[Leica] Re. Travels

[pklein at threshinc.com (Peter Klein)]

Jayanand:  Wow, what gorgeous sites!  I don't have time to comment as 
much as I should, and I wanted to make sure I thanked you for the 
wonderful glimpses you give us into your country and its history.  The 
history surrounding these temples reminded me of the recent destruction 
of the Bamiyan Bhuddas by the Taliban--same "stuff," different day.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/science/archaeology/2001-03-22-afghan-buddhas.htm

What's also interesting is how once I saw the third (color) picture, I 
wanted to see the color of the first, despite its wonderful textures and 
patterns, which work so well in B&W.  It may be different for you, since 
you see these kinds of colors all the time, and most of the rest of us 
don't.

And your GF-1 seems to love the light of India--I though these shots 
were taken with your Nikon until I looked at the EXIF.  :-)

--Peter

Jayanand wrote:
> Three from the state of Gujarat in Western India.
>
> The first is photo of the great temple of Somnath, the moon god, 
> besides the
> Arabian Sea in western India. The temple is historically and religiously
> very significant - it was sacked and destroyed six times between 725AD and
> 1701AD by Muslim invaders and rulers, and rebuilt six times. The present
> temple was built after independence in 1947 and is called the Seventh
> Temple. The security is considerable - because of its history, it is a 
> prime
> target for Islamic terrorists, who would love to blow it up again:
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/jayanand/India/_1060359-Edit.jpg.html
>
> To emphasise the mix that is India, 70 km away from Somnath is Junagadh,
> which was, prior to independence an Islamic state. It has a very
> interesting but rather poorly maintained fort - here is a tourist couple
> relaxing there:
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/jayanand/India/_1060489-Edit.jpg.html
>
> The last photo is of a Sun Temple in Modhera, Gujarat built in 1026. 
> It was
> sacked by Allaudin Khilji in 1296 - he was also responsible for the third
> destruction of Somnath. Luckily for us, he did not destroy the temple
> completely. Since Hindus will not worship a defaced idol, he just broke a
> limb from every depiction of a God in the friezes and sculptures adorning
> the temple, thus making it unfit for worship. The temple has the most
> beautiful sculptures possible, though like all Sun Temples, a few of them
> depict graphic sex which had a deep religious significance, lesbians and
> group sex included! It is not a large complex, but it is like a small 
> jewel.
> It is built so that the first rays of sunlight on the May and September
> equinoxes illuminate the (missing) deity in the  inner sanctum:
>
> http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/jayanand/India/_1060726-Edit.jpg.html
>
> C&C, as always, welcome
>
> Cheers
> Jayanand