Divine Destinations: Top Temples to Visit in Kanchipuram in 2024
Divine Destinations: Top Temples to Visit in Kanchipuram in 2024
In the southern district of India lies a city known as the Kashi of South India, where Kamakshi Devi, Shiva, and Vishnu are accepted to live, and where Shri Adi Shankaracharya accomplished salvation through Samadhi. This city, Kanchipuram, frequently alluded to as the city of 1,000 sanctuaries, is arranged in Tamil Nadu and holds importance as one of the seven holiest Hindu journeys in India. My excursion to investigate this old city denotes the second section of my Saptha Puri series.
Leaving from Bengaluru, I set out on a transport venture promptly in the first part of the day, trailed by a ride in an auto cart from the thruway to arrive at Kanchipuram. This visit denotes my third time encountering the magnificence of this city. Notwithstanding the extreme intensity, which is fairly more endurable contrasted with Bengaluru, hunger calls, driving me to Siva's Bistro to partake in a dinner and embrace the glow.
Kanchipuram flaunts a rich history, tracing all the way back to old times. It is broadly known as the capital of the Pallava tradition, which prospered in the area. Be that as it may, the city's set of experiences originates before the Pallavas, with references found as soon as 6 BCE by researchers like Patanjali and writers like Kalidasa. Progressive rulers, including the Cholas and the Vijayanagara Realm, have left their engraving on Kanchipuram's specialty, design, and culture. Notwithstanding confronting attacks, especially by Aurangzeb in the seventeenth 100 years, the city's sanctuaries stay in one piece, with the first divinities protected.
Keeping up with its verifiable embodiment, Kanchipuram offers a brief look into its old past, with sanctuaries going back north of 1,000 years. As I start my investigation, I'm joined by Nawin, a companion and guide who works in the Rail lines. Together, we leave on an excursion to observe the city's eminent sanctuaries, beginning with the most seasoned cave sanctuary situated on the edges of Kanchipuram.
Sanctuaries of Kanchipuram
Our investigation takes us to Mamandur, where the primary stone cut cave sanctuary was worked during the reign of Mahendravarman I of the Pallava tradition in the sixth hundred years. Regardless of its authentic importance, the sanctuary gets generally less guests. In any case, its immortal magnificence and rich legacy make it a must-visit objective for those keen on history and design.
Following our sanctuary visit, we delay to notice a family puja, drenching ourselves in the nearby traditions and customs. As the day advances, we have some time off to appreciate tea and espresso, renewing our energy in the midst of the burning intensity.
Kanchipuram's sanctuary design advanced after some time, progressing from cave sanctuaries to stone-cut and underlying sanctuaries, exemplified via milestones like the Shore Sanctuary in adjacent Mahabalipuram.
Amidst investigating the bunch sanctuaries of Kanchipuram, one specific diamond sparkles over the rest — the heavenly Kailasanathar Sanctuary. Arranged in the midst of the city's old roads, this sanctuary holds an extraordinary spot in the hearts of admirers and guests the same. Its name, Kailasanathar, gives recognition to Ruler Shiva, whose habitation is accepted to be Mount Kailash in the Himalayas, however the actual mountain presently dwells an in Chinese area.
Implicit the seventh hundred years during the pinnacle of the Pallava tradition, the Kailasanathar Sanctuary remains as perhaps of the earliest underlying sanctuary in South India, starting a trend for building wonders to come. The sanctuary complex houses a focal sanctum committed to Master Shiva, close by nine extra places of worship dedicated to different parts of the divinity.
As we investigate further, we experience the Kamakshi Amman Sanctuary, a loved sanctum where fans look for gifts for fruitfulness and familial success. Rumors have spread far and wide suggesting that Adi Shankaracharya himself mediated here, transforming the sanctuary's customs to pacify the goddess and usher in a period of profound concordance.
Wandering further into Kanchipuram's profound embroidery, we experience the Ekambareswarar Sanctuary, a rambling complex committed to Ruler Shiva and worshipped as one of the Panchabhuta Sthalas, addressing the component of earth. With its transcending gopuram and complex design, the sanctuary remains as a demonstration of the city's rich social legacy.
Our process proceeds to the Shri Vardaraja Perumal Sanctuary, a consecrated Vishnu place of worship saturated with history and custom. This sanctuary, part of the respected Divya Desam, flaunts engravings from different traditions, each adding to its magnificence throughout the long term. Prominently, the sanctuary has the Ati Varadar celebration once at regular intervals, drawing a large number of lovers from all over to observe the hallowed custom of divulging the old symbol from its submerged habitation.
As our journey through Kanchipuram attracts to a nearby, we ponder the city's persevering through inheritance — an embroidery woven with strings of dedication, custom, and immortal otherworldliness. From the old caverns to the transcending gopurams, every sanctuary remains as a demonstration of the city's steady confidence and everlasting worship for the heavenly.
Amidst investigating the heap sanctuaries of Kanchipuram, one specific jewel sparkles over the rest — the grand Kailasanathar Sanctuary. Arranged in the midst of the city's old roads, this sanctuary holds an exceptional spot in the hearts of admirers and guests the same. Its name, Kailasanathar, gives proper respect to Master Shiva, whose residence is accepted to be Mount Kailash in the Himalayas, however the actual mountain presently lives an in Chinese area.
Implicit the seventh hundred years during the peak of the Pallava line, the Kailasanathar Sanctuary remains as quite possibly of the earliest primary sanctuary in South India, starting a trend for building wonders to come. The sanctuary complex houses a focal sanctum committed to Master Shiva, close by nine extra places of worship dedicated to different parts of the god.
As we investigate further, we experience the Kamakshi Amman Sanctuary, a loved sanctum where enthusiasts look for favors for fruitfulness and familial thriving. Rumors have spread far and wide suggesting that Adi Shankaracharya himself mediated here, transforming the sanctuary's ceremonies to mollify the goddess and usher in a period of otherworldly amicability.
Wandering further into Kanchipuram's otherworldly embroidery, we experience the Ekambareswarar Sanctuary, a rambling complex committed to Master Shiva and venerated as one of the Panchabhuta Sthalas, addressing the component of earth. With its transcending gopuram and mind boggling design, the sanctuary remains as a demonstration of the city's rich social legacy.
Our process proceeds to the Shri Vardaraja Perumal Sanctuary, a sacrosanct Vishnu sanctum saturated with history and custom. This sanctuary, part of the worshipped Divya Desam, flaunts engravings from different administrations, each adding to its magnificence throughout the long term. Strikingly, the sanctuary has the Ati Varadar celebration once at regular intervals, drawing a huge number of enthusiasts from all over to observe the hallowed custom of disclosing the old icon from its submerged homestead.
As our journey through Kanchipuram attracts to a nearby, we ponder the city's persevering through heritage — an embroidery woven with strings of commitment, custom, and immortal otherworldliness. From the old caverns to the transcending gopurams, every sanctuary remains as a demonstration of the city's unflinching confidence and timeless worship for the heavenly.
Investigating Kanchi Math
Now and again, novel things happen when you travel, and alongside that, you get to gain some new useful knowledge. Such was the experience of meeting Shankar during breakfast, a Tamil neighborhood with a warm heart and an enthusiasm for sharing his way of life. An opportunity experience prompted a startling course change as Shankar welcomed me to go along with him on an undertaking to the famous Kanchi Math, a venerated old site overflowing with insight and legacy. As we set out on this excursion together, I really wanted to feel appreciative for the fortunate minutes that movement brings, opening ways to new encounters and kinships.
As we dove further into Kanchipuram's otherworldly embroidered artwork, the tradition of Adi Shankaracharya posed a potential threat. Credited with rejuvenating Hinduism in India, Shankaracharya's significant lessons and philosophical bits of knowledge keep on reverberating through the ages. Brought into the world in Kerala and accomplishing Moksha early on, Shankaracharya's impact stretched out all over, laying out hallowed focuses known as the Four Dham in Badrinath, Puri, Dwarka, and Sringeri. His Advaita Vedanta reasoning, focused on the idea of "Aham Brahmasmi" (I'm Brahman), stays a foundation of Hindu idea, moving searchers on the way of self-acknowledgment. Our visit to Kanchipuram wouldn't be finished without giving recognition to the loved savvy, whose profound presence keeps on enlightening the city's social scene.
Exquisite Pleasures and Culinary Undertakings
In the midst of our profound investigations, culinary pleasures anticipated, offering a sample of Kanchipuram's rich gastronomic legacy. From relishing the tasty Kovil Idlis, saturated with custom and flavor, to enjoying the exquisite mash of dosas, each dinner was a culinary experience ready to be relished. As I examined the nearby luxuries, I really wanted to wonder about the lively embroidery of flavors that embellished Kanchipuram's culinary scene, each dish a demonstration of the locale's rich social legacy.
Submerging in the Specialty of Kanjeevaram Sarees
No visit to Kanchipuram is finished without an excursion into the universe of Kanjeevaram sarees, stunning manifestations that epitomize the district's distinctive craftsmanship and immortal polish. Wandering into Prakash Silk and Sarees, a famous silk retail shop, I was dazzled by the shining showcase of sarees, each complicatedly woven with stories of custom and masterfulness. From the unpredictable Korvai plans to the grand themes propelled by sanctuary engineering, each saree discussed a heritage saturated with legacy and effortlessness. As I set out on an excursion to find the ideal saree for my mom, I couldn't resist the opportunity to wonder about the ageless charm of Kanjeevaram sarees, a valued fortune of Kanchipuram's social heritage.A Brief look into the Saree Weaver's Reality
Past the extravagant showcase of sarees lay the untold accounts of the weavers, whose enthusiastic endeavors revive each string. Venturing into the core of Kanchipuram's winding around local area, I was lowered by the commitment and strength of the craftsmans, whose hands wove enchantment into each saree. In the midst of stories of custom and difficulty, an obvious reality arose — the waning quantities of craftsmans wrestling with monetary difficulties, an impactful sign of the delicate environment that supports this deep rooted make. As I paid attention to their accounts and shared snapshots of fellowship, I acquired a recently discovered appreciation for the priceless tradition of handloom winding around, a demonstration of the getting through soul of Kanchipuram's distinctive legacy.
Embracing Social Celebrations and Profound Customs
From dynamic sanctuary parades to consecrated customs saturated with custom, Kanchipuram's social schedule spilled over with merriments and profound intensity. Whether participating in the euphoric festivals of the Nadba Celebration or seeing the glory of the Maha Brahmootsav, each second was a demonstration of the city's rich social embroidery. As I drenched myself in the dynamic tints of Kanchipuram's social scene, I really wanted to feel a feeling of wonder and worship for the immortal customs that keep on flourishing in the midst of the progression of time.
As my time in Kanchipuram attracted to a nearby, I ended up pondering the bunch encounters that had shaded my excursion — an embroidery woven with strings of otherworldliness, custom, and human association. From the consecrated corridors of old sanctuaries to the clamoring roads loaded up with the fragrance of flavorful pleasures, each second had been a disclosure, offering looks into the spirit of Kanchipuram's valued legacy. As I bid goodbye to this charming city, I conveyed with me recollections that would wait perpetually — a demonstration of the extraordinary force of movement and the persevering through tradition of Kanchipuram's social fortunes.
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How to get a better developing mindset
ewer: Amanda Chu A few years ago, I began to observe something in my own behavior that made me a bit uncomfortable. And that was that from the moment that I woke up to the end of the day, my life was a series of screens. I started the day with the thing that woke me up first thing in the morning, my phone, and so I sat there in bed watching various cooking videos on Instagram and bouncing around between a bunch of different applications. But then it was time to get out of bed and cook breakfast, and so the thing that I focused then on, in addition to the omelette in the pan, was the iPad that was right next to the oven. And then it was time to do some work, and so I went to a different screen which was attached to another screen itself. All the while, this little devil on my wrist was tapping and beeping and blooping and distracting me as I was trying to get important stuff done. But there was one particular offender out of all of these different devices that I wasted more time on than anything else. That was this dastardly thing: my phone. I could spend hours on this thing every single day. And so I decided to essentially, for all intents and purposes, get rid of the thing for a month. As an experiment, I thought, "I'm going to live on this thing for just 30 minutes every single day at a maximum." And so this is the amount of time I have for maps, this is the amount of time to call my mother, this is the amount of time I have for everything that I could possibly want to do, to listen to music, to listen to podcasts, and I observed what happened during this time. It took about a week to adjust downward into a new, lower level of stimulation, but once I did, I noticed that three curious things began to happen. First, my attention span grew. It was like I could focus on things, not effortlessly, but with much more ease than I could before this experiment started. In addition to this, though, as I was going about the world and especially when my mind wandered a bit, I had more ideas that my mind arrived at, and on top of this, I had more plans and thoughts about the future. Getting rid of one simple device led to these three effects. Why? Noticing this a few years back led me on this long journey to get to the bottom of what it takes to focus in a world of distraction. I pored over hundreds of research papers from front to back at my office. I don't know if you've ever watched one of those crime shows where somebody's solving a murder. And so they have this big Bristol board, and there's string attached to papers attached to memos attached to newspaper clippings - this is like what the state of my office was. I flew out to meet experts around the world who study focus; I conducted more experiments on myself until the point I had 25,000 words of research notes about why this is the case. How does technology influence our attention and our ability to focus? I want to start with the attention spans that we have. This is how we pay attention to the world around us and how much control we have over our focus. The research around this particular area is fascinating. It turns out that when we do work in front of a computer, especially when our phone is nearby, we focus on one thing for just 40 seconds before we switch to doing something else, and when we have things like Slack open as we're doing some work, this lowers to 35 seconds. But the reason that this is the case is not what we might think, after looking at the research. We think the problem is that our brains are distracted. But after looking at the research, this is what I've come to know as a symptom for the deeper problem, which runs much more deeply - it's the root cause of this distraction. It's not that we're distracted; it's that our brains are overstimulated. It's that we crave distraction in the first place. Our brains love these tiny little nuggets of information and social media and email and these things that we do over the course of the day. There's even a mechanism in our mind called the "novelty bias," by which our mind rewards us with a hit of dopamine, one of those wonderful pleasure chemicals, the same one we get when we eat and order a whole medium pizza from Domino's, you know, the same one that we get when we make love. We get that same stimulation when we check Facebook. We get this dopamine coursing through our mind. And so we not only crave distraction, but our mind rewards us for seeking out and finding distraction in the first place. So, this is the state of our minds today. We're at this hyperstimulated state where we bounce around between these bunch of different objects of attention that are very, very stimulating for our mind. And so I thought, "Okay, if the phone had this impact on my attention span, what if I lowered how stimulated I was even more, still?" And so, you know, this feeling that we experience when we go from being in a state of high stimulation into a state of low stimulation, it has a name. That name is called "boredom," (Laughs) you know, this restlessness that we feel when we have this super busy week and then we're lying on the couch on a Sunday afternoon, thinking, "Alright, well, what am I doing now?" So, I put out a call to the readers of my website and I asked them, "What is the most boring thing that you can think of doing? I'm going to make myself bored for an hour a day, for a month." And so I did some stuff that I still am upset about from my readers, to this day. Day one, I read the iTunes terms and conditions for one hour. (Laughter) It's actually shorter and more readable than you might think. Day four, I waited on hold with Air Canada's baggage claims department. It's very easy - This is the trick: if you want to make yourself bored, don't call the reservations department, call the baggage claim people because you're going to wait hours, if you ever get through at all. Day 19, I counted all the zeroes that I could in the first 10,000 digits of pi. Ugh. Day 24, I watched a clock tick, tick for one hour. And 27 other activities this month. Jeez. I still think back. But curiously, I noticed the exact same effects as I did during the smartphone experiment. It took about a week for my mind to adjust downward into a newer, lower level of stimulation, and this maps, curiously, on top of research that shows that it takes our mind about eight days to fully calm down and rest, like when we're on vacation, as an example. Our vacations need to be longer than they are today. But I also noticed that my attention span expanded. I was able to focus even more effortlessly because I wasn't surrounded by fewer distractions, but my mind was so much less stimulated that it did not seek the distraction in the first place. But the fun part were these ideas and plans that struck me that didn't before, and the reason that this is the case is because my mind had a chance to wander more often. There's a great quote that I love that you might be familiar with from J. R. R. Tolkien, where he says that "not all those who wander are lost," and the exact same thing is true, it turns out, with regard to our focus, with regard to our attention. If you think back to when your best, most brilliant ideas strike you, you're rarely focused on something. Maybe this morning you were taking a shower, or maybe some morning in the past, and then your mind had a chance to connect several of the constellations of ideas that were swirling around in your mind to create an idea that would never have materialized otherwise if you were focused on something else, on your phone, for example. This is a mode, especially when we do this deliberately, when we deliberately let our mind wander; I call this mode "scatter focus." And the research shows that it lets our mind come up with ideas, it lets our mind plan because of where our mind wanders to. This is fascinating. It turns out that when we just let our attention rest, it goes to three main places: We think about the past, we think about the present, and we think about the future. But we think about the past less than we might think, only about 12% of the time, and often we're recalling ideas in these thought-wandering episodes. But the present, which is a much more productive place to wander - we wander to think about the present 28% of the time. And this is, you know, something as simple as you're typing up an email and you can't find a way to phrase something because it's very delicate, maybe it's political, you go and walk to another room, to another room of the house, the office, and the solution hits you because your mind had a chance to approach it and prod at that problem from different directions. But here's the thing: our minds wander to think about the future more than the past and the present combined. Whenever our mind is wandering, we think about the future 48% of the time. This is why when we're taking a shower, we plan out our entire day, even though it hasn't started yet. This is called our mind's prospective bias, and it occurs when our mind wanders. If you're good with math, or maths, I should say - not in Canada anymore - these numbers don't add up to 100. It's because the rest of the time, our mind is dull, it's blank, or it doesn't have an idea inside of it that is rooted in time. But whatever it is for you that lets your mind wander, something that's simple, something that doesn't consume your full attention. Mine happens to be something that is not necessarily stereotypic of my age and gender demographic, but I love to knit. Knitting is one of my favorite hobbies; I knit in planes, I knit on trains, I knit in hotel rooms. I was knitting in the hotel room before this event today because it helps calm you down, it helps settle your nerves. And I come up with so many ideas when I knit, I have a notepad next to me. But whatever it is for you - it might be taking that extra long shower, it might be taking a bath, upgrading your shower to a bath so you can soak not just with your body but with your ideas as well. It could be simple; if you're at work walking from one room to another in the office - very simple change - but if you don't use your phone during that walk, your mind will go to the meeting that you're about to attend, it'll go to the call that you were just on, it'll wander to the ideas that are circulating, and it'll make you more creative in this way. It could be something as simple as waiting in line and just, I don't know, waiting in line. It could be getting a massage. You know, whatever it is that lets your mind - I love this picture so much - (Laughter) whatever you love doing. Here's a pro tip: Ask your masseuse to let you have a notepad in the session because ideas always come to you and you're always incubating things, so capture them so you can act upon them later. But I think, after doing this deep dive into the research, we need to make two fundamental shifts with regard to how we think about our attention. We think that we need to fit more in - you know, there's all this talk about "hustling." I'm an anti-hustler. I'm one of the laziest people you'll ever meet, and I think that's what gives me so many ideas to talk and write about. We don't need to fit more in. We're doing enough; we're doing too much. We're doing so much that our mind never wanders anymore. It's sad. This is when our best ideas and plans come to us. We need more space. If you look at what allows traffic to move down a highway, what allows it to move forward isn't how fast cars are moving, as you might expect, it's how much space exists between the cars that allows traffic to move forward. Our work and our life are the same way. The second shift: we like to think of distraction as the enemy of focus. It is not. It is a symptom of why we find it difficult to focus, which is the fact that our mind is overstimulated. I have a challenge for you. It's a two-week challenge, but it's a challenge to make your mind a bit less stimulated and simply notice: what happens to your attention? How many ideas do you get? How does your focus change? How many plans do you make? So, for two weeks, make your mind less stimulated. There are so many great features on phones, on devices that'll let us eliminate a lot of the time we waste on our devices. Use those features, not only to become aware of how you spend your time but how you can spend less so you have more ideas. Have a disconnection ritual every evening. One of my favorite daily rituals: I disconnect from the Internet completely from 8pm to 8am. My fiancée and I, we have a weekly disconnection ritual, a technology Sabbath every Sunday, so we can disconnect from the digital world and reconnect with the physical world, the real, actual world. Rediscover boredom - you don't have to do it for an hour. Please don't call Air Canada. It's just a world of hell. But rediscover boredom, just for a few minutes. Lay on the couch, and where does your mind go? And scatter your attention. You'll find some remarkably fruitful things in that attentional zone. If there's one thing that I have found to be true after doing this deep dive into this world on how we focus, it's that the state of our attention is what determines the state of our lives. If we're distracted in each moment, those moments of distraction and overstimulation build up and accumulate to create a life that feels more distracted and overwhelming, like we don't have a clear direction. But when we become less stimulated, when we make our mind more calm, we get the benefits of added productivity and focus and ideas and creativity, but we also live a better life because of it. Thank you so much. (Applause)
By Hycienth chikamso paul7 days ago in Lifehack
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