reminiscenes of rameswaram and the morning cuppa

Ofcource i can not put into words the beauty and grandeur of this magnificent temple of Ramanatheswar...With the advent of visual media,it is not even required.for,just one image on a net link could tell you all,bring in the sights, ,the lights and shades,more vividly than what one could write pages in a positive bout of verbal diarrhoea. So i would just set about describing some reminiscences of how it struck me on that beautiful sunny morning......


One was the feeling that the temple could do with some repairs and better upkeep .yes... it was a massive structure and will soak in huge funds like a sponge. it WAS being maintained very well considering the facts, how so many people visit it daily, and how our customs like breaking coconuts, lighting lamps,the bathing that was peculiar to this particular temple make it difficult to keep it ship shape.Yes.. they were doing yeoman" service. but still... you feel...ammavari mukhamantapam and some other small ones could do with some repair,etc etc


The pictures could give you an idea of the place,... but scents?... touch?...One was a funny experience... like you feel as if you never could get the sand out of your feet. you see... it was so near the beach, and all those devotees bringing in the sand...It is a local hazard as only coastal people could tell you...Another funny thing was the smell of that salt water..As hundreds of people come in after bathing and again do it on the premises,the beautiful corridors of Rameswaram seem to be perpetually smelling of ,wet clothes, water,and yes... fish.

Another quite disturbing thing(for me personally, ofcource) happened as we went for our early morning darshan....There was"nt a single hotel, or roadside vendor offering COFFEE...that was not too bad by itself...considering,4.oo A.M was such an ungodly hour,even in Rameswaram,but the worst of all scenarios was happening here..They were offering TEA........TEA,making inroads to the fag end of good old tamilnadu.?.. Has the last bastion for that elixir of all drinks,namely filter coffee ,fallen? In fact,filter coffee seemed to be hard to get at almost all places on our trip,as i have observed.They were offering only instant BRU cofee...yuck .I shook my head at this sad state of affairs.....whither my beloved south India?. This body, albeit 47 year old ,had been nurtured on that king of all beverages and would not go on without the fuel...well..ofcource i drank the tea....see... back at home even my little shiva drinks hot coffee i regularly offer him,....not the oily, ghee laden chakkera pongal,these priests are in the habit of serving him, at such an early hour.... you see.... i adhere to the advice given to someone like me,by the great saint Ramakrishna Paramhamsa."offer whatever you eat or drink first to god without worrying about whether you have bathed or not " .... well... that seemed eminently practicable for me, while my aunt at Bandar went a step still further. She keeps an image og saibaba on her dining table and every item on the menu is automatically offered as naivedyam at all times.... Once ,at shirdi,.. i observed some people serving tea to the numerous mendicants and poor,as free service.. I must say, i liked the concept...while some people may denigrate this practice of drinking coffee, tea..as unhealthy ,personally i was touched by this kindness in bearing with and satisfying harmless human weaknesses.


Well....so much on this morning cup of coffee.