Srikalahasti, the great place of piligrimage where Lord Shiva's devotees came into light, it was a spider (sri), a snake (kala) and an elephant(hasti). The pooja went well and we (me and my parents) were seated close to Lord Shiva in the form of a Shiv Ling and Rahu and Ketu in front of Him. Sri Kalahasti is exactly 300 km from Bangalore. 1 hour drive from Tirupati.
The place has now become very commercialized. The priests ask us to constantly offer dakshina (money). The priest who conducts dosha nivarana puja even demands a dakshina of 200 Rs which is supposed to be a voluntary contribution. Scriptures say that such poojas help the soul in clearing impediments and past karmas, but seeing the money minded priests there, one begins to wonder if its all a hoax.
Coming to the good part, I had a very good darshan of the lord (the massive Shiv ling) and also the darshan of the mother. My guru says that the temple, priests and poojas are all an external representation of our own super conscious mind. Keeping this in mind, i constantly enjoyed the darshan and the music which was continuously played in the temple which says 'Om namah Sivaya' repeatedly. Then myself and my driver\friend visited the temple on top of the hill where the great devotee of Lord Shiva Kannappa was graced by Lord Shiva. I meditated for a while on top of the hill and hope to maintain the mountaintop perspective when im entangled in emotions or the instinctive/intellectual subconscious states of mind.
Thus having charged by the cosmic rays of the darshan we returned to Bangalore safely. Thank you Baba for making our trip pleasant and peaceful. Aum namah Sivaya.
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