Night Sky: Sept 9-15

Both Venus and Jupiter are currently visible in the morning sky now. The Moon joins Jupiter Sept 8 and 9 in Taurus (Moon is exalted in Taurus). (Moon-Jupiter is a powerful beneficial combination.) It will be conjunct Venus in Cancer on Wednesday, Sept 12. Cancer is Moon's own sign and astrologically, two luminous planets together makes the sign shine brilliantly

If you are interested in seeing any of these planetary displays, look towards the eastern sky, early morning between 1a.m and 4 a.m.

Moon and Jupiter together, Sunday Sept 9, 2012

Moon in Gemini from Monday Sept 10 to Tuesday Sept 111, 2012

Moon and Venus together in Cancer, Sept 12, 2012

(Artwork by Indira Govindan based on Astronomy Class, Star-Ledger)

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Photographic Glimpses of the Mall in D.C.

Edith Haupt Garden, Smithsonian Castle

Subcommitte by Tony Cragg, Hirshhorn Museum

Smithsonian Castle

Dhobi Flower

Coatroom sign at the Museum African Art. So Imaginative!

Sun and Moon Signs Etched on the Doors of the Museum of the American Indian

Japanese American Memorial

Japanese American Memorial

I hope you enjoy this little tour of some of the attractions of the Smithsonian Museums in Washington D.C.

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Straight From Paris!

Beautiful cotton ribbons straight from Paris, a gift from my daughter! A piece of it is already wrapped around this lovely journal at my Etsy shop 

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Ai Wei Wei's Circle of Animals (Zodiac Heads)

On a recent trip to Washington D.C., I got the chance to see the Circle of Animals (Zodiac Heads) exhibition by Ai Wei Wei at the Hirshhorn's Museum. A well-known artist and sculptor, Al Wei Wei has become more famous recently as a tough and outspoken critic of the Chinese government for which, he has been beaten, detained, imprisoned and charged with tax evasion.

The Circle of Animals is an outdoor art exhibition consisting of the twelve animal heads  of the Chinese Zodiac: snake, horse, ram, monkey, rooster, dog, pig, rat ox, tiger, rabbit and the dragon. Each head, located on slender pedestal is 10 feet tall and is displayed around the perimeter of the fountain in the Museum's central Plaza.

If you are interested in Chinese astrology but apolitical, you can enjoy this collection for its masterly craftsmanship. Though many of the characters are cast in a bland mode (like the grinning monkey), some are so startlingly fierce and angry you could almost imagine their jaws snapping at you.

A Grinning Dog!

Tiger!

Dragon!

Yet, to those who are familiar with Chinese history, the collection refers to a very painful chapter in imperial China's encounter with the European powers. It is based on a original 18th century sculptures that were designed for the clock of the Yuanming Yuan ( Garden of Perfect Brightness), an imperial retreat outside Beijing, and were pillaged by the British and French soldiers during the Second Opium War in 1860. Since 2000, the Chinese government has successfully retrieved some of them but the whereabouts of several others remain unknown.

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(Photos by Indira Govindan)

Mandalas for the Planets

Kolam (Mandala) the Sun

Navagraha kolams (mandalas) are sacred designs drawn to propitiate the planets and to invoke their blessings. These yantras for the the planets are said to originate from Soundarya Lahiri, a poem composed in praise of Devi by Sankara. Though yantras are typically etched on a copper plate, kolam is drawn in front of the home shrine using rice flour or can be drawn on paper or other materials also.

The image above is the mandala for the Sun. The line drawing is the mandala; I have added color and embellishments. Here are some significant astrological details regarding the Sun, the most important of nine planets:

The following are mostly common to both Western and Indian astrologies: 
(Italicized texts in parentheses are the Sanskrit equivalent of English words/names)

Sign: Leo (Simha)
Day of the week:  Sunday (Ravivar)

Direction: East

Season: Summer (Grishma) 

Nature: mildly malefic

Rulership of: Soul

Gender: Masculine

Father of:  Saturn (planet)

Significator: 1st and the 10th house in the natal chart

Exalted: Aries 10 deg

Directional strength: 10th house

Natural friends: Jupiter, Mars and the Moon

Represents: Father, government, authority, places of worship

Represents (physical): Bones, heart, eyesight, head

Favorable in houses: 3, 6, 10 and 11 in the natal chart


The following pertains to Indian mythology and astrology only: 

Name in Sanskrit: Surya
Lordship of nakshatras (lunar mansions): Krittika, Uttara Phalguni, Uttara Ashada

Dasa length: 6 years

Aspects: the 7th house from itself

Yogas: budhaaditya , veshi, voshi and ubhayachari 

Represents: Devotion to Shiva

Navagraha Kirtana: Surya murte namostuthe by Muthuswami Dikshithar

Temples: The Sun Temple at Konarak, Orissa, India

Photo Journal: Around Kapaleeshwarar Koil, Mylai, Chennai

Front View, Kapaleeshwarar Koil

This time I remembered to carry my camera with me when I accompanied my sister and my niece for a shopping trip to Mylapore, Chennai. As my sister went in and out of shops for the best Bharatanatyam jewelry, I quickly darted around to take some photos of the famous temple which anchors this bustling affluent residential and commercial community. The story goes that when Mylapore was an undeveloped hamlet several centuries ago, it was filled with mangroves where thousands of peacocks roamed freely. Mayil means peacock, hence the name Mylapore. Well, there is nary a peacock in sight these days. But Mylapore still retains vestiges of its pre-globalization charm and the temple attracts thousands of worshippers, especially on Friday evenings. People come not just to worship but also to shop and eat.

These photos were taken late in the morning when the temple was about to close for the afternoon. The images are presented raw, unedited.

Enjoy.

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Eccentric Circles

The theme for this week's I am the Diva--Zentangle challenge #74 is Eccentric Circles. Since this is the year of Summer Olympics I chose its logo of five interlocked circles as my string. I changed its  perfect symmetry into elliptical shapes so that they look eccentric and connected them to look like a venn diagram.

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