Kolam by Sudha Balaji

For a long time we wanted to go to SriRangam (Thiruvarangam)  in Tamil but we could not due to many reasons.  We went to Thirukadaiyur, Chidambaram, several times to Kancheepuram , Shirdi but some how this pilgrimage is getting postponed. This is when I got a message of Whatsapp about a 1000 year old temple of Sri Ranganatha Swamy also called Vada Thiruvarangam or North Srirangam.   The temple  is small and beautiful and situated among the fields in a place called Devadhanam.   According to the temple priest the idol is 18 feet , resting five feet above the ground on Adhishesha made from the holy Shaligram and built by the Chalukya kings.  Lord Ranganatha rests on a 'marakkaal " ( a vessel used for measuring grains ).   It is believed that He rests his Head on this after giving food grains to the humans on earth.  He is very Handsome with a beautiful smile and we can have a very close darshan without any disturbance.  Lord Brahma on a lotus from His Navel.  Goddess Lak

Kolam is a simple floor art but some of the designs with dots can be really complicated and challenging.   If we get it right after trying a few times we should be happy that we have achieved.  Some designs may require a lot of practice before we can draw them with confidence without getting stuck !  beautiful Indian tradition in which the intelligence, creative abilities of the individual are brought out through patterns drawn on the floor, daily. Create the star dot pattern  7 dots one row then 8,9,10 dots above and below, then 3,2,1 dots above and below the 10 dot row This will result in a star dot pattern as shown in the image below Step 1 - Draw the hexagon with lines Step 2 - Draw a pair of parallel lines on all six sides as shown in the photo Draw a line below the row with 7 dots connecting the smaller inclined lines as shown Draw a line above the row with 7 dots for one of the most beautiful chukki rangoli designs  Connect the outer lines as