some were standing, some lying down, while others were playing musical instruments. It was such a treat. I spotted a guide leading a group of eager tourists wandering to the very room. Stood ground to see if i could catch some insight into this.

 

One cupboard filled with Ganesha idols

And lo behold, he was telling them how a Portugese family had once lived in the house, very wealthy family with a Brahmin cook. Years later, when the cook had passed away and they were ready to leave Goa,  the child in the family insisted they leave the Ganesha collection intact... Sweet child & lovely gesture!

Do you have any interesting Ganesha Stories? Do share.... Happy Vinayaka Chathurthi...