One thing about UPI I can say: It’s WHITE. Transactions are in white as they are real time transactions. When Aadhar ID is involved, the spending becomes legal and tax assessable. I really appreciate Modi govt for trying to make as much financial transactions across the country as possible into accountable ones. Aadhar is linked to our PAN (personal identification number for income tax assessment). This is a very clever move ever to be made by an Indian govt linking Aadhar, PAN, bank accounts, etc. Registration of documents, real estate, jewelry shopping everything requires furnishing of your PAN. You cannot even book a foreign holiday without your PAN. Cannot open a FD or trade in stocks. This means no stone is left unturned when it comes to extending the tax net to cover everyone. Yet I must say our politicians are loaded with black money! How they manage to find the loopholes beats me! Still good efforts on the part of the govt in trying to make every penny in the economy accountable on a mission to eliminate a parallel operating black economy. This is good for the health of the nation.
This post is over a decade delayed but I thought this video is well made. Digilocker and Digiyatra apps are extremely useful and secure to have in your phone to lock your documents and access them in airports, etc., with ease, doing away with physical documents.
I am someone who stops in the highway under a coconut tree to drink fresh tender coconut water. The QR code of the coconut vendor is printed right on the coconut tree hahaha! UPI is that cool! From the street flower vendor to the subzi hawkers with pushcarts, everyone uses UPI. QR codes stare at you from hawking stands and temple hundis for easy scanning. Most importantly even illiterates have access to technology which must be the purpose of any advanced tech. You cannot be using credit card everywhere in India especially when you deal with daily wage earners. UPI steps in here. As the video says, these sophisticated apps cannot be reserved for the elite. Their reachability to masses is what makes them use applications.
In the US etc., I see how the malls, huge departmental stores like Walmart, supermarkets, the strip malls etc., have taken over the petty shops forcing them to close. Whereas the kirana shops or the petty shopkeepers and small traders constitute the backbone of the Indian economy. A huge real time accountable economic turnover happens thanks to them. Earlier, paper currency made a sizeable chunk of such transactions impossible to account for. Now UPI brings everything under tax scanner and accountable. For a nation to develop along right lines, transparent legal financial transactions is a must. Even if corruption continues to affect Indian public services, to a large extent, UPI has made life easier for the masses.
Even for wedding gifts I see the QR code printed somewhere in the wedding halls that the guests can use of.
Prior to UPI, nobody knew how much the panpuri wala made exactly per day, how much the autorickshaw wala made, how much the street hawkers made etc. The information on the earning capacity of the real time earners of the economy remained speculative. Now we have an idea of where and how our national economy is headed thanks to regularization of the Indian economy with statistical figures pouring in from every quarter.
One point missed by everyone: America runs on credit. They accept credit card payment even for one dollar. In India, under a certain limit, credit card payments are denied. Cash payments are a must. UPI is useful and handy here. It means there is NO CREDIT. Of course you can link your credit card to UPI as well. But a majority of rural artisans etc., who barely have a single bank account do not even own credit cards. Thus the credit chain is eliminated 90% with UPI payments. That itself is a huge plus to an economy. Real time payments may not work in America because except the creamy layer there, others live totally on credit. In third world nations, there is no credit culture at least in the lowest tiers of the economy.
Other than that, we pay our bills, recharge, pay our taxes etc., etc., via UPI setting even reminders. Its a very useful kit/app in your phone. Cannot imagine life without UPI now! The services are only increasing day by day.
I have to say this here: I took a Rapido the other day. The fare was 187 rs. The cab driver asked me to round it to 200 rs. Immediately a voice came over as his speaker was on. It asked the cab driver not to demand extra fare from me. He was caught redhanded on real time surveillance! But I quietly still paid him 200 rs by UPI only, because I thought his demand was just. There was heavy traffic and we were caught in a jam for over 10-15 minutes. He asked me to take care of his rating. I gave 5 star rating because his driving was good. I learn, there is no tipping or over-the-meter culture in Mumbai. Appreciate this.
Literally. Nepal tragedy is heartwrenching. But when I see that those returning from Kailash Yatra have perished in bunches, I wonder if they were taken into His bosom by Lord Shiva. Nowadays that’s how my mind works. Normally I don’t like Isha/Jaggi Vasudev. But I am surprised he does not seem to share my view, given the Yogi he is. But then you can’t speak the heart’s truth when you hold responsibility in your hands. He who talks so much about death and afterlife seems to be shedding some tears. The end may have been brutal – but imagine not returning from Mount Kailash. (Already spotted a podcast in you tube where a psyche was talking about a portal opening in Gyriong port in Tibet-Nepal border; she attributes even aircrash sites etc., to portals). What more can a Hindu hope for. Of course hundreds or perhaps thousands of other civilians from all walks of life have lost their lives. Nobody has exact statistics. I don’t mean to sound insensitive. I can understand how the bereaving families must feel right now. The pilgrims stood no chance. Probably they were at Tibet-Nepal border immigration checking back into Nepal after their Kailash Manasarovar yatra/Kailash Parikrama.. Most Indian tourists have perished while on pilgrimage to Nepal. Now Jaggi Vasudev must know what it is to go against nature in a massive way. Why should a glacier suddenly collapse. How much tourist traffic the Himalayan kingdom is handling. There are mountaineers heading to scale world’s highest peaks such as the Everest, the Anna Purna etc. Then there are millions of tourists from India on pilgrimage to Nepal. A good percentage of Indian pilgrims also head to Mount Kailash via Tibet border. In fact even from Tamil Nadu, hundreds have gone missing on their return journey from Kailash, the toughest trek on earth. But personally I think that’s a poetic way to go. Imagine having a darshan of the Kailash and then not returning home. Jaggi must know.
At the same time I saw this another spiritual group headed by Desa Mangairkarasi, a prodigy of late Shri Kripa Nanda Variar, escaping the tragedy but stuck in the Kailash parikrama in Tibet/Nepal border. May the pilgrims from Tamil Nadu/India return safe.
Isha group seems to have perished totally. No news about them. Of these almost 100% the pilgrims are foreigners from the US and Australia and UK and dozen other countries who were on Kailash Yatra. Obviously they must be Isha followers and Shiva bhakths.
There is so much of unwanted activities going on in the Himalayan ranges. Himalayas may be the tallest mountain range in the world but they are the youngest geologically speaking. The Himalayas that were undersea mountain ranges, erupted out of a natural catastrophe like when two tectonic plates collided. Interestingly I have heard a Hindu philosopher speak of how there is no mention of Himalayas in the most ancient Hindu texts or puranas that must have been passed on from another plane of time, by whatsoever means. So you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to understand how seismically sensitive this zone must be. Already Nepal has seen devastating earthquakes. More vehicular traffic and pollution and construction activities and roads and footfalls mean, Himalayan glaciers melting real superfast in this global warming age. We have seen monsoon floods wrecking havoc in Kedarnath in India on the Himalayas exactly for the same reasons. This is why I am AGAINST THE CHAR DHAM PROJECT in India drilling the Himalayas. I don’t need to worship Shiva by drilling a hole into His Himalayan abode. Already millions are going on pilgrimage to Kedarnath, Amarnath, Gangotri, Gomukh etc., every year. The helicopter services have made every Hindu aspire to go to the Himalayas. The Char dham is now in every HIndu’s bucket list. But can you imagine what a damage millions of footfalls, helicopter services, construction activities etc., can do to the Himalayan glaciers. Even Ganga runs the risk of running dry at this rate. Now Jaggi Vasudev, can you understand why I hate you for taking over the Elephant territory at the foot of the Velaingiri Hills in Tamil Nadu for your Ashram. The Shiva I know or the Shiva I can comprehend may want the elephants roaming there not your mega Shiv Ratri hungamas. I can never understand this kind of piety sorry. I can never understand how you can save Hindu Dharma hurting environment and damaging nature. Those like Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Swami Vivekananda, Shirdi Sai Baba, Ramana Maharishi, Paramahamsa Yogananda etc., etc.. did quiet but effective service to Hindu Dharma WITHOUT DAMAGING ANYTHING/ANYONE. Their yeomen service to Dharma stands out recognized even today and they have millions of followers around the world without having to seek attention. When I saw acres cleared for parking space etc., in Isha near Coimbatore, I thought about the loss of green cover. You cannot plant Teak trees everywhere and call it ‘Kaveri calling.’ That is damage control. Why do we have sthala vrkshas in our temples. Every Hindu temple in India has a Stala Vrksha – it means it houses a native tree (vrksha) right from THAT exact geographic spot. GEOTAG by ancient Hindus practised for thousands of years right in our places of worship – our temples. For example, in Kapaleeshwara temple in Mylapore, it is Punnai maram (laughing tree) that is the sthala vrksha. This sthala vrksha temple culture even sheds a glimpse into our native history. Once upon a time, Mylapore was a garden or forest of laughing trees (punnai maram). That is how our Hindu ancestors saved and preserved each and every single native fauna of ours. Today in India we are ecologically rich and diverse even after such a huge environmental degradation, because of our Hindu ancestors who thought of every little thing including digging up a tank in front of every single temple they constructed. These water tanks are the lungs of our villages and towns and cities, after centuries and centuries and also ground water charging points on monsoons. You cannot substitute the Stala vrksha native trees with Teak trees everywhere Jaggi especially in fertile river banks. Did you ever think of where the elephants will go once they get down from the Velliangiri hills. You have taken over their corridor so they must be rerouting their millennia old traditional survival and habitational routes. Shiva is first that elephant. Shiva is first that forest cover. Shiva is first that Velaingiri mountain itself. Shiva is the very ground where your visitors park their cars. Well, that is my understanding of Shiva.
Once upon a time I used to like Isha. Now I think its vulgar.
This is why I decided not to go on Char dham yatra ever. I can worship Shiva from right where I am. If I cannot see Him in my heart first, how can I hope to see Him in Mount Kailash.
When Raja Raja Chola built the Brahadeshwara temple over 1000 years back in Thanjavur (Tanjore) Kaveri delta, we Indians could still afford the deforestation. Acres of forested lands were cleared by our kings to build the most ancient 2000 year plus old Hindu temples that still proudly stand today in south India. (In north of course they were razed by the islamic invaders). But all that was eons back. Indian population remained optimal in those times. Monsoons were bountiful. Nature was respected and nurtured. There was no environmental degradation to alarming degrees obviously. When did we begin to celebrate Diwali. Fireworks were part of celebrations when Ram returned to Ayodhya with Seetha from when we started celebrating Diwali. So was dynamite/gunpowder used in fireworks through centuries in India? Never. Something organic was being used in the manufacture of our fire crackers which had no hazardous chemical content in them. Modern man has given every ritual a horrible twist and made it worst and regrettable. Joyous spirited festivals have been reduced to crass commercial gala events.
Nepal is bracing for more landslides and floodings in near future. For the locals this must be nightmare. For foreigners trapped in the landlocked nation, it can be traumatic. Not to mention the state of mind of their loved ones back home worrying about their safety – if at all they have survived.
We used to think about Nepal pilgrimage often. But my civil engineer husband would say, Nepal was poor when it came to safety standards. It would be a blessing to die there in a flash – and that is what I think about the Isha pilgrims who perished wholly on their return from Kailash darshan. But if you are wounded and stuck in Nepal hospital, that can be real horrendous situation. It is because of his practical reasoning that many times we dropped our plans to pack our bags to Kathmandu. Pashupathi Nath temple is in my bucket list. In fact we never anticipated the Gulf war that saw us retire from Doha. Otherwise in June/July we were thinking of Nepal. But my husband refused to allow me to book in advance. Nepal and Sri Lanka – he is not confident about. India is quick on reflex even if we are a third world nation. Our communication network and rescue ops etc., can bring quick relief even is disaster strikes (god forbid). In general we remain in preparedness most of the times for any eventually. We are shockproof in India. This is the advantage of belonging with a strong big nation. We have to act on warfooting basis during crises like the Nepal floods and we have to have access to resources, rescue op personnel, medical teams, food catering etc., with everything going on at the same time. We personally evaluate all these things and always rate India as a safe country that way. We don’t feel that way about most countries we have toured. In case of any emergency, things can freeze in most countries with inaction/inadequacy in many departments. Nepal sadly we rate as one such a vulnerable nation. But it is their destiny, understandable, being a landlocked Himalayan nation, at the mercy of the icy glaciers and prone to earthquakes caused by tectonic shifts. Most Nepalese factor in these life risks – as I understood from knowing them from our 20 year residence in Qatar where they constitute semi skilled workforce. Good workers. In fact every year I used to receive prasad from Pashupathi Nath mandir in Nepal. This year someone got us even a Rudhraksh mala from Nepal.
Dear Tourists/Hindu pilgrims: STICK TO BEATEN TRACKS. Don’t open new avenues. Kailash is best left free. So must be Amarnath. Kedarnath and Badrinath must be accessible by minimum land transport and mostly by foot- and not by helicopter or char dham tunnel presently under construction. Even this tunnel caved in, ending in tragedy remember. Don’t disturb nature – and if you do, be prepared to pay a heavy price. Don’t regularize Kailash yatra, Amarnath yatra, Vaishnodevi Yatra. All these must be reserved for the really motivated and physically dexterous. Rest of us have to satisfy ourselves with Kashi, Hardwar, Hrishikesh, what to do.
YOU SAVE HIMALAYAS/KAILASH/KEDARNATH/AMARNATH/VAISHNO DEVI/GOMUKH/GANGOTRI ETC., ETC., BY NOT GOING THERE, GOT IT?
Finally Shiva gave His piece of mind to Jaggi Vasudev. But what a brutal lesson was that.
Meanwhile Arnab:
(I decided to add the Arnab video in the last minute because interestingly there is quite some China traffic to my blog! Really surprised.So decided to entertain my chinese readers.)
On 22 June 2026, India’s Ministry of Home Affairs adopted the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Rules granting the Indian government sweeping new powers to police the activities, operation, management and leadership of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) receiving foreign funding.
The above is a copy & paste job by me from Google. The reason for the current protests in Delhi is as simple as that. India says NO to foreign funding (read American) which in the guise of funds for church can fund any anti-national activity in Indian soil. Precedents have been set in Nepal and Bangladesh where the US Deep State allegedly played an active role. The CJP, the Cockroach Party of India is sponsored by who? The Delhi protests are sponsored by who? Why should the US government that wants a favourable trade deal in American favour want to pump in millions of dollars into India year after year supposedly for church and related organizations. FCRA is internal matter of India and is of huge concern to the national security. India has every right to refuse funds from the US. What an irony is that the Americans WANT to forcefully fund destabilizing activities in India with funding through legal channels aimed at overthrowing present BJP government. Has America not destroyed enough nations on earth already.
NEET paper leak is shameful still it is internal matter of India. Care has to be taken that the protests in the capital do not get fanned out of control by the Deep state of America through channels such as FCRA. Enough was done during last parliamentary elections. BJP still won the last Lok Sabha elections and PM Modi ji returned as the prime minister of India for a third term. It is BECAUSE OF MODI AND TEAM ALONE THAT WE FEEL SECURE WITH ROGUE NATIONS LIKE PAKISTAN AND CHINA FOR NEIGHBOURS. IT IS BECAUSE OF MODI ALONE WE ARE TIDING THROUGH TOUGH GLOBAL TIMES TIMES BECAUSE OF ENERGY CRISIS IMPOSED ON THE WORLD BY THE ONGOING GULF WAR. How the team of Modi-Jaishankar-Doval is pulling the trick is unbelievable – given the massive population of India and geography. Look at the queues and oil prices in countries around the world including Europe. Risking India’s safety and security with Rahul Gandhi – is INSANE IDEA.
Funny to see the totally corrupt Stalin and Udayanidhi are making headlines in Tamil news channels with their nonsensical views. Why do they want NEET cancelled? So that per seat they can mint lakhs of rupees that will grow into crores. A steady stream of income. We all are aware what the PG med management quota seats were selling for prior to NEET. Now just the stipulated fees running to a few lakhs per year, a NEET aspirant who secures a medical seat has to spell out under payment quota. No capitation. And for PG the stipend is handsome. Initially even I was opposed to NEET when it was introduced. But in practical life over years, I am seeing nieces and friends’ kids benefiting largely from NEET paying fair fees and getting admit to otherwise impossible PG speciality seat.
All frustrated losers out there in Delhi to see if they can dislodge center. Let us see how far this goes. Meanwhile. FCRA 2026 Amendment has to be enforced and foreign funding needs to be investigated and frozen. If minister Dharmendra Pradhan is guilty, he must be dealt with as per law. How about removing him from the cabinet for a starter. BJP in power for 15 years and therefore some complacency must be setting in in the party and the leaders. The third term was expected to see this excess. Not that it is justifiable in any manner. If Modi does not act now, the party will have to pay a heavy price in the next Lok sabha elections. Dismiss Pradhan and deliver justice. Why is Modi hesitating. Is it because it will be like opening the Pandora’s box with other irregularities falling out?
BJP govt has committed nothing that Congress hadn’t done earlier. How about auditing Vadera first. Rahul Gandhi’s secretive life – we don’t even know about. How to have such a fishy person whose only qualification to anything is by virtue of birth alone – as a leader of anything. His credentials look dubious.
Corruption has to routed out but there are legal ways to go about it. Useless fellows engage in protests. Real hardworking students don’t go out and carry banners in the streets. They prove their mettle in the universities. Take a stock of the protesting youngsters: most will be non technical arts and literature and social sciences majors. No STEM candidate will ever carry a placard and waste time in protests against government. Those with scientific temperament and definite purpose in life don’t engage in worthless activities. Students with too much extra/leisure time, spoilt brats pursuing aimless degrees to make a future in visual media etc., will be the frontliners. Why can’t the media people quiz the protestors about their college background.
We all know of the Kejriwal story. CJP too will burn out with time.
Again from Google:
What is the FCRA bill?
The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) is the law that governs how Indian individuals, associations, NGOs, trusts and companies may receive and use money, securities or articles sent to them from a source outside India.
Why is America keen on funding India. They already must be running huge defence bills over war with Iran. They keep complaining about unfair trade practices by India. Yet they want to pump in millions into our NGOs, all American tax payers money, and want no supervision. If this is not the Deep state of America at work, then what is it. India has every right to refuse the ill-intended American charity.
Its not easy to govern a mammoth nation like India with diverse population of about 1.4 billion, especially through testing economic times like these. Instead of appreciating Modi govt, these guys are out to tear up the security blanket of India. Doing a fantastic job so far Modi & team. But Dharmendra Pradhan MUST go. No second opinion on that.
Simply mindblowing SERUPPADI speech in today’s State Assembly, targeting the most corrupt DMK govt that passed out, by CM Vijay. Tamil Nadu has never had it so good in my memory. Finally we have a man who is clean, who wants to work for the people and who DOESN’T WANT PUBLIC MONEY.
Cannot express my gratitude for Vijay cancelling outright the Parandhur airport project saving our farmlands. Relocating the project to ‘neidhal’ lands of the Tamil Nadu coast is a wise choice. Heard the choice could be Cheyyur.The DMK real estate mafia now has no face. They are COOKED literally! Kudos to CM Vijay for stalling/withdrawing environmental/green approval for the Brigade group for their real estate promotion on the marsh lands of OMR. These wetlands are the lungs of Chennai. Enough harm has been done already. These two very bold acts alone are enough to prove what this man VIJAY is made of. He is promising action against dope, probably introduced to Tamil Nadu by DMK goons who knows. Please chief minister, save our younger generations.
TVK govt has scrapped the business deals such as planned commercial complexes worth hundreds of crores to be financed out of Hindu temple money. The sanctions were given during DMK period. I wish the temple funds are left to HINDU TEMPLES just as the church money stays with church and mosque money stays with muslims. Hindu temple donations are spent on public projects with the govt having access to even the temple wealth such as antique precious jewelry and gems in gold and diamonds. How much of this is already liquidated by fraud govts earlier is a big question mark. SIVAN SOTHU KULA NASAM. Anyone who touches Shiva’s wealth will have generations doomed – as you see in Afghanistan, Pakistan etc., even today.
However I am asking openly this to CM Vijay.
DO YOU HAVE IT IN YOU TO DEMOLISH THE DMK/ADMK GRAVES IN THE MARINA. Do you have it in you to free our beaches for the masses. Do you have it in you to SAVE OUR BEACHES, TO SAVE OUR ENVIRONMENT AND PUT A FULLSTOP TO GRAVE CULTURE? Beach is the only place we can rewind during weekends without having to spend money. I am someone who grew up near seaside in Mylapore, walking to beach often, not having to spend a penny on anything. In a hot country like India, the beach is the only free/cheap entertainment/relaxation for the poor masses especially during summer months.
DO YOU HAVE IT IN YOU TO DRAW CURTAINS AND CLOSE THE KALAIGNER 100TH YEAR NONSENSE AMUSEMENT PARK IN CATHEDRAL ROAD AND RESTORE THE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY THAT WAS FUNCTIONING THERE UNTIL RECENTLY. Just bulldoze with JCB!!! Not only this amusement park but also the DMK/ADMK graves. Cite Environment laws. But be ready to face the flak.
I wish I had watched more of his films just to understand this man better. Can’t believe the hero who I could not stand is doing already a fantastic job for the state. Yeah now I remember I have seen 3 pictures of his: Gilli, Kadhalukku Mariyadhai and then Vaathi i think.
First time, not seeing the traffic police stopping motor bikes for ‘maal’ during weekends! That itself is a good sign. I have seen how disrespectful they would sound catching hold of young couples out for harmless fun.
Lastly, among other projects, I am impressed with the plans to clean up Koovum river/Buckingham canal, major waterways of Chennai even a hundred years back. Vijay, please also desilt all temple tanks not only in the capital but throughout Tamil Nadu that are recharge points for ground water table, and weed out the reservoirs and lakes in time for North west monsoons scheduled to arrive by oct-dec.
Another request for CM Vijay: PLEASE RESTORE STORM WATER DRAINS AND RAINWATER HARVESTING PROJECTS MADE MANDATORY BY JAYALALITHA JAYARAM, FORMER CM, DURING HER REGIME. DMK deliberately dismantled it. The state was doing well with monsoons and rain harvesting, with the water table in the state rising to phenomenal levels during her period. Link it to future plan approvals and as JJ did, ask the households to do it within a timeframe. Yes, you can consider subsidy.
Vijay and TVK are still lucky because, DMK caused less damages anticipating a win and expecting TVK to lose. Otherwise do you remember what or how Karunanidhi left the state when it was apparent JJ would be back? Mysteriously power grids were burnt down. Overnight from NO POWERCUT STATE FOR 10 YEARS UNDER JJ, Tamil Nadu plunged to darkness and powercut days. Remember you are not dealing with just mindless hooligans but seasoned criminals. TAKE CARE. CM Vijay must also take his personal security seriously.
On ‘awakening’ i was talking to a high vibration friend who was enjoying Kali Tandav. After talking to her, immediately I felt Kali vibrations even though we did not discuss anything on Kali Ma. That night my experience was intense and I was still scared of this fierce version of Amma. So I called my guru who asked me to repeat the mantra for Ma Lalitha Maha Tripura Sundari and try to go to sleep. I did it and achieved the result. I also asked Amma/cosmos to go a bit slow with me. I was still new here taking baby steps. This was in the US.
After 2 weeks I boarded flight to India. In the flight I saw my flat and someone locking the door. The identity was blurred. I saw Kali Ma slowly twirling with Her hair loose and falling way down right in my living room. This vision I had in the flight a couple of hours before landing. No face, only the blurred vision. I snapped out of the vision and opened my eyes. I noted the time.
Landed in Chennai. Went home after months. Left India last October and boarded flight to the US in january from Doha. My husband said, he was planning to go to Kaligambal temple that week and immediately I understood why I envisioned Kali in my home. She was there when I arrived. It was news to me that my hubby wanted to go to the temple. After a few days he called me to the temple but I said I was still too tired and jet lagged. So he went on his own one early morning to have darshan of Kaligambal. Before he left I closed my eyes and had vision of Ma Kali already as She is in Kaligambal temple -petite and almost like Durga-Lakshmi, not too fierce like in north. I told him, I don’t have to go to the temple as She already gave me darshan.
I also asked him what time he left for airport to pick me up the day I arrived. The door lock time coincided with my vision time in flight. It was my mother in law who had locked the door after he left to pick me up.
From the temple, my hubby came back home around 8.30 am and gave us the prasad. I closed my eyes. I had the vision of the inner sanctum door of the temple. I have been here before. Before Kali Ma appeared, an agora rupa appeared. Looked like spider man to me hahaha. Must be the gatekeepers to check me out. After that the sannidhanam was in my vision with the small doors swinging open, but Kali Ma did not appear very crystal clear. I got the idea and a faint glimpse that’s all. I was also taken around the prahara of the temple as if in pradakshina (circumambulation). I got stunned by the experience.
Shared with my guru and a few believers and high vibration friends.
After growing out of fear for Ma Kali, I started enjoying Her roop, Her darshan and Her grace. I think this is also Ma Lalitha’s prescription for me to remove the fear component the fear component from my psyche.
Ma Kali is the most misunderstood Mother Goddess as She dons a skull mala or garland of human skulls. The skulls are representative of human ego or headweight crushed and not actual human skulls. Everything in Hindu dharma has a deeper meaning. Islamists and church deliberately misinterpret the real substance about our deities. When Ma Kali arrives, She first crushes your big ego or headweight and thus removes a major obstacle in your spiritual path. She burns your excessive pride, greed, alter ego everything and grounds you thoroughly. Its a humbling experience, enjoying the bliss of Ma Kali’s energy. Ma Kali’s grace. Ma Lalitha Tripura Sundari’s divine grace, what more can I say.
Was at my friend’s place for 3 days. On 4th june, my friends called me to Maha Prathyangira temple in Sholinganallur. As it houses Varahi, I was all the more thrilled. Never planned this temple visit. It just fell on my lap. It was clear, I got the call. Performed archana in this famous temple for both Prathyangira mata and Varahi mata. Then we went to Badra Kali’s sannidhanam. My friends and I sat in the front of the deity but at a distance, a little away from the sanctum. I recited aloud the short Durga Sapthashloki from Devi Mahatmyam. Then within my mind I chanted the Kali Gayathri 5 times and closed my eyes. My vision immediately filled with burning fire like scene and then it dissolved to a white snow like lingam small in size. Then out of nowhere emerged Kali Mata, tall and huge like some 2 storeys tall, with her tongue out. Normally, had I not been a Shakthi Upasaki or even after being one just a month or so back, I would have gotten scared. This time with Ma in pitch black and with her eyes gleaming, I had no fear in me. I know and have been told She is such a lovely energy. I lapped up Her into my system that’s all. I know I am one in a million to be shown Her divine grace like this. I thanked Her for Her benevolence because I always think I lack depth in bhakthi, i am not that devoted, and I am not the perfect upasaki or whatever. Yet She graced me with Her supreme darshan. I felt normal basking in this divine bliss – not overtly euphoric or too sentimental. It seemed so natural to me. It lasted for about a minute and I got a closeup too. I asked for Her forgiveness for the mistakes and sins I have committed knowingly and unknowingly. I asked Her to give Her blessings to one and all, not just to my family. I thanked Her again for Her divine Grace. I really didn’t even know whether I deserved it or not. Anyway She knows better and She has access to my Karmic records. I came out of the moment. I shared the experience with my friends who are very pious and who believe in me and who never doubted a word of what I told them. I am glad to have them in my life. Not a sarcastic comment or cracking jokes or poking fun.
I sent a message to my Guru. NO I HAVE NOT DONE KALI SADHANA. I am though a Shakthi Upasaki.
I shared the experience with one more high vibrational friend who also has been having divine darshans for years now. She encouraged me and asked me to enjoy the divine bliss and asked me to share the vibes/experiences with only true believers. Another friend asked me to record it to posterity. Many Upasakas coming in the future may want to know and they must have the benefit, she said. So I have decided to selectively record here some of my Divine experiences.
These experiences of mine are not faked; they are not a lie; they are not my hallucination; they are not my dreams; i am not under any medication other than regular ones for my lifestyle conditions; these are REAL ACTUAL VISIONS that I am having. I have no need to convince anyone of anything. I leave it to people to believe what they want to.
My ‘awakening’ began slowly in January itself in Doha. I realized it only as it came out fully in the open by february- march in Arizona, US. I am back in India now. The awakening has a profound effect on me that I cannot describe to anyone.
Kodi Pranaams to Ma Lalitha for choosing me in this noble mission in this janam of mine. Again I don’t even know whether I deserve this spiritual promotion. I never thought much about my bhakthi or whatever. It feels strange belonging with the cosmos. I am just taking my baby steps right now.
Closing this post with Devi Aparadha Kshamapana stotra by shri Adi Shankara – looks like he composed it just for me.
India made quiet progress in these loud war times. Of course we need to take the security of our scientists and PM even seriously from now on. One major reason for India faring not so well is that, mysteriously we have our scientists dying or done in. This is the trend ever since India’s independence from the British in the year 1947. It is in spite of this sabotage that we Indians are still registering at least this much progress and development in all spheres.
India successfully achieved the fast breeder criticality for civil nuclear energy aimed at self sufficiency in clean power management. The raw material used for attaining this milestone is Thorium and India holds over 60% of world’s thorium deposits. Had our nuclear scientists not been eliminated under suspicious circumstances over years, we would have been here decades ago. One whole flight people had to die along with Homie Bhabha, father of India’s nuclear program as the plane crashed in the Alps. And you would want us to believe it was not an assassination? Ever since thousands of scientists have lost their lives working for institutes of science, atomic research and space sciences in India. This is why probably our youngsters decided that, the safest option for our engineers and medicos would be to live in the USA!
What does the fast breeder criticality milestone mean for our nation: more output from the breeder than the fuel it consumes, paving way for viable commercial production.
Another feather in the hat is the quantum leap made by India recently. Our scientists have successfully secured 1000 km quantum communication which gives the nation’s defence a definite boost with unbackable internet.
World is filled with hate and violence because of two groups of people: the Christians and Muslims. All bloodshed happening in the world today and nature getting destroyed is due to these both. It is because of dharmic faiths such as Hindu Dharma and its offshoots Buddhism that world is still a sane place to live in. Sanatana dharam (Hinduism) restores the much needed precarious balance of peace in the world. The greed of the Abrahamics is the reason for such a chaos and violence in the world in the first place.
To not be born evil is by itself a great blessing. To be not consumed by greed and hate is a blessing. To be not destroying others is the supreme blessing of all. To not grab other’s food and eat, to not grab others’ livelihood is a blessing. My Hindu nation never invaded other countries in 10000 year history. We are not the bloody offshoot of a mushroom in 300 years without ancestry or proud history than looting spree. We never ethnic cleansed or drove any species to extinction be it human or wildlife. The Hindu hands are clean; the Hindu conscience is clear. Today if we retaliate at all or fire back at our adversaries, it is because of unprovoked terror attacks on our people desecrating our territorial integrity . Extremely proud of my beloved nation Bharat/India. Its no wonder that a bronze statue of Swami Vivekananda also got inaugurated the same week in Seattle, a tribute to Hindu ideals and way of life. Om Shanti! May sanity and peace prevail in the world.
The latest figures show Indian families hold approximately 27,871 tons of gold, valued at over $1.5 trillion. This estimate dramatically exceeds the World Gold Council’s July 2023 report that pegged household gold at 25,000 tons.
Let me clarify here that this does not include the temple gold of India which shall be many many times more than the domestic gold held in our families.
Surprised by the world headlines screeching that the whale called India swallowed 6000 tons of silver in 2025. Correction: this is annual silver consumption by India for years. In fact in 2022 or 2023, India bought a whopping 7000-8000 tons of silver. Precious metals such as gold and silver are traditionally hoarded by Indian homes along with gems such as diamonds, rubies etc. In fact during a wedding, mostly the brides get entire puja articles in silver as gift from parents. Son-in-law is gifted a silver plate with side plate. Wealthy families have their entire dinner sets in silver. We the middle class mostly limit our silver collection to mere puja articles that may include big plates and flower baskets, apart from tumblers and bowls and cute little storage dabbas for haldi, kumkum etc. Not to leave out the Diyas. We ladies just love having our silver diyas. I got one for my Diya puja here too to middle east along with a smaller one. Some friends especially those with daughters have huge impressive collections of silver. Gold and silver are the real wealth of Indian homes. Its our family custom to invest in appreciable assets be it gold or silver or real estate. India’s hoarded gold is the hugest holding of gold in the world – not only in recent times. Its been so historically.
Our temples even today have tonnes and tonnes of gold, silver and diamonds that does not come into any calculation. This is why from turks to mugals, from British to the Portuguese came to India. Jan 5 by the way was the day Somnath temple was ransacked by Mohammed of Ghazni after a record 17 time failed attempts. The final time he razed the temple, breaking the Jyothirlinga to pieces and looting the temple gold. Over 50,000 Hindus sacrificed their lives fighting to protect one of the 12 Jyothirlingas (Shiva stals) of India. Exactly today PM of India Shri Narendra Modi ji, was at Somnath, as the temple completed 1000 years since 1026 January when it was ransacked and runover completely. Even the shattered pieces of the Jyothirlinga were zealously collected by the Hindus who have tried to reconstruct it recently. The Jyothirlinga of Somnath was a hanging one suspended in air. Can you imagine a levitating huge Shiva Linga in white colour stone? That was precisely Somnath since time immemorial. This stone is NOT FROM PLANET EARTH. To us this establishes already our Lord Shiva as master of the earth. Imagine now what kind of maniacs these marauders of India were to go for Somnath and destroy not only the holy shrine but also loot the temple of the wealth passed on for centuries. That very idea of Shiva/symbol of Hindu Dharma made the turks and mugals go mad that they wanted Somnath completely destroyed. At the base of this destruction also lay the greed for India’s gold. Even today so much looted Hindu wealth in gold and in sculptures lies with United Kingdom, as the British decamped with whatever the Mugals could not lay their hands on. India’s riches invited the marauders, the most violent of them, but then after centuries, see the condition of their native nations today – from Afghanistan to Uzbekistan.
Somnath is just one Hindu temple destroyed by barbaric invaders for our golds and riches. The idea was to batter the very Hindu civilization itself and make it into dust. Well, they failed. This January 1, 2026, this is how Lord Balaji/Venkateshwara of Tirumala gave darshan to thousands of Hindu devotees: all gold and diamonds. And He is a 6 foot deity!
Only ignoramus judge India without knowing about our basics or traumatic history.
I don’t mean the paper gold or paper silver like in the west. I mean the REAL PHYSICAL GOLD, PHYSICAL SILVER THAT INDIA HOLDS. Without physical gold/silver to back up, what are these jokers hoarding in paper.
Sadly, this is what we Indians are left with AFTER THE MUGAL LOOT, TURK LOOT, ETC. After our nation was torn apart for centuries. After the British looted whatever was left including the Kohinoor diamond that principally adorned the crown of Ma Badrakali of the Warangal temple in Andhra Pradesh. And you have these jokers in Pakistan claiming ownership of Kohinoor. But note: no Hindu great grandmothers of theirs taken into mugal harems.
You are talking about the world’s one and only CONTINUOUS AND UNBROKEN CIVILIZATION OF OVER 10,000 YEARS WHICH IS HINDU DHARMIC CULTURE. Our gold,silver and diamond must neither come as surprise nor shock. This is what we are. Landing on the dark side of the moon was not by fluke. It is what we have always been. India is now merely reassembling, reconstructing. We have been through a 1000 year trauma and even today we have CANCER right within that we are fighting to get rid of.
Without a sense of history or basic relevant knowledge, how the world media is making assessment on India’s gold/silver purchases is shocking. Acquired by fair, legal means. Not stolen.
From Google:
India has also historically been the largest consumer of silver jewelry and silverware by volume. Over the past five years, analysts estimate that Indian consumers, particularly low-income individuals in rural areas, have purchased approximately 29,000 tonnes of silver jewelry and 4,000 tonnes of silver coins.
Gold, silver and even diamonds are part of Hindu culture. As simple as that. This is the mark of the real OLD RICH understood? Old rich native nation.
Not just saddened but more of shocked on hearing that Aravalli could get compromised in new India’s developmental reforms. So much so that our legal updates are to favour destruction of our precious ecology for the sake of short term benefits, that too for a handful of stinky rich Indians. I rated Arnab Goswami poorly but he finally showed us what a fine journalist he is: its not his brashness that must be the measure of his journalism. He is going against the center openly and brazenly, taking up the cause of nature – in this case Aravalli – knowing that he is taking on none other than PM Modi himself. Many of us associate journalism with sleek sophistication. Truth about journalism is this: NOT SELLING YOUR SOUL, HEAR IT? You defend TRUTH. Nothing less. Anyway now that the Supreme court has stayed the case, we have some breathing time to gather our wits wits to prepare and argue for a tougher case for our forests and mountains. This is why I cannot stand ISHA of Jaggi Vasudev; the megalith bust of Shiva permanently blocked the path of the pachyderms in the Nilgiris mountains, changing the route map of over ten thousand year elephant corridor forever. To legalize the take up of forest lands, what do you do? Invite the prime minister himself for inauguration. You expect nothing short of such a drama from someone not yet absolved in the public eye, of murdering his wife. Shiva to me is those forests made into car park for Isha and the stage for the annual KOOTHU by the old man on the Shiva Rathri. Shakthi to me resides right in the Aravalli. And in the forests taken over for Patanjali by another supposed godman of India Baba Ramdev. And they shamelessly claim you can do business and be a sanyasi in five star luxury. Well, then Ambani and Adani can’t be really blamed.
You don’t have to hoist the tricolour in the surface of the Moon and call it ‘Shivshakthi’ point, Modi ji. Shiva and Shakti are right here in India – in our forests and mountains and rivers, can’t you see it? Destroy Aravalli – whole of India will vote Rahul Gandhi for our next PM. Now you understand why we need even those like Stalin and Mamta Banerjee. Imagine this dear nation of mine going into the hands of power hungry political party dancing to the tunes of AFTER ALL BUSINESS TYCOONS. Well, this is not America Modi ji. This is India. Here MASSES WILL DICTATE TERMS NOT BUSINESS COMMUNITY. Government is for INDIAN MASSES , not for your industrialists and business class who would like to open something fancy like Vantara and invite vulgar Hollywood stars to family weddings, as you go on rampaging our beautiful rural and forested India.
Already the Sardar Patel statue in Gujarat has done immense damage to the dugong population in the sea there. Don’t even dream of doing anything to Andaman Islands. Its already a seismic zone. Same goes for Himalayas. WHO ASKED FOR THE CHARDAM CORRIDOR. This is MESS – GOING AGAINST NATURE. This could make a powder of the mighty Himalayas and raise the chances of a quake in future. Do you even call this development? Denying access to millions to the great heights of Himalaya can only save the glaciers of the mountains that feed the Ganga and other perennial north Indian rivers. Affordability works as a great deterrent when it comes to cutting footfall to this ecologically fragile area. But what has the government done? Opening up the place so that it turns out to be the next Tirupathi.
BJP IS ZERO WHEN IT COMES TO ENVIRONMENT/ECOLOGY PRESEVATION. They need to learn a lot. They have to do the necessary corrections on warfooting basis or otherwise pack your bags Modiji to go home on retirement. You touch India’s nature ONE SMALL SQUARE CENTIMETER – You forget your votebank.
As an NRI i get to watch only the online kutcheris as the Margazhi/December Music festival is in full bloom in Madras/Chennai. But whatever is available is already plateful and even this I am unable to consume wholly! Simply no time and then there is the time zone difference. Today for instance they were all the same time – Sri Rangam Venkata Nagarajan, Prince Rama Varma, Dushyanth Sridhar everyone. Stunning range to cater to all your senses, most overwhelming that we have to choose and ration time. Thanks to webcasters I am enjoying the treat from the confines of my home from OUTSIDE INDIA. I am in particular tuned in to Mudhra and Madhuradhwani and Ragamalika tv to who I want to give credit. They lend a class to our lifestyle so effortlessly! Great job! Feel refreshed totally and recharged. Soul stirring instrumental music without whose mention the post shall be incomplete. This is true of both solos/duets as well as accompaniments. My pick of the season: Amrutha Venkatesh. Soon the classical dance programs are to start – from Bharat Natyam and Kuchipudi to Kathak and Mohiniattam. Carnatic season is including healthy share of discourses (Upanyasams) this year. Of course this trend is seeing a steady rise in recent years. Love listening to newbies who all seem to be outperforming. Young talent is new blood, that longstanding cultural traditions need to be necessarily infused with year after year. Not that I am a pro in anything. Just a connoisseur of good music – music understandable to me , which is why western is ruled out for me. I enjoy anything/everything desi be it classical or folky and ofcourse filmy. You don’t need to know the a,b,cs of the classical to savour the best of it. You don’t have to be a qualified all-knowing rasika at all. Just relax and go with the flow, enjoy the sensation. That is the beauty of the Indian classical musical renditions be that vocal or instrumental. The bhakthi component is indispensable to Indian classical. As much as I love the Thyagaraja keertans, I am also at the same time partial to Muddhuswamy Dikshithar’s kirtans. Favourite composers include Papanasam Sivan (for Tamil renditions), Gopalakrishna Bharathi among others.
Soul-soothing, soul calming, soul enriching, soul awakening: this is how I describe God given gift of classical musical forms of India: Carnatic (of the south) and Hindustani (of the north). Not very familiar with Hindustani though but I have to thank RaGa sisters for introducing us audience to a slice of the spread with selective Abangs.
This is why retired life in India is BEST. Classical music, looming ancient temples that are over 1000-2000 years old spread over hundreds of acres, fresh flowers, monsoon madness, life-throbbing cities and small towns and dusty villages besides the variety of regionwise authentic matchless cuisine. No other nation on earth can come even a close second. Heat and crowd and mosquitoes are small incoveniences. You don’t burn the house to get rid of a pest. Of course, you settle for other pleasures when you don’t have to bother too much about your soul. SOUL FOOD: this you get only in India.
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