QUESTION ANSWER DIVINE 19
BEING COMPILATION THERE MAYBE ERRORS Q1It is told Radha was a married Gopika before becoming the heart of Srikrishna.Is it correct? A1 Yes. Prahlad abandoned his father; Vibhishanaleft his brother Ravana; Bharata deserted his mother; Bali forsook even hisguru; the Gopis, the women of Vraja, like Radha disowned their husbands in order to attain the Lord. Q2What was the end of Mira bhai? A2 Mira left every body to Brindavn. FromBrindavan, Mira proceeded to Dwaraka. There she was absorbed in the image of lord Krishna at thetemple of Ranchod. Q3Why is Krishna coloured blue? A3 One of the theories is that Vishnu, because ofhis association withwater, is depicted blue; therefore all his incarnations includingKrishna, are shown as such. In Hinduism, persons who have depth of characterand the capacity to fight evil are depicted as blue skinned. Q4 How River saraswathi isdescribed in Rig veda? A4Sarasvati is described as follows in Rigveda hymns: eka_cetatsarasvati_ nadi_na_m s’uciryati_ giribhya a_ samudra_t ra_yas’etantibhuvanasyabhu_re ghritampayo duduhe nahus.a_ya (RV. 7.95.2) Pure in her course from mountains to the ocean Sarasvati river bestows for Nahushanutritious milk and butter. a_yatsa_kam yas’aso va_vas’a_nah sarasvati_ saptathi_ sindhuma_ta_ ya_hsus.vayanta sudugha_h sudha_ra_ abhisvena payasa_ pipya_na_h (RV. 7.36.6) May theglorious seventh (stream) Sarasvati, the mother of the Sindh and other (rivers)charged with copious volume of water, flow vigorously; come together, giftingabundant food and milk. A fewthousand years back several mighty rivers drained the north western part of theIndian subcontinent and these now stand disrupted, partly destroyed andpreserved only as poor relicts making up the present day drainage. Of the four major rivers viz.Sindhu (Indus), Shatadru (Sutlej), Sarasvati and Drishadvati, the last two havebeen obliterated. Thedescriptions of these rivers mentioned in Vedic and Post-Vedic literature areto a large extent intertwined with mythological events due to which it israther difficult to precisely recognise the present day sites of these ancientchannels. Q5 What was the importance ofbetels in the Indian culture A5 Not many people know thata young Burmese girl is called sireh, which means tender leaf. The eating of betel was connected withshringara and Tambula had an important role in it. In the Naisadhiya-Charitam of Sriharsa (12thC), Nala tells Dhamayanti, “Dose thou recollect, after passing bits from mymouth into thine I justly demand them back”. The Hitopadesa mentions its many qualities, the Jain texts allot aspecial place to the bearer of the Tambula, and the Golden age of the Guptasnotes the habit of betel chewing as very popular among the royals and theordinary folk. In theSangam literature classic, Silapathikaram, the virtuous heroine Kannagi offers Tambula to herhusband Kovalan as a token of love. Tambulais a Sanskrit word, meaning chewing quid. This custom was introduced in South India in the beginning of theChristian Era and later it spread to the North. It is possible that thetradition was brought to India from Ceylon and South-East Asia. The tradition of chewing betel leaf or paan as itis commonly known in Hindi is age-old and deeply rooted in India. Its basicquality is best described in a stanza from the Kamasutra of Vatsyayana saying:“After cleaning the teeth and having looked into the mirror and having eaten atambula to render fragrance to the mouth, should a person start his day’swork”. Accordingto Sushrata, the patriarch of ancient Indian medicine, paan keeps mouth clean strengthens the voice, tongue and teeth andguards against diseases. It is also said to aid in digestion and purify blood. Q6 What are the details ofRamappa temple near Warangal ? A6 Theerstwhile Kakatiya rulers of Andhra Pradesh built the Ramappa temple, a part ofan exquisite temple complex dedicated to Lord Shiva, the destroyer in thetrinity of the principle Hindu Gods. Amongthe important monuments of the state of Andhra Pradesh, the great temple ofPalampet, popularly known as the Ramappa Temple, is anarchaeological wonder. This temple isconsidered to be an outstanding contribution of the Kakatiya kings of Warangalto Indian culture in general and medieval temple architecture in south India inparticular. The Kakatiya kings reigned over Andhra Pradesh for about 200 yearsbetween the 10th and 12th centuries AD. According to an inscription preservedin the temple premises, the temple was completed in AD 1213 during the eventfulreign of Raja Ganapati Deva The inscription says that there were threetemples–Kateswara, Kameswara, and Rudreswara–all dedicated to their chief deityShiva. Today, except for the main edifice of Rudreswara, which is more or lessintact, the other two shrines are completely ruined. Between the southeast and the north face of thetemple, there are some twelve life-like figures of voluptuous, nude andsemi-nude apsaras (heavenly maidens) bracketed between the pillars and theporch. These nearly life-size representations of women look glamorous withtheir exotic hairstyles, and delicately carved finery. Thesefigures with the mirror-like polishing and minute details are depicted invarious moods and gestures. The most noted among these figures is the Naga-Kanya(mythological women belonging to the serpent world). To see the temple of Ramappa,one has to go to the town of Warangal first. Ramappa temple is 60km north east of Warangal and can be reached bybus. Q7 What are the details of Redfort in New delhi? A7 The Red Fort (Lal Quila) is an important landmark of the city ofDelhi. The Mughal emperorShahjahan built it when he shifted the imperial capital from Lahore toDelhi PanditJawaharlal Nehru, the first prime Minister of India, unfurled the Indian tricolor on theramparts of this magnificent fort on 15 August 1947 marking the end of theBritish colonial rule. Since then, on every Independence Day (15 August), a grand function isheld at Red Fort, where the prime minister of India unfurls the Indian tricolorand makes a speech from its ramparts. The Red Fort is a good example of Mughal military architecture. Thetall ramparts, heavily fortified gateways, a moat surrounding the fort, etc.,reflect the architectural skills of the Mughal rulers Shahjahan, the fifth Mughal emperor and grandson of Akbar, moved theimperial capital back to Delhi from Lahore in 1638 The Lahori Gate is the main entrance to the RedFort. The gate faces the direction to Lahore (now in Pakistan), hencethe name Lahori Gate Q8 What is the legend behindswamimalai? A8Swamimalai is a sylvan village on the banks of a tributary of river Cauverysituated about 5 km west of Kumbakonam in Thanjavur district of Tamil Nadu Legend has it that saint Bhrigu, before commencing on anarduous penance, got the boon that anybody disturbing his meditation will loseall his knowledge. Such wasthe power of the penance that the sacred fire emanating from the head of thesaint reached up to the heavens, and the frightened gods asked Lord Siva forhelp. The Lord extinguished thesacred fire by covering the saint's head with his hand. With the saint's penance thus disturbed, the Lord became oblivious of all hisknowledge and is saidto have regained it by learning the Pranava Manthram from Lord Muruga at thisshrine. Accordingto another story, once when Brahma, the lord of all creations, was proceedingto Kailash, the ever-playful child that was Lord Muruga asked him for themeaning of the Pranavam Om. WhenBrahma admitted his ignorance, Lord Muruga imprisoned him. With Brahmaimprisoned, all creation came to a standstill and the gods prayed to Lord Shivato get Brahma released WhenMuruga insisted that the imprisonment was a just punishment for the ignoranceof Brahma, Lord Shiva asked him whether he himself knewthe meaning of the primordial Pranavam Om. LordMuruga said that he knew the meaning of Om and can expound it to the latteronly if he can accept him as a Guru and listen to the exposition as a devoteddisciple. As Lord Shiva acceded tothe request of Lord Muruga and heard the exposition of OM as a disciple, the place came to be known as Swamimalai and the presidingdeity as Swaminathan. Q9 What is the importance of inMylapore Parthasarathi Temple? A9 This temple also was built by the Pallavas in the mid-eighth century.Parathasarathy means the chariot driver of of Partha or Arjuna and it denotesLord Krishna. The image in the sanctum sanctorum is scarred with arrow wounds –testimony of the sculptor to the veracity of the Chariot driver of theMahabharatha war Behind the temple is Bharathiar Memorial building – the place where helived during his last days. Q10 What are the details of thetemples in George town Chennai? A10 Temple of George Town- The temples of George Town were built after the newEuropean settlement came into being. Chennai Kesava Perumal and Chenna Malliswarar temples inFlower Bazaar, kalahastiswarar templein coral Merchant Street, Mallikeswarea temple in Lingi Chety Street,Chinatadri Pillaiyar Koil in Muthialapet Kachchalleswarar temple in ArmenianStreet, Krishnaswami temple in Muthialpet, the kandasami Koil in Rattan Bazaarand the KalikambaKameswarar Temple in Tambu Chetty Street. The last one dates back to 1678 andEmperor Shivaji once worskipped the Kalikamba here Q11 How do Mamalam inChennai got the name so? A11 The kasi Viswanatha temple in Kuppiar Street, T.Nagar belongs tothe 17th century. When it was built it wascalled "Mahabilva Kshetra", "Mahabilva" wasin later days corruptly pronounced as Mambalam thus giving this name to thisarea. Q12 Do koovam was a river used for bathing once in Chennai? A12 You may wonder. The answer is yes. There is another old temple ofthe colonial periods located in pudupet near Haris road called kamalesartemple. Pachaiappa Mudiliar, the famous "Dubash" of the company usedto take his holy dip in the Coovam river daily – the river was so clean inthose days- and worshipped the deity in this temple. Q13 How doTiruvanmiyur in Chennai got the name so? A13Another old temple exists in Thiruvanmiyur on the road to Mamallapuram. It is a11th century Chola temple and the presiding deity is Lord Marundiswarar. The author of Ramayana, valimiki issaid to have workshipped here The nameis due to his association. "Valmikiyur" in due course became"Vanmikiyur" and finally "TiruVanmiyur". There is also ashrine dedicated to Valmiki here. Q14 What is thespeciality of Koyempedu Vishnu temple? A14 There is an old temple at Koyambedu where the city’s main vegetablemarket is located. It is dedicated to Vishnu This ancient temple is about10km on the Northern Trunk Road. It was once a part of chennai city but thenexcluded. It is a Saiviteshrine predating the Pallava periods. Adi Sankara the founder ofAdvaitham has visited this temple and has sung in praise of the deity. Q15 Where do we haveGurudwara, Buddist and fire temples in Chennai? A15 A Sikh Gurdwara is also located near by behind the Teynampetcongress Ground. A modern Gurdwara where the Sikhs of the city throng onfestive days. The only Budhist temple is at Egmore in thethe lane opposite the Egmore Railways station. There is a Fire temple inRoyapuram for the Parsis. Q16 How do Pallavaramgot the name so? A16 During the Pallava period it was a flourishing town calledpallavapuram. Mahendra Varma Pallavan has built a rock – cut cave temple on theslopes of the pallavaram bull which is now a musllime durgah. Q17 What is thespeciality of Mangadu Bangaru Kamatchi Amman Koil near Porur? A17 It is an ancient temple of pallava times near Porur. Mangadu hasgolden idol of kamakshi doing penance. People throng this temple on Fridays andother holidays. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Thatha_Patty" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/645535545.1537582.1634091527113%40mail.yahoo.com.
