Valluvar Kottam – A Tribute to the Great Legend

Travelling with my family and friends and learning about history is what I enjoy the most. I also love trekking and wildlife. Photography is another of my passions and I never miss taking my SLR camera with me wherever I go.

Chennai is known to possess everything I look for such as the rich culture, temples, shopping places, best food and cuisines and many more. We also intended to do a lot of shopping at Chennai. During the next day we have planned to go to Valluvar Kottam . It took only about 30 minutes to reach this place.

Valluvar Kottam at Chennai | Image Resource: wikipedia.org

In the morning I woke up early and enjoyed the rising sun sipping my favorite ginger tea as I do usually. I always looked for some historical places that can promise rich history, heritage and culture.

After breakfast we reached Valluvar Kottam where we took a cab to reach this place. We were accompanied by a guide from the hotel we stay, he explained everything to us. Valluvar Kottam was constructed in 1976 as tribute to the famous Tamil Poet Valluvar who lived in the first century BC. He was a legend and contributed several literary works to Tamil literature.

Valluvar Kottam is a very famous historical tombstone which is devoted to the veteran poet, and saint the Thiruvalluvar. He was a great philosopher too. Tirukural consist of 1334couplets necessary for human life. The Valluvar Kottam is built of 3000 stone blocks and all the 133 chapters of Thirukurals were inscribed in the front corridor. The monument was very beautiful as it was carved in the shape of the temple chariot and the statue of the legendry poet was housed in it.

We were surprised to see this historical commemoration for the poet we had an insightful experience visiting this beautiful place. Chennai is a very hot place but it has many things to offer, I dint too long to take see explore the valluvar kottam. I took many photos me and my family.

Chennai is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, moreover it is one of the important city and you can find huge shopping mall and other small streets where you can buy cloths. We went for a shopping and bought some cloths and handicrafts. Then we decided to visit chemmozhi poonga in the afternoon.

Annai Velankanni Church, Chennai – Blessings for Good Health and Life

The next day, I woke up to the soothing devotional song at the nearby temple. No wonder, the cities irrespective of any place wake up early. I looked out of the large window watching the city coming to life. My occasional business travels and stays at different places in the country gave me a sense of familiarity of the place.

By then, my wife ordered a cup of tea and sipping the white porcelain cup, I took a deep breath enjoying the fresh aroma of ginger with the tea. Our next visit on the agenda was to Annai Velankanni Church, which is situated in Besant Nagar in Chennai. The buses to Adyar traveled through Besant Nagar, where we should get down at the Eliot’s Beach.

Annai Velankanni Church, Chennai| Image Resource: panoramio.com

Nevertheless, we took a cab to visit the church, where Mother Mary is offered prayers by the large number of devotees who travel from different parts of the country. The church is located on the vast expanse of the ground offering easy accessibility to people. The building looked pretty well maintained.

I could figure out the history of the church, which dates back to 1971. Under St. Louis Church’s control, the church gained a separate parish with own priest in 1972. It was believed that Mother Mary with infant Jesus appeared in the dream of FR.PT Arulappa and this led to the building of the amazing structure.

We entered the church to find a huge hall, where extension was made to accommodate as many devotees as possible. After offering out prayers and having the blessings of the father, we went around exploring the place. There was a large community hall for the gathering of people; a big museum and classroom was also a part of the church.

Furthermore, I also found a stage constructed on the adjacent ground; I was told that the mass during the festivals are arranged on the stage. We walked back to the church looking carefully the interiors. They were amazing and looked alike in most of the churches in the country.

The offerings to the ‘Lady of Health’ are made by way of candles, and people who are sick offer the candles representing the part of the body to get well soon.

Image of the Week: Fortune Select Palms Chennai

Fortune Select Palms Chennai

Fortune Select Palms Chennai: Vannakkam to all the Chennai people! I was here at the Fortune Select Palms during my business trip. And, I would be glad to share with you that I felt lucky enough to spend my time at this luxurious place. You should try the lunch buffet here, not to forget the cocktails! The food of this place is worth every penny!

Adeeswar Temple – The Famous Jain Temple in Chennai

After a refreshing day on the seashore of Vlankannni church, we enjoyed the night life of Chennai. Though it was hot even during night we enjoyed blend of new and old culture there.

Spiritual the city has several things to offer such as temples, churches mosques and several shrines around the city. I have heard about the Adeeswar temple and next day we planned to visit the Adeeswar temple which is located just 9 kilometers from the Chennai city.

Adeeswar Temple Chennai| Image Resource: nithyacaars.com

We rented a taxi from the hotel and reached the Polal village has which is a warm and serine atmosphere. I felt like relieving all my tensions and this is a best place to rejuvenate your body and mind.

The temple is situated very near to the Redhill Lake and the place is well connected by road. The deity worshipped here is “Tirthankar Rishabhadev” other wise known as “Adi Bhagwan, Adeeswar, Adi Nath and Adi Jain.” The temple has great significance for the Jains. Adeeswar temple is also called as the Polal temple and it referred in the Tamil literature.

The sun was scorching when we reached the temple our explained that the temple was constructed in the first century BC and valluvar who was a litrary legend in the first century BC has a significancent role in the construction of this temple. His statue was fixed in the temple since he was a true worshipper of Adi Bhagwan.

But the archeologists believe that the temple was constructed during pallva Dynasty based on the inscriptions found there. We explored each and every corner of the temple and the artwork of the temple was mind blowing. The temple was unknown for centuries but once the Grand Trunk Road was constructed it become very famous.

Several Jains followers from different parts of the country visit this place to worship the Adi bahgaven. We returned from the temple after a few hours exploring the architecture of the temple. In the evening we went to marina beach to enjoy the cool sea breeze. The city becomes cool after the setting sun. We came back to hotel and goosed into our pillow for a fresh morning next day.

Aarupadaiveedu Temple, Chennai – Depicting God in Different Forms

The rest of the morning and afternoon, we spent in the suite enjoying the comforts. The lunch at the Royal Palate was filling. We had a South Indian thali because I always believe that one should experience the food and cuisines that are close to that region. In another way, I sought respite from the food we have every day.

In the evening, we planned to visit Aarupadaiveedu Temple, which is located in Besant Nagar in Chennai. We hired a cab from the hotel and traveled for about thirty five minutes to reach the temple, which was just 13 km away.

The temple, which was again dedicated to Lord Murugan, is finished in granite stones. I learned that the temple was built with the sole intention of helping the devotees of Lord Murugan to worship the Lord in six forms in one shrine.

Aarupadaiveedu Temple | Image Resource: sanghamtours.com

My curiosity of knowing the purpose of this temple helped me gain some insights of the temples of God in various places. The devotee explained to me that ‘Aarupadaiveedu’ means six abodes of Lord Murugan, which are considered of most important ones.

To make it short, the abodes of the God are Palani, Swamimalai, Tiruchendur, Tiruttani, Tirupparamkunram and Pazhamudhircholai, where the Lord is called Dhandaayutapani, Swaminathan Swamy, Balasubramanya Swamy, Senthilandavar, Subramanya Swamy, and Solaimalai Murugan respectively.

Interestingly, the deities here are the representation of various stages in the life of the Lord. We felt blessed visiting the temple and could offer our prayers to all the deities.

View of Aarupadaiveedu Temple | Image Resource: tourmet.com

The temple offers daily pujas to the God; devotees who want to offer special pujas can do so during the festivals such as thai pusam, panguni uttiram, etc. The glory and significance of the temple in the south is very much understood by the way they are constructed and located.

Experiencing the peace and spirituality thronging in the air, we left the temple to return to the hotel. My mind was still wandering in the temple. The architectural beauty of the temples is quite mesmerizing and they depict a lot in the history. Furthermore, the cleanliness and sanctity found are also worth appreciating.

Image of the Week: Covelong Beach Chennai

Covelong Beach Chennai | Image Resource: wikimedia.org

Covelong Beach Chennai: The Covelong Beach was one of the cleanest beaches we had seen in the city of Chennai. My family and I had a picnic on the beach and even went swimming in the cool waters of the beach. There were residing tides so it was safe for the kids to take a dip as well. In the evening we also got a glimpse of fishermen catching fish. It was a very relaxed experience and a fun one too!

Vadapalani Murugan Temple – Depicting the History At its Best

Chennai, the prominent city of Tamil Nadu, is a bouquet of culture and art offerings that have the traces from the Cheras, Cholas and Pandya dynasties. Rich in history, the city plays host to many cultural events held round the year. With temples and festivals playing an important role in the South Indian tourism, Chennai is no different from it. As a result, we started off our sightseeing trip with a visit to the Vadapalani Murugan Temple, also known as Arulmigu Vadapalani Andavar Thirukoil.

The temple is situated on the Arcot Road and is at a walking distance from the hotel. We didn’t take much time to get ready. I sported a traditional look with a dothi (which in the local language is called ‘mundu’) and shirt. My wife was in the traditional saree, which she loved to wear. We just took five minutes to reach the temple, which is dedicated to the King of Gods, Lord Murugan.

Main Entrance to the Vadapalani Murugan Temple | Image Resource: wikipedia.org

At the entrance, there is a tall Rajagopuram, which is sculpted to feature many stucco images representing the legends from ‘Skanda Puranam’. There are two large wooden doors that have architectural designs and small bells. We walked in to reach the temple tank in the front. The tank is filled with water and there are steps for the pilgrims to climb down and wash their hands and feet before entering the temple.

I could also notice a small mandapam in the center of the tank, which is decorated with lights during the festival. Since the pooja timings were from 5.30, the temple was open for the public for ‘uchakalam’ pooja. We offered our prayers to the God and performed archanas in our names to get the blessings.

Vadapalani Murugan Temple Tank | Image Resource: wikipedia.org

I learned from a local devotee that the temple has a long history of 125 years when there was only a thatched shed built by an ardent Murugan devotee, Annaswami Nayakar. Over the years, its prominence extended to many places and the temple grew to become the one we see today.

We walked around the temple to offer our prayers at different ‘sannidhis’. A few of them I remember now are Varasidhi Vinayagar, Chokkanathar, Meenakshi Sundareswarar, Arunagiri Nadhar, Anjaneyar, and so on. We returned to the room after the prayers and sat to plan our trip, we were going to have.

Image of the Week: Ripon Building Chennai

Ripon Building Chennai | Image Resource: wikimedia.org

Ripon Building Chennai: While my family and I were in Chennai we came across the magnificent Ripon Building. This government architectural beauty depicts the neoclassic style of architecture as it is a combination of a gothic and ionic style. The beautiful white building stood out and looked so beautiful. It was near the railway station and thus it was the first thing we saw as we left the station!

Air Travel from Ahmedabad to Chennai by SpiceJet Airlines – Comfortable and Cheap by All Means

Hi friends, this is Darshik Mehta signing in. This time I am posting my travel experience in Chennai. Life in Ahmedabad has become busy. Being in a responsible position of a financial advisor, my days get challenging all along. When my personal and family life gets a beating, I take a break. And this time I planned a family trip to Chennai.

The southern part of India has always increased my curiosity. Traveling to Chennai is better by flight and therefore, I booked tickets with Spicejet Airlines, which has rolled out cheap Ahmedabad Chennai flights. Our flight was scheduled at 6.10 am on a Wednesday and we started off to the Sardar Vallabhai Patel Airport early in the morning.

Sardar Vallabhai Patel Airport | Image Resource: hunt.in

After the initial formalities, we were offered the boarding pass. I should admit that Spicejet has improved its service with better metro-to-metro connectivity with the convenient timing for the business people.

The Economy Class seats were quite comfortable with enough pitch, and there seemed to have ample space for stretching the legs. The flight took off at the scheduled time starting my journey from Ahmedabad to Chennai. The service on board the flight was satisfactory. We were quite hungry; being early in the morning, we couldn’t have any food.

SpiceJet Airlines | Image Resource: wikimedia.org

I ordered paneer bhurji, aloo paratha and aloo tikki, while my wife loved having vegetable upma, onion vada and sambar. The meal was quite sumptuous. A budget flight by all means, Spicejet offers frequent traveler programme, SpiceConnect to loyal customers. My business trips are not frequent and hence, I cannot keep track of my flights. Interestingly, this type of promotional programme can help business travelers.

I was shook from my thoughts by the announcement in the flight. We were going to land at the Chennai International Airport. It was 9.15 and we just flew for two hours enjoying the cheap Ahmedabad Chennai flight. After the safe landing, we came out finishing the formalities.

As we looked around for the transportation, a person in mid-thirties walked up to us. The cab to Hotel Ambica Empire was ready and within minutes we go into the cab to mark the beginning of the Chennai journey.

Financial advices for the Self Employed

As a financial advisor, I have been approached by numerous self employed individuals for their financial concerns. So I’m writing this blog just to help out such self employed professionals.

As a business owner or self employed person, one needs to learn Multi tasking. You may be having a busy schedule where you strive to make more profit, find better clients/deals, attend meeting and stay update about the latest market events or culture.

Financial Tips | Image Resource: credit.com

You may find it difficult to find time to do finances or may be confused about choosing the right option. Here are some of my most important financial advices that will help you plan better:

• Income tax payments:

Often self employed people find it difficult to manage their finances. Mainly because they are responsible for everything and there is no one to share the burden. However, tracking the expenses and paying taxes are important for every earning individual. One has to be dedicated toward their goal. This will helps in saving cash along with eases payment of bills/taxes.

• Deductions:

As a self employed individual numerous deductions are applicable. I will recommend you guys to hit google and do some research. Understand what can and cannot be deducted. You can claim deductions for your repairs and maintenance, utilities, rent or mortgage interest etc.

• Borrowing money:

Often to save income tax, business owners put majority of their revenue into the company income and give themselves a small income. This strategy may backfire while you apply for a loan because most of the bank will analyse your personal income and not the company’s income for the loan procedure.

• Protect your personal assets:

This is one of the most crucial points for a self employed business person. Make sure that the business is established as a separate legal entity. This is the best technique of safeguard your personal finances. This will protect your money from unhappy customers or business creditors.

• Credit cards:

Have separate personal and business credit cards.

• Budget:

As a business person, one should be able to plan an effective business budget. Track your expenses, control your spending and then develop a budget that is best for your business. Spend money on things that add value to your business.