The Ernakulathappan Temple sits in the heart of Kochi, near the Durbar Hall Ground, not far from the Marine Drive promenade. The city is loud. The traffic is dense. But the temple is not loud. The walls are old. The stone is dark. The deity is Lord Shiva, worshipped as Ernakulathappan, the Lord of Ernakulam. … Read more
The Chilkur Balaji Temple sits on the banks of Osman Sagar Lake, about twenty five kilometers from Hyderabad. The city is behind you. The lake is calm. The trees are green. The temple is not large. The crowd is. But the temple is not like other temples. There is no hundi. No donation box. No … Read more
The Akshardham Temple in Delhi sits on the banks of the Yamuna River, not in the crowded lanes of Old Delhi. The complex is vast. The stone is pink. The carvings are deep. The temple is not ancient. It was opened in 2005. But the tradition is old. The architecture follows the Vastu Shastra and … Read more
The Tirumala temple sees tens of thousands of devotees every day. The free darshan queue, called Sarva Darshan, can take eight to twelve hours. On weekends and festivals, the wait is even longer. The TTD ₹500 Special Entry Darshan, also known as Sheeghra Darshan, was introduced to solve this problem. It is not a VIP … Read more
The Siddhivinayak Temple sits in Prabhadevi, Mumbai, not on a hill or by a river. The buildings are close. The traffic is loud. The queue is long. But the faith is longer. The temple is not ancient. It was built in 1801 by Laxman Vithu Patil and Deubai Patil. They were childless. They prayed. The … Read more
The Jhandewala Temple sits in the heart of Delhi, on Jhandewalan Road near Karol Bagh. The street is narrow. The shops are crowded. The traffic is loud. But the temple is not loud. The goddess is Maa Aadi Shakti, the divine mother. The temple is not ancient in the way of the stone temples of … Read more
The Shivoham Shiva Temple sits on Old Airport Road in Bangalore, not in the hills like the ancient temples of Karnataka. The city is around you. The traffic is loud. The high rises are close. But the temple is not loud. The 65 foot statue of Shiva rises above the road. The face is calm. … Read more
The Vaikom Mahadeva Temple sits in the Kottayam district of Kerala, near the backwaters, surrounded by coconut palms. The air is humid. The temple is not on a hill. It is in a town. But the power is not in the location. It is in the age. The temple is old. One of the oldest … Read more
The Bhimashankar Temple sits deep in the Sahyadri hills, in the Pune district of Maharashtra. The road winds up. The trees close in. The air cools. The city is behind you. The forest is ahead. The temple is not large. The lingam is. The Jyotirlinga is one of the twelve. The name Bhimashankar comes from … Read more
The Aundha Nagnath Temple sits in the Hingoli district of Maharashtra, in the dry plains of the Marathwada region. The land is flat. The fields are brown in summer, green in monsoon. The temple is not on a hill. It is in a village. But the power is not in the location. It is in … Read more