Allô Chatrath

  I called on His Excellency Mr. Gudni Bragason, the Ambassador of Iceland in India in his office in New Delhi on 17th April 2024 and presented him with a copy of my coffee table book on Iceland. That is me in a field full of Lupin flowers somewhere in Iceland.    Globe showing location of Iceland. Map source Adobe Stock Flag of Iceland

  God is merciful, just, kind and omnipotent. Is that really so? My basic take is - There is no God. My friends ask me if there is no God, then who created life, earth, the Sun, the Moon and the stars etc. etc.. My humble response is that I do not know as human brain is not yet developed enough to understand creation in all its aspects. But even if we agree, for the sake of argument that there is a God, it is highly contestable if she/he is just, kind and omnipotent. If that were so then she/he would reduce the suffering of those who are of good conduct and remember him. Or he really does want to help them but has no power to do so. What did you say ‘Karma’...we suffer because of bad deeds done by us in the last birth and are happy & healthy in this birth because of good deeds of last birth? Please don’t give me that story! That is a yarn woven by the rich and the powerful for keeping the poor and the under privileged 'in their place'. But I must add that I do salute th...

   

  # Garhi #Padvali #10thAD #Morena #India #kjschatrath  I visited Garhi Padavali in December 2023 and was pleasantly surprised at what I saw. The Garhi Padavali temple of Madhya Pradesh survives only partially, yet it is one of most profusely and beautifully carved Hindu temple mandapa in India from pre-12th century era. This Padhavali site is from early 10th century (c. 925 CE, Kachhapaghata dynasty). The site was damaged before the 18th century. In the 18th century, Jat rulers from eastern Rajasthan built a small heavy fort just to protect this monument. Padhavali was an ancient city, but now is a small village. Well over 15 inscriptions have been found near Padhavali, most pre-dating 14th century. Of these, the earliest mention of the importance of Padhavali is in a 7th century inscription. It is repeatedly mentioned through 8th to 12th century as a part of a college-monasteries complex along with the nearby sites of Mitawali (Chausath Yogini temple site) a...

  That is me at Beejamandal about 5 years back. In the background is a ruined temple in Jatkara village near Khajuraho, that has not yet been fully excavated and explored. It has a length of 34.60 meters and is thus longer than the largest temple of Khajuraho namely Kandariya which measures about 30 metres. Archeological Survey of India has a small on site Unit there. I took about a dozen photos which I would be sharing.

  #Ganesha #Kakanmath #Morena #MadhyaPradesh #India #kjschatrath   Lord Ganesha is generally portrayed with his trunk curled on the left side. Portrayal with trunk towards the right, as in this one, is not common and is termed as 'Siddhi Vinayak' mudra. Please do correct me if am not fully right.    Coming soon...a coffee table book of my photos of statues of Lord Ganesh taken in various temples in India.   Would you like to contribute a photo of the idol of Lord Ganesha taken by you? Due acknowledgment would be noted in the proposed book. Ganapati Bappa Moriya    

  Yes, I am a very choosy non-vegetarian. I do not take beef or pork.  I do not fancy the non-vegetarian dishes as cooked and eaten by Westerners- which I personally find as not fully cooked, if not half cooked.  For me, Indian cooking is the best on planet earth. I would love to have an oily and spicy mutton curry and tandoori roti as above.  Photo source: 'Popular Food Recipes'.