--> Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from July 20, 2013


Manthara in Ramayana – Manthra - the old Maid Who Served Queen Kaikeyi

Manthara in Ramayana was the old maid servant of queen kaikeyi. Her real name was Kubaja and she had three curves in her body. It was Manthra who instigated queen Kaikeyi to stop the consecration of Sri Ram as the king of Ayodhya. It was she who reminded the queen about the two boons that Dasharatha had given her. It is said that the three curves in the body of Manthara represents her evil nature. She has a cunning mind, she talks cunningly and her actions are also cunning. She poisoned the mind of Kaikeyi by telling her that she and her son, Bharata, will be sidelined once Sri Ram becomes the king. It will be Kousalya, mother of Sri Ram, who will be ruling the palace. She asked Kaikeyi to make Bharata the king of Ayodhya by using one of her boons. She also gave the idea of exiling Sri Ram for 14 years. Manthara, the hunchbacked woman, was a Gandharvi named Dundubhi in her previous birth. It was a curse that made her take human form on earth. 

Adi Kamakshi Temple – Old Kamakshi Temple in Kanchipuram – Adi Peeteswari Kamakshi Devi temple

Adi Kamakshi Temple , or Adi Peeteswari Kamakshi Devi temple, is the old Kamakshi Temple in Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu and is adjacent to the currently popular Kamakshi Temple in Kanchipuram. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Kamakshi and is associated with Adi Shankaracharya as he established a Sri Chakra in the temple. This original temple is known as Adi Peeteswari or the Adi Peeta Parameswari. Adi Kamakshi Temple is located adjacent to the Kumara Kottam Sri Subrahmanya Temple in Kanchipuram and is near to the famous Kamakshi Temple . The original Sri Chakra established by Adi Shankaracharya can be found in a narrow depression in the temple. The murti of Goddess Kamakshi that was originally worshiped in the temple was a fierce form. It is said that Adi Shankaracharya changed the fierce form and made her the all providing Mother in a loving form. The murti of Goddess Kamakshi has four hands and she holds Ankusa, Pasa, and a Kapala. One hand is in Abha