The Kitchen of Lord Jagannath, biggest in the WorldSri Jagannath is the Lord of the Universe. His Kitchen is considered as the largest and the biggest Kitchen in the world. It is situated in the south-east direction of the outer compound of Srimandir. The length of the Kitchen is 150 feet, breadth is 100 feet and height is about 20 feet. It consists of 32 rooms with 250 earthen ovens within them. Around 600 cooks(Suaras) and 400 assistants serve here everyday and prepare food for the Lord. Devotees here believe that Mahalaxmi Herself comes to cook in the Kitchen while everyone else is serving Her. Chappan Bhog or MahaprasadMahaprasad is the term applied to the 56 food items offered to Lord Jagannath in the holy Temple of Puri, According to "Skanda Purana” Lord Jagannath redeems the devotees by permitting them to partake his Mahaprasad, to have His darshan and to worship him by observing rituals and by offering of gifts. Mahaprasad is treated here as ‘Anna Brahma’. The temple kitchen…

Unakoti, Kailashahar (Tripura)  is a Saivite pilgrimage site and dates back to at least 7th – 9th centuries. Images of Ganesh, Shiva, Chaturmukha Linga and Vishnu also found there. Unakoti means one less than a crore and it is said that these many rock cut carvings are available here.These carvings are located at a beautifully landscaped forest area with green vegetation all around which add to the beauty of the carvings. The images found at Unakoti are of two types, namely rock-carved figures and stone images. Among the rock cut carvings, the central Shiva head and gigantic Ganesha figures deserve special mention. The central Shiva head known as ‘Unakotiswara Kal Bhairava’ is about 30 feet high including an embroidered head-dress which itself is 10 feet high. On each side of the head-dress of the central Shiva, there are two full size female figures – one of Durga standing on a lion and another female figure on the other side. In addition three enormous images…

Eran is a unique site as it is mentioned in Vedic, Buddhist & Gupta period literature.

Eran is an ancient town and archaeological site in Sagar district of Madhya Pradesh, India.
Gupta PeriodThe site has 5th and 6th-century Gupta era temples and monuments.
Buddhist Period During 600 B.C , Eran Was Part of Chedi Janpada. In Pali-language Buddhist texts, it is listed as one of the sixteen mahajanapadas. Mahabharata PeriodAccording to the Mahabharata, the Chedi Kingdom was ruled by Shishupala, an ally of Jarasandha of Magadha and Duryodhana of Kuru. He was a rival of Vasudeva Krishna who was his uncle's son. He was killed by Vasudeva Krishna during the Rajasuya sacrifice of the Pandava king Yudhishthira. Bhima's wife was from Chedi. Prominent Chedis during the Kurukshetra War included Damaghosha, Shishupala, Dhrishtaketu, Suketu, Sarabha, Bhima's wife, Nakula's wife Karenumati. (Above) Pictures of Lord Vishnu & Varaha.



Inscription on the neck of Varaha
The Colossal Varaha…

The Indian Mummy


The Indian Mummy: "The one and only Buddhist Mummy" in India, sitting in a mysterious manner at Gue village of Spiti valley. This is a naturally preserved mummy, and done with self sacrifice. There are 11 such mummies around the world, all are Buddhists and mostly at Japan, Tibet and India has this one. Nestled deep within the Trans-Himalayan cold desert of the jazed in Himachal Pradesh is the tiny village of Gue which is relatively unknown and unheard of in the traveller circuit. The village of Gue is situated at an altitude or around l0,499 feet above sea-level and is only a few kilometres away from the Indo-china border. Gue also houses India's only known naturally preserved mummy. The villagers still believe in the mummy as their living god and worship the mummy for guidance. The mummy is in a squatting position dressed in silk robes. The teeth and hair are still well preserved and the mummy is kept in a glass chamber in a small enclosure close to the G…

BHINNEKA TUNGGAL IKAPhrase "Unity in Diversity" is from a Sanskritic Javanese poem that says the Buddha and Śiva may appear different, but are yet the same? It is the official motto of Indonesia.Bhinneka Tunggal Ika is the official national motto of Indonesia. The phrase in Old Javanese translates as "Unity in Diversity". It is inscribed in the Indonesian national symbol, Garuda Pancasila  and is mentioned specifically in article 36A of the Constitution of Indonesia.The name of Garuda is inspired by a mythical bird, the mount of Lord Vishnu and the Buddhist gold bird king, King Garuda. It is a quotation from an Old Javanese poem Kakawin Sutasoma, written by Mpu Tantular during the reign of the Majapahit empire sometime in the 14th century, under the reign of King Rājasanagara, also known as Hayam Wuruk. Kakawin contains epic poems written in metres. This poem is notable as it promotes tolerance between Hindus (especially Shivaites) and Buddhists.
These words are spo…

Ancient Indian hair-styles as seen through sculptures  & archaeology are presented here. 

An Unknown Sculpture.
A 12th  Century Sculpture, MP.Bodhi Tree : Depicting different hair-do.
Yakshi under a flowering Asoka Tree.Shunga Period, 2nd-1st Century BC.

A Story of Forgotten Kurukshetra & Linga Parvata of Champasak Province, Laos - 1500 yrs ago & 1000 miles from India.
HIGHLIGHTS
There is a mountain called LINGPARVAT with natural ‘linga’ (almost 10 meter high on top) in Champasak province, Laos. Some 1500 years ago a King named Devanika decided to create a new TIRTH and named it 'New Kurukshetra' in this territory. The king himself states in an inscription that he was inspired by Bramha, Vishnu & Shiva. Around 400 AD King Devanika built city Shreshthapur and also built A temple called Wat Phu.Later it became the part of Khmer Empire of Kambuja Desa (modern Combodia) but the area retained same spiritual significance.