Pixel Blocks and Blessings

This, is what came when I Googled, ‘Quotes about blessings’ and honestly, it’s not a bad way to live life.

Unless, you have a glass.

hehe…..

India is a diverse country, no questions asked. Every corner of India has a different culture, different language, different set of customs and even different personalities, so when two people from different Indian states meet, it is almost like meeting someone from another dimension, connected by Indian-ness or what we call “Bharatiyata”.

So, here’s a bit of background about me. My parents come from different states of India. My mum is from the east of India, from the state of West Bengal, and my dad is from the west of India, from the state of Maharashtra, which is a rather popular feature on my blog:)

So, what does that make me?

50% Bengali

50% Maharashtrian

10% Culturally endowed

90% Foodie

100% Lost in Translation

That’s 300%….

hehe….

It would take me another blog to write about the various cultural fusions that define my existence:)

In this blog, I am going to hop over to my mum’s domain, to the state of West Bengal. The state, in itself, is an absolute gem of a place, with mind-blowing art, top notch hospitality, intriguing natural phenomena, the best food you’ll ever have and above all, a strong sense of culture.

Bengal, is also very strongly rooted in Hindu culture, especially in devotion to the Mother Goddess, Durga and all her incarnations. The picture above, is a graffiti depicting the famous Durga Puja festival in Bengal. It shows the whole process, from making the idols, celebrating the festival, and finally the idol immersion at the end. The Goddess Durga, in Hindu culture, is the Goddess of strength, feminine aspects and also a destroyer of evil. She has nine main incarnations, all depicting various forms of strength, such as strength of character, strength of motherhood, strength that destroys evil, strength of perseverance and so on.

One of the Goddess’ most powerful incarnations is that of the Goddess Kali.

She is a very unique Goddess, who symbolises destruction of evil, annihilation, and even a sense of detachment from worldly pleasures. She is a more aggressive form of the Goddess and a highly revered deity in Bengal.

There are many temples worshiping the Goddess Kali, all over the state. She is worshipped in many different ways and each of them is unique, and even intriguing. In this blog, Imma take you to one of Bengal’s most famous Kali temples, known as the Dakshineshwar temple.

The Dakshineshwar Temple was built between 1847 and 1855, by Rani Rashmoni, a devotee of the Goddess Kali. It is said that she had a vision of the goddess, telling her to build a temple on the banks of the river Hooghly, which prompted her to construct the temple.

Back then, people got a lot of visions from the Gods. Personally, I would love to have one of these Gods or Goddesses, popping up in my dreams and telling me what to do, because in a very real sense, I often have no idea what I’m doing.

But then, the part of me that’s in the adrenaline fuelled frenzy of my early twenties, says where’s the fun in advice?

hehe….

The Dakshineshwar Temple is absolutely beautiful. I love the pixellated patterns on the domes of the spires, and the beige and red colour scheme gives it a very vintage feel. The temple really stands out on an overcast day, and the leaning coconut palms give a feeling of divine discovery, on a path shown by a deity.

The idol of the Goddess Kali is in the sanctum sanctorum. My mum and I were very lucky to be able to get a sight of her, as the temple closed for lunch, just eight minutes after we arrived. Some things are just destined, it seems.

Photography is not allowed, hence the only pictures of the deity are the ones taken from the net, where the temple trust puts the images. It is a beautiful idol, radiating a lot of power.

This is a panorama of the temple complex. The domed structures on the left are all shrines dedicated to the Hindu God Shiva. In Hindu culture, Shiva is one of the main Gods, who is the destroyer of evil and represents the masculine aspect. He is the husband of the Goddess Durga(and all her incarnations), and every temple of the Mother Goddess has a shrine dedicated to Shiva.

If you look at the idol of the Goddess Kali, that I’ve posted above, you’ll see that she is standing on a man. There is a hugely interesting story there.

The Goddess Kali was sent to Earth to destroy demons who wreaked havoc on humanity. When she killed those demons, she drank their blood and then, was overcome by bloodlust. That made her run amok and destroy everything in her path. Shiva then intervened and simply lay down in her stride, making her step onto him. The act made her calm and even stunned her, since stepping on Shiva(who happens to be her husband) is rather grave. This is why, she is seen with her tongue out and all her idols depict her with a foot on Shiva.

Hindu culture has many interesting stories. This is one of the intense ones, but the Mother Goddess has had some thrilling adventures:)

This is a still of the River Hooghly, on the banks of which the temple stands. It is a tributary of the River Ganga, the holiest river in India. Rivers are considered to be manifestations of goddesses, in Hindu culture, hence, they are worshipped and they often have temples on their banks. The Hooghly is a calm river and is known as ‘The Lifeline of Kolkata’. There are many tributaries of Ganga in Bengal. The Hooghly is one. There is also the Padma river, which flows into the country of Bangladesh. The other one is the Damodar river, which is known as the ‘Sorrow of Bengal’ since it is very torrential and gets flooded often.

Many devotees take a dip in the Hooghly to purify themselves off their sins. The water is sacred, hence it can be taken home in a Jerry can. Here’s a funny story regarding that:

Now, I live with my grandmother and she is at the age where she believes that everyone around her requires divine help. So, when my mum and I were going to Bengal, she instructed us to get back some water from the Hooghly. Now, my mum and I share a single braincell, hence, we thought that it would be a great idea to get the water in a plastic bottle, instead of buying a Jerry can. Things ran smoothly, till it was time to return to Pune, when realisation struck, that the flight does not allow more than 100ml of fluid and we had one litre of the water. Jerry cans of water can be checked in, but we didn’t get one.

The situation had us searching for a Jerry can, all over Kolkata, the Bengali capital, but we didn’t find a single one. At the end, here is what we resorted to….

My mum and I literally downed so much coconut water at the airport, washed the bottles and transferred the Hooghly water into the bottles, successfully bringing it back to Pune and laying it at my grandma’s feet.

At this point, you’d think the Gods have showered me with blessings plenty…..

I struggle financially at the retail of a packet of crisps, containing twelve crisps….

hehe….

But, I am grateful that I can buy the crisps.

🙂

This is a mural of an Indian saint and preacher called Ramakrishna. He used to be a priest at the Dakshineshwar temple. His teachings are based on a more practical approach to practising Hinduism and he was one of the biggest devotees of the Goddess Kali.

This is a statue of another Indian preacher cum philosopher, Swami Vivekanand. He was a disciple of Ramakrishna and his teachings are spread worldwide. He has spoken at a lot of forums in the UK, America and all parts of India. His teachings are very practical and quite eye-opening.

I love the bird perched on the statue. It’s very cute:) Also, the stone pedestal is very ruggedly beautiful.

This is a memorial dedicated to Rani Rashmoni, the lady who constructed the temple. She was a wealthy woman, with a lovely heart and did a lot for the poor and the needy. The memorial looks very peaceful and I like how it is nestled among trees and greenery.

Bengal is very close to nature, and lot of its structure are in peaceful harmony with nature.