The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, popularly known as Amma, passed away on 5 December 2016 at 11:30 pm at the Apollo Hospital, Chennai. The death followed a cardiac arrest she suffered on Sunday night.
The 68-year-old leader was buried in the presence of tens of thousands of mourners, with full state honors at Marina beach, Chennai, next to the memorial of her mentor and former chief minister Dr M G Ramachandran.
Her mortal remains were brought to her residence in Poes Garden on at 6 am Tuesday. She was draped in the Tricolor, the Indian national flag, and encased in a glass casket and placed at the Rajaji Hall for the grieving people to pay their tributes.
The nation is mourning the death of Amma along with the people of Tamil Nadu. The Tamil Nadu government has declared state mourning for seven days. Holidays have been declared by various state governments across India.
Life in Chennai and the rest of Tamil Nadu came to a standstill when news of her death spread with shops, educational institutions and offices remaining closed. The national flag was lowered half mast across India.
Several prominent leaders from all walks of life visited Rajaji Hall to pay their tributes to the departed leader, including President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Meanwhile, O Panneerselvam, who has been the acting Chief Minister since Jayalalithaa was admitted to Apollo Hospital on September 22, was sworn in as the Chief Minister of the state.
Suchindram, an important pilgrim centre and the site of the famous Thanumalayan Temple, is situated in Kanniyakumari District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is 11 km from Kanyakumari City, 7 km from Nagarcoil town, 70 km from Tirunelveli and about 85 km from Trivandrum City (Thiruvananthapuram) in Kerala.
An annual 10-day chariot festival is celebrated in Suchindram Temple to commemorate the three deities Brahma, Vishnu and Siva, whose images in their own chariots are taken in procession. The temple is believed to have been constructed between the 17th and 18th centuries, no authentic records show the precise date/period of construction.
This image titled 'A little fishing village at Kanyakumari by Chenresig on Flickr' shows that part of the beach probably not much visited by tourists. Also known as Cape Comerin, it is the southern most tip of peninsular contiguous India, a hot favourite with tourists. Kanyakumari offers the only opportunity in the world to view the sun rising from one sea (The Bay of Bengal) and setting in another sea (The Arabian Sea), and the mighty Indian Ocean in the south of the two seas.
Marina Beach is a primarily sandy beach along the Bay of Bengal, dotting the city of Chennai, India. With an uninterrupted stretch of 13 km, Marina Beach is said to be the second longest beach in the world. The entire stretch of the Marina Beach is famous for a number of beautiful statues and historical monuments, including various government institutions and historical buildings of the British Raj era.
Located on the Marina Beach front is the Ice House, where Swami Vivekananda stayed during his visit in 1897, now known as Vivekananda House that houses art exhibits and memorabilia related to the life and mission of Swami Vivekananda.
The roadside area of the beach is dotted with stone statues of legendary personalities such as Mahatma Gandhi, Thiruvalluvar and Kannagi. Memorials for M. G. Ramachandran and C. N. Annadurai, the former Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu, are also present on the beach, along with a recent addition of the statue of the actor Sivaji Ganesan.
Marina Beach is famous for its pristine beauty and rich ecosystems, though, since the middle of the twentieth century, the beach and seawater have become polluted. Efforts are being made to clean up the pollutants, with special emphasis on the protection of Olive Ridley turtle nests along the Neelangarai section of the beach.
The crowd at Marina Beach in the evening
In 2008 the Chennai Corporation started the ambitious Marina Renovation Project which aims at improving landscaping, seating arrangements, walkways and lighting along the promenade. A total of 14 galleries with seating arrangements have been built on nearly 3 km stretch between Triumph of Labour Statue and the Light House. Another 3 km segment from Anna Square to the Light House has uninterrupted pavement and a sub-road parallel to the main road. As part of ‘Chennai Forever’ campaign by the Tamil Nadu state government, a 34-feet tall artificial Marina Waterfall was created in September 2005.
A parked catamaran on Marina Beach
Marina Beach is a major tourist attraction with its memorials and statues, morning walk, joggers' track, lovers' spot, aquarium, etc. and is a popular hangout zone for people of all ages. The sea is rough and the waves are strong, with the possibility of forceful undercurrents near the shore. For this reason, swimming, bathing, etc. are prohibited in the sea.
There are several colonies of fishermen at both the ends of the beach. Though the picture above shows a lone catamaran parked on the sands, a typical fishing colony area on the beach will have several catamarans, fishing boats, fishing nets, and people engaged in fishing working on their daily routines.
Thiruchendur Lord Murugan Temple (Thiruchendur Senthilandavan Koil) is one of the six major abodes of Lord Muruga, who is worshipped here by also other names such as Senthilandavan and Senthilkumar. Lord Murugan is also known as Subrahmanya, Karthikeya, Kumaran, Skanda, Saravana, Shanmukha, Arumugan, Swaminatha and many other names. Similarly, Thiruchendur is also referred to by other names as Thirucheeralaivai, Thiruchenthil and Thiruchenthiyoor. The temple is situated so close to the sea that the waves lap at the eastern boundary wall of the temple.
The other five major abodes of Lord Muruga are at Palani (120 km west of Madurai), Swamimalai (150 km east of Madurai), Thiruthani (50 km from Chennai), Pazhamudircholai (10 km north of Madurai) and Thiruparamkunram (10 km south of Madurai). Each of the six major abodes of Lord Muruga has an event mentioned in the Hindu scriptures, of which Tiruchendur is said to be second in importance.
There is an account of Karthikeya's origin in the Mahabharata, in which he is said to have been born of Agni and Shiva, after Shiva impersonated six of the seven wives of the Saptarishi (Seven Sages). The Ramayana also has a version of him, closer to the stories told in the Puranas.
Atharva Veda describes Kumaran as Agnibhuh (son of Agni, the fire god). The Chandogya Upanishad refers to Skanda as the ‘way that leads to wisdom’. The Baudhayana Dharmasutra mentions Skanda as 'Mahasena' and 'Subrahmanya.' The Aranya Parva chapter of the Mahabharata narrates the legend of Kartikeya Skanda. The Skanda Purana is devoted to the narrative of Kartikeya.
Also there are references to Subrahmanya in Kautilya's Arthashastra, in the works of Patanjali, in Kalidasa's epic poem the Kumarasambhavam and in the Sanskrit drama Mricchakatika.
According to legends, Sati, the consort of Shiva immolated herself at the Daksha Yagna, which was later destroyed by Shiva. Sati was reborn as Uma (or Parvati) the daughter of the Mountain King Himavaan (the Himalayas). Shiva was deep in yogic meditation in the Himalayas. During that time, the demon Surapadman ravaged the earth and tormented its beings. The gods realized that only a son born of Shiva could lead them to victory over Tarakasuran, Surapadman and their demon armies. The gods plotted with Kamadeva, the god of love, to shoot a flower arrow at the meditating Shiva, so as to make him fall in love with Parvati. When Kama aimed his arrow, Shiva opened his third eye and burned Kama to ashes instantly.
The sparks of the fiery seed of Shiva were unbearable, and this fire was then transported by the river Ganga into the Saravana forest (probably The Sundarbans), and into a pond called the Saravana Poigai, located at mouths of river Ganga, where the sparks transformed to six children. They were raised by the six Krittika or Kartika - the stars that make up the Pleiades, earning Murugan the name Karthikeya. Parvati combined these six babies into one with six faces (Shanmukha or Arumugan).
Murugan became the supreme general of the gods and lead the army of the gods to victory against the demons. The six sites at which Karthikeya sojourned while leading his armies against Surapadman are Thiruthani, Swamimalai, Tiruvavinankudi (Palani), Pazhamudircholai, Thiruparamkunram and Tiruchendur. These six sites are known collectively as ‘Arupadai Veedu, meaning the six battle camps of the Lord.
Thiruchendur Murugan Temple is a very popular pilgrimage center and tourist destination. It located in the town of Thiruchendur in the district of Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu, India. It is 55 km southeast of Tirunelveli, 40 km from Tuticorin and 75 km northeast of Kanyakumari. It is easily accessible by bus or car. Regular train services are available to Tiruchendur from the nearest railway junction, Tirunelveli Junction.
The self-styled godman Swami Nityananda, who elevated himself as Paramahamsa Nithyananda, is finally back home after his vanvas, thanks to Bangalore Police, who arrested him on Wednesday from his hideout in Mamlig village near Arki town in Solan District of Himachal Pradesh, about 50 km from Shimla.
Nityananda and his close aide and the head of his operations in the United States, Gopal Sheelum Reddy alias Nitya Bhaktananda were flown in to Bangalore and were whisked away to Ramanagaram Sessions court, the police told the media.
He was arrested along with his four associates, after he had been absconding for over a month after a purported video footage of him in a compromising position with the Tamil actress Ranjitha and alleged sexual relations with some other women and men. The arrests were made by a joint team of Karnataka Crime Investigation Department and Himachal Pradesh Police.
Swami Nityananda, alias Paramahamsa Nithyananda, according to Assistant superintendent of police, Solan, Ramesh Pathania, was wanted by Karnataka police in two cases under Sections 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 376 (punishment for rape), 377 (unnatural sex), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC. Nityananda Swami had been on the run since March 23 when the Karnataka High Court rejected his plea for anticipatory bail.
The scandal-hit godman was staying in a rented house for the past one month. Himachal police got a fax from the Karnataka police on April 17 that they had information that Nityananda was hiding in Himachal Pradesh. Subsequently, two Karnataka deputy superintendents of police reached Shimla for investigation.
The police team zeroed in on the accused godman and his associates based on the information provided by a local taxi driver of Himachal Pradesh. Though Nityananda and Nithya Bhaktananda (Gopal Seelam Reddy) rarely moved out, their three other companions used to visit the nearby market to procure items of daily needs.
A Bangalore police official M.S. Hussain said, "Nityananda and Reddy reached Himachal Pradesh from Haridwar and they stayed in the village." The police seized $7,000 and Rs 300,000 in cash from Nityananda, and three laptops, eight mobile phones, three video cameras, and one SIM card procured from Himachal Pradesh were also recovered from them. The house where Nityananda was staying since March 27 belonged to a Delhi resident, who would be questioned soon, the police said.
Meanwhile, a CID team conducted a search of the Ashram of Nithyananda Swamiji at Bidadi, near Bangalore on 20 April, 2010, and seized important documents including computer hard disks, Director General, CID, Dr D V Guru Prasad said.
After the scandalous videos of Nityananda were aired on TV channels on March 3, the godman’s former driver Lenin Karuppan filed a complaint with the Chennai police commissioner. Another case was registered at Coimbatore by Vishwanath for hurting the religious sentiments of Hindus. In Karnataka, the police registered the cases based on these two complaints and later they handed over the case to the CID, after which the CID sleuths started getting complaints from overseas through e-mails.
According to reports, Nithyananda is afraid of facing prosecution in the US following a case lodged by a US citizen Douglas Mckellor before the California State Attorney-General Jerry Brown, accusing the Swami of fraud, financial irregularities and physical abuse of devotees in USA. McKellor, a former devotee, also known as Swami Nithya Prabha, is a resident of San Jose in California and came in contact with Nityananda in 2007, and later became the head of the California branch of Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam.
Douglas attended Nithyananda's enlightenment program held at Los Angeles ashram, where he said he paid Nithyananda a fee of $400,000 for the workshop and the enlightenment certificate. Nithyananda sexually exploited his American devotees, The American said in his complaint.
Nithyananda’s Life Bliss Foundation in the US has shut down after the scandal broke out. So, is his Vedic Temple in Los Angelese that is shut down to devotees! Lenin Karuppan, an insider who had recorded the sex tapes, and who had first filed a complaint with the Chennai Police Commissioner, has alleged that several foreign devotees have been duped by Nithyananda.
Also, a court in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu had issued a non-bailable warrant against him on Monday with the direction to the police to produce him before the court on May 20.
Swami Nityananda has rejected sex scandal allegations against him, and his lawyers said they are ready for a legal battle.
In the last seven years, the assets amassed by Nithyananda are estimated to be about Rs 2000 crores. There are over 1000 products on sales, including books, CDs, etc. Most of the books/CDs on sale at Nithyananda’s website are prized at $65 each. There are sales sites and shopping carts in his site, all selling spiritualism, meditation, etc. Besides, according to Lenin Karuppan, there is a company Nithyananda Imports and exports private limited that gets most of the money as donations that are exempt from tax, without regular shipping bills or export documentation. Therefore Karuppan feels that there is large scale tax-evasion going on, but it is to be seen by the Government/tax authorities.
Every Ashramite/ inmate of the Ashram is to sign a contract of secrecy or confidentiality with the Swami Nithyananda, Karuppan says. Excepting women who attend on the godman, no one is allowed in his bed room/ private quarters. So, no body knows what is going on there, or anything about the lifestyle of the godman. Asked when whether the women and men abused by Nithyananda have been forced into giving him sexual favours, Lenin Karuppan says, the swami uses his powers of hypnotism, mesmerism, Tantra techniques, etc., to win over the victims’ consent for sex. For the same reason, and for fear, none of the victims complain against the godman.
The whereabouts of Swami Nithyananda is not known, so is of Ranjitha. Karuppan told Sun TV in an interview that the swami can be in Delhi, Haridwar, Nepal, or in another safe Ashram, hiding from media, or to evade arrest. The police is investigating and a case is in the court. The people in the area around Bidadi, where his Ashram is situated is deadly against Nithyananda’s questionable practices. They have raided his ashram, set fire to his photos and other articles, and there was a fire engulfing some huts in the Ashram area.
As Lenin awaits the truth to emerge from the investigations, the CID is probing into the scandal involving the godman and Tamil actress Ranjitha. Though Lenin had made allegations of sodomy against swami Nithyananda, there is no video evidence to corroborate that charge, an official was quoted as saying.
The CID has conducted raids at the Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam ashram and searched his premises before seizing documents relating to his activities, including registers from the headquarters of the cult located at Kallugopahalli in the Bidadi Taluk of Ramanagara district of Karnataka, on the basis of a warrant obtained from the Ramanagara magistrate.
Also, the CID sleuths are going through the documents to unearth evidence related to his financial resources, land acquisition, and links with women brahmacharinis, sources said, adding, “We suspect he has destroyed some incriminating papers.” Sources said they are also trying to find out the role of Nithyananda’s secretary T Dhanasekaran, alias Sadhananda, alias Aiyya, in the land acquisition deals.
On April 12, reports from Chennai said that the Chennai High Court has dismissed a petition seeking a CBI investigation into allegations against Nithyananda Swami. In his order justice R Regupathy said, "When investigation of the case is still pending on the files of special agency at Karnataka and when nothing has been alleged against them, I cannot find any merit to transfer the case to CBI". This petition was filed by Nithya Dharmananda alias K Lenin. Based on his complaint the police had registered cases against Nithyananda for various offences under IPC including rape.
Also, there are reports suggesting that some cases are filed against the godman with American authorities in California/ USA for fraud and other charges.
According to Lenin Karuppan, who was made Swami Dharmananda by the self-proclaimed Paramahamsa Nithyananda, the godman claims himself as the God, not even an incarnation. Nithyananda claims, “I am Lord Krishna, I am Lord Shiva…” According to news reports, Lenin planted video cameras inside the bedrooms of Nithyananda with the help of one or more of the female victims. Once the godman got wind of that, he confronted Lenin, but he escaped from the Nithyananda Ashram, at Bidadi, near Bangalore (Bengaluru) and reached Chennai in Tamil Nadu. Ever since then the godman has been calling Lenin frantically to get hold of the proofs against him which Dharmananda had carried with him. He says, the godman has been threatening him, and sometimes pleading with him, saying that he is not threatening. The interviewer asked Dharmananda whether it is true that he has really quit as the head of the Ashram, his trusts, etc., as announced by Nithyananda. According to Lenin, it is ‘complete drama’, and his secretary who was managing the Ashram earlier is still managing it and there is no actual change in the management.
Asked why the godman is still not arrested by the police, Lenin claims that Nithyananda is in the good books of the politicians and hence, he is not arrested yet. The Karnataka police team has interrogated Lenin, and the Nithyananda Ashram near Bangalore was raided by the police and now the police are investigating the activities of the Ashram’s Branch in Malaysia.
A Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) datelined report on April 11 said that the Malaysian ashram linked to the scandal tainted Swami Nithyananda will cooperate with the Indian police probing the sex scandal. However, the Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam Ashram's spokesman K. Murthi said ‘he did not know how the Indian police could link the center’s activities with the scandal, as they were purely spiritual in nature’. He said Nithyananda had visited the ashram a few times and all activities at the Malaysian ashram had stopped since the scandal broke out last month. This is in reference to what earlier the Bangalore Police had said that it was planning to send a probe team to Malaysia to unearth any evidence at the ashram.
As ANI reported, "Through our investigation, we know there is an ashram in Malaysia (Penang). If there is credible information, we will send our officers to probe," said K.N. Yogappa, Superintendent of Police of the Bangalore Criminal Investigation Department (CID). A total of 30 sex tapes showing Swami Nithyananda indulging in sex with at least six different women have reportedly been submitted to the CID. The investigating officials, who conducted a raid on the Nithyananda Dhyanapeetam ashram at Bidadi on April 5 and 6, have so far interrogated 29 people, according to ANI.
Watch this video of TV interview of Dharmananda alias Lenin Karuppan, the whistle-blower who opened the Pandora’s Box of Nithyananda's alleged sex scandals and alleged fraud! As per reports, there are 30 sex tapes in which no less than six women have been involved. Lenin was an insider in the Ashram, and Nithyananda's driver. According to Lenin, 30 to 40 women have been involved in sex with the godman, apart from men. The news made headlines when the very popular Indian TV network Sun TV aired the sex tape involving the popular Tamil actress Ranjitha. Also there are reports that Nithyananda sex tapes are doing brisk business in the black markets in Bangalore and other places. According to reports, Nithyananda’s Newest Technologies to Moksha (Salvation or Life Bliss) are now available at Rs 1000 per CD in the gray market. Watch this video, and look for Part Two of the interview that I will be posting after this.
Sri Ramana Ashram, which was home to the modern sage and Advaita Vedanta philosopher Ramana Maharishi from 1922 till his death in 1950, is situated at the foot of the Arunachala hill, to the west of Tiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu, India. Thiruvannamalai itself is a pilgrimage town, home to the Annamalaiyar Temple which is one of the holiest Shiva Temples of Tamilnadu. The Sanskrit name for Thiruvannaamalai, Arunachala, became known worldwide mostly due to Sri Ramana.
Thiruvannamalai is well-connected to many cities and towns in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh by road. The town lies on the junction of the Chittoor-Cuddalore state highway and the Puduchery-Bengalooru national highway (NH 66). A railway line between Vellore and Villupuram passes through Thiruvannamalai. The nearest airport is at Chennai (170 km) and Bengaluru International Airport (200 km).
The Thousand Pillar Hall (Aayiram Kaal Mandapam) of Madurai Meenakshi Amman temple actually has 985 carved pillars, not exactly 1000 pillars as the name suggests. Each pillar is carved out of stone in the style of Dravidian sculpture. This hall was built modeled on the 1000 pillared hall of Nellaiappar Temple at Tirunleveli, the first largest Shiva Temple in Tamil Nadu.
The Thousand Pillared Hall was built by Ariyanatha Mudaliar (in 1569), the Prime Minister and General of Viswanatha Nayak of the first Nayaka of Madurai (1559-1600). At the entrance of the hall (Mandapam) there is a statue of Ariyanatha Mudaliar seated on horse-back.
The hall is famous for its Temple Art Museum where exhibits of as old as 1200 years are displayed. Just outside this hall there are the Musical Pillars, each of which producing different musical notes when struck.
Meenakshi Amman Temple is a historic Hindu temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati (in the form of Meenakshi), in the holy city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India.
This is the largest temple corridor in India, the grandest part of the Ramanathaswamy Temple. The 1219 m pillared corridor consisting of 3.6 m high granite pillars, richly carved and well proportioned, built by various rulers over a period of time starting from the twelfth century. The perspective presented by these pillars run uninterruptedly to a length of nearly 230 m.
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