Indian Kings and Palaces

Dear Daughter,

Papa went to the Palace here in Madurai called the Thirumalai Nayak Palace. Thirumalai was a king who lived here over four hundred years ago and this was his palace. His family dynasty was the Nayaks and they ruled Madurai and the area around here for two hundred years.

Thirumalai was said to be a very good king and he loved music and Sanskrit poetry and would have music every night in his courtyard.

Also, the Temple that Papa has gone to several times and I have sent you pictures was the center of town and Thirumalai made sure that it was really special. You know how you are learning about castles and dragons in school? Well, they built a really big moat all around the Temple so that if you could see it from above, it would look like a giant lotus flower in the middle of a pond. Isn’t that cool?

Later, the moats were filled in by the British who were in India for a while, so you cannot see them any longer.

However, the four streets around the Temple are stilled called “velis,” which means a moat or watery place in Tamil to remind everyone what they once were.

Here are a few pictures of what the palace looked like at night with the special lights on it. It was very beautiful.

I Love You,

Papa

Strange Creatures

Dear Daughter,

Papa went back to the Meenakshi Temple again last night with some friends and each time I go, I see more and more fabulous things.

I saw the elephant again and there were several musicians and lights and incense and chanting and many people there to pay devotion to the gods.

I found this column that is a popular creature in Tamil Nadu. It is something like a mix of a lion, dragon and an elephant! You can see the trunk, but it is standing on its hind legs that look like a lion.

What do you think it is??

I Love You,

Papa

A Night of A Hundred Sitars

Dear Daughter,

Last Friday, Papa went to the Meenakshi temple and there were musicians there inside the temple with over 100 sitars! The sitar is a stringed instrument like our guitars, but you play them sitting down and across your lap. There were also some Tabla players, which are the small, Indian drums that you like to listen to. It was an amazing experience.

Here are some pictures, and when I get back, I will show you the videos I made so that you can also hear them!

I love you,

Papa

Ganesha and his Friends

Dear Daughter,

Papa went back to the Meenakshi Temple on Friday evening in Madurai to see the lights for the Pooja celebration.

It was very colorful and there were many, many lights all around the temple with lots of music and flowers and incense, so it was a very beautiful evening.

I saw this set of lights with Ganesha and his little friends and thought that you would like to see them.

I love you,

Papa

Elephant Tales

Dear Daughter,

Papa went to Kerala this week for a school trip and he saw lots of things there.

While we were driving one night, guess what we saw? Elephants again, this time on the side of the road. There were three big elephants and they were carrying an entire palm tree in each of their trunks, can you believe that? For every elephant, there was a man riding on top and one walking with alongside to keep them off of the road.

But, what was really funny is that each one of the elephants had reflective tape on their tails so that the cars could see them. And, they all had huge ankle bracelets with bells on them so we could hear them too. So, even the elephants need help being seen even though they are so big.

I love you,

Papa

Happy Birthday, Gandhi

Dear Daughter,

Today is the birthday of a very important and courageous man named Gandhi. He is considered the father of India and his birthday was celebrated all over India today.

Gandhi believed in something from Sanskrit called ahimsã, which means non-violence. Gandhi believed that it was wrong to hurt any creature with violence. This is also true of people who try to follow the example of the Buddha as well who thought it was wrong to harm any creature.

Gandhi wanted India to be independent from Britain, but did not want there to be a war, so he started a movement based on non-violence called "Quit India" so that India would be governed by the Indians again. Because of Gandhi, India showed the world that war is not always the answer.

Today is known as International Non-Violence because of him. He proved that we can solve our differences, no matter how big they are peacefully if we really try. He was a model for all of us to try and follow I believe.

I love you,

Papa

Celebrating Pooja

Dear Daughter,

There is a big Hindu holiday beginning this week in India called Pooja. Hinduism is the dominant religion in Indian and has many, many gods, including Ganesha and Shiva that I have told you about. Pooja is a purification celebration and one of the main goddesses whom is highlighted here is Saraswati, or the goddess of wisdom.

When I was at Tamil class yesterday, Pandian, my teacher, asked if I wanted to see how some people celebrate Pooja. He said that many people put up a collection of “dolls” on display.

We went next door to his neighbor’s house and I was expecting a dozen or so “dolls” in the images of the gods and goddesses, but there were nearly 1,000 of them! The entire front room had been transformed into a shrine to display the dolls with Christmas-type lights, flower garlands, and incense to add to the scene. It was amazing and so colorful.

Unfortunately Papa did not have his camera, so I hope that they will still be up when I go back for my lesson next week and I can take a picture for you. The little old lady whose house it was has been collecting these dolls all her life from around India, so she is like grandma who also like to collect things like Kachina dolls and sculptures.

I love you,

Papa