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Showing posts from October 18, 2016


Ballal Vinayak Form of Ganesha

Ballal Vinayak is the form of Ganesh worshipped at Pali in Maharashtra, which is one among the Ashta Vianayaka Temples in Maharashtra . The name Ballal Vinayak is the result of a boon given by Ganesha to child Ballala whose unwavering devotion resulted in Ganesh appearing to rescue him. Ganesha promised Ballal that from then onwards his name will be taken before him. The murti worshipped is also known as Ballalesvara Vinayak and Ballala Vinayaka. Ballal Vinayak represents strength. Legend has it that young Ballala was an ardent devotee of Ganesha. He and his friends used to worship Ganesha. Once Ballal and friends went to forest and worshiped a huge stone murti of Ganesh. The parents of other children complained to Ballal’s father that his son was making their children lazy by always worshiping Ganesha deep in forest. Fed up with constant complaints, Ballal’s father went to forest and found Ballal and his friends in deep meditation. Seeing Ballal’s father approaching

Annamurti – Manifestation of Hindu God Vishnu Associated with Food

Annamurti is a manifestation of Hindu God Vishnu and is associated with food. This form of Vishnu is similar to the Annapurna incarnation of Goddess Shakti (Maa Parvati). In this manifestation, Vishnu is the god of kitchen and food. Annamurti form of Vishnu has two arms. On hand holds a ball of rice and another hand holds payasam (sweet or kheer prepared using rice, sugar and milk). Murti (idol) of Annamurti is found in the famous Srirangam Temple in Tamil Nadu in India. At Srirangam, he is the presiding deity of the kitchen in the temple. 

Urvashi Apsara in Hindu Religion - Story of Apsara Urvashi

Urvashi is a celebrated apsara in the court of Indra, the king of Devas. Legend has it that she was created from thigh of Narayana . Uru means thigh and hence the name Urvashi. She was created to rival the beauty of other damsels in Indra’s court like Menaka , Rambha and Tilottama. Indra, the king of the Devas, according to his innate character thought that Nara Narayana wanted to overthrow him and rule over the heaven. So he sent Apsaras (nymphs) to disturb the two saints with sexual passion. Seeing the Apsaras, Narayana placed a flower in his thigh and immediately sprung from it a voluptuous nymph whose charms far excelled those nymphs sent by Indra. Since this beautiful nymph came out of the thigh she was called Urvashi . Due to a curse, Urvashi had to live on earth and here she married King Pururavas. ( you can read the story here ) Another famous story associated with Urvashi is her desire to make love to Arjuna, the third of the Pandava brothers in the Mahabharata.

Sri Ram Lamp – Lithophane Votive Light of Srirama from Lladro

Sri Ram lithophane is a molded artwork in thin very translucent porcelain that can only be seen clearly when back lit with a light source. It is an ideal Srirama lamp for offering prayers in puja rooms and for meditation. Lladro, a Spanish firm noted for high quality porcelain figurines – Hindu religion related figurines include various forms of Ganesha, Goddess Lakshmi, Ram Darbar and Shiva. Sri Rama – lithophane votive light from Lladro is priced at Rs 6,000 /- The size of the lamp is 12 X 9 cm. Lladro signature stores are there in New Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Bangalore. It is also available in famous jewelry shops and boutiques.