WANDERING THE TEMPLE TOWNS OF SOUTH INDIA

February 7, 2016

Twenty years ago, I took a year off from medicine to wander around India. In particular I was interested in visiting the holy places that have been places of worship and prayer for thousands of years. Without much agenda apart from meditation, I journeyed from place to place, usually spending 2 or 3 days in each town. Most of these places were built around a temple and there were pilgrims coming and going constantly.

In South India, i travelled to Kanchipuram, Kumbakonam, Pondicherry, Tiruvannamalai, Chidambaram, Thiruvarur, Tricky, Madurai, Rameshwaram, Kanyakumari, Thirupathi and Kalahasthi. I travelled with a backpack and a guidebook on buses and trains, stayed in very basic accommodation, and ate at the roadside food stalls. I’d make my way to the temple and find myself a quiet spot where I could sit in meditation in an uninterrupted fashion for upto 3 hours at a time. It was a very revealing time for me. Each temple carried it’s own unique “signature” or “emanation” that was appreciable after “getting myself out of the way”. Once the mind is still the essence of the place maybe appreciated. Hence, according to the ancient scriptures, it is recommended that people go to certain temples for certain reasons such as health or wealth or relationship problems etc. It is a very deep science that I’m not qualified to elaborate on in any depth.

temples

I remember going to Chidambaram on a full moon day. All the temple lamps were lit and the place was buzzing with chanting and the smell of fragrant incense. After visiting the inner sanctum i found a quiet spot and drifted into a deep meditative state. Darkness, emptiness, deep void were the qualities that were evident. I later came to know that the Chidambaram temple was dedicated to one of the 5 elements- space (akash). Another amazing place was Thirivannamalai which is dedicated to the fire element. It’s famous for the sage Ramana Maharishi who spent his days in meditation there. Myself and my cousins husband went there on the holy day called Kaarthigai Deepam when the flame is carried all the way from the inner sanctum to the top of Mount Arunachal. I’ll never forget the buzz inside the temple at 5am when the young temple priest carried the flame out of the inner sanctum and did an inner circle of the temple.

thiru1

Next week, I will tell you a bit about my wanderings in the Indian himalayas. There are places like this all over the world, not just in India. One just has to seek them out.

Be Well

In Health and Wellness