SRIMATE RAMANUJAYA NAMAHA According to agama shastras ,you can have shrines of parivara devatas of the main deity.Shiva cannot be parivara devata of Vishnu.Garuda,Vishvaksena,Dhanvantri,Chakratalvar,Hanuman are the parivara of Vishnu.Similarly other deities have their own parivara devatas.Hence it is totally against the agama shatras to have multiplex form of temples.It is a sorry state.This is done please everybody at the cost of agama praamaniam. dasan On Mon, 17 Jan 2005 Sudarshan K Madabushi wrote : > > > >--- In SriRangaSri@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, "rvv21" <ranjanvv@xxxx> wrote: > >> I think it's unlikely you'll find a "Vishnu-only" temple in >the > UK (apart from ISKCON temples) - but I could be wrong. >However, the > sizeable Sri Lankan Tamil community in many parts of >London have > retained their Shaiva temple culture to a relatively >high degree and > have constructed many 'south-indian' style temples, >if you were > interested in seeing them for interest. Many have a >sannidhi for > Lakshmi/Naaraayana as well. > > **************** >Dear members, > >This is a very interesting thread of discussion and I like your >exchanges. > >One of the odd things I have noticed about Hindu temples abroad is >this: they are designed to accommodate and built to serve the >sentiments of all denominations of Hindu religous society. Such >design and architecture is no doubt well-intentioned but the results >are sometimes a mixed bag. > >I toured parts of USA East Coast last year. My host was kind enough >to take me to a very beautiful temple in Maryland. It was called >Shiva-Vishnu temple but inside I was surprised to see many more >special "sannidhi-s" (shrines or sanctums) for a number of other >deities in the Hindu pantheon -- Ganesha, Murugua, AmbAL, AyyappA, >Venkateshwara, Krishna... I saw devotees come in throngs and each >proceeded straight to that shrine he or she wanted to particularly >worship. Thereafter he or she spent a few moments at other shrines >before exiting. I couldn't help thinking it all vaguely resembled the >modern and convenient "multi-cuisine cafeteria" concept applied to >temple architecture i.e. you come shuffling in a long queue with a >plate in hand, go slowly around the table and help yourself >generously to the dish you particularly like, and just a little bit >of everthing else in the spread. > >Don't get me wrong. It's not that I want to be critical of "Shiva- >Vishnu" temples, I hasten to add. Who knows, perhaps the "Agama >sAstras" themselves do, in fact, permit such "cafeteria" design of >temples. But I must say this: I cannot help sometimes wondering if >the presence of more than one Deity within a temple-precinct does not >go against the essentially monotheistic grain of Hindu religious >thought and practice. My own personal experience is that when I am in >the presence of the main Deity inside a temple I'd rather fully >concentrate on worshipping that one Divine Entity alone. But instead, >I often find that, at the back of my mind somewhere, I'm being >distracted by the anxious thought of having to rush for "darshan" to >the "next crowded counter" -- viz. other satellite shrines >or "sannidhi-s". The result is that a temple visit, far from >affording one an opportunity for experiencing a certain sense of >abiding One-ness with God, leaves the devotee with a strange feeling, >instead, he's just concluded a long and hectic series of business >appointments. > >Let me confess to one more thing. I always come away from a temple >feeling a little guilty and disappointed if, after I've had "darshan" >of the main Deity first, for some reason or other, I've been unable >to offer worship at subsidiary "sannidhi-s". I've never relished such >a feeling. It has always robbed the first experience a little of its >joy. > >An exclusively Vishnu temple (with His other divine forms serving >perhaps as smaller satellite "sannidhi-s") seems to me OK. An >exclusive Shiva temple too seems OK. An exclusive Devi or AmbAl >temple is OK too. But a "Shiva-Vishnu temple", and many of similarly >newly-built, multi-themed, composite "designer temples" (in India and >abroad we come across these days) -- they all seem to me to be >somehow straying far from the central monotheism of that very Faith >they are actually meant to reflect and enshrine. > >What do members think? I'd like to hear your learned comments. > >respectfully, >dAsan, >Sudarshan > > > > > > > > > > > > >Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> What would our lives be like without music, dance, and theater? 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