OUR WEST BENGAL TRIP-(21)

Day 18 March SOLSC! #SOL23

10-01-2023

On 10^th January we had booked the whole day city trip with Kolkata City tours. While making the booking I had written that we wanted to go on this tour on the 9^th. Mr. Karmakar kindly told us that many of the sightseeing places were closed on Mondays. So, we went on the walking tour instead.

After seeing the Howrah Bridge, we proceeded to the Jain Temple. The moment we entered the gates it felt like we were in different and beautiful world. I remembered the Jain temples in Ranakpur and Mt Abu in Rajasthan. They too were divinely beautiful. It makes us wonder if human hands can create something so ethereal.  

We kept our footwear outside in an allotted place and walked in. Photography was not allowed inside. The whole place is opulent with wealth. Belgian glass was used to decorate pillars and walls and there was a massive chandelier. I think there were precious stones and gold too. The priest was conducting prayers and some devotes were standing near him. We too prayed silently and then walked around the sanctum which is common to various religions in India.

One of the persons inside showed us a lamp in a glass case. The flame in that lamp has been burning continuously for more than 150 years. It is fascinating to think that someone through the ages came inside and filled the lamp with ghee to keep it alight. Such a lamp is called nandaadeepa (in Kannada it means a lamp which never goes out) Such lamps are present in different temples in our country. They must be giving a sense continuity to the people of that place. Over the last two hundred years many drastic changes have taken place all over the world.

There are many statues, and we were surprised to see one of a European lady near the temple pond. She seemed strangely out of place. An umbrella covered her head. Maybe it was kept to stop birds from sitting on her head. There was a small shop selling handicraft items as souvenirs. Aravind bought some.

We next proceeded to Jorasanko Thakur Bari, the birthplace and home of Rabindranath Tagore.

Architects of Nineteenth-Century Calcutta: An Introduction to the Johari Sath Community | Sahapedia

Calcutta Jain Temple – Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calcutta_Jain_Temple