During a short
trip to Chennai recently, I decided to
go to the Marina beach early in the morning to get some interesting shots. Though
the weather was overcast, I did manage to click some pictures.
The first thing
that caught my attention at the beach was the statue of the Italian Tamil
scholar Constantine Joseph Beschi.
I made a mental note about looking up this
guy who was here in India three centuries ago. When I read about him later on
the net I was dumbfounded.
He was an
Italian who landed in Madurai in 1711 to learn Tamil. This would be putting it
mildly when one reads about him in detail. I leave it to you to read more about him in Wikipedia.
As I proceeded
towards the sea, I saw these guys playing beach volley ball, only the team
looked stronger with five on one side.
This
boy with his horse was on the look out for some prospective customers for a horse
ride.
There was this
unusual sight where people were doing some sort of puja as per the directions
of the pundit. They seemed to be at a loss about the sequence of the
ritual and simply followed directions, while I just went
on clicking.
Finally they picked up the banana leaves (on which they were
doing the puja), went as close to the water as possible and threw it into the sea.
Meanwhile another set of people sat down and started the whole procedure again.
Curious, I asked one elderly man (who just
finished the puja) the meaning of the ritual that was taking place.
The man apparently
knew a lot and was happy to explain it to me in detail “Today is Aadi Amavasi -
new moon day. It is a day for Pithir Tharpanam, a day for praying for your
forefathers. A ghee lamp is lit, manthras are chanted, bells toll,
these were done for the souls to rest in peace.
Sesame seeds are considered to
be holy and is used in this puja along with grass”
He went on “Aadi Amavasi is
special as it is the first Amavasi in Dakshinayam - Sun’s southward journey"
Well that
enlightened me a little, something like the ‘All Souls Day’ observed by the
Catholics.
Looking at the
bundle of leaves, I was sure that they were all prepared to take in any number
of people who wanted to do the puja.
From the corner
of my eye, I saw that that the enrollment was in progress for the next batch. Maybe the picture is out of focus because it is a view from the corner of my eye :-)
I moved on. The
‘Beach Volleyball’ continued . . . . . . .
and this boy (horse rider) was still looking
for customers.
Two fishing boats
were pulled up on the beach. The over cast sky made it a perfect setting for Aadi
Amavasi.
I think there are more photographs than text in this post, but then, why not let the the photographs speak for themselves for a change.
18 comments:
In my humble opinion, there is no such thing as too many photographs Joe.
Anyway, loved the post. I've been to that beach believe it or not.
Very interesting post, Joe. You got some great photos!
Lovely post and beautiful photos!
Enjoyed the stories and pictures. The Aadi Amavasi is interesting.
You took me down the memory lane. I remember, the bajjis, the thengai, manga pattani sundal, the beautifully sliced raw mangoes,the shell crafts. Our grandparents lived near the beach, and our summer holidays were spent there.
Of course, now it is very crowded and also not so clean, however going there early in the morning is always a good idea.
The pictures have come out so well, especially the last one with the two boats.
You have drawn a pictorial life
Photographs always tell a story.
I have heard the beach is quite beautiful and clean. Have yet to visit it.
People down south are still quite ritualistic whereas most people are doing away with them because of lack of time and enthusiasm..
Being a resident of Chennai, I have never been so early to the Marina. This post was a treat. Thanks.
Joy always,
Susan
Lovely set of pics, have been there but never witnessed such a beauty.
beautiful photo's the only thing I would say is throwing all that into the sea.. not good what about the sea life..
I remember the horse rides up and down the beach :) enjoye them
Bikram's
Lovely captures. The enrollment for the next batch was so typical. Made me smile. Loved the two boats.
great pics and story. many cultures observe this praying for the departed thing. my chinese neighbours are always burning something for their great grans. my only grouse is that the dust end up on my living room floor, swept by the wind since we live on the 18th floor!!
Fascinating stuff! I love your shots and your story. I really felt like I just spent the day walking through that journey with you! Thanks for sharing :)
So very interesting. Now wouldn't it be something if there are no "souls" or afterlife? So much time and energy wasted. Or maybe not. Maybe the rituals serve some other purpose, too.
Love your photos. And I checked out the Tamil priest...an especially talented person, I'd say.
Lovely capture, Joe. This is one of the longest beach in the World.
Reminded me of my younger days when I studied at Madras Medical College.it is a lovely beach,but not well kept even those days.
Your pictures are perfect!
Thankyou for leaving your comments on my blog the other day. :)
I have some faint memories of marina beach as I have spent some of my childhood days there. :)
Your pictures and stories are really nice. :)
Regards
Tanuja
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http://tanuja-photography.blogspot.in/
http://tanuja-photography.blogspot.in/
Nice pictures especially that of the rituals for the deceased. I'm not sure we can say that the people were at a loss about the sequence of the rituals, coz generally commoners do not know about what has to be done. I believe the priests generally guide the people who are doing the rituals; that according to the mantras he recites.
It's nice to know that they had extra banana leaves and other things for more people who might want to do the rituals. That's interesting because people living in cities find it difficult to carry out such customs. Great pictures, once again :)
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