Intoxication of a different kind
India can be termed as God-intoxicated country. There is no situation, environment or place that the Indian does not have a god for.
There are gods for vegetation, for weather, for nature, for geographical areas, for villages, for the house, in the temples, in running water, gods in deepest forest and in icy mountain heights.
Gods can inspire, infuse creativity and provoke destruction too. And so, the Indian festivals are incomplete without worshipping these deities.
Vibrantly coloured, elaborately painted and decorated these idols are bought & brought home, worshipped, sometimes for several days before being immersed in accordance with faith into nearby rivers, lakes and the sea where they are.
They are available in all sizes to suit the size of pockets and the place where they are to be kept.
Earlier the idols were made of clay, straw and organic vegetable dyes but environmentalists claim now the idols are mostly made from non-biodegradable materials such as plastic, cement and plaster of Paris (PoP) and painted using toxic dyes.
First the body is painted in single colour, then other colours are added for clothes etc., then eyes and other intricate details are marked and in the end all ornaments with gold & silver colors.
Worshipped at home & now on its last journey… for immersion
Technorati Tags: Festival India
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Do you fast on thursdays? I love the photo & colorss. Ganpatibappa looks beautiful.
Kanan,
Welcome to this blog as well !
Thursday ? Why that question ? Oh, is it because of my Thirsty Thursday posts ? Ha Ha Ha….
No, I don’t fast on Thursdays and it has nothing to do with that.
Thirsty Thursday posts are mostly pictograph types with no or very little description.
Yes, I also like the vibrant colours. In fact I have many more pictures of these deities.
Thanks for your visit, keep coming.
Great visual treat once again from you Cuckoo ….. especially the G God is always great to click and makes it more interesting by his poses ….
The second last foto is stunning
where did you go to shoot these pix?
It’s a lovely foto feature.
Beautiful pictures. Although I can’t help thinking those deities are a little bit impractical! And it scares me a little that there are so many of the same, like an army of gods. I see many resemblances to the Roman Catholic way of worshipping, with the plastic Maria and Jesus statues painted in bright colours. It is an interesting cultural facet.
Ahem, now that’s what I call a blog of a different kind
Hi Cuckoo! Amazing post! Loved to see those pictures. Brought home a silver G. Looks great!!
Meanwhile, Blogtrotter just said goodbye to Mykonos 2007!! It shows the famous sunset scene at Little Venice, and the Pelican mascot of the island…
Hope you enjoy, comment and have a great weekend!
Ram,
Thank you very much.
Yes, the vibrant colours & different poses make me feel happy. When young, we always used to compare different idols with our own theories. I think sub-consciously we still do it. No ?
I didn’t know you followed this blog of mine ! A pleasant surprise for me.
Abhijit,
Thank you very much. Coming from you is a privilege.
where did you go to shoot these pix?.. Well, the shots were not taken on a single day. Whenever I saw something on the road & if I had my camera, I took the picture.
Thyme,
Welcome to my blog.
Oh, we have those statues of Maria & Jesus as well. India is rich in culture.
No need to get scared, they are harmless. Once you see them in real, I am sure you’ll fall in love with them.
Thanks for your visit, keep coming.
Amey,
And that’s a different kind of comment coming from you. Seriously, don’t you miss these deities out there ?
Trotter,
I have been following your blog and all posts, it’s just that I can not go there to comment every time I see a new post.
If you remember I was the first Indian to find your blog and now you have so many followers.
fabulous pictures. Great post.
very beautiful photography and interesting post. thank you for your visit and kind comments
Great post, with beautiful photos…
I’ll come again to read others posts…
Very colorful and beautiful…Great post..
What colourful photos and interesting information!
No, you hadn’t commented on my CC post. At least I didn’t see it , but I am glad you came anyway. Have a great week
Oh, what wonderful vibrant colours Cuckoo! I love the images here. There is a joy and a pagentry surrounding eastern worship which is somehow missing in the west. Lovely post hon.
Very cool. A colourful treat for the end of my day. Thanks for that.
Happy Diwali Cuckoo.
Happy Diwali Cuckoo!!
Nice to see colourful pics. Specially the second one from last, I really liked the Sitting Ganeshji pic…
God intoxicated is the best phrase Ive come across to describe this frenzy..beautifully captured. Happy Deepavali
so where do u gather these pics from. i liked the ganeshji sitting on the bullock cart.
The gods do seem powerful in India. They all gave great credibility to Ganesh, the elephant god who seemed to be able to solve all matter of problems.
Great post, Cuckoo. So true each line of what you have written and great shots too.
very interesting photos! Indian culture is so rich! Happy Deepavali!
Do visit my humour blog http://ieatmushroom.com
=D
Great pictures! One can see a similar (though different in many way) sight in Kolkata before, during and after Durga Pujas.
Great post and beautiful photos. I love the different looks/sizes of Ganesh.
nice pics n congrats for moving to new place
The pictures are beautiful.
I have always heard about this “a God for every occasion” and I must say that even as an atheist, it does make more sense to me than having one and only God.
Maybe I was Indian in a past life!
Shiva is my favorite indian god!
Really fantastic, that is what I could say. I need to steal some time to go through your other posts which seem inviting.
Ganpati is like the cutest God
… i esp love the leafy pic of Ganeshji.
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