Posted on 02/27/2010 9:50:03 PM PST by Steelfish
A Hindu Temple Full Of Surprises
For millions of Indian Hindus, the temple is a place of worship and reverence. But as Krupa Padhy discovered during a visit to one of the country's famous temples in the state of Orissa, it can feel like stepping into a circus. An icon of a Hindu deity is paraded through streets and throngs of people It is dusk as I approach the temple. A tired sun sinking behind the temple dome ought to mean a serene moment. But far from it. I am walking up Grand Road in Puri - and grand it certainly is, but busy too.
Vegetable vendors, herdsmen, rickshaw drivers and food stallholders are all crammed in against a backdrop of brightly painted 18th Century houses piled on top of one another like blocks of Lego. And just to add a bit of extra colour, they are plastered with posters of the latest Bollywood movie. After all, even the most devout residents need a bit of time out. I am told the Grand Road is one of the widest in India.
And it has to accommodate the two million worshippers who gather here in June for the annual Rath Yatra, or chariot festival. Monkeys everywhere. On this day, statuettes of the three main deities are removed from their jewelled platform inside the temple and paraded along Grand Road. They call it their annual holiday. I am led into the temple grounds by Rudr Narayan Kuntya, a chatty and knowledgeable chap who is dressed in the purest of white robes.
(snip) Inside, the first thing I notice is there are monkeys everywhere. They are cavorting among the ancient temple structures, dancing on the domes, scouring the ground for food and hopping on the temple steps.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.bbc.co.uk ...
And even this would not scare off the monkeys?
These are BIG monkeys, about waist high. I was chased by some when we visited India years ago, along with a little boy yelling for money to ‘buy’ food to feed them. All I remember were big sharp TEETH surrounding me—then my husband showed up, cursed at the kid, and waved his arms and chased off the band of monkeys.
I remember seeing a Nat’l Geo. special a few years ago about these monkeys that are all over India. They are ‘wild’ but because a favorite Hindu god is Hanuman (a monkey) they get lots of treats etc., I’m guessing like the bears at Yellowstone, or Yosemite? After years of this I think the monkeys believe they are entitled to whatever they want!
NOTHING scares the monkeys, not really. At least as far as I could tell.
Not even the deities?
Nope. Think about the crazy cat lady with a hundred cats hanging around her house. Kinda the same principle.
“You wanted to see the real India. Here it is,” Jamal tells the Americans. “Well, here’s the real America,” the woman replies, pulling out a hundred-dollar bill for Jamal.
“I’m guessing like the bears at Yellowstone, or Yosemite? After years of this I think the monkeys believe they are entitled to whatever they want!”
Sounds like democrats!
Mel
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