Temples In India-1.pdf - Vivekananda Kendra Prakashan

VIVEKANANDA KENDRA PATRIKAcovered with ice, slippery and dangerous.On the right, down below, runs the riverAlakananda which rushes down to meetMandakini at Rudraprayag. The trek goeson. The blazing sun, on sunny days,glistens in the snow and breaks into millionsof rainbows. The people maintain theirdelicate balance by leaning on long staffswhich they carry with them.The temple is set in the midst of a smallhamlet. The temple is not very big, but itstands on the fringe of the Kedarnath Peak.Far ahead, one sees the Himalayas foldinginto peaks and dips, nurturing the rivuletswhich join to give the Ganga or the Jamunaor the Brahmaputra.The temple has a low entrance. One stepsin, gets taken in by the scent of chandanand sindoor and agarbathi. The smell ofholy ash dominates the temple. Themuttering of prayers mix with the notes ofSanskrit slokas. The pilgrims prostratebefore the Lord, perform poojas and thenreturn with a sense of satisfaction.The trek to one or other of these templesis soul-stirring, elevating, exciting. For itgives the pilgrim a chance to’ soar beyondthe limits of existence and to get in touchwith nature and its glory. The insignificanceof man is brought home during a visit toone or other of these temples. The Masterwho created the Himalayas is truly God.Having created it, He stays there, invitingHis devotees to dare the rigours and tofeel the opulence and richness of Natureand of divinity.Himalayas are truly the abode of Gods.TEMPLE INDIASun Temples in IndiaB. RADHAKRISHNA RAODown through the ages, the Sun hasexercised a strange fascination overthe Indian mind. The-radiant light and theenergy-packed brightness of the Sun firedthe imagination of the Vedic Aryans toglorify the “orb of the day” as Hyranyagarbha,the storehouse of inexhaustiblepower and radiance. He is known bynumerous fascinating synonyms like Surya,Aditya and Savitar and he came to occupya prominent position in the pantheon ofVedic deities.Hailed and glorified variously as “the radienteye of heaven” and “the brilliant face ofGod”, the Sun was regarded by the Vedicseers as the embodiment of the divinetriumvirate-Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. Hecaptivated the ancient Aryans. They burstinto copious praise of the sun-god’s powerand prowess through countless hymns andinvocations.The Vedas are aglow with scintillatinghymns in adoration of the sun-the sourceand sustainer of all living and non-livingforms in the universe. Embodying the spiritof universal harmony, the Sun is known topossess the power of curing such dreadedailments as leprosy and blindness. Hisresplendent golden rays are considered tobe the harbinger of joy, enlightenment andprosperity.In the Sata-rudriya of yajurveda, Shiva isidentified with the visible disc of the Sunin the sky. Gayatri, most sacred andsupreme among the Vedic mantras, extolssurya as the annihilator of darkness and137