Tambaram - Water Reservoir, OOPS !!! Subway

I go by the office cab to work, its a pretty long drive from home to work. Its a 90 minute drive everyday and its a pretty interesting drive, if you keep your ears and eyes wide open.

Tambaram is a suburb in Chennai and I cross this place everyday when I go to work. This picture was taken on 9th January 2009 and you could see the state of the subway, which is located near the Tambaram Railway Station, connecting Selaiyur and GST Road. Chennai saw rains, nearly two months back, not anytime in the near past, but the picture may make you feel that it just poured yesterday. This subway is alternate to the Tambaram Level crossing and so many people depend on this subway to reach the all important GST Road. Also, this subway is so small that only small vehicles can go through,and with so much water logging, 2 wheelers and 4 wheelers find it very difficult to cross this subway, making it literally unusable.

Interestingly you can see lot of posters of almost all the political parties on either side of the walls of this subway, but none seem to understand that this has got a larger use than just being a billboard.

St. Thomas Mount - Chennai

I hail from the city of Chennai, which is in the southern part of India. I have spent most of my life around this small 300m high hillock named 'St. Thomas Mount'. According to history, St. Thomas, the Apostle of Christ came to Chennai and settled down in a cave in this hill. Eventually, he is believed to have been martyred in this hill, so it got its name.

In Tamil, this hillock is called as 'Parangi Malai'. When the British were ruling India, this area was dominated by Anglo Indians and that gave this hill, the tamil name, as Britishers were referred to as 'Parangiyars' and ' Malai' means hill. There is also another history, that a holy saint named 'Peeringi' lived here, so it got its name.

You can see the entire city of Chennai from this hill and for the most part of our childhood, this has been the greatest and cheapest site seeing place. Another attraction in this place is the view of entire runway of the Chennai Airport, so people come here, to see the planes taking off and landing.

There is also a small church built by the Portugese in 1523, dedicated to 'Mother Mary', situated on top of the hill. This shrine is believed to have been built on the place where St. Thomas was martyred. This Church boasts of some very old paintings and relics, which makes this place worth visiting. Also, this place was visited by Pope John Paul II in 1986, during his visit to India.

The top of the hill can be easily accessed by walk or by a drive.

This picture was taken on 4th January 2009, when my family along with some Campus recruits to my company went on small sight seeing trip in Chennai.

Kannimara - Oldest Living Teak Tree

In our office, we have three state of the art meeting rooms, and all these are named after unique trees. One such meeting room's name is Kannimara. This tree is the longest living and largest Teak tree and is located in the Parambikulam WildLife Sanctuary in Kerala. This tree was given the Mahavriksha Puraskar award by the Government of India in 1994-95. The girth of the tree is so wide that it would require at least four people to embrace it with their arms stretched. The girth of this giant teak tree is 6.57 m and height is 48.50 m. 

Last year, I went to Top Slip in the Anamalai Hills near Pollachchi with my team and I had the oppurtunity to see this majestic tree. Its such an amazing place and there is a water stream next to that, which will make you wonder the beauty of the nature.

Pongalo Pongal....

Wish you all a very Happy Pongal !!!

The four-day long Pongal festival is one of the most important harvest festival of South India. Pongal is the Tamil equivalent of Thanksgiving Day festival as people thank nature for the bountiful harvest as they celebrate Pongal on the auspicious day of January 14 every year. Pongal in Tamil means "to boil over" or "spillover" and represents plentiful and excess yield.
Pongal is a four day long harvest festival celebrated in Tamil Nadu, a southern state of India. Pongal is one of the most important popular Hindu festivals of the year. This four-day festival of thanksgiving to nature takes its name from the Tamil word meaning "to boil" and is held in the month of Thai (January-February) during the season when rice and other cereals, sugar-cane, and turmeric (an essential ingredient in Tamil cooking) are harvested.Mid-January is an important time in the Tamil calendar. The harvest festival, Pongal, falls typically on the 14th or the 15th of January and is the quintessential `Tamil Festival'. Pongal is a harvest festival, a traditional occasion for giving thanks to nature, for celebrating the life cycles that give us grain.

Tamilians say `Thai pirandhaal vazhi pirakkum', and believe that knotty family problems will be solved with the advent of the Tamil month Thai that begins on Pongal day. This is traditionally the month of weddings. This is not a surprise in a largely agricultural community -- the riches gained from a good harvest form the economic basis for expensive family occasions like weddings.

The First Day : This first day is celebrated as Bhogi festival in honor of Lord Indra, the supreme ruler of clouds that give rains. Homage is paid to Lord Indra for the abundance of harvest, thereby bringing plenty and prosperity to the land. Another ritual observed on this day is Bhogi Mantalu, when useless household articles are thrown into a fire made of wood and cow-dung cakes. Girls dance around the bonfire, singing songs in praise of the gods, the spring and the harvest. The significance of the bonfire, in which is burnt the agricultural wastes and firewood is to keep warm during the last lap of winter.

The Second Day : On the second day of Pongal, the puja or act of ceremonial worship is performed when rice is boiled in milk outdoors in a earthenware pot and is then symbolically offered to the sun-god along with other oblations. All people wear traditional dress and markings, and their is an interesting ritual where husband and wife dispose off elegant ritual utensils specially used for the puja. In the village, the Pongal ceremony is carried out more simply but with the same devotion. In accordance with the appointed ritual a turmeric plant is tied around the pot in which the rice will be boiled. The offerings include the two sticks of sugar-cane in background and coconut and bananas in the dish. A common feature of the puja, in addition to the offerings, is the kolam, the auspicious design which is traditionally traced in white lime powder before the house in the early morning after bathing.

The Third Day : The third day is known as Mattu Pongal, the day of Pongal for cows. Multi-colored beads, tinkling bells, sheaves of corn and flower garlands are tied around the neck of the cattle and then are worshiped. They are fed with Pongal and taken to the village centers. The resounding of their bells attract the villagers as the young men race each other's cattle. The entire atmosphere becomes festive and full of fun and revelry. Arati is performed on them, so as to ward off the evil eye. According to a legend, once Shiva asked his bull, Basava, to go to the earth and ask the mortals to have an oil massage and bath every day and to eat once a month. Inadvertently, Basava announced that everyone should eat daily and have an oil bath once a month. This mistake enraged Shiva who then cursed Basava, banishing him to live on the earth forever. He would have to plough the fields and help people produce more food. Thus the association of this day with cattle.

The Fourth Day : The Fourth day is known as Kanu or Kannum Pongal day. On this day, a turmeric leaf is washed and is then placed on the ground. On this leaf are placed, the left overs of sweet Pongal and Venn Pongal, ordinary rice as well as rice colored red and yellow, betel leaves, betel nuts, two pieces of sugarcane, turmeric leaves, and plantains. In Tamil Nadu women perform this ritual before bathing in the morning. All the women, young and old, of the house assemble in the courtyard. The rice is placed in the centre of the leaf, while the women ask that the house and family of their brothers should prosper. Arati is performed for the brothers with turmeric water, limestone and rice, and this water is sprinkled on the kolam in front of the house.
Across India this festival is celebrated in different names,
Pongal, Makar Sankranti, Kanumu, Lohri, Bihu, Bhogi, Thai Pongal, Poki festival, Hadaga Festival

My 12th Class Picture

Tomorrow we would be celebrating a festival named 'Bhogi', during this festival we have to basically declutter by burning old things that are of no use. So I was looking at the bunch of files to clean my house, I came across this picture. This was our class picture at Sri Chakravarthy International Matriculation Academy (SCIMA) when I was in my 12th Class. This picture was taken in the year 1990 and it is now 19 years old. May be we can throw away things that are not needed very easily, but the memories can never be thrown out. This picture brought back some of the nostalgic memories of the golden times I have had during my school days.

Tiruchendur and Tsunami

26th December 2004 - Tsunami struck the coasts of India, Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and many lives were lost and many properties were damages because of that. Personally it left an indelible mark on me too, as my city Chennai, was also affected by Tsunami and I saw many families living on the platform as their homes were washed away.

Incidentally on 26th December 2008, I was in Tiruchendur, a coastal town which is very famous for the temple of Lord Muruga, just on the seashore. The temple is just on the shore and the waves dash against the walls of the temple and during Tsunami, all the villages and towns around this place was affected, but in this town the sea receded by 100 to 150 m. So the temple was left unharmed by the Tsunami.

It is really surprising how this could happen, there could be a scientific reason for this but people in this region believe it is because of the god, the tsunami did not affect the temple and the devotees present. Whatever may be the reason, but it is truly surprising....

Interesting Notice Board....

Came across this interesting notice board in Thirupparappu Aruvi near Nagercoil. Eventhough it was supposed to mean something different, the literal meaning does make everyone laugh.