Pilgrimage to Nanjangud

Lord Nanjundeshwara under remodeling

Two Tiny Worshipers look up to Siva

One of my favorite things about India is that as tourists we can visit the actual physical location of the myths we read about back home.  Faced with an extra day off from the Shala, Aeryk and I hopped a train, costing all of 20 cents, to the Shaivite pilgrimage center of Nanjangud.  Worshipers have been coming to this town nestled on the edge of the Kabini River for over one thousand years to visit the Lord Nanjundeshwara Temple, the place where the old stories say that Siva swallowed poison to save the Universe from destruction.  

One of the Tallest Gopurna in Karnataka 

Part of one of the Oldest Temples in India

A sweltering lazy day, most pilgrims, including us, rested up in the shade before entering the Temple.

Going into a large Hindu temple is a little like entering a carnival.  There are lots of bodies shuffling from one deity or puja to the next, and Aeryk and I allowed ourselves to be swept up with the herd, armed with small rupee coins like ride tickets.

Every Image is Adorned with Fresh Foliage and Flowers

Inside the Temple there is almost too much to see, literally more than one hundred separate linga of a variety of sizes and ranging in age from 200 to 1100 years, as well as a great variety of God and Goddess statues tucked into alcoves,  some of them completely buried in flowers.  Out of respect for our surroundings we  refrained from taking pictures inside other than this one that Aeryk discretely snapped out of the corner of his pocket -  and a couple of the resident temple cat.    Shuttled from one alcove to the next, there were many sacred fires, many priests, many blessings.  A highlight was squishing through a great metal doorway to witness through the mass of bodies as the priests ritually bathed an ancient Siva Lingam and then pelted us with spoonfuls of specially herbed water.  Another stop, worshipers circling a rounded statuary of all the Gods of the Planets, was especially magnificent to watch .  Participants looked a bit like planets themselves as they orbited the sacred images and their little flames.  Every blessing comes with a little toll, a plate one decorates with coins.  There is even a "money changer" priest that sells coins...Now I know where they hide all the change in this country!   

 

A bit of history in the Kabini River

As full of blessings as we could handle, and our rupees nearly spent, Aeryk and I headed outside to the Ghats, the sacred bathing site, and to be honest, town swimming hole.  Dozens of men and women were taking the plunge, and in the near hundred degree heat, there was a lot of laughter and joy involved.  I took no photos there, as the only foreign lady in town I did not want to get attention for snapping shots of naked Indian men.  Instead we focused our attention down stream at this beautiful vestige of the past.  Other than a man doing his laundry we had this spot to ourselves, only for the price of hopping rocks over garbage water.

  

The Unfortunate Usual - Garbage Surrounds the Sacred

 

We contemplated the beauty and appreciated the history, but in spite of the voraciously healthy looking fish abundantly seen at the water's edge, and the high spirits of the bathers, neither of us particularly felt drawn to wade through the trash.  We wandered off to find a quick bus to Mysore.

The Gentle Herd at Rest by the River

Aeryk's Last Gaze at the Kabini Ghats

(no it's not a superhero cape...it's a travel bag!)

 The Ubiquitous South Indian Serpents

Post Script to our Adventure:

If one remembers the myth this town and temple are built on, the Gods and Demons churn the Ocean in search of nectar, but before they yield the good, poison erupts from the waters.  Siva in his form Lord Nanjundeshwara swallows the poison and saves all the worlds.  Parvati saves Siva by grasping his throat so the poison doesn't go down and kill him.  Narada holds his mouth so he doesn't vomit it out.  Well, none of those deities were apparently on hand to bail us out.  Aeryk and I came home with a violent poisonous gift from Nanjangud, one of the classic India vomiting and fever illnesses one hears about.  We must have swallowed plenty for all the illness we experienced for the days after.  I'll remember next time to read the fine print on any stories I decide to visit.  

Vivian