In2-MeC

newly discovered entries of In2-DeepFreeze First Generation Animations

ISKCON Salem, Tamil Nadu, India
23 March 2004

Salem on Sunday, 21 March

The devotees went to a swimming pool. Here's Dharmasetu.

Sunday feast lecture.

Hundreds in attendance.

Return to Sri Rangam, morning of Monday, 22 March

Rocana Prabhu went with the Salem devotees on a Harinama excursion to Sri Rangam. They left from Salem at 6:00 AM.

The outermost wall around Sri Rangaksetra. Having passed this wall, one goes through six more before reaching the central temple of Lord Ranganatha Swami. The red and white vertical stripes are typical for the outer walls of temples in Tamil Nadu.

Inside Sri Rangaksetra. A Sri Vaisnava brahmana of the Tengalai branch of the sampradaya.


The ISKCON kirtana party circumambulates between the inner walls of Rangaksetra compound, coming closer and closer to the abode of the Lord with each trip round.

At this spot Goddess Laksmi bent down to have darsana of Lord Ranganatha. The five holes were melted into the stone by the touch of Her fingers.

A Tamil devotee demonstrates Laksmiji's posture.

An opulent entranceway to a shrine.

The sign says it all. Here one has darsana...

...of this beautiful murti of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu standing by the Garuda Stambha.

Sripad Ramanuja, the Founder-acarya of the Sri Vaisnava Sampradaya.

Bathing in the sacred Kaveri River at Sri Rangam. Because of an upstream dam, the Kaveri here appears as a narrow, shallow stream.

Home progam at Nammakal, afternoon of Monday, 22 March

After Sri Rangam the devotees stopped at Nammakal, which is on the way to Salem. I joined them there.

Nammakal or Nammagiri is a gigantic saligram sila! It was dropped here by Hanuman on his flight to Lanka from the Himalayas. Lakmidevi kept the sila--which was much smaller at that time--for Hanuman's later return. When Hanuman came back to fetch the sila, it expanded to its present size and was so extraordinarily heavy he could not lift it. At that time Lord Narasimha appeared, declaring to Hanuman that the Nammakal is His very self.

This incredible self-manifest deity of Hanuman forever takes darsana of the Nammakal Nrsimha Sila!

On the way from the Hanuman temple to the Laksmi-Nrsimha temple at the foot of Nammakal.

Martanda and I waited at the entrance for the kirtana party's arrival.

Inside the Laksmi-Nrsimha temple, on the way to the main altar.

Photographing the Deities is not permitted, but here Their Lordships have kindly appeared on the wall in a photographable form.

I held a program at the home of a devotee family in Nammakal.

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