AFVOA Newletters of Year 2013

Page 42 of 61 Tirupati Balaji Temple, Ahmedabad. Tirupati Balaji Temple has been built recently by Ahmedabad Andhra Mahasabha and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam. The temple is constructed according to Agama Shastra. Granite stones are used in its construction. The carvings on the stones are done in Tirupati. The temple has a 40 foot gopuram. The sanctum sanctorum has a Divine Idol of Balaji, 39 feet tall. The temple has a resemblance of the Tirupati Balaji Temple in Andhra Pradesh. Vaishno Devi Temple, Ahmedabad. This is a popular shrine. It is located on the Ahmedabad - Gandhinagar highway. The shrine is a true replica of the famed Vaishno Devi Temple near Jammu. The pathway to the temple is made similar to the hill route as experiences on the trek to Vaishno Devi. Hutheesingh Jain Temple, Ahmedabad. Hutheesingh Jain Temple in Ahmedabad has the finest Jain architecture. It was built in 1848 AD and is a two storied structure. It is dedicated to the fifteenth Thirthankar of Jainis - Dharamnath. The temple is made of white marble and is built by a rich Jain merchant Seth Hutheesingh. Mahavir Sthamba is 75 feet high, a recent addition. The Sthamba is in front of the temple. Some of the motifs in the tower design are reminiscent of the Sultana Minarets of the Mughal period. The courtyard has 52 Holy Places. Lord Krishna Temple. Dakor. Dakor in Kheda district of Gujarat, 90 kms from Ahmedabad, is prominent for its grand temple of Sri Krishna. It is also one of the Panch Dwaraka temples. In order to satisfy a poor Krishna devotee, Bholanath who lived in Dakor, Sri Krishna decided to stay in Dakor and give his devotee the opportunity to worship Krishna daily.. Otherwise, Bholanath was walking to Dwaraka every day for offering prayers to Lord Krishna. Both at Dwaraka and Dakor, Sri Krishna is known as ‘Ranchhodrai’, one who ran away from battle, when ‘Kalvavan’ attacked him as an ally of ‘Jarasandh’. In the End The Gujarat tour gave us an opportunity to visit some of our cultural heritage in the form of ancient temples, forts and monuments. The wild life in Gujarat is a great experience. It also gave us an opportunity to visit places associated with Gandhiji. Textiles, Industrial activity and Infrastructure improvements are praise worthy. At places, there is a shortage of water which is being attended to on priority. A very interesting visit that all of us thoroughly enjoyed. +++++++++++++++ FOR THOSE WHO ARE GETTING ALONG IN YEARS (Translated from the original in Chinese, this appeared in the internet) There are 1000-year old trees in the mountain, but not many 100 year-old people…… At the most, you live 100 years (only 1 in 100,000). Because you don’t have many years to live, and you can’t take along things when you go, you don’t have to be too thrifty..