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Showing posts from February 7, 2016


Harihar Temple - Harihara Murti - Shiva and Vishnu Together as Single Idol

Harihar is an amalgamation of Hindu Gods Vishnu (Hari) and Shiva (Hara) as a single murti (idol for worship). Harihar Temples are very rare. There is one temple dedicated to Harihar at Badrana in Udaipur in Rajasthan , India . This particular murti at the Harihar Temple is made from black stone and is nearly 4.5 feet tall. The left side of the murti has symbols of Vishnu and the right side has symbols of Shiva. The murti has four hands and the left side hands hold Shankh and Chakra – popular symbols of Vishnu. The right side hand holds Trishul. The right part of the head of murti also holds a crescent moon. Badrana is located about 55 km from Udaipur . You may also like to read Harihar – Vishnu and Shiva

Satyakama Jabala – The Story of Satyakama from Chandogya Upanishad

The story of Satyakama Jabala is found in the Chandogya Upanishad. Satyakama wanted to find out the nature of Brahman (the Supreme Truth). Apart from this the story also states that anyone can seek truth – family, caste, creed and religion are of no value for a true seeker. A seeker of truth must be honest and should always speak truth. This particular narrative of the story of Satyakama Jabala is taken from the ‘Eternal Stories from the Upanishads By Thomas Egenes, Kumuda Reddy.’ You can find the book here at Google Books. Long ago, in a small hut in the dense forests, lived a boy and his mother. The boy's mother named him Satyakama, which means "seeker of truth". More than anything, Satyakama wanted to live the life of a student, meditating and studying about Brahman in an Ashram. But to become a student, he had to know his father's family name, because in those times teachers only accepted students from certain families. So Satyakama wen