Its been long !!

Hey readers, well its been long that i've had some time to update my blog, however i still managed to have a couple of small trips around bhubaneswar before i bade a final good bye to the city.
I have travelled to banaglore and it is more of a transit stay as i am leaving for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia next week....
It would be an opportunity for me to take my blog international :) but lets see.....work has been and is going to be very demanding...but pray for me guys ...that atleast i am able to take time out in the weekends .... !!!

Pics from Maa Tarini Ghatagaon

Earlier we got late to reach the Maa Tarini Temple in Ghatagaon and could not have a proper visit. This time we started our trip early in the morning, planning to cover ghatagaon, Ratnagiri and the Bali Yatra in Cuttack. The pics from Ghatagaon are posted here.

On NH215

Milestone on our wayFew patches of bad roads that we came across
A Weekly Village market en route Smooth journey ahead The much revered temple of Maa Tarini, Ghatagaon

Vendors selling the yummilicious coconut sweets outside the temple premises Our very own Prahlad doin some seva :) Beads of faith The journey back

Travelogue - Beautiful valleys of Keonjhar

Location: Chandikhole -->Panikoli -->Ghatagaon -->Keonjhar
Nearest Towns: Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Rourkela, Sambhalpur
Distances: Chandikhole 95Kms, Ghatagaon 150kms, Keonjhar 210kms from Bhubaneswar
Getting there: From Bhubaneswar via Cuttack highway NH5. Take a turn left into Panikoli under the flyover to reach the jajpur main road. State highway 215 from here would lead to Ghatagaon, Keonjhar falls straight ahead of the same.
Trip Length: 5 Hrs one way
Best Time to Visit: September to February
Worst Time to Visit: Peak Summer
Permission: None Required
Things to carry: A local map of the roads and places, bottle of water, plenty of filling snacks, extra memory card for camera (you are bound to take many photos).
Things to keep in mind before travelling:
--Since your vehicle would have to endure some good stress, make sure it is properly serviced. Make sure you are carrying your toolkit.
--You can’t rely on your mobile phone for help (no network in most places). So keep someone informed about your whereabouts and move in a group with not much distance between.
--Keep a cool head, keep buffer in your travel time, plan in advance for the places to visit and make a milkman route for the same.
We had no luxuries of knowing this before we started, because it was all planned at the last moment.
Rating:

Fact File:

Mahavinayak temple is a major centre of pilgrimage and one of the oldest Ganesha temples in Orissa. In Orissa there are five different Kshetras or religious centers celebrated for these Pancha Devata(Five God) viz: Vinayaka or Ganesh Kshetra at Mahavinayak hills in the district of Jajpur, Vishnu or Sankha (the attributes in the hands of Lord Vishnu) Kshetra at Puri, Shiva or Ekamra Kshetra Bhubaneswar, Durga or Viraja Kshetra at Jajpur or Yajanapur. Mahavinayak enshrines the five god heads in one Lingam. The speciality of Mahavinayak temple is that the Pancha Devata: Shiva, Vishnu, Durga, Sun and Ganapati, are worshipped as a single deity in a single sanctum sanctorum. In no other Hindu temples such tradition of worship is present. It is situated 40 Km north to Cuttack besides NH5 and 4 Km away from the NH towards west via Sukinda Paradip expressway in Chandikhole. *Source: Wikipedia

Maa Tarini Temple, Ghatagaon is one of the most sacred places of Orissa. One legend with a delightful association with the rathyatra concerns King Purushottam Dev(15th Century). (More details at www.maatarini.com). The temple is highly revered and the goddess there is believed be highly powerful. Coconuts are the offering here. In fact, such is the faith in the goddess that if anyone in the state waves a coconut wrapped in a red cloth on a highway the next bus would surely stop to pick it up and take it to the temple. Even if the bus is on a different route, the driver ensures that the coconuts are dropped in the collection box on the way or hand it over to another bus headed for Ghatagaon. The drivers say and from their experience, the people who have failed in this met with several difficulties on their journeys. During festival seasons, as many as 100,000 coconuts reach the temple everyday. This flawless coconut courier service based on the faith has made Maa Tarini an extremely popular deity in Orissa. It has even figured in the news in BBC Asia.

Keonjhar district is a green land of panoramic beauties and a store house of mineral wealth. It offers a variety of attractions to the tourists which includes religious shrines, fresco painting, waterfalls and above all the natural sceneries. The terraced villages buzzing with the sweet melodies of the birds take the visitors to a dream land. The simplicity of the tribal folk mixed with the gaiety of their festivals can keep the visitors amused. Places to visit here are:-
Sitabinji: It is situated on river Sita. The spot has gained prominence as a place having ancient fresco paintings on a rock shelter called Ravan Chhaya which is like a half opened umbrella. The paintings depict a royal procession. It is 30 km from keonjhar (23 km on the Jajpur-Keonjhar road upto Katrabeda and 7 km from there)
Badaghagara: It is about 9 Km from Keonjhar on NH6 towards Sambhalpur.It is yet another small (200ft high) but exciting waterfall.
Sanghagara: It is 6 Km from Keonjhar on NH-6 towards Sambhalpur. It is a small (100ft. high) and a beautiful waterfall.
Keonjhargarh: It is the district headquarters and is famous for Vishnu temple. On the outskirts are the shrines of Sidha Jagannath, Sidhakali and Panchabati amidst picturesque settings.
Deogaon (Kosaleswar): On the river Kusei near Anandapur., the temple of Kosaleswar built in Circa 900 AD is a famous centre of pilgrimage. Once upon a time it was a flourishing seat of Budhism.
Gonasika: Situated at a distance of 45 Km from Keonjhar, Gonasika hill is the source of the river Baitarani.
Murgamahdev: A beautiful temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, is situated on picturesque Thakruani hil. It is situated in Champua subdivision and is 65 Km away from Keonjhar.

The Journey:

Day 1:
Bitten by the travel bug, the weekend of 10th Oct we planned a short trip to Ratnagiri, a series of hills with remains of Buddhist monasteries from the 10th centuries. This was planned by a friend of mine who had recently gained a lot of enthusiasm considering the perfect weather and the number of long weekends that were headed up for us. Mind it, long weekend for us means a consecutive day to a Sunday even though we’re all in IT. Due to the inhuman project requirements, Saturdays are also working for us….sad but true.
Anyways, we made a rough plan, about 110Kms one way, 85 of which on a straight highway NH5, total travel time was estimated to be 2 hrs one way. As we reached office as the common point for meeting up, some more colleagues added up to in the caravan on the spot. The count was now 7 and with 4 bikes it seemed like a perfect daylong trip. A brief about the team members,

Prahlad- The planner for the trip, a flamboyant SAP consultant from Bangalore who has found better REASONS for his stay in a place like Bhubaneswar as well *wink wink*
Sudhir- A fraud telugu (has very few distinguished telugu qualities) who is more than happy to be on any trip, condition being booze and fag should readily be available.
Sandip- An easy going guy from Mumbai who would joke with a straight face and you would not even realize when he is taking a trip of youJ.
Suneel- The bachelor for the week, since his wife was back home, he was more than eager to relive his college days.
Vivek- The most quiet of the species in the office. You would always catch him with his eyes dug into the computer screen and hands on keyboard fiddling around with ABAP codes.
Suresh- A first timer to our group usually stays to himself, another quiet fellow.
And
Yours truly- Well I can go about myself for pages altogether, but I’d leave the job to you to figure me out.

Due to some inherent tendencies of delays by few people (I hope they’re reading this :))…we finally started at 11.45am (about 90 mins post the scheduled time). By now the sun was up high glaring down upon us bad. Our first destination was a place named as Chandikhole (92kms from Bhubaneswar on NH5). The ride till Chandikhole was defined by an awesome highway, and an amazingly smooth ride. Reaching the town crossing (Chandikhole Chaka), 30-35Kms into the road on the right turn was Ratnagiri and 5-7 kms into the left were much revered temples of Chandi and Maha Vinayaka.
We took left to visit the temples first which were closer. Unfortunately, by the time we reached the Chandi temple (1300hrs), it was closed and was expected to open only by 4pm. Even Gods deserve a power nap in the afternoon :)) hence we headed further for the Maha Vinayaka temple dreading if it might be closed as well. It was about another 3-4 Kms further ahead, and the entrance was categorically marked with statues of lion over an elephant on both its sides which is commonplace in Orissa. After a small flight of steps was the temple, which to our dismay was also closed but thankfully only for sometime. To make the most of the time we had, we started for the Devi temple on the hilltop the steps for which started from the rear of the temple. The high and steep steps made most of the junta panting for breath, all thanks to their sedentary lifestyles. I in the meanwhile got some good opportunity to try my hands on some macro photography sighting variety of spiders and butterflies on the way up. It was a beautiful view of the town from the hilltop. That’s where we offered our prayers and rested for a while. By the time we reached back, the Maha Vinayaka temple was already open. It was a small but beautiful temple with three entrances to it. Within there was the much known and revered lingam with the five god heads. With a narrow passage to the idol, and many devotees thronging the place, it was difficult to get a snap of the same, so I chose to keep the cam inside the bag, get inside and take the blessings at least.
By this time everyone’s stomachs were twisting and turning from inside since we had a very very small snack at the start and the hunger was accentuated by the hill climbing up drill we just underwent. We spotted a hotel “Hotel Midtown” right at the Chandikhole crossing. Thankfully it was still open and serving, since most of the places shut down in afternoon usually after 2.30. The food was ordered and the round table discussions started about the rest of the trip. Considering that the next day was also off, we were contemplating extending our travel, but to where and how was the question. Keonjhar came out as the picked destination after some quick phone calls to our local colleagues at office. However we were warned of the extremely bad roads and the trucks plying on the same if we happen to get late.
At that moment, Ratnagiri was dropped as the destination since it was already 4pm and we had to cover another 120 odd kms out of which most part of the road was in a bad shape with no lights. Our inherent delays followed us everywhere, this time because we missed a turn from the highway by 20kms and had to come all the way back. We were supposed to take a left from the highway at Panikholi. We still had over 90 kms to reach Keonjhar and by now it was getting dark. Single road with multiple SPEEDBREAKERS (they were meant to break more than just speeds) and potholes marked our ride till we realized we had missed a turn once again, thankfully only by 4kms this time. Once we got the turn, we made sure that we keep asking people for directions not to go off track again.
The road now had no lights except coming from the vehicles, and it was almost 6.30. Our next milestone was to reach Ghatagaon, Maa Tarini Temple which was about 45kms from here. Sudden huge potholes on the road kept us on an alert all through the ride.The last phase of 20-25kms towards Ghatagaon was an awesome road through a dense jungle, wherein if you shut off your headlights, you would not be able to see your own hands even. Scary but splendid it was. It was getting a bit cold as well which was hurting the already aching backs from those huge speed bumps. We finally reached Maa Tarini Temple at 8pm. I would say that we were very lucky to have reached there just in time before the temple closes. The front gate was already latched, but a local suggested trying the side door which might be open, and it was. We were the last group of visitors to enter after which they shut that door. The temple was beautiful from inside with a circular boundary. In the centre was the idol of Maa Tarini. The idol with two big eyes, with a mark in centre for nose, completely painted in red emanated power and divinity. I so much wanted to have a shot of the scene there but unfortunately taking pics was not allowed inside. Stepping out after the short puja and the yumm prasad we were wondering how much more of roads we had to cover till we finally got a bed to rest our butts on.
We had absolutely no idea that the worst was still to come. The next 45-50Kms were only potholes with roads showing up sometimes in between. To worsen the situation, we had a caravan of trucks (unfortunately the truck movement had started) on the road. Dust was all around, all over, and inside our systems as well. We were looking like as if just came out from a dust mine by the time we reached Keonjhar.
It was about 10 by the time we reached. Now we desperately needed some rest, a warm bath and cozy beds. Looking around we came across “Hotel Labanaya” towards our right on the main road itself. On checking out the inside, we could not rate it worthy to spend a night, not value for money by the amount they were charging. Looking out further, on the way we came across another hotel “Hotel Shreekrishna”. It had decent rooms, cheap, and the best part, had hot water…we went no further and simply checked in there. We ordered food and some beer to chill us down. There in the hotel we were eating papads, egg bhurji, munching on the baadam (groundnut is called badam here), and discussing how crazy we are and what a crazy journey this has been so far. It was 1.30 when everyone hit the sack and I did doubt if anyone would be ready to start anything before 10 in the morning.

Day 2:
A pleasant countryside morning it was and Suneel (the enthusiastic one) came banging each door, pulling each one’s sheets, punching…trying to wake up the sleeping logs, only to give a start. But all efforts in vain, we eventually started at about 11.
Taking directions from the hotel guys and the places to see we headed for the 1st in our list “Sanaghagra” and “Badaghagra” falls. Just about 3-4 kms from our place we spotted a “Panthnivas” on the right. It could have been a very good stay for us in case we knew about it in advance. Nonetheless we moved on.


It was surprising that very few people were able to give us the correct directions for the two places and we went off road a couple of times before we were able to reach the smaller of the two “Sanaghagra” falls.
The place had been decently maintained. One had to walk for about 500mtrs from the parking area to reach the falls. It was a series of small but beautiful waterfalls. Unfortunately it did not look very inviting for a dip so most of us kept to the sides getting wet and playing around.
On the way back to our bikes, there was a villager selling blocks of wood claiming to be sandal at 40 bucks each. I was skeptical about the authenticity of the same since a block of sandalwood of that size costs around 800 bucks back in Cauvery, Bangalore. In fact the doubt was strengthened when he agreed to give it for 15 bucks a piece. Only to realize at the end of the journey that we had been duped :), it was just a block of wood dipped in scented water, did not expect this from a villager. Post “sanghagra” we headed for “badaghagra”.

Trying to figure out the way, we realized that it was a narrow stony road uphill which lead to the Ghagra river reservoir and the falls. We could see no one on the way and nowhere near and around as well. Such was the situation that at one point we divided into two groups at a V junction and planned come back after exactly 10 mins, since there was no network in any one’s mobile (Something Vodafone should look at. they did not follow me here). Incidentally both the ways went to different sides of the water fall. We reached the base of the waterfall where there was some solar power station which looked as if it was an abandoned building. While the other group reached the reservoir. Shouts and yells brought both the groups together at the huge reservoir.
It was a beautiful sight with only water at one end of the horizon and lush green jungle on the other end.
Considering it was 2pm already and we were way behind our schedule we headed for the other places on our list. Still clueless as to what to visit, how to visit, where to go, we took the advice of some local people as to what could be completed within the small amount of time that we had. A unanimous answer was Gonasika, and the origin of river baithrani. Asking directions was easy, but getting the right direction was a hell of a task. From the main road near Sanghagra, the distance was estimated to be about 25-30kms.
Once off the highway towards Sambhalpur, it was a dreamlike stretch with a narrow but smooth single road with tall trees on both sides. It was a winding road with steep ups and downs…more of climbs since we were on our way towards the hill top.
Even though the ride was smooth but the load of pillion and the steep climb made our mean machines to groan in agony.
And that’s when it happened, one of them broke down. Chain went loose. We were like, in middle of nowhere, no idea how far we were from civilization, how much time it would take to reach there and million such thoughts started brewing in our heads. That’s when a god sent angel came (a local) who though was going the other way, obliged us by taking us to the village mechanic. The mechanic’s shop was so inconspicuous, that we could have not possibly figured it out on our own. The bike was fixed and we were ready to start again all thanks to that angel.
In this village it was a temple ahead of which was the river origin. Prayers were offered at the temple, Prasad taken and off we were towards the hilltop. Road now was the narrowest, and there was a point where we had to finally park our bikes to walk and climb the rest of the distance.
After walking for a while, there was another series of steps painted green by the moss covering them and small streams of water gushing by. At the end of the steps was a very small temple. Inside was an idol of a goddess and a rock looking like head of a cow at her feet.

On close observation we saw the stream of water actually pouring out of the nostrils of that cow head shaped rock. This, this was the origin of the baitarini river. Such an interesting thing it is, that most of the rivers start from small springs or streams like this and grow huge before flowing into the sea. It was about 4.30 and slightly getting dark, so with more prayers, more offerings and some snaps we wrapped up the stay there. Next task was to reach back to our hotel. Ride downhill was much easier and smoother since we knew the roads well now. Our only aim was to be able 2 hit the state highway before the trucks and dumpers did. But as luck would have had it, on the way back Sunil’s bike gave in again. This time it was a flat tyre. Since we were moving in sets of two bikes, he had one company. Since there was no network, there was no possibility of messaging to us as we had moved ahead.
Interestingly Vivek volunteered to get some help, waved his thumb, got a lift to nowhere (mind it he does not understand hindi, forget Oriya). The situation now, one bike reached the hotel, one stopped en route ahead since a call connected to them from a local PCO, two bikes at the puncture shop, and a lost guy with no network.
It was a painful ordeal of patience and wait for about an hour before everyone was able to get in touch with each other. Maybe the prayers came for our help. Else otherwise it could have easily been a big search operation since it was already pretty dark.
Everyone took a breather getting back together at the hotel and that’s when the ragging session of the lost soul began. The fun got interrupted by the tea and plates full of hot aloo pakoras which in no time were gobbled up. These were the first elements of food that got into our system other than biscuits and water. Refueled we were back on the road by 7. By now it was already late and we had to face the ordeal of the following the trucks with the whirlwind of dust behind them.
This time we were not lucky to be at the Ma Tarini temple on time, way late by half hour. By now we knew that there was no chance we could reach before 12, but the need of the hour was food, which we desperately longed for. The hope of getting a good dhabha on the highway fuelled us to cover the next 50kms of the ride. The small eating joints looked too tempting on the way, but we held back to reach the highway, even though we were not sure of what we would possibly get there.
And then came the highway, and a series of small and big dhabhas. Had no more patience, simply barged into one, ordered a humongous meal and gulped Masala coke while we waited for the feast to arrive. Not a great meal, but then who cares when you’re hungry. Gluttony had taken over the taste buds. Now that everyone was full getting up from those chairs now seemed to take like an eternity. It was 12.30 by now, and we had another 100kms to reach Bhubaneswar. But now it was a smooth 6 lane national highway ahead of us, with barely any traffic. Stomachs full to hearts desire we were ready to zoom back to our comfortable homes.
Zipping at comfortable speeds of 80-90, in no time we were back in Bhubaneswar sitting at the Rasulgarh circle for everyone to catch up. There we were, all of us sitting and laughing at the moments from the trip. Finally at 2.30 in the night we bid each other byes as we parted ways for our homes.
Lying on my bed, after such an eventful trip, I was wondering how ill cope with the uneventful days in office ahead. That’s when I stretched, shrugged the thought out of my head, turned on my side and slipped into sweet slumber. Goodnight!

Places of Stay in Keonjhar:
Panthanivas Keonjhar, At/Po. Judia, Keonjhar - 758 002,
Tel. 06766 - 253603, Mob. 9238211629
Hotel Shreekrishna, NH6 Near Madhapur
09437826311, (06766)256999, 250111
Other hotels in the area are
Hotel Ajanta 06766-253372, Hotel Plaza 06766-255246, Labanya Lodge 06766-255507, Keonjhar Lodge 06766-255794 , Gayatree guest house 06766-255668, Hotel Ankita, Shreekshetra Hotel

More pics from the trip can be found at Picasa Album

-- Nalin Agarwal

Travelogue - 64(Chousath) Yogini

Location: Hirapur village, Khorda Distt.

Nearest Towns: Bhubaneswar.

Distances: 16Kms from Bhubaneswar

Getting there: Bhubaneswar towards Puri, left turn into the village after crossing Dhauli. One can book an auto or taxi to and fro from Bhubaneswar.

Trip Length: 3 Hrs

Best Time to Visit: September to March (preferably mornings to be able to attend the morning puja)

Worst Time to Visit: Peak Summer

Permission: None Required

Things to look for: 64 Yogini temple and local palm leaf art

Things to carry: Bottle of water, some snacks, extra memory card for camera (you are bound to take many photos).

Rating:

Fact file:

Simple circular enclosures without a roof are an unusual phenomenon among the religious shrines in India. In addition, the circular walls of these enclosures have niches that enshrine sixty-four female images known as Yoginis. These shrines are referred to as the Chausath (sixty-four) Yogini temples, and the cult associated with them is known as the Yogini cult, forbidden archaeological sites of India. All told, nine Yogini temples have been discovered so far in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Orissa has two of these outstanding temples located at Hirapur, a deltoid village just outside Bhubaneswar, and another at Ranipur Jharial in the western strip of Bolangir district.

Of all the Yogini temples of India, the Hirapur Temple is the best preserved forbidden archaeological site. Located over the vast plains of the Mahanadi delta, on the bank of the sacred Bhargavi River, Hirapur is a small picturesque village, set amidst a peaceful environment, just outside the modern bustling town of Bhubaneswar. The Yogini Temple, otherwise known as the Mahamaya Temple, situated near the village entrance has an ambience that is quite charged. The temple conveys an impression of the overwhelming power of its sixty-four Yoginis. Mahamaya, the presiding deity of the temple is found adorned with red cloth and vermilion. The deity is still worshipped by the local villagers.

The Hirapur Temple is the smallest of the Yogini temples in India. The temple is a circular structure, 30 feet in diameter, which is built of coarse sandstone and has barely 8 feet high walls containing 64 niches to house the sculptures of Yoginis or Dakinis (2 feet in height). These 64 deities carved from fine-grained gray chlorite are goddess with voluptuous figures or animal faces and shrunken skulls give the 64 Yogini Shrines its name. These goddesses in turn serve Goddess Kali (Bhairavi). The Yogini cult, an offshoot of tantric practices in India during the 9th -13th century, believed that by worshipping the 64 goddesses and the Goddess Bhairavi, they would be able to channel the destructive energies of these deities to acquire positive supernatural powers for themselves including the ability to shape shift and become invisible.

The deities are derived from the village deity such as Ramchandi, Shyamkali, Harachandi, Tarini, Viraja, Bhagavati, Durgamata, Sarala, Bhadrakali, Kamakhya, Bhabani, and Mangala who are revered by the local villagers. Together in numerical groupings of 8 especially 64, they unleash there significant powers that can create and destroy mankind.

*Source: Wikipedia, Orissa tourism etc.

The Journey:

Inspired by my previous visit, and the pleasant weather, a friend of mine tagged along with me this time to explore the much talked about Yogini temple. Also since it was the 1^st chance for me to get started with my new baby ….Canon 1000D I was pretty much excited about the trip. Considering that it was just 16kms away, we took our own sweet time, had lunch and then made a move for the place on my bike. We reached the place around 2 in the afternoon, with an overcast sky; it was a great weather for making an excursion. The place was beautifully located within the village with a big pond on one side and farms all the way.

At the entrance of the complex was a small but a beautiful temple on the left with a statue of Gopinath. Similar to other temples I have seen here, it was painted in vibrant shades of orange, red and blue with an idol of nandi facing the door of the temple.

A little up ahead was the Yogini Temple. At the first sight of it, one may simply consider it like a circular stage or a platform of stones being only a little over 7-8 ft in height. Moving close one can see the idols on the outer walls of the temple as well as two idols standing carved at the narrow entrance. We stooped to enter inside the temple through the small gate. The temple inside had a perfect circular wall and without a roof. We couldn’t help notice and admire the beautifully carved idols of the Yoginis on the wall one beside the other.

Closely observing, each one of them looked as if they were made of metal, so neat was their finishing even considering it is a temple belonging to 9-13^th century. It was a transformation into another world altogether, with an open sky above and surrounded by idols which were considered extremely powerful in the tantric cult religion. Each idol was clearly distinguished from the other by the mounts, postures and head structures. A guide explained each of the 64 idols and their names, some of which I remember are Narmada on an elephant, Mananda on lotus, Padmavati on snake etc. Some of the idols were damaged and fractured, and are considered to be the act of an angry king. At the centre of the temple was an elevated platform with four pillars, which was explained to be the place for the execution of sacrifices.

The two idols at the entrance were Kala and Mahakala. However being mythologically very poor, I could not truly appreciate the religious or the spiritual significance of the presence of various idols there, but for sure I felt the entire setup to be overwhelming.

After taking photographs of the temple, and some special pics of my friend who needed them to be posted for his matrimonial page ….we made our exit from the temple complex. My friend got into a conversation with a local villager there while I was busy taking photographs, and that’s when I realized the villager had taken my friend to his home which was just nearby. I followed them into the house. That guy and his wife were actually artists who painted and drew on palm leaves and sold them for a living and wanted to show/sell them to us.

Here they showed us the various pieces of art they had made. A quick look into their house I could see various idols of lord Jagannath and other art pieces. In fact as a demonstration the woman even showed us how they make the drawings on the palm leaf. With a heavy, big nail like tool she quickly drew some invisible stuff on the leaf. Then she rubbed some kohl on that area and voila, the drawing appeared. Within seconds she had made a real neat pair of hands and a face.

As an appreciation to their art and efforts, we both bought small drawings from them. (A personal word here, do not bargain much with them or artists like them anywhere, they make their livings with this art and just because of the support they get is that various art forms are still getting carried on forward to generations. And make sure ure promoting the artists not the traders)

We made a final bow towards the temple, hopped on the bike and headed back towards our cribs.

More pics from this trip can be found here Picasa Album

--Nalin Agarwal

Travelogue - Hatkeshwar Temple and Atri Hot Water Spring

Location: Baghmari village, Khorda Distt.

Nearest Towns: Bhubaneswar.

Distances: 42Kms from Bhubaneswar

Getting there: Bhubaneswar towards Khorda (NH5), turn into khorda town and keep left from new bus stand. Baghamari is well connected with Govt and Private Buses from Bhubaneswar and you can find Buses within one hour interval for Nayagarh.

Trip Length: 3 Hrs

Best Time to Visit: October to Feb

Worst Time to Visit: Peak Summer & Peak Monsoons

Permission: None Required

Things to look for: Hatkeshwar temple and Hot water springs

Things to carry: Bottle of water, some snacks.

Rating:

Factfile:

Situated in the Khurda district of Orissa, 42 Kilometers from the capital city, Atri is one of the most popular hot water sulfur springs in Orissa. The Atri sulfur spring is situated in the middle of paddy fields, and a distinct odor of sulfur surrounds the entire surroundings. The water at the Atri hot water spring maintains a steady temperature of 55 degree centigrade all through out the day. The waters from the spring are reserved in an artificial lake for the use of the people.

With a depth of around 15 feet and a circumference of 10 feet, the reservoir collects enough water to supply all the people visiting the place. The crystal clear water of the Atri sulfur spring is believed to have medical properties that have curative powers. According to the local people the Atri sulfur spring can even cure the infertility of women.

The Atri sulfur spring is located in a picturesque setting and the path leading to the spring is lined with banyan, neem and peepul trees. The tourism department of Orissa has constructed a bathing complex besides the spring which allows the pilgrims to take hot water bath indoors. Besides having healing powers the hot water of the Atri spring is famous for rejuvenating ones body and soul. Very near the Atri sulfur spring is located the Shrine of Lord Hatakeswar which is also a popular tourist spot. The place acquires a festive look on the days of Sivaratri and festival of Makar Sakranti.

*Source: Wikipedia, Orissa tourism etc.

The Journey:

After wasting numerous weekends spending indoors lazin off or watchin movies I finally decided to give myself a break. Starting after a big gap I needed somewhere close, somewhere easy to warm myself up before I went into bigger expedites once again. So there I was sitting online looking for places in the near vicinity. Of all the options thrown, I chose a lesser visited place known for an old temple (Hatkeshwar Temple) and a not so famous Sulfur hot water spring. Total travel distance was approximated to 42kms and about an hour to reach there. Neither wikimapia nor google maps were of any help to check the route, nonetheless the area was known so the plan was final. Unfortunately my friends were still coming out from the inertia and the hangover from the night…so if I had to travel…it had to be by myself. Still anyways…

I started easy at 11 in the morning towards town of Khurda on NH5. The weather was perfect, cloudy, very light drizzle at times, great road … I couldn’t have had chosen a better day for this trip.

After cruising for 24Kms on the national highway from Khandgiri square, I turned right to enter the roads of town. One could easily miss the turnings as there were no signboards, and from the boards or hoardings of shops etc, it was difficult to make out the area since they were all in Oriya. That’s when the friendly local crowd comes to the rescue, after seeking the directions from the local in my broken two-three word local vocab, I was able to figure the way out. It was mostly straight roads with complete greenery around, green farms on both the sides and an overcast sky up and ahead of me.

These roads through the town with a couple of turns brought me to the temple. It was a beautiful temple with the colourful arch and statues at the entrance. Amidst the quiet farms and serene surroundings the temple was really peaceful. After offering my prayers and taking some pics I made a move towards the hot sulphur springs.

A mile ahead from the temple was the “Atri-Hot Springs”. I entered into the complex with a measly entry charge of Rs.2 (inflation sure didn’t hit here !!). In the centre of the complex was the well. Walking towards it I could get the same pungent smell that we used to shove at the noses from the test tubes to irritate the girls in the chemistry lab …yes it was sulphur. Peeping inside the well I could get the whiffs of bubbling hydrogen sulphide emanating from the hot water.

In the meanwhile a priest (or he pretended to be one) had hurried over to me bringing along a small cup tied from a rope which he hurled into the well and took out some water for me to experience, giving the gyaan of 55 degrees temperature etc. He finally left me at peace once he was handed over a currency note. It was a well maintained well, looking around I saw some bathing pools which supposedly had the same sulfur water to cure various ailments. Being touted as having medicinal properties I did wanted to have a go and take a dip in the same.

As I walked towards the 4 of them, there was Fifth pond with the title as ‘Maansik Kuan (Literal English translation – Mental Pond). At the sight of that I was so sad that I should have brought some of my friends with me…mebbe a dip here would have helped them gain some mental stability... Sigh…they should have come along !!! Moving further towards the 4 small pools, my enthusiasm was however dampened by the sight those pools were in.

Local villagers were busy having a proper soapy bath while some were busy washing clothes. Nearing the ponds I couldn’t se the inside of the pool because of the deeply murky water.

Considering that I am in the pink of my health I thought I can make a pass at having a dip in this water.. maybe laters when I would need some medicinal treatments ill come back again..till then this can wait. Apart from this the complex there had a small park with a couple of swings and see-saws where some kids were having a good time.

Being promoted as a tourist destination under Orissa tourism I would say that this place has not got any attention at all. The main attraction, the hot water spring is safe in that well, but those pools which should have been an interesting pull for tourists was shabbily or rather not maintained at all. Overall my score for this place would be 1 out of 5. Not a place that you may feel sad about in case you’re not able to make a visit here.

Finally the lazy me started to take over me slowly and I headed back straight for my home..where my cozy comfortable bed was waiting for me. Not a very rewarding trip but the weather and the surroundings surely made it worth remembering.

More pics from this trip can be found here Picasa Album

--Nalin Agarwal

My First blog

Well here i am......after ages of running away from writing....i finally am giving in to the blogging arena.

Lets see how far i am able to keep up with this... :)