I was against “Murtipooja” or “Idol worship”.
Why do people go to a famous temple, stand in que for day n night just to get a glimpse of a particular stone? What is the difference between that stone and any other ordinary stone?
I grew up with such questions in my mind and no one could offer me an answer that made sense to my logical mind. Then I came to know that...
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there is something known as ‘consecration’. Now what’s that? It is like this, if you transform mud into food, we call this agriculture. If you make food into flesh and bone, we call this digestion, integration. If you make flesh into mud, we call this cremation. If you can make this flesh or even a stone or an empty space into a divine possibility, that is called consecration.
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Today, modern science is telling us that everything is the same energy manifesting itself in a million different ways. If that is so, what we call as divine, what we call a stone, what we call a man or a woman, what we call a demon, are all the same energy functioning in different ways.
For example, the same electricity becomes light, sound and so many other things, depending upon the technology. So, it is just a question of technology. If you have the necessary technology, you can make the simple space around you into a divine exuberance, you can just take a piece of rock and make it into a god or a goddess -this is the phenomenon of consecration.
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Have you heard of Agastya Muni? He was one of the Saptrishis who was sent to South India by Shiva – the Adiyogi, or the first yogi. He consecrated every human habitation south of the Deccan Plateau in some form and made sure that a live spiritual process was on. He did not spare a single human habitation.
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Agastya muni went to the extent of saying that when the world truly goes off the track because of development and knowledge, when knowledge becomes poison, when what should be good for you becomes negative for you, his work would rise and act. Now when I visit any ancient temple, I enter that space with a sense of humility. That something truly magnificent, something beyond my current level of understanding exists here.🙇♀️🙏
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The Mahābhāratacontains a fascinating dialogue between Yudhiṣṭhira and Bhīṣma Yudhiṣṭhira said: O Bhīṣma (Gāṅgeya), if a pigeon enters and settles in someone’s house, what should be done to bring peace? Please tell me quickly.
Alright! so this pigeon problem existed even then! 😳
युधिष्ठिर उवाच -
कपोतो यदि गाङ्गेय!
निविशत्यालयं नृणाम् ।
कथं शान्तिर्भवेत् तस्य
क्षिप्रमेतद्वदस्व मे ।
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The ancient Indian tradition of Vāstu Śāstra and ritual practices encompasses detailed guidance for maintaining harmony between humans and their environment. Among the various omens and their remedies discussed in classical texts, the unexpected entry of a pigeon into one’s home holds particular significance.
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The urgency in Yudhiṣṭhira’s request - “tell me quickly” - mirrors the contemporary recognition that pigeon problems require prompt intervention to prevent escalation.
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Ever heard of a temple where a massive boulder seemingly floats in the air? Welcome to 'Kallil Temple', Kerala—an ancient cave temple wrapped in mystery! Let’s dive into its fascinating past.😯✨
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image: AI generated
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Perched atop a hill in Perumbavoor, Kerala, this temple is built inside a natural cave formed by a gigantic rock—75 feet long, 45 feet wide, and 25 feet high! The way the rock rests defies logic. 🤯
original image👇
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The position of the rock which forms the roof and the places where it touches the base cave is still unknown.
So it looks as if the huge boulder is mysteriously suspended in the air!!!😮
Recently I had the fortune to visit The Achankovil Sastha Temple which is a Hindu temple located near the banks of the Achankovil River in the Kollam district in the Indian state of #Kerala . It is one of the five important temples dedicated to Shasta in Kerala.
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For those who do not know, Shasta is a Hindu deity of Dravidian origin, associated with Shiva and Vishnu, described as the offspring of Shiva and Mohini. His principal function is to act as a kuladevata of a given clan, known as Ayyanar in TN & Ayyappan in Kerala. 2/
Achankovil temple is known for curing poisonous snakebites, and the deity is considered a Maha Vaidya (great physician). The right palm of the Shasta idol holds Chandanam (sandalwood paste) and Theertham (holy water), which according to the devotees have medicinal properties. 3/
One of my friends asked why was Shashi Tharoor chosen to lead a delegation against Pakistan on terrorism? Aren’t we suddenly giving him too much of importance?
Wait!! What? @ShashiTharoor is overrated?
No! Never! And neither of it is sudden. You can never rate this man for what he has brought to India for past few decades.
Who is Shashi Tharoor?
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✔️A prominent Indian diplomat, politician, writer, official in government of India and three times elected Parliamentarian from Thiruvananthapuram.
✔️PhD at the age of 22!
✔️Tharoor had worked at United Nations for over 30 years in various positions.
✔️In 2006, he contested elections for Secretary General of UN and came second after Ban ki Moon.
He had an option to continue as an Under-Secretary-General but maybe it was a leader's mindset that he retired from UN. He came back to start as a Politician and worked for India instead.
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▪️Shashi Tharoor has not minced his words in reminding the British about the atrocities they committed, although he does it by speaking in clear, lucid English which impresses even the native speaker there.
▪️Shashi Tharoor has incredible oratory skills. His words leave a trademark when he ends. And after you hear him speak, you realize that the English actually deserved it. He is a promising and learned face of India.
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Two days ago, while driving through the streets of Trivandrum, I came across a road named Shankaran Nair Road. The name struck a chord—I had heard it recently but couldn’t immediately recall where. Then it hit me—I’d come across it in the teaser for Kesari 2.
Curious, I dug deeper and found myself uncovering the incredible story of Chettur Sankaran Nair—a distinguished Indian lawyer, nationalist, and statesman from a wealthy family in Kerala’s Palakkad district. His contributions to India’s independence movement were significant, yet he remains largely absent from mainstream history.
A Man of Courage and Conviction
Sankaran Nair, a legal luminary, was the youngest president of the Indian National Congress in its early years. In 1912, he was knighted by the British Crown, yet his allegiance lay firmly with India’s cause.
One of his most defining moments came in the aftermath of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre—a tragic event that shook the nation. Unlike others who protested on the streets, Sankaran Nair registered his defiance formally. He resigned from the Viceroy’s Council, an action that sent a powerful message: Indians were not just fighters; they were thinkers, leaders, and legal warriors challenging the British at their own game.
Later, when British officials attempted to defame him, Nair did the unthinkable—he sued them in London’s courts. He won the case, reinforcing his status as a formidable force in legal resistance against colonial rule. This wasn’t just civil disobedience—it was civil defiance.
Taking on the British Narrative
Sankaran Nair wasn’t just a protester; he was a writer who openly criticized British rule and Gandhi’s approach. His book, Gandhi and Anarchy, condemned the Governor of Punjab, Michael O’Dwyer, and his handling of the massacre. This led to a libel suit, which Nair lost in a biased British courtroom. Instead of issuing an apology, he chose to pay 500 pounds in damages—refusing to retract his stance.
His fight against British suppression proved that resistance came in many forms—not just through protests or revolutionary action, but also through legal battles that challenged colonial narratives from within their own system.
I grew up with the notion that the 'Ramayana’ and 'Mahabharata’ stories were all imaginary. Nothing like that happened in reality on this planet.
But As I started exploring more and more places either in person or online, I found that many places not only within India but even outside Bharat have co-relation with the incidents described in them.
For example recently I visited a place called ‘Panchalimedu’ a hill station in Idukki district of Kerala.
This is the history of this beautiful place:
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Pandavas along with their spouse Panchali had a sojourn there at time of one-year exile. Hence the place got its name Panchalimedu which derived from the words "Panchali" (Draupadi) and "medu" (hill). The local tribes there offered selfless helps to the Kuru princes.
Pandavas left the region before the beginning of one year incognito. They rewarded an idol of Goddess Durga to the tribal chief for their helps and instructed them to worship Devi. But, unexpected incidents occurred when the tribes worshipped Devi by following their own uncivilized puja methods. Hence the place became uninhabitable for them. Later, Devi herself moved to the present Valliyamkavu region and presided there.
People still believe that Panchalimedu is the moola sthana or sanctum sanctorum of Devi.
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At present, there is a small temple dedicated to the goddess Bhuvaneswari, which can be approached by a walkway from the main road.
The granite edicts found there depicts the linkage of the place to ancient history. Several Shiva lingas, Trishulas (trident) and Nāga idols are also placed near the shrine.
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