Spiritual Symbolism of Nataraj – Cosmic Dancer
Nataraj, literally meaning King of Dancers, is the cosmic dancer, the god of auspiciousness and reigns over the ajna chakra located between the eyebrows. He is a form of Shiva dancing Ananda Tandava, the dance of bliss, of creation and rejuvenation. Nataraj is the god of bliss of which dance is an expression of bliss. […]
Spiritual Symbolism of Ganesha
Ganesha – God of Good Beginnings and Remover of Obstacles Ganesha is the most popular and beloved god of all. He is the son of Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. Ganesha is not an elephant but received an elephant head only. The story goes that Parvati created Ganesha and asked him to guard her place […]
Lord Ganesha Removing the Obstacles to the Real Age of Enlightenment
“Deluded by ignorance, not being able to see thy lotus feet for thousands of celestial years, we have been in grief, but by your grace we now have your darshan, and are truly blessed. O Lord Ganesha, support of the universe, bless us, bless all, and protect every one! All glories unto you!” — Chapter […]
The Annamalaiyar Shiva Temple: Pilgrimage of Liberation Part II
“I am pleased to announce that Version 2.0 of my documentary, The Shiva Temple of Tiruvannamalai: Pilgrimage of Liberation, is now available on YouTube. This 2.0 version includes updated research, new script content, new video and photo content, and a remastered sound track. This documentary film explores the famed Annamalaiyar Shiva Temple of Tiruvannamalai, Tamil […]
The Annamalaiyar Shiva Temple: Pilgrimage of Liberation Part I
Documentary and photograph by Phillip Lucas 2018
Living under the Bilva Tree
Arrival at the Guesthouse It was 4:00 am in the morning and dark. The rickshaw driver took me down a small road. It was a new area I had not explored before. He called the guesthouse manager who suddenly appeared from nowhere it seemed. Being tired from an overnight bus ride I was about ready […]
Om Shakti Temple – Mother is Calling
A young man was selling sugar cane juice. It was freshly made with a machine that squeezed the sugar canes flat and thereby released the juices that people drink. I asked him about the temple across the street. He said it is the Om Shakti Temple and gave me the temple hours. I thanked him […]
Arunachala Hridaya: The Heart of Arunachala
This is an account of an affair of the Heart but not in the usual sense. My very first connection with Arunachala was when I was fifteen years of age and I borrowed a book from the library on the subject. To this day I have no idea what caused me to pick up that […]
Arunachala Shiva – A Mountain with the Power to Grant Boons and Final Liberation
“In the Dravidian region of South India, there is the greatest place called Arunachala, dearest to Chandrasekara (Shiva as moon-crested). It is the abode of Shiva and yogis. Arunachala is to this world what the heart is to the whole body. It is everything for Shiva. For the benefit of the world, Shiva took the […]
Magnificent Sri Puram Golden Lakshmi Temple
The founder of the magnificent Sri Puram Golden Lakshmi Temple, Sri Sakthi Amma born in 1976, as a 16 year old boy had a vision of Narayani while riding the school bus. The energy image of the Mother of the Universe emerged from the boy making itself visible in the sky and after some time the […]