Devotees taking vibhuthi from the priest. The bird-like puppet hanging from ropes to the left of the frame is part of an interesting ritual -- the cup in its hands is filled with flowers, it is swung by a pulley to shower the flowers on the deity. See next pic. 

Kapaleeswarar on Adhigara Nandi. Hope you can make out the bird-like figure showering flowers on the deity. 

Kapaleeswarar Temple Festival

I've posted a series of pics taken at the Kapaleeswarar Temple Festival -- the Aruvathimoovar Thiruvisha -- at Mylapore. Tried posting them as combo-pics to include more pics and sidelights.

The Palanquin bearing Kapaleeswarar on the Adhigara Nandhi vends its way around the temple at Mylapore and the orchestra that leads the way. 

Devotees taking prasadam. A closer view of Kapaleeswarar on Adhigara Nandi and Karpagavalli Ambal on Gandharva Vahanam, Boothagi. 

The first palanquin that comes out of the temple carrying Vinayakar followed by Kapaleeswarar on the Adhigara Nandhi. To the right are some additional pics -- a photopgrapher and some devotees.  

Murugan on the Gandharva Vahanam (vehicle), Boothagan (top left) and Karpagavalli Ambal (bottom left); and a collection of sidelights at the festival -- the palanquin bearers, a gypsy family, an orchestra and the main palanquin carrying Kapaleeswarar. 

The palanquins bearing Karpagavalli Ambal and Kapaleeswarar (top); a gypsy family that has set up shop; prasadam distribution. 

The palanquins bearing Karpagavalli Amman and Kapaleeswarar (top); a sceptre bearer; and Murugan on the gandharva vahanam, Boothagan. 

Stamp of Chennai - 4

This is a stamp issued to commemorate St Thomas, one of the 12 apostles of Christ. The stamp was issued in December 1964, to mark the visit of Pope Paul VI to India to attend the 38th International Eucharistic Congress convened in Bombay (Mumbai). The Santhome Church, as the Basilica of the National Shrine of St Thomas is popularly known, is in Mylapore, Chennai.

Some information from the St Thomas Basilica website: "By Apostolic brief dated 16th March 1956, Pope Pius XII gloriously raised the Cathedral Church of the Archdiocese of Madras-Mylapore to the dignity and rank of Minor Basilica.
The present National Shrine of St.Thomasis built over the tomb of Saint Thomas the Apostle, who came to India in the year 52 AD. After preaching on the West Coast, he came to Chennai(formerly Madras), and suffered martyrdom on a hill at the outskirts of the city, today known as "St. Thomas Mount." His body was buried on the spot over which the present Basilica stands.
As for the church, that too has much history behind it. This lovely Gothic Church is an architectural treasure. Rising 155 feet from the ground, with a nave of 112 feet by 33 feet, and an imposing sanctuary 62 feet long and 33 feet wide, it is adorned with stained glass windows depicting St. Thomas and the other Apostles. Inside the sanctuary is a statue of St. Thomas seated."

Stamp of Chennai - 4: A first day cover of the stamp of St. Thomas. The cover depicts a drawing of the St Thomas Basilica, Mylapore. Check out the pic of the Basilica below. The stamp shows the figure of St Thomas as represented in a silver bust in Ortona Cathedral in Italy. 

A view of the Santhome Basilica, Mylapore, a national shrine. 

A visitor returns as another

See below a pic of Hanuman, that is his name, as Arjuna. The last time he came home was in October 2005 when he was decked up as Hanuman.
He was here last week and spent some time talking. He is from Andhra Pradesh but his community, the Badaga Jangamma, has its roots in Karnataka. They are known as the `Hagalu Veshagarlu' (literal meaning: daytime disguised-ones). Every time there is a function, like a wedding, in the family they do a tour in some disguise before the event, he said.
Hanuman promptly brought out a large file from his bag and showed photos of himself with VIPs (politicians and cops) from the Southern States, some of them had given him a character reference. That is like an ID on his travels, he said.
Check out the other visitors in the archives in November 2005 and January 2006.

He, Hanuman, came back... as Arjuna. This time I learnt that his name is also Hanuman. He remembered to pick up the pics I had taken of him the last time he came home. 

Temple Elephants

Temple elephants. They are absolutely adorable, lending dignity and grace to temple festivities. It is amazing how such strong creatures can be so docile (at least, most of the time).

They are everywhere, at all the temple festivals generally keeping an eye on things. 

At the Kanchi Kamakshi Amman Temple, Kanchipuram. I feel the pic conveys the feeling of power that the elephants allow humans to control. 

shock and awe

This picture was taken near the Kapaliswarar Temple, Mylapore. I liked it because of that look of awe in the baby's face. You can also see the girl being blessed cringing as she feels the trunk on her head.

A great year

Thank You All. Its been a great year of blogging for me. I hope and wish all of you enjoyed visiting `in Camera' as much as I have. Thank You.

Nelapattu Bird Sanctuary

The following three photos were taken at the Nelapattu Bird Sanctuary earlier this year. It is about a 100 km from Chennai, near Tada in Andhra Pradesh. It is a nice drive/ride on the national highway leading to Kolkata. Or you can catch a train from the suburban station at Central. Its a great way to spend a Sunday -- it does not get as crowded as the Vedanthangal Sanctuary near Chinglepet. The season starts about October-November and it is probably the tail end now.