Photo Blog by Rajan Parrikar » Brahma http://www.parrikar.com/blog Satyam Shivam Sundaram (Truth, Divinity, Beauty) Tue, 07 Feb 2012 12:08:39 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Pastoral Parsem http://www.parrikar.com/blog/2010/09/23/pastoral-parsem/ http://www.parrikar.com/blog/2010/09/23/pastoral-parsem/#comments Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:53:52 +0000 Rajan P. Parrikar http://www.parrikar.com/blog/?p=3115 Note: To see full-size images in this post, please view the original post by clicking here.

The quiet village of Parsem in north Goa remains frozen in time with its echt-Goan character and spirit intact. It is proud of its quirky heritage: the unusual façade of the ancient temple of Goddess Bhagwati, the nearby banyan tree said to be the largest in Goa, the magnificent old sculptures of Brahma, Vishnu, and so on.

For a place this obscure, Parsem has world-class achievements under its belt. The all-women’s professional theatre company formed here in 1917 was among the earliest of its kind. One of India’s finest musicians and the greatest Hindustani violinist of the 20th C, Sridhar Parsekar, was born in the shadow of the Bhagwati temple. He died tragically young but the villagers of Parsem haven’t forgotten him; an annual classical music festival is celebrated in his name. He also composed for Hindi and Marathi films. For more on Parsekar and his music, go here.

The title of this post is taken from an essay by Alister Miranda, and you are encouraged to read it for a better appreciation of the photographs that follow.

Note on pronunciation to non-Konkani speakers: The ‘m’ in the ‘sem’ syllable in Parsem denotes a nasalized ‘se’.

 

The deepastambha is characteristic of Goa’s Hindu temples but this paired arrangement at the Bhagwati temple is unique.

Temple of Bhagwati devi in Parsem, Goa
5D Mark II, TS-E 24L II

 

Bhagwati devi of Parsem
5D Mark II, 24-105L

 
 

Notice the kaavi art (sgraffito) on the temple walls.

Temple of Ravalnath, Parsem
5D Mark II, 24-105L

 

Pastoral Parsem
5D Mark II, 14L II

 
 

Subsidiary shrines adjacent to the Bhagwati temple host inestimable treasures such as these images of Vishnu and Brahma.

Vishnu at Parsem
5D, 85L II

 

Brahma at Parsem
5D, 85L II

 

Ageless Parsem
5D Mark II, 24-105L

 
 
]]> http://www.parrikar.com/blog/2010/09/23/pastoral-parsem/feed/ 1 Brahma of Goa http://www.parrikar.com/blog/2010/01/12/brahma-of-goa/ http://www.parrikar.com/blog/2010/01/12/brahma-of-goa/#comments Tue, 12 Jan 2010 23:44:18 +0000 Rajan P. Parrikar http://www.parrikar.com/blog/?p=1513 Note: To see full-size images in this post, please view the original post by clicking here.

Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva constitute the Trimurthi of the Hindu pantheon. Of the three, Brahma the Creator is the odd one out: He has less than 10 temples dedicated to Him alone in the whole of India. The puranas ascribe this anomaly to a curse inflicted on Him by Lord Shiva.

The Brahma temple in Pushkar, Rajasthan, is well known. Not as well known is the temple at Carambolim (also called Brahma-Karmali) in northeast Goa. The idol worshipped here is an 11th C masterpiece of scuplture.

The Brahma temple in Goa was originally located at Carambolim (Karmali) near Panjim. After its sacking by the Portuguese in the 16th C, the idol was moved to its current remote outpost and re-consecrated. Later, in a nod to its original home, the area around it came to be known as Brahma-Karmali.

 
From: Socio Cultural History of Goa by V.R. Mitragotri (published by Institute Menezes Braganza, 1999)

p. 206
The stone sculpture of Brahma from here is one of the best specimens of Kadamba art. Like Brahma from Sopara, the stone sculpture of the Carmoli Brahma has a beard on the central face. The sages were supposed to have a beard. In this respect Brahma is similar to them. Brahma in his front right hand is holding chanting beads (akshmala) and the hand in the blessing pose (varada) and in the rear right hand he is holding the sacrificial ladle (sruka). In the front left hand he is holding ghee pot (ajya-sthali). In the rear left hand he is holding a book (pustaka). The consorts of Brahma, Savitri and Saraswati are shown standing on either side of Brahma.

Three small niches found in the intricate torana are housing tiny images of the deities. The central niche has Ganapati, Vrishabhavahanashiva is in the right hand side niche and Vishnu is found in the left hand side niche.

 
 

There are other ancient Brahma images in Goa worshipped in subsidiary shrines in the villages of Parsem, Virnoda and Colomb. A striking Brahma head also figures in the museum collection in Old Goa.

The Carambolim temple recently got a complete makeover. These photographs were taken in November 2009.

 

Temple of Lord Brahma in Carambolim, Goa
5D Mark II, TS-E 17L

 
 

Detail of 11th C Brahma sculpture in Carambolim, Goa
5D Mark II, 85L II

 
 

Lord Brahma in Carambolim, Goa
5D Mark II, 24-105L

 
 

Priest Sandeep Kelkar at the Brahma temple
5D Mark II, 85L II

 
 
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