Singapore Life Bliss Foundation Site Down

As was expected the Singapore Life Bliss Foundation site shows an announcement that says: “Yoga - Meditation - Spirituality - Life Bliss Foundation, Singapore. This site is down for maintenance. Please check back again soon”.

Earlier, after Paramahamsa Nithyananda went into hiding after he was allegedly caught on tape in a secret romp with a Tamil actress and his ashram at Bidadi near Bangalore, was raided by police, there were news reports that the Malaysian Ashram of Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam/ Life Bliss Foundation will be cooperating with the Indian authorities on investigations against Swami Nithyananda. Their website http://nithyanandam.net was closed down and the domain name is now on sale.

Similar news reports alleged that the Singapore Branch of Life Bliss Foundation is also distancing itself from Swami Nithyananda. So, possibly, the Singapore site is either being redone by removing the controversial texts and photos of the persons who are either now under judicial custody in India or wanted by police for interrogation. Or, they may put up the new site with their own new content promoting spirituality, yoga, meditation, etc. by totally avoiding any connection with Swami Nithyananda, as some of the organizations abroad, including in USA, have done.

Nithyananda Vedic Temple in USA was closed down and a similar notice appeared in their website, www.nithyanandavedictemple.org, saying: “Beginning on Saturday, April 17 the Nithyananda Vedic Temple will be closed to the public. Our deepest thanks for your patronage over the years. We look forward to seeing you again when the temple re-opens.” The site continues to remain so even today, i.e., May 9, 2010.

There are other sites that distanced themselves from Swami Nithyananda, whose own site has several pages that are either blank, or being redone. For example, the page containing photos and details of the fourth Acharya training in the US at Camp Buckhorn near Los Angeles, CA, when Swami Nithyananda ‘blessed Los Angeles Ashramites with new spiritual names’, www.dhyanapeetam.org/web/WorldTourJuly2006.asp, is removed/deleted. Incidentally, it contained the details/photos of Sri Nithya Bhaktananda (Gopal Reddy/ Sri Anand Roop), Ma Nithya Dayananda Mayi (Jyothi/ Ma Nithya Roop), Sri Nithya Medhananda (Krishna/ Sri Nithya Omkaar), Ma Nithya Medhananda Mayi (Kavita/ Ma Ananda Maatrusri), Sri Nithya Sevakananda (Raj/ Sri Nithya Shaaleen), Ma Nithyananda Gopika (Vidya/ Ma Ananda Satyaprakashini), Ma Nithya Shaantananda (Suman/ Ma Nithya Premanjali), Sri Nithya Sahajananda (Sreraman/ Sri Nithya Saadhak) and Sri Nithya Vimalananda (Vinay/ Sri Nithya Satyajyothi)”.

As per reports, Sri Nithya Bhaktananda was arrested by Bangalore police and he is now in a sub-jail near Bangalore, and news reports say that the Karnataka CID wants Ma Nithyananda Gopika (Vidya/ Ma Ananda Satyaprakashini/ Nithya Gopika) for interrogation.

When Swami Nithyananda visited Singapore in Aug 2008, I happened to read the news and saw the photos and details on a site. Now, after the alleged sex scandal broke out, I rechecked the site and found the photos and details in tact. They include photos and details of his welcome by trustees of Thandayuthapani Temple; reception with Poornakumbha by the temple priests; invocation by children welcoming him; the temple trustee honoring him with garland; shawl and presenting him with a memento; his discourse on Murugan; the one-day program covering Yoga for Body, Verbalization and Being; his arrival in Singapore Polytechnic for the one-day program - Guaranteed Solutions of Bliss; the swami serving dinner to the participants; Ananda Darshan at the end of NSP, etc. Need these photos? Send a message to me!

Now, possibly, after they (or Nithyananda’s own staff) see this post, they may remove/ delete these photos and details with the hope that it will cut of any contact with Swami Nithyananda. This is often viewed as being done to destroy evidence. But, it is the worst thing that can be done for disassociation, because those who want these sites/ photos/ pages might have already saved the details, taken screen shots, etc., and it will only increase the suspicion on the site owners.

What normally happens is that people interested in spiritualism, meditation, cultural programs, etc. get associated with the organizations/ persons who promote such activities. At that point of time, there was nothing like a scandal that broke out now. Possibly, no one in that particular site/ photos/ organization was involved in the alleged cases. So, unless they want to turn the needle of suspicion towards them, they should not shut down the sites, remove pages, etc. Necessary changes can be made by amending the pages with new details and announcements that naturally are required in such circumstances so that people are not misled.

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple in Singapore

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple is a Hindu temple located in the middle of Little India in the southern part of Singapore.

The Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple is dedicated to the Hindu Goddess Kali, the fierce embodiment of Shakti and Lord Shiva's wife, Parvati. Kali has always been a very popular Goddess in the Indian State of Bengal, the birthplace of the laborers in Singapore who built this temple in 1881. Images of Kali within the temple show her wearing a garland of skulls and ripping out the insides of her victims (demons), and Kali sharing more peaceful family moments with her sons Ganesha and Murugan.

The Temple building is constructed in the style of South Indian Tamil temples (South Indian Dravidian style of architecture) common in Tamil Nadu, as opposed to the style of Northeastern Indian Kali temples in Bengal, where worship of Goddess Kali is widespread.

Sri Mariamman Temple, the oldest temple in Singapore

Sri Mariamman Temple on 2 Dec 2005

Old Gopuram of Sri Mariamman Temple on a postcard of 1901

Sri Mariamman Temple is Singapore's oldest Hindu temple, as old as Singapore itself. The temple is a National Monument and a major tourist attraction. Sri Mariamman Temple is managed by the Hindu Endowments Board, a statutory body under Singapore Government.

Sri Mariamman Temple was founded in 1827 by Naraina Pillai (also spelled as Naraina Pillay) eight years after the British East India Company established a trading settlement in Singapore. Pillai, a government clerk from Penang, arrived in Singapore with Stamford Raffles in May 1819. Pillai soon established himself in business and became a leader of the Indian community in Singapore.

By 1827, Pillai built a simple temple made of wood and attap palm (Nypa fruticans) and installed a small idol of the goddess Mariamman, the South Indian mother goddess especially worshipped for protection against diseases - the early Singapore was mostly jungle and diseases were rampant. Later in 1843 the present temple was constructed, similar to Sri Meenakshi temple in Madurai, India. According to the Hindu Endowments Board, the existing deity in the principal shrine of the temple is the original installed by Pillai in 1827. The temple was also known as Sithi Vinayagar temple, Gothanda Ramaswamy Mariamman Temple and Mariamman Kovil.

The elaborate plaster sculptures and ornamentation of the temple were created by skilled craftsmen brought from Nagapattinam and Cuddalore in South India. The original three-tiered, slimmer gopuram was constructed in 1903. The present six-tiered gopuram was built in 1925.

Recent additions include a new elevated gallery for spectators during the annual fire walking festival (Thimithi). Another major addition is a three storey annex building with a fully equipped auditorium and facilities for weddings, multimedia presentations, corporate meetings, seminars and cultural events.

The temple was the Registry of Marriages for Hindus, the priest of the Sri Mariamman Temple being authorized to solemnize Hindu marriages in Singapore. Today, in addition to its religious services and functions, the temple promotes various social, cultural and educational activities.

Built in the South Indian Dravidian style of architecture, the most outstanding feature of Mariamman Kovil is its impressive gopuram (entrance tower). It has six tiers covered with figurative sculptures of Hindu gods and goddesses and other Hindu mythological figures. The gopuram tower tapers upwards to a moulded ornamental ridge.

The sculptures are all of plaster, which allows for fine detailing. They are painted in a variety of bright colors, which adds to the visually spectacular quality of the gopuram.

The shrine of Draupadi, the second in importance in the temple, is central to the annual fire walking ceremony held about a week before Deepavali (the Festival of Lights). To the left of Draupadi are the five Pandavas from the Mahabharata epic - Yudhisthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Sahadeva and Nakula. They are presided over by Lord Krishna. The temple compound also contains a Lingam sculpture and Yoni sculpture.

According to visitsingapore.com visitors to Sri Mariamman Temple ‘are advised to dress conservatively as this is a place of worship’.

Location: 244 South Bridge Road, Chinatown, Singapore 058793

Tel: (65) 6223 4064

Getting there: Take the MRT to City Hall Station (EW13/NS25) and from there take SBS Transit bus 103, 166 or 197 or SMRT Bus 61 from North Bridge Road.

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple, Little India, Singapore

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple @ Little India, Singapore :: HDR, originally uploaded by Artie | Photography :: Not Lazy | Super Busy.

From the photographer: "I don't have any more Sunday church shots to post. However, Sunday is not just for churches. I know it is also a special day for our Indian friends out there especially in Singapore. It is a big day out for many of them. So hopefully this works OK here, as I am not sure if I should post this. Anyway here goes one of the most beautiful Indian temples in Singapore".

Indian Temple in China Town

Indian Temple in China Town, originally uploaded by MeloVillareal.

This a photo of the gopuram of Sri Mariamman Temple, the oldest Hindu temple in China Town, Singapore. Originally constructed by Indian businessman Naraina Pillai, the temple is as old as Singapore itself. It is a National Monument of Singapore and a major tourist attraction.