The Dakshineswar Kali Temple is a Hindu temple located in Dakshineswar near Kolkata. Situated on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, the presiding deity of the temple is Bhavatarini, an aspect of Kali. The temple was built by Rani Rashmoni, a philanthropist and a devotee of Kali in 1855. The temple is famous for its association with Sri Ramakrishna.
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And boy! is HE overloaded!!
At midnight when the eighth child was born, the guards fell fast asleep and Vasudeva’s chain fell off his hands and feet. Wasting no time, Vasudeva picked up the newborn baby, and carrying it in a basket, he started towards Gokul. Gokul was a village of cowherds, located across the Yamuna river, where his friend Nanda lived.
It was a dark stormy night with blinding rain continuously pouring from the sky. When Vasudeva reached the river bank of Yamuna, the river was in spate. The wind and storm were blowing wild, and Vasudeva was in a fix.
“Lord, what should I do,” said Vasudeva in a hopeless voice.
Suddenly a miracle happened, the river parted and Vasudeva walked over the river bed. Throughout the way Vasudeva and the baby were protected from rain by the hood of the great eternal snake, Vasuki. Finally, Vasudeva reached Nanda’s house.
Thus goes the Legend of Lord Krishna’s birth.
An idol depicting Vasudeva carrying his baby, Lord Krishna, in a basket protected by Vasuki. Taken at Millennium Park, Kolkata.
I don’t know the name of this flower. Do you?
On the death of Queen Victoria in January 1901, Lord Curzon, who was then Viceroy of India, placed before the public the question of setting up a fitting memorial to the Queen. He suggested that the most suitable memorial would be a “stately”, spacious, monumental and grand building surrounded by an exquisite garden.
The Victoria Memorial, located in Kolkata, India is a memorial of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom who also carried the title of Empress of India. It currently serves as a museum and a tourist attraction.
The memorial was designed by Sir William Emerson in an architectural style similar to Belfast City Hall. Earlier asked to design the building in the Italian Renaissance style, Emerson was against the exclusive use of European styles and used Indo-Saracenic style, incorporating Mughal elements in the structure.
“It’s the night that makes the dawning.
It’s the depths that make the heights.
It’s the roots that make the branches.
It’s the darkness that gives birth to Light.”
~- Joel Heathcote
In the backdrop you can see the Victoria Memorial situated in Kolkata, India.
कहीं दूर जब दिन ढल जाए
सांझ की दुल्हन बदन चुराए
चुपके से आए
मेरे ख़यालों के आँगन में
कोई सपनों के दीप जलाए
कभी यूँ ही जब हुई बोझल साँसें
भर आई बैठे बैठे जब यूँ ही आँखें
कभी मचल के प्यार से चल के
छुए कोई मुझे पर नज़र ना आए
कहीं दूर जब दिन ढल जाए
कहीं तो यह दिल कभी मिल नहीं पाते
कहीं पे निकल आए जन्मों के नाते
थमी थी उलझन बैरी अपना मान
अपना ही होके सहे दर्द पराए
कहीं दूर जब दिन ढल जाए
The song is from the Hindi movie Anand.
In the backdrop you can see the Vidyasagar Setu, popularly known as the second Hooghly Bridge is situated about 2 kilometers south of Howrah Bridge, Kolkata. The Vidyasagar Setu is a suspension bridge of Kolkata across the Hooghly connecting the city to its twin city of Howrah. Vidyasagar Setu at Kolkata is supported by 121 wire cables. The Vidyasagar Setu at Kolkata is 457 meters long and 115 meters wide. This graceful structure of the Vidyasagar Setu in Kolkata stands on four pylons. The huge foundation is 100 meters deep.
This is a Fresnel Lens. A Fresnel lens is a type of lens invented by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel. The Fresnel lens reduces the amount of material required compared to a conventional spherical lens by breaking the lens into a set of concentric annular sections known as Fresnel zones. Large Fresnel lenses are often used as solar concentrators.
Taken at Science City,Kolkata
Where The Mind is Without Fear
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake
Rabindranath Tagore
Taken at Millennium Park, Calcutta on the next day after India’s 63rd Independence Day
Ganga / Ganges is considered as the most sacred river of the Hindu Mythology.
According to the Puranas (Holy Scriptures of Hindus), the sight, the name and the touch of Ganga takes away all sins. As per Hinduism, bathing in the river on special occasions causes remission of sins and facilitates the attainment of salvation. It is considered that Ganga bestows blessings of the highest order. People come from far and near to immerse the ashes of their kin in the waters of Ganga, with a belief that the the dead souls will atttain salvation.
But you can see the effect of these traditions on the water of the holiest river in the world.
The boy in white is holding offerings for the Ganga. One can find a number of boatmen to take you for a boat ride on the river or to immerse the ashes in the middle of the river. But most people were doing it on the shore. The stench was unbearable as sometimes people dump dead bodies too in the river.
Reema
Sandipan
Nomad
Sanjay
