World of Books and Travel

I'm sorry for such a long gap to post the remaining part.  I had some personal commitments and was out of the country..

Back to Kancheepuram
Our next visit was to Kanchi Varadaraja Perumal temple, dedicated to Lord Vishnu. This temple is also known as Thiru Parameswara Vinnagaram Temple, which was about 6 kms away from Kanchi Kailasanathar Temple. Prakash, our auto driver, suggested that we should reach there before its closure time. (8 pm). Though there was some rush we made it for the darshan and it was some special day (Ekadashi) in the temple. Since it was evening I couldn't get some good pictures to post here.

This is also an ancient temple built by Pallavas in the 8th century.  The devotees have to climb a couple of steps to reach the sanctum sanctorum. 
After having a light dinner in one of the restaurants on the way we returned to  our hotel.

The next day, Prakash was there at sharp 6 a.m. to take us to start our temple tours. Our first visit was to Sri Ekambareswarar …

Back to Kanchipuram

We wanted to cover one or two temples in the evening of the same day we arrived at Kanchipuram. Our autorikshaw driver was only too glad to take us around. 

He first took us to Kanchi Kailasanatha temple located in the west of Kanchipuram.  He dropped us just in front of the temple. 
The temple has a high rising tower at the entrance.  The temple, built in Dravidian style architecture, is dedicated to Lord Shiva.  Built in 650 AD-705 AD, by the Pallavas, it is the oldest temple of Kanchipuram. Currently it is looked after by the Archeological Survey of India.   
Numerous carved images of Gods and Goddesses are seen on the inner and outer walls of the temple. One of the unique features of this temple is the 16 sided Shivalingam made up of black granite at the main shrine.  Since it was in the evening we could not capture photos properly. However, I am posting one photo which I actually took the next morning while passing that way. 

This is the only temple in Kancheepuram…

Last week we had a week end trip from Bangalore to Kanchipuram, one of the seven sacred cities of India. Kanchipuram is also known as  the City of Temples and the Silk City, located in Tamil Nadu, South India. 

Kanchipuram is a historical, cultural and religious city located on the banks of  River Vedavadi. Kanchipuram (Kancheepuram) is also one of the most important spiritual centres of Hinduism and a major pilgrim destination.  The ancient temples located here are built by Pallava and Chola kings. 

Getting into Kancheepuram - 
Kanchipuram can be accessed by train, bus, and car. From Chennai, it is only 75 kms away and from Bangalore 278 kms. We went by car and it took us nearly 4 hours. The roads were excellent and the drive was pleasant.

Accommodation - We had booked our accommodation in  Pine Tree, one of the good hotels in Kanchipuram. We had a comfortable stay in Pine Tree. On reaching there we enquired about visiting the temples; they had advised us that it is better to take a l…

We made a sudden plan for a short trip to  Lepakshi Temple in Ananthapur Dist of Andhra Pradesh. It was a weekend, and it happened to be on a Sankranthi Festival Day.  We left early morning by 7.00 from Bangalore. It was a foggy morning and the drive was pleasant. We  took 3 hours to reach there which is inclusive of our break for breakfast on the way.

First we stopped at the huge monolithic Nandi, and clicked some snaps. This structure is carved out of a single granite with finely carved ornaments, and smooth contours.   The colossal structure is 27ft in length and 15 ft in height and is the largest monolithic of Nandi in India.

After a few feet away, lies the main ancient Lepakshi temple on a rocky hill.



Veerabhadra Swamy temple at Lepakshi  was built in 16th century by two brothers (Virupanna and Veeranna) during the period of King Aliya Rama Raya of Vijayanagar kingdom.   The temples of Papanatheswara, Raghunatha, Srirama, Veerabhadra and Devi Durga are located in the same complex…

This is to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy 2018.


I'm sorry I could not post anything during the last 3 months. I shall try to be more regular during 2018.

Happy Onam to all.
Onam is the greatest festival of Kerala. Keralites all over the world celebrate this festival. This year, Onam falls on Monday, the 4th of September 2017.



If you want to know more about Onam, please visit this page.