Watery Wednesday

The lake in the little village of Banashankari, where the 6th century temple of the goddess of Gardens is situated. The stone wall along the lake is a thousand years old.

The lake in Badami. You can see the modern village, as well as the ancient temple on the lake.

This is the Shiva temple at Koodala Sangama, situated at the meeting place of three rivers.

The serene waters of the river Krishna.

The Bilva Tree

The Bilva Tree, or Bael tree Aegle marmelos is a medicinal plant , sacred to Hindus. The fruit is eaten fresh or dried. The hard skinned fruits are a favourite to make sherbet, a cooling drink. The pulp is mixed with jaggery and water and strained. This is a very good drink to prevent sunstroke , and to give energy in the searing heat. The leaves of the Bael are used in Ayurvedic medicine.

The leaves of the Bael tree are the food for the larvae of the Lime butterfly and the Common Mormon.

The leaves are used in the worship of Shiva, who is said to love the leaves.

This 7th century image of the dancing Shiva is carved in the first cave of Badami. Shiva, the Destroyer, is dancing the apocalyptic Tandava dance in this image.

Flowers for Women

Today is the International Woman's Day, and here are some flowers that traditionally depict the qualities of a woman.
The Rose is for beauty and grace.

The Jasmine is for Eloquence, Memory and Inner Strength.

The Night Blooming Water Lily is for Mystery and Allure.

The Orchid is for Intelligence, and the Lily is for Patience and Constancy.

There are othe flowers like the Rosemary for Remembrance, but I don't have their pictures as they don't grow in my garden. Our local cinema has announced all shows free for women today. I am planning to go to the matinee show with a friend. Hope we get seats!

Have a Happy Women's Day!

Blooming Friday - Something Borrowed, Something Blue

The Tabebuia trees planted all over my suburb, have come into profuse bloom, adding a bright spot of colour to the roadside. The Tabebuia is a symbol of Brazil. It is insect repellant . The flowers attract bees.

Although the coral pink flowers of the Cassia javanica pale in comparison to the bright Tabebuia blossoms, I like these bee attracting blossoms for their delicate colour. As its name suggests, this tree is a native of Java.

The Agave is not a roadside tree, but the agaves planted beside a path in my school ate in full bloom. The agave is a native of America.

All the above are the borrowed plants from different parts of the world.

I saw this native tree full of blue- purple blooms in Alamatti, near Bijapur last week. Although it looks like the Jacaranda, it is not .

Another native Indian tree is the Copperpod, which is also covered with golden flowers now. This tree attracts not only bees, but hundreds of birds too. Since it is planted right ouside my gate, the entrance to my home is covered by a golden carpet of fallen flowers.

For more Blooming Friday pictures, please visit Katarina at Roses and Stuff.

Bijapur

Another place I visited during the long weekend was Bijapur, famous for its fruits and vegetables. The picture above shows Fatima Bi, a vegetable vendor in the bazaar.

The Ibrahim Roza, a 16 th century mosque cum mausoleum is set in a beutiful garden . The carvings in the mosque have Hindu as well as Islamic motifs, showing the secular nature of the Sultans of Bijapur. It is built in black stone, and is supposed to be the inspitation for building the Taj Mahal in Agra.

Another ancient mosque.

These were the stables for the fine arabian horses of the sultan.

The Gol Gumbaz was built by Mohammad adil Shah in the 17th century. It has a huge pillarless dome, which is the second largest dome in the world, after the dome of St.Peter's Basilica in Rome. The graves of Ibrahim Adil Shah, his wife and his mistress Rambha are housed here.

The dome is 7 stories high, and has a gallery running along the base of the dome inside. If you whisper something in one corner, it can be heard clearly at the other end 110 feet away.

The Sultan had musicians playing in one end of the structure and the dancing girl Rambha danced etherially in the centre. According to a s popular story, One day, Rambha danced up the steps of the 7 story pillar and stood at the base of the dome. The Sultan whispered to her, "Do you love me?" She said yes, and the Sutan asked her, "Do you love me well enough to sacrifice your life for me?" Rambha said yes and jumped to death from the top. The disconsolate Sultan then built the gallery so that no one should fall again from there.

Cave Temples of Badami

One of the historic places I visited last weekend was Badami, founded in 540 A.D by the Chalukya king Pulakesi.Cave temples hewn out of huge red sandstone rocks are very beautiful. This stone warrior guards one of the caves.

According to legend, two demons named Vatapi and Ilwala lived in these hills . Whenever they saw a traveller, vatapi would turn himself into a goat. Ilwala woujld kill the goat and feed the hungry traveller goat- meat curry. After the traveller finished eating, Ilwala would call out, "Vatapi, come out" , and Vatapi would burst forth from the hapless traveller's stomach. The demons would then feast on the traveller. They tried this trick on the sage Agasthya one day, but the sage was quicker than them. As soon as he finished eating, he said, "Vatpi, get digested!" and the demon was digested . The two hills nearby are believed to be the demons' remains.

The Old Man Cactus Cephalocereus senilis does not look out of place in front of the ancient temple. Its long white hairs protect it from the sun.

The deep puple bougainvillea has gone out of fashion in the cities, but looks enchanting here.

The first cave hewn out of red sandstone houses the Hindu gods and goddesses, while other caves have Jain and Buddhist motifs.

Blooming Friday - Colours of Holi

I am putting up the Blooming Friday post now, one day earlier, as I am leaving on a trip to some historical places for the long weekend . The flower above and below are the flowers of the Rasna, Alpinia galangal, a medicinal herb used extensively in Ayurvedic formulas. The plant puts out its orchid- like flowers during spring.

The flower shown below is bright red . I don't know its name. My camera doesn't do justice to the beauty of the flower.

There is another flower here whose name I don't know, although I have had it since 8 years. My school gardener tells me that it is a yellow Barleria, but I doubt it.

This is the red Chenille Plant from my School garden.

Red and yellow are the colours of Holi, the colourful Spring festival of India.

A happy Holi to all my Indian friends!