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The Frog Temple

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Another day of discovery....isnt that what life is all about..... Driving through the countryside, not far from Lucknow, on way to Lakhimpur Kheri, chanced upon this very strange but beautiful temple..... the more than 200 year old frog temple of Oel, also referred to as the Narmadeshwar Shiv temple. A narrow village road off the highway, takes one to this unique temple. A small gate in the wall, a few steps up and one walks into a large courtyard with a garden....in the middle of which stands a giant stone frog and lo and behold, it carries a temple ! A big frog indeed,  and on it stands the temple, at a height, on a large platform. The two back legs of the frog can be seen on the sides of the platform, with the rear behind it. So the entire temple seems to be carried by the frog. And the frog itself rests on a crocodile !!! The marvels do not end here... Since one reached mid day on a hot summer afternoon, with the sun bearing down stro...
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The Lost Cemetery

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 One can live in a place for years and even next door sometimes, and yet not register things. Similar is the case of 'Gora Kabristan ' in Kanpur. It is situated right at the entrance to my grandparents house where I have spent a lot of my growing up years. It would often be refered to as a landmark for people to locate the address, but never really registered as a place one would want to explore.  Visiting Kanpur this time, I was determined to see it. And so I  decided to walk down the driveway and into the Kabristan.  The cemetry belongs to a period before the 1857 mutiny. Old graves, some with beautiful tombstones, stand witness to the passing time. It was intriguing to see that the graves were mostly of young people, soldiers, wives, children, infants... having left the world much before their time.  One of the few British cemetries maintained by the ASI, the cemetry is testimony to the time when the British started establishing themselves in the country, wit...
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Churches of Lucknow

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They stand witness to the tumultous times of the 19th century and beyond- the churches constructed by the British in the city of Lucknow.  It was an early morning of Friday, coincidentally Good Friday, that I had the urge to explore the Churches of Lucknow. After dropping my husband to the Golf course in the Cantt, to play his game in peace, I couldnt have found a better place to have started my quest from !! The churches in Lucknow are many, but a few stand out. Some are comforting in their simplicity and some imposing in their european- gothic facade with arched windows and towers. Some are historically significant, some offer a place of solace , from the soldiers of yore to the seekers today. Lucknow’s story of Awadh Nawabi grandeur is equally intertwined with European and later British influence. With the increasing influence of the British Residents and the growing Christian population, a need for Churches was felt from the early 19th century.  The first Anglican Church i...
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Musabagh

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Lucknow, the fascinating city of the nawabs, tracing a history from Persia to connections so European, host to the Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb, witness to the great mutiny of 1857, an important participant of the freedom struggle, in short a delight of a history buff. Like they say, so much more of this city is hidden as that which is known. Take a short drive in the city from the Cantt to the Chowk and one can pass by so much of history without even realising. Close your eyes, take a deep breath and you would perhaps be able to visualise the grandeur of this city that was once called the Constantinople of India. Lucknow  Every visit to Lucknow reveaIs something more as if the city is challenging us with its mysteries. It was in one of my many such trips to Lucknow, that a passing mention of Musabagh and the cigarette smoking grave of Captan Sahib, set me on the trail to find it. Surprisingly not many people had heard of it, maybe because much in Lucknow pales before the majestic Imambara...
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