Gaya – Boudh Gaya - Day 2 – 18/06/2012
I and Vedu woke up at 4:00 AM and woke mns so that we can start early. We had a big drama about the driver. We saw Ram bhayya sleeping on the bench and waited until 6:00 AM for him to wake up. He dint wake up so Vedu went and woke him up and told him to get ready so that we can start early before traffic starts. He took his own time to brush, take bath and started cleaning the bus next to our car. We were surprised to see that but thought bus driver is Ram bhayyas friend. After 10 min Ram bhayya drove off in the bus. Vedanth and Mns ran to talk to the driver to find what is going on? I was near our car and started calling Ram bhayya on his mobile to find why he went in the bus leaving us on road. Ram bhayya told sorry and said he is coming and in 2 sec he was near the car by that time. Prasad and vedu are still near the bus. I was surprised when Ram bhayya said, "Saab (sir) I was very tiered and could not wake up in the morning - SORRY". I asked him what??? then i realised that the person whom we were thinking as our car driver is not Rambhayya. I went to Mns and Vedu and explained the whole story. We cracked up so much on this incidence.
Finally we started to Gaya at 7:00 AM. It took us 2 hrs to reach Gaya. Rambhayya took us to Andhra Ashram and introduced us to the Priest. We took bath and got ready for offering Pandas (Pinda prathan).
We went to the Vishnupada temple near Phalguni river. Priest asked Mns to remember all the dead ones to offer Pindas. one is required to shed eating of at least three food items a fruit, leaf and a veggie for our ansisters. Mns and I left, Neethi beerakaya (silk squash), Raama phalam (custurd apple big one) and marri aaku (baniyan leaf). That means we should never in our life touch these again.
After the rituals Mns offered Pindas in three places. 1. on the banks of the Phalguni river (or if the river is dry it can be offered to a cow). 2. Vishnupada and 3. Akshaya Vata Vriksha (Banyan tree).
1. Phalguni river - Water will not be adequate to take a bath. It is said that due to a curse by Goddess Sita Devi, always there will be scanty water. It was completely dry when we were there.
2. Vishnu paada - After performing ceremony the pindas have to be dropped on the Sri Vishnu Pada inside the temple.
Importance of Vishu paada:
Lord Maha Vishnu had kept his sacred foot on the Hridaya (chest) of Gayasura on the Dharmasila at this spot. In the name of Gayasura the place has become popular to be known as Gaya. Gayasura literally means holy demon. It is a boon given to Gayasura by Lord Sri Maha Vishnu that who ever perform Pitru ceremonies at this place their fore fathers will get salvation. Not only that, even who ever visits and touches Lord’s foot & Dharmashila at this place will also be given salvation.
3. Akshaya Vata Vriksha - It is said that this tree is existing since Thretha Yuga and its roots are in Varanasi and Prayaga. It is in the premises of Vishnu Paada temple. Some believe that this is the place where Buddha first got his englightment and some believe that this is the place where Lord Siva stays. What ever is the reason this tree definitely looked very old and big.
After the sardha karma, we washed our feet and went straight to andhra asram for light lunch.
Mangalya gowrika temple
Our next desitination was Mangalya gowrika temple. This is one of 18 Sakthi peetas. The temple on top of a hill and have a wonderful view of the entire gaya town. This is a very small temple (only a few devotees can enter the shrine at the same time) which looks like a cave through which you can just pass your body and come out through the other side.
People believe one who does this, all their sins are gone. On the backside of the temple there is a spot where breast of the devi is believed to have fallen. We went inside the temple twice and offered our prayers.
Boudh Gaya
From mangala devi temple we went to Boudha gaya which is the place of enlightenment of Buddha. The place is very serene. We sat under the tree where Buddha was enlightened. Picked up a leaf from the pipul tree… hope to be enlightened someday. We went inside the temple and it was very pieceful. I sat there for few min to do meditation.
After coming out from the temple we had few cold drinks and started to Varanasi. On our way we stopped at a place for tea.
Ganga Aarati - Varanasi
We arrive just in time to witness the Ganga Aarti or "Offering Prayer to the Ganges," a ritual performed every night on the banks of the Ganges River. The Bazaar that lines both sides of the street leading to the Dasaswamedh Ghat where the prayer takes place each night is hopping with activity.
There are people everywhere, both tourists and locals, jockeying for a spot where they will have a good view of the 7 Brahmin priests making the offering of incense, sandalwood, Ghee, and camphor. The Aarathi on the Ganges offering is made in all four directions. Everyone comes to the evening prayer. No matter what your lot in life, no matter what caste you may have been born into, and no matter how devoted you are to your faith, the River Ganges is for everyone – all are equal at the banks of this mighty river.
We took a boat to view the Aarati from long distance and to have a clear view. After the Aarathi we took a ride through all the Ghats. The stretch of the ghats is for 3 kms. There are more than 80 ghats. I only remembered few of them.. Manikarnika Ghat, Hanuman Ghat, Harischandra Ghat, Dasaswamedh Ghat, Durga Ghat, Ganga Mahal Ghat, Kedar Ghat, Aassi Ghat, Brahma Ghat….
Importance of Manikarnika Ghat:
Two legends are associated with Manikarnika Ghat. According to one, it is believed to be the place where
According to ancient texts, the owner of Manikarnika Ghat bought King Harishchandra as a slave and made him work on the Manikarnika at Harischandra Ghat. Hindu cremations customarily take place here, though a majority of dead bodies are taken for cremation to the Manikarnik Ghat.
Cremation of bodies take place 24/7 in both Harischandra and Manikarnika Ghat. It is believed that the smoke from Manikarnika Ghat reaches directly to Lord Viswanath (main temple) and the smoke from Harischandra Ghat reaches to Kedar Ghat Shiva (this temple is also swayambhu i.e. shiva lingam is formed naturally not constructed by anyone)
Hotel - Radisson
After the boat ride we walked in the narrow streets of Kasi. We had fresh lassi and went straight to Hotel Radisson. We got ready and went to take dinner at the hotel. When we stepped into the restaurant it was then we felt like we were in five star hotel. Vedu had full buffet and Mns and I had pizza and noodles for dinner.
I and Vedu woke up at 4:00 AM and woke mns so that we can start early. We had a big drama about the driver. We saw Ram bhayya sleeping on the bench and waited until 6:00 AM for him to wake up. He dint wake up so Vedu went and woke him up and told him to get ready so that we can start early before traffic starts. He took his own time to brush, take bath and started cleaning the bus next to our car. We were surprised to see that but thought bus driver is Ram bhayyas friend. After 10 min Ram bhayya drove off in the bus. Vedanth and Mns ran to talk to the driver to find what is going on? I was near our car and started calling Ram bhayya on his mobile to find why he went in the bus leaving us on road. Ram bhayya told sorry and said he is coming and in 2 sec he was near the car by that time. Prasad and vedu are still near the bus. I was surprised when Ram bhayya said, "Saab (sir) I was very tiered and could not wake up in the morning - SORRY". I asked him what??? then i realised that the person whom we were thinking as our car driver is not Rambhayya. I went to Mns and Vedu and explained the whole story. We cracked up so much on this incidence.
Finally we started to Gaya at 7:00 AM. It took us 2 hrs to reach Gaya. Rambhayya took us to Andhra Ashram and introduced us to the Priest. We took bath and got ready for offering Pandas (Pinda prathan).
We went to the Vishnupada temple near Phalguni river. Priest asked Mns to remember all the dead ones to offer Pindas. one is required to shed eating of at least three food items a fruit, leaf and a veggie for our ansisters. Mns and I left, Neethi beerakaya (silk squash), Raama phalam (custurd apple big one) and marri aaku (baniyan leaf). That means we should never in our life touch these again.
After the rituals Mns offered Pindas in three places. 1. on the banks of the Phalguni river (or if the river is dry it can be offered to a cow). 2. Vishnupada and 3. Akshaya Vata Vriksha (Banyan tree).
1. Phalguni river - Water will not be adequate to take a bath. It is said that due to a curse by Goddess Sita Devi, always there will be scanty water. It was completely dry when we were there.
2. Vishnu paada - After performing ceremony the pindas have to be dropped on the Sri Vishnu Pada inside the temple.
Importance of Vishu paada:
3. Akshaya Vata Vriksha - It is said that this tree is existing since Thretha Yuga and its roots are in Varanasi and Prayaga. It is in the premises of Vishnu Paada temple. Some believe that this is the place where Buddha first got his englightment and some believe that this is the place where Lord Siva stays. What ever is the reason this tree definitely looked very old and big.
After the sardha karma, we washed our feet and went straight to andhra asram for light lunch.
Mangalya gowrika temple
Our next desitination was Mangalya gowrika temple. This is one of 18 Sakthi peetas. The temple on top of a hill and have a wonderful view of the entire gaya town. This is a very small temple (only a few devotees can enter the shrine at the same time) which looks like a cave through which you can just pass your body and come out through the other side. People believe one who does this, all their sins are gone. On the backside of the temple there is a spot where breast of the devi is believed to have fallen. We went inside the temple twice and offered our prayers.
Boudh Gaya
After coming out from the temple we had few cold drinks and started to Varanasi. On our way we stopped at a place for tea.
Ganga Aarati - Varanasi
We arrive just in time to witness the Ganga Aarti or "Offering Prayer to the Ganges," a ritual performed every night on the banks of the Ganges River. The Bazaar that lines both sides of the street leading to the Dasaswamedh Ghat where the prayer takes place each night is hopping with activity.
There are people everywhere, both tourists and locals, jockeying for a spot where they will have a good view of the 7 Brahmin priests making the offering of incense, sandalwood, Ghee, and camphor. The Aarathi on the Ganges offering is made in all four directions. Everyone comes to the evening prayer. No matter what your lot in life, no matter what caste you may have been born into, and no matter how devoted you are to your faith, the River Ganges is for everyone – all are equal at the banks of this mighty river.
We took a boat to view the Aarati from long distance and to have a clear view. After the Aarathi we took a ride through all the Ghats. The stretch of the ghats is for 3 kms. There are more than 80 ghats. I only remembered few of them.. Manikarnika Ghat, Hanuman Ghat, Harischandra Ghat, Dasaswamedh Ghat, Durga Ghat, Ganga Mahal Ghat, Kedar Ghat, Aassi Ghat, Brahma Ghat….Importance of Manikarnika Ghat:
Two legends are associated with Manikarnika Ghat. According to one, it is believed to be the place where
Lord Vishnu dug a pit with his Chakra and filled it with his perspiration while performing various penances. While Lord Shiva was watching Lord Vishnu at that time, the latter's earring ("manikarnika") fell into the pit. According to the second legend, in order to keep Lord Shiva from moving around with his devotees, his consort Goddess Parvati hid her earrings, and asked him to find them, saying that they had been lost on the banks of the Ganges. Goddess Parvati's idea behind the fib was that Lord Shiva would then stay around, searching forever for the lost earrings. In this legend, whenever a body gets cremated at the Manikarnika Ghat, Lord Shiva asks the soul whether it has seen the earrings.
Cremation of bodies take place 24/7 in both Harischandra and Manikarnika Ghat. It is believed that the smoke from Manikarnika Ghat reaches directly to Lord Viswanath (main temple) and the smoke from Harischandra Ghat reaches to Kedar Ghat Shiva (this temple is also swayambhu i.e. shiva lingam is formed naturally not constructed by anyone)
Hotel - Radisson
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