Names in India are tongue twisting words. I have declared the Arulmigu Swaminatha Swami Temple, in Swamimalai simply the Swami Temple. My group visited this ancient site the day after we left Pondicherry.
Swami is a Hindu temple near the city of Kumbakonam and the Cauvery river. The temple is one of the six holy shrines of Murugan. The temple has three gopuram, those huge gateway towers covered with hundreds of figures, three courtyards and sixty steps. There is also a large pool or water tank, formerly used in temple rituals.
When we entered we found a large group of people on the floor organizing mounds of paper money that I assume had been dumped from the collection containers. Another group was sorting coins. Seemed odd that this was done in such a public space, but as I said over and over on my trip, “Things happen differently in India.” Just observe.
Young Girl
We ran into a young girl who was celebrating a special day with her entire family. My apologies, but I really didn’t understand the meaning of her celebration. Anyway, the multi-generational family meandered through the formidable stone structure lined with hundreds of intricately carved pillars. The pinnacles were painted in bright almost neon colors as were sections of the ceiling. The family group stopped for short prayers at some of the statues. I just lingered behind.
Attached to the temple was a market area where vendors sold statuary, trinkets, flowers, fruit and treats. The ceiling of the collanade between the buildings was also brightly painted.
This temple, like Chidambaram seen in the morning, is ancient. The website claims in is from the Sangam period during 2nd century BC and is thought to have been modified by Parantaka Chola I, during the 900’s AD. Also like Chidambaram Nataraja Temple, this one was damaged during the Anglo-French war between Hyder Ali and British in 1740. Today the temple is maintained and administered by the Hindu Religious and Endowment Board of the Government of Tamil Nadu.
We didn’t stay that long, just meandered around taking photos. Therefore, I believe the best way for me to present it, is simply to show my pictures.
Chidambaram, in Southern India’s state of Tamil Nadu, is also known as Thillai, since the place was originally a forest of Thillai shrubs. It is an important pilgrim center, a major shrine of Lord Shiva, and the famous Nataraja Temple. In fact, Chidambaram offers a combination of the three aspects of Shiva worship – the form Lord Nataraja (dance), the form and the formlessness (linga), and the formless omnipresence. The temple has influenced worship, architecture, sculpture, and performance art for over two millennia. Now, that is an old temple.
Approaching the temple gateway.
The ancient temple is located in the center of the town and covers 40 acres with four seven-story gopurams ( those huge gateways facing North, South East, and West) each with around fifty stone sculptures. There are also five sabhas or courts. The presiding deity of the temple is formless, represented by air, one of the five elements of the universe.
Chidambaram is dedicated to Lord Nataraja and is unique as it is one of the rare temples where Shiva is represented by an idol rather than the customary lingam. (I’d been introduced to lingams earlier, they are black phallic-looking statues.) This temple also has exquisite carvings of Bharathanatya dance postures, the Classical Dance of Tamil Nadu. At Chidambaram, the dancer dominates, not the linga.
Temple dancer
The eastern tower of the temple rises to a height of 134 feet with 108 Bharathanatyam dance poses as well as on the Western tower. The Northern tower rises to a height of 140 feet and is the tallest. This temple is also noted for its Gold Plated roof that adorns the sanctum sanctorum or the kanaka sabha. Non-Hindus are not allowed inside the sanctum sanctorum, so I did not see it.
Although I did not know this when I visited, research indicates that the temple is located at the center point of the world’s magnetic equator. * I did not feel any strong pull, but I did not sit and meditate. The temple as it stands is mainly from the 12th and 13th centuries, with later additions in a similar style. It was believed to have been originally constructed during the early Chola period (900s AD).
Close-up of Stairway ruins.
The temple was severely vandalized during invasions of South India between 1311 and 1325. A garrison was set up within the temple and the walls were fortified during the Carnatic Wars and during the Anglo-French war between Hyder Ali and the British in 1740. I think the ruins give it a mysterious aura and I rather liked the crumbling effect. The large water tank formerly used for rituals is closed off.
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Please click on the individual photos to enlarge them.
Approaching Thillai Nataraja Temple in Chidambaram, IndiaView of tower just before entering.Temple ruins at Chidambaram.Ruins of ChidambaramClose-up of dance poses on the tower.Ganesha on the tower.Temple dancerClose-up of tower dancers.Classical Dance Poses in Tamil Nadu.Chal.k design on the floorLooking down on the chalk design.Beautiful inland stone on the temple grounds.Stairway statuary.A peek inside the temple.Two boys getting ready for temple rituals.Top of the gopuram or gateway.
India’s former French colony, Pondicherry, still retains some of its colonial past with the look and feel of the French Quarter in New Orleans. A few blocks of the coastal city contain cobbled streets fronted by a number of mustard-yellow townhouses with balconies, Christian churches, French-speaking schools and some lovely shade tress.
French influenced Pondicherry
Streets of Pondicherry
However, the stop in the center of town at the ancient Sri Manakkula Vinayakar Temple shouted “India” to me. Manakkula Vinayakar (built sometime around 1665) is an elephant temple and the place where I received my first elephant blessing. Like Ganesha, the elephant-headed deity, is the god of transitions and destroyer of evils and obstacles. He is placed at the doorway of many Hindu temples to keep out the unworthy.
Temple Marketplace, Pondicherry, India
I was walking through a crowded area with vendors selling flowers, trinkets and fruit, when I nearly ran into this huge elephant outside the temple entrance. He was gussied up with chalk designs and a necklace. Just make a small donation and the elephant blesses you by raising his trunk and patting your head.
Elephant outside the Temple
Ganesha is a beloved Indian deity, the son of gods Shiva and Parvati with an elephant head, curved trunk, big ears and a huge pot-bellied body of a human being. Ganesha is also revered as the god of education, knowledge, wisdom and wealth. In fact, he is one of the five prime Hindu deities along with Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and Durga (all of whom I was learning about daily).
Ganesha is often worshipped at the beginning of ventures such as buying a vehicle or starting a business. Sure enough, as I was leaving the area I saw a family with a new car which they had decorated with Hindu designs and flowers. A priest came out of the temple to bless the vehicle.
Blessing a new Car
Temple Entrance
The next morning I returned early to visit inside the temple with Bhaskar, my host, and our new Hindu driver who would be with us the remainder of the trip. Seemed appropriate that we ask Ganesha to remove all obstacles in our path (especially other fast moving vehicles on India’s crazy roads). Seriously, I could identify with Ganesha and began to look for and find him everywhere. (one cannot take photos inside a temple, however.)
After removing my shoes and entering the dimly lit sanctuary, I slowly walked down a central aisle flanked by numerous gold-plated pillars and many paintings of Ganesha. Also there were statues of other gods along the walls, some made from stone and others with precious metals and decorative gems. There was a large stainless container, which seemed out of place, but it is customary and holds the monetary donations. The priest was situated near the rear, donned in a loin-cloth and shirtless, except for a cord that went from his waist up and over, across his chest to the opposite side of the waistband.
I can’t remember exactly what the altar was like, but it was recessed and I am sure it had a golden statue of a god and lots of flowers around it. Bhaskar explained, ” Place your money in the plate, capture the spirit of the flame with your hands and move them toward your bowed head.” I did and the priest then touched my forehead, leaving a chalk spot and gave me lotus blossom. I felt honored and accepted. Apparently receiving the flower was a special blessing.
Lotus Blossoms
We then departed for Auroville, described to me as,”an idealistic international community dedicated to peace, harmony, sustainable and ‘divine consciousness’, where people from the globe work together to build a universal, cash-free, non-religious township. The goal is human unity.” That’s quite a mouthful but the place was welcoming, felt gentle and compassionate.
Auroville, India
Auroville’s website states: The concept of Auroville – an ideal township devoted to an experiment in human unity – came to The Mother as early as the 1930s. In the mid 1960s the Sri Aurobindo Society in Pondicherry proposed to Her that such a township should be started. She gave her blessings. The concept was then put before the Government of India, who gave their backing and took it to the General Assembly of UNESCO. In 1966 UNESCO passed a unanimous resolution commending it as a project of importance to the future of humanity, thereby giving their full encouragement.
Meditative path in Auroville
Today Aurovillians come from some 45 nations, from all age groups (from infancy to over eighty, averaging around 30), from all social classes, backgrounds and cultures, representing humanity as a whole. The population currently stands at around 2,200 people, of whom approx one-third are Indian.
You may visit as a guest or stays can be arranged in guest homes. Others join for six months to a year and some never leave. Everyone does some kind of work.
The center of Auroville contains the Marrimandir, which represents the Divine Consciousness. I must say it looks a lot like the big ball at the center of Epcot, except it is golden. The giant sphere, covered in discs, also has a futuristic, UFO spaceship quality to it. Would have loved to have gone inside, but that requires a minimum of two visits.
Close-up of the the Matramandir
Matrimandir in Auroville
There are twelve rooms in the Matrimandir Petals and twelve gardens around the Matrimandir. Visitors, like myself, walk along a wooded path to a viewing area but are not allowed to go near or inside.
Again, according to literature: The Matrimandir is a shrine of the Universal Mother and the Soul of Auroville; it is meant for those who, in the Mother’s words, are sincere and serious and truly want to learn to concentrate. The Matrimandir is not a temple in the conventional sense of the word; it is neither a place of worship, nor to be associated with any religion, whether ancient, present, new or future. It is where individuals go to concentrate.
Meditation inside the Matrimandir
Our guide, who left the corporate world and now lives in Auroville, called the community, “a 45-year old experiment, not an ashram which is a discipline.” I also met a young man who was born and raised in Auroville, went away to college and has now returned. Auroville seems to become a way of life.
Sri Aurobino Ashram
We returned to Pondicherry and later visited the famous ashram in the city, Sri Aurobindo. Again, I was not permitted to take photos, but you pass by the flower laden samadhi (tomb) of Aurobindo and the Mother. Many people scattered throughout the courtyard were sitting in meditation.
Sri Aurobindo was a Bengali revolutionary and philosopher who fought against the British and wanted to free India. He started the ashram in 1926, based on his ideals of a peaceful community brought together by combining yogic philosophy with science. Devotees here work in the world, rather than retreating from it. Following his death in 1950, his activities were continued by his disciple universally referred to as The Mother. The Mother, as I learned earlier, went on to found Auroville. She passed away in 1973 at the age of 97 but her influence still remains strong.
That evening I dined on fresh seafood under the ancient mango tree in the courtyard at Le Dupleix, a heritage hotel. Pondicherry cuisine blends the best of India flavors with French influences. Delicious! The rooms in this luxury old villa, now boutique hotel, evoke the time of the Governor Marquis Joseph Francois Dupleix. I remained at The Promenade, but both hotels offer top of the line lodging.
