Hunger ...

A lady was buying masala dosa and this kid was watching enviously I was in a hurry for a meeting I wish I had fed him..

The Street Barbers Of Bandra Reclamation

These guys sit on the main Bandra Reclamation junction , and surely they pay hafta to the cops and the municipality , hafta is protection money for plying their trade and they will pay money for doing business here to the local don.  so you to pay a price to survive in Mumbai even as a street barber .

And the workers slum dwellers , taxidriver , rickshadrivers mostly sit here for a shave or haircut ,,and this is the biggest hub of ricksha driver s ,, so the barbers are mostly busy ,, than there is mundan or religious tonsure or even the Muslim male childs circumcision,,which gets them extra money.

And if I pass this way to take a bus I shoot their pictures and I would rather shoot these common folks than run after celebrities ,,my granddaughter Nerjis has shot them too and as a 3 year old she is never intimidated by adults ,, and one day when I am gone  she will remember these street moments nostalgically ,

The Street Barbers Of Bandra Reclamation

This was shot yesterday while going to see my diabetes doctor at Mahim , and I shoot rapidly , my kind of photography most of the time has no time for composing and I prefer to point and shoot as these are not planned pictures these are forced on my pictorial consciousness by the Lord of Light and Shadows .

I chatted with the barbers  , and the latest topic was the new barber cutting hair in their open air salon,, he was from Jharkand . the other two from Bihar I think..

I know them for so many years but I dont know their names I have never had time to sit with them talk to them , but yes I will shoot their video and bring them out of the wilderness of their surroundings let people know about the common working man a migrant in this case in Mumbai..Mumbai has given them home and if the satraps of their state like Mr Nitish Kumar and Mr Manjhi were not fighting for a bungalow and concentrated on jobs infrastructure I can assure these guys would never come to Mumbai to work as slaves and the same with Mr Akhilesh Yadav.. they never tried hard enough the only reason they do anything is to get votes be in power and have fancy shows at Saifai as the Bhaiyya slogs his ass .

I had once gone to shoot the red light area at Kamatipura and was shocked to see a few Bhaiyyas in sarees painted lips working as eunuchs and they were new to the trade .. and when everything fails than necessity becomes the mother of Invention.

Well thats that , I am at home for the moment my morning walks are over with the hairline fracture on my leg I am limping in the house and if my dead Mother was alive she would say someone has cast an evil eye at  you at the MET Cricket grounds as I walked a lot , yesterday before I got my leg checked by the bonesetter I was in pain but I still walked 4 km using the Nike Running application ..

I went to the bone setter late in the night at 8 pm and after he had finished with my leg and I had shot his video I went into the slums I had an urgent work and from there limping went to Pali Naka to meet Mr Yusuf Lakdawala I tailor his clothes ..the  meeting was at the house of Qureishi Builders ..

And here I remember the owner of Qureishi Builders Mr Babu Qureishi  a very humble man he used to walk with us at Joggers Park , he loved to exercise in the park and was very kind to me ,, as he knew me when I stayed at Veronica Road Bandra on rent , he was constructing Qureishi Heights Bandra at Waroda Roadd  those days ,, and he died while working out at Joggers Park.. the other person who died like this was Mr Tanwani of Union Drapers Elco Market Bandra .. he too got an attack in the park,

On retrospection I doubt I will be able to walk for a few days as it would aggravate my leg .. and I am  now tied to my bed like a pet dog..but I have to work .. and most of all you guys will get a much needed break from my Garbage Art ,

Marziya has her exams she has gone to school , Nerjis and Zinnia are fast asleep..

I have taken a Brufen for the killing pain.. but I shall overcome  but my legs are unlucky the last wound on my leg because of my diabetes took almost 6 months to heal.. and I cover my legs more than my Ass.

Wife silently accuses me of overdoing whatever I do,.. what was the need to go to the Caves she says with her eyes  ,, And I Shut The Fuck Up.

The Holistic Bone Setters Of Bandra SV Road

I have been coming to Nizam the bone setter  since 15 years .. and have never gone to an orthopedist ever ..it takes about 5 days for my fracture to heal this is a hairline fracture while climbing the caves at Murud Janjira recently,, and too much pain.

A bonesetter is a practitioner of joint manipulation. Before the advent of chiropractors, osteopaths, and physical therapists, bonesetters were the main providers of this type of treatment.[1] Bonesetters would also reduce joint dislocations and "re-set" bone fractures.

video

Garbage At Night Cosmically Seen In Spectral Light

doomed shadows
lights bright ,,i was
wondering whether
to turn this into
black and white
the soul of garbage
a mortal fight for
some an awful sight
for beggar poets
street art in poetic
flight ,, garbage
where god lives
on this burial site
as man generates
garbage funereal
rites even angels
take fright ..as crows
goats rats dogs cats
nibble in delight ..
poetry and pathos
passionately in
unison re unite
every morning
as the suns rays
envision to excite
i offer my prayers
to the lord of the flies
despite the mosquito
bites ..a garbage god
humble human polite
eyeless to wastelands
of human plight

My Blood Sugar Test Post Lunch

After changing my medication and now treated by Dr SD Jain Mahim  my fasting blood sugar 161
post lunch                                   283

And I walk about 5 km average every morning ,,I will meet my doctor tom evening for the next course of action.

What Is He Thinking .. The Muslim Beggar

He is the same beggar I had shot a few days back and given him money and Advocate Ashish Shelar our MLA had seen me with him and given him Rs100 ,,So I tried to wonder what he was thinking ,,And he is new to our Bandra Bazar area and he stands at this corner ..begging silently without opening his mouth , his one hand stretched out ,

And they come to Bandra West with a cosmic hope , and there are a lot of folks who give without letting the left hand know what the right hand is doing.

The two senior most beggars of Bandra Bazar Road are Khwajah Bhai and Jaffar Bhai.. and both are well known and beg with humility dignity and grace .

And I would rather shoot beggars , than go  a  hundred miles away to shoot caves or the Vasai Fort ruins ,, I would never think of going to places that I visited last week as a tourist guide but I did it without gain or profit merely as Indians we follow a tradition Devo Atithi Bhava that means Guest is God and Hospitality is akin to Godliness ..I kept my work aside I placed my time before everything else .

So I prefer shooting beggars I prefer shooting Garbage the best garbage sites are obviously in Bandra West.. there may be garbage sites in other parts of Mumbai but our Garbage has photogenic quality , you can read it as a wordless poem or as fine Street Art.. Make In India is incomplete if you dont come and see our iconic pictorial garbage dumps , and even if you did not have a camera use your mind as the cosmic lens and imbibe the beauty of Garbage , after sometime the stench the filth will feel like aroma fragrance of the Attars of Arabia .

Shooting the Marathi Manoos , the conservancy staff of the Municipality as they sweat and dont smell of Garbage living in garbage all day , they are hardworking men , they use their hands to pick up the garbage , yes they dont have gloves , they wear slippers and many have hurt themselves on rusty nails glass shards pointed broken bottles or food cans .. they abuse they and their favorite rant is Municipality Chi Aiiechi Gho.. and it is a friendly colloquial abusive term.. like Mother Fuck I think.

I am known to most of them as the video shooting man , and they welcome me as I make their cause and their hardwork world famous.

I shoot and videograph the ear cleaners of Bandra Talao and I have not gone and shot them for a long time , they miss me the most Raju Nabi and Kassim Bhai .. and the pigeon feed seller ..and there are guys who love to enter my frame to be seen by their loved ones on You Tube .

And I am merely shooting the ear cleaners these humble souls who will be jobless like the beef butchers after the Bandra Talao is renovated they will be forcibly evicted by the Bandra Municipality and the cops for cleaning ears here ,, and they have been cleaning ears for last 40 years .

And I shoot videos on my Motorola G badly overworked , as I have shot over 5000 images on this phone ,, I would like to buy a new phone but I am broke to put it poetically broke in heart body and mind.

And Maria the leper lady has returned but her place at Bandra Boran Road has been usurped by her daughter Mary these are two converts to Christianity I think would have been happy as Hindus ..and no Hindu person has come to take them back home strange are the ways of Ghar Wapsi..and than if you have motormouths that promote raping dead Muslims there is hardly any hope left in going back home ,, Ghar Wapsi.

And Ghar Ghar Islam has gone deafeningly silent and with leaders like the Shahi Imam God save Islam in India .

I prefer being a religion less photographer of the street I become a true Muslim during Moharam I cut my head shed my blood and I become one with Hussain..

Everyday Is Ashura Everyplace Karbala .

And I keep away from Shias too that is why I lock up my Facebook I dont want to be part of those who bully others and one hand talk about oppressors in the same breath.

I chose the path of the Malang without going into their rites or rituals simply to follow the path of Ali that is light from Najaf moving its divinity at Karbala .

I still dont know whether I will go to Ajmer Sharif this year I take everyday as it comes ,, and hope tomorrow will be slightly better than today.

The Core Essence Of Photography Is Humility

arrogance and pride
your expensive lenses
camera your egoistic
soul deprived ..you
are more dead as a
photographer than
alive tears on the
soul of a tourist guide
did you really shoot
india the camera
replied ..


And that one talent which is death to hide
Lodg'd with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest he returning chide,
"Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?"

Please Dont Shoot Pictures The Way I Shoot

i use my DSLR
as an amateur
fuck f stops
photography
rules i refute
i dont compose
i merely point
i shoot what i
was destined
to capture on
the soul of
my conscience
as a poetic
tribute to
people whose
souls i steal
as they watch
me mute ..
held in cages
on my Flickr
timeline beggar
beggar kids
child mother
wise man astute
failed monks
drugaddicts born
dreamers searching
for their roots ..
yes it is souls of
these disillusioned
mortals i loot

please dont shoot like me and insult your vision  dear photographer of repute from a great institute  ..carry on with your elitist photographic pursuit ..may god make you an artist absolute ,,

me on my part i use my camera as a prostitute fucking her mind her cosmic reach..shooting the children of a lesser god destitute ,,i could still shoot pictures without my cosmic camera a will resolute ,,it was an accidental tragedy that we met on the same route ,,your pride your arrogance may it bear fruit

My Morning Starts With Garbage

And this is Bandra Reclamation very close to Hotel Rang Sharda , I am going towards the MET Cricket grounds for my daily morning walk..what beats me is that the size of the garbage bin is far too small for the size of the slums in the vicinity ,,All the slum residents take a potshot to throw the garbage and most of the time the aim misfires .

And stringent fines even caning wilt not stop the people from littering it is in the DNA of the Mumbaikar to litter it runs in his bloodstream and he loves to throw garbage out of the window , sometimes he loves to deliberately throw the garbage in his neighbors porch and the Mumbaikar also loves to pee on the streets , shit and spit it is all part of his DNA.

So I have tried to be less myopic and now try to see garbage not as garbage but as Art .. the ultimate street Art and Mumbaikars are born Garbage Artists , crows cats dogs goats love this awesome street Art . they come plunder this art adding their own skills of re arrangement ,, like flower arrangement .
I dot know painting but this garbage art could hang on the walls of some of the best houses in Mumbai.. depends who paints it and this Art Made In India could be exported and help buy gloves shoes masks for the Municipal Conservancy staff as our Municipality goes bankrupt buying outdated hospital equipment and this money could be used at the much neglected Gen Arun Vaidya Municipal park presently a hideout for drunkards and drugaddicts and plainscloth cops searching the place for Bandra gold chain snatchers ..Lalmitti  at Bandra Reclamation they say has given birth to some famous infamous gold chain snatchers .

So in a way shooting Garbage and it is not a fetish like shooting stinking barefeet or sexy legs of women walking the streets .Garbage has given birth in me to use words poeticize the Lord of The Flies and I am close to my death bed 61 plus so I have trained my granddaughter Nerjis to shoot Garbage and enhance her artistic instincts ,,she has vision to see shoot and glamorize Garbage that we see spread evenly in Bandra ... and though we may be different in our religiosity as Hindus Muslims Christians we are unanimously united in Humanity with Garbage .I did not include the Parsis of Bandra their garbage is always in original state and the bhangarwalas buy the Parsi garbage as it includes old frames , gramaphones , old family pictures Dinshaw Uncles crickety but poetic rocking chair .. So Parsi garbage has value for Money

The most filthy stinking fulsome is the Muslim garbage , and this garbage is what you see in most Muslim slums and in areas where they live ..could we divide Garbage according  to Muslim Garbage Hindu Garbage Christian Garbage ,, all in all this part need a lot of study so I just shoot Garbage  and move on from one Garbage site to another in Bandra .. And I know all the major garbage sites in Bandra ,, I wanted to do a photo walk like Mr Thomas Hawk..but somehow I could not get the right sponsors as I wanted the kids who come to unlearn photography shooting Garbage have a great time at the few Irani joints in Bandra starting bun maska chai at Pahelvi Bazar Road and nice hearty vegetable keema brun , paya soup at GoodLuck Irani Restaurant near Mehboob Studio ..

And I want to give nice mementos here I would ask our local representatives Ms Poonam Mahajan and Advocate Ashish Shelar to give them scholarships so they can go shoot garbage in Singapore Bangkok Shangai and other Far Eastern countries and they could be  featured in You Magazine too.

Welcome to Bandra ...

My You Tube Videos

I am learning to shoot videos , and I wish I had more knowledge of technique and confidence ,

I wish I had shot the few places like Ajmer , Haji Malang Zinda Shah Madar on video.. and even now I have not shot videos on my DSLR but on my mobile phone Motorola G ,

I shot these videos to give you a feel of my world ,,as stills do not give that much needed sense of pathos passion or reality .

I shot all these videos lately and simply and as I saw it , and my videos are a tribute to the common people of my Mumbai be it the Municipal Conservancy staff with no safety gear or the ear cleaners confused lost as they will be evicted from where they sit at Bandra Talao once it is renovated .

I wish I could join some video classes but things are not to fine my end ,,and I will learn to shoot videos edit them one day ,, learning is the only path towards wisdom.


.videos

Most Indian Men Are So Sexually Repressed Forget Women They Will Drill Holes In Walls Too

be it a 71 year old nun
a child a young boy
all they have on their
mind is to rape screw
nothing you can do
misplaced swach bharat
that tells women fuck you
i feel ashamed at all
the nirbhayas even god
cant save them its true
we just want to clean
street garbage with
a broom as the real
garbage moves around
freely sexually assaulting
the soul of humanity phew
a disease worse than swine
flu ..how to stop rapes
despite stringent laws
the lady with the blind
fold has no clue ,,,

Sai Baba of Shirdi At Bandra Bazar Road - Ram Navami

Sai Baba of Shirdi (1838 – 15 October 1918; resided in Shirdi), also known as Shirdi Sai Baba, was an Indian spiritual master who was and is regarded by his devotees as a saint, fakir, and satguru, according to their individual proclivities and beliefs. He was revered by both his Hindu and Muslim devotees, and during, as well as after, his life it remained uncertain if he was a Hindu or a Muslim himself. This however was of no consequence to Sai Baba himself.[1] Sai Baba stressed the importance of surrender to the guidance of the true Satguru or Murshid, who, having gone the path to divine consciousness himself, will lead the disciple through the jungle of spiritual training.[2]

Sai Baba remains a very popular Master,[3] especially in India, and is worshiped by people around the world. He had no love for perishable things and his sole concern was self-realization. He taught a moral code of love, forgiveness, helping others, charity, contentment, inner peace, and devotion to God and guru. He gave no distinction based on religion or caste. Sai Baba's teaching combined elements of Hinduism and Islam: he gave the Hindu name Dwarakamayi to the mosque he lived in,[4] practised Muslim rituals, taught using words and figures that drew from both traditions, and was buried in Shirdi. One of his well known epigrams, "Sabka Malik Ek" ("One God governs all"), is associated with Hinduism, Islam and Sufism. He also said, "Trust in me and your prayer shall be answered". He always uttered "Allah Malik" ("God is King").[2]

ackground[edit]
No verifiable information is given regarding Sai Baba's real name, place or time of birth. When asked about his past, he often gave elusive responses. The name "Sai" was given to him upon his arrival at Shirdi, a town in the west Indian state of Maharashtra. Mahalsapati, a local temple priest, recognised him as a Muslim saint and greeted him with the words 'Ya Sai!', meaning 'Welcome Sai!'. Sai or Sayi is a Persian title given to Sufi saints, meaning 'poor one'[5] and in Banjara language, "sayi" means good one.[citation needed] The honorific "Baba" means "father; grandfather; old man; sir" in most Indian and Middle Eastern languages. Thus Sai Baba denotes "holy father", "saintly father" or "poor old man".[1] Alternatively, the Sindhi and Urdu word "sāī.n" (سائیں), an honorific title for a virtuoso, a saint, or a feudal lord (i.e. a patron), is derived from the Persian word "sāyeh", which literally means "shadow" but figuratively refers to patronage or protection. The Hindi-Urdu word "sāyā" comes from the same borrowing. Thus, it could also mean "Master Father." However, Sāī may also be an acronym of the Sanskrit term "Sakshat Eshwar", a reference to God. Sakshat means "incarnate" and Eshwar means "God".

Some of Sai Baba's disciples became famous as spiritual figures and saints, such as Mahalsapati, a priest of the Khandoba temple in Shirdi, and Upasni Maharaj. He was revered by other saints, such as Saint Bidkar Maharaj, Saint Gangagir, Saint Janakidas Maharaj, and Sati Godavari Mataji.[6][7] Sai Baba referred to several saints as 'my brothers', especially the disciples of Swami Samartha of Akkalkot.[7]

Early years[edit]

Shirdi Sai Baba (right) and some of his devotees at Dwarakamai, his own Temple.
Sai Baba's biographer Narasimha Swamiji claims that Sai Baba was born as the child of Brahmin parents:

"On one momentous occasion, very late in his life, he revealed to Mahalsapathy the interesting fact that his parents were Brahmins of Patri in the Nizam's State. Patri is Taluk in Parbhani district, near Manwath. Sai Baba added, in explanation of the fact that he was living in a Mosque, that while still a tender child his Brahmin parents handed him over to the care of a fakir who brought him up. This is fairly indisputable testimony, as Mahlsapathy was a person of sterling character noted for his integrity, truthfulness and vairagya." —Narasimha Swamiji, Life of Sai Baba.[8]


Shirdi Sai Baba with some devotees
According to the book Sai Satcharita, Sai Baba arrived at the village of Shirdi in the Ahmednagar District of Maharashtra, British India, when he was about 16 years old. He led an ascetic life, sitting motionless under a neem tree and meditating while sitting in an asana. The Shri Sai Satcharita recounts the reaction of the villagers:

The people of the village were wonder-struck to see such a young lad practising hard penance, not minding heat or cold. By day he associated with no one, by night he was afraid of nobody.[9]

His presence attracted the curiosity of the villagers, and he was regularly visited by the religiously inclined, including Mahalsapati, Appa Jogle and Kashinatha. Some considered him mad and threw stones at him.[10] Sai Baba left the village, and little is known about him after that.

There are some indications that he met with many saints and fakirs, and worked as a weaver. He claimed to have been with the army of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.[11] It is generally accepted that Sai Baba stayed in Shirdi for three years, disappeared for a year, and returned permanently around 1858, which suggests a birth year of 1838.[12]

Return to Shirdi[edit]
In 1858 Sai Baba returned to Shirdi. Around this time he adopted his famous style of dress consisting of a knee-length one-piece Kafni robe and a cloth cap. Ramgir Bua, a devotee, testified that Sai Baba was dressed like an athlete and sported 'long hair flowing down to the end of his spine' when he arrived in Shirdi, and that he never had his head shaved. It was only after Baba forfeited a wrestling match with one Mohiddin Tamboli that he took up the kafni and cloth cap, articles of typical Sufi clothing.[13] This attire contributed to Baba's identification as a Muslim fakir and was a reason for initial indifference and hostility against him in a predominantly Hindu village.[14]

For four to five years Baba lived under a neem tree and often wandered for long periods in the jungle around Shirdi. His manner was said to be withdrawn and uncommunicative as he undertook long periods of meditation.[15] He was eventually persuaded to take up residence in an old and dilapidated mosque and lived a solitary life there, surviving by begging for alms, and receiving itinerant Hindu or Muslim visitors. In the mosque he maintained a sacred fire which is referred to as a dhuni, from which he gave sacred ashes ('Udhi') to his guests before they left. The ash was believed to have healing and apotropaic powers. He performed the function of a local hakim and treated the sick by application of ashes. Sai Baba also delivered spiritual teachings to his visitors, recommending the reading of sacred Hindu texts along with the Qur'an. He insisted on the indispensability of the unbroken remembrance of God's name (dhikr, japa), and often expressed himself in a cryptic manner with the use of parables, symbols and allegories.[16]

Sai Baba participated in religious festivals and was in the habit of preparing food for his visitors, which he distributed to them as prasad. Sai Baba's entertainment was dancing and singing religious songs.

After 1910 Sai Baba's fame began to spread in Mumbai. Numerous people started visiting him, because they regarded him as a saint with the power of performing miracles or even as an Avatar.[17] They built his first temple at Bhivpuri, Karjat.[18]

Teachings and practices[edit]

Shirdi Sai Baba, leaning against the wall of his masjid, with devotees
Sai Baba opposed all persecution based on religion or caste. He was an opponent of religious orthodoxy – Christian, Hindu and Muslim.[19] Although Sai Baba himself led the life of an ascetic, he advised his followers to lead an ordinary family life.

Sai Baba encouraged his devotees to pray, chant God's name, and read holy scriptures. He told Muslims to study the Qur'an and Hindus to study texts such as the Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita, and Yoga Vasistha.[20] He was impressed by the philosophy of the Bhagavad Gita and encouraged people to follow it in their own lives.[21] He advised his devotees and followers to lead a moral life, help others, love every living being without any discrimination, and develop two important features of character: devotion to the Guru (Sraddha) and waiting cheerfully with patience and love (Saburi). He criticised atheism.[22]

In his teachings, Sai Baba emphasised the importance of performing one's duties without attachment to earthly matters and of being content regardless of the situation. In his personal practice, Sai Baba observed worship procedures belonging to Hinduism and Islam; he shunned any kind of regular rituals but allowed the practice of namaz, chanting of Al-Fatiha, and Qur'an readings at Muslim festival times.[23] Occasionally reciting the Al-Fatiha himself, Baba enjoyed listening to mawlid and qawwali accompanied with the tabla and sarangi twice daily.[24]

Sai Baba interpreted the religious texts of both Islam and Hinduism. He explained the meaning of the Hindu scriptures in the spirit of Advaita Vedanta. His philosophy also had numerous elements of bhakti. The three main Hindu spiritual paths — Bhakti Yoga, Jnana Yoga, and Karma Yoga — influenced his teachings.[25]

Sai Baba encouraged charity, and stressed the importance of sharing. He said: "Unless there is some relationship or connection, nobody goes anywhere. If any men or creatures come to you, do not discourteously drive them away, but receive them well and treat them with due respect. Shri Hari (God) will certainly be pleased if you give water to the thirsty, bread to the hungry, clothes to the naked, and your verandah to strangers for sitting and resting. If anybody wants any money from you and you are not inclined to give, do not give, but do not bark at him like a dog."[26] Other favourite sayings of his were "Why do you fear when I am here" and "He has no beginning... He has no end."[27]

Sai Baba made eleven "assurances" to his devotees:

No harm shall befall him, who steps on the soil of Shirdi.
He who comes to my Samadhi, his sorrow and suffering shall cease.
Though I be no more in flesh and blood, I shall ever protect my devotees.
Trust in me and your prayer shall be answered.
Know that my spirit is immortal, know this for yourself.
Show unto me him who has sought refuge and has been turned away.
In whatever faith men worship me, even so do I render to them.
Not in vain is my promise that I shall ever lighten your burden.
Knock, and the door shall open, ask and it shall be granted.
To him who surrenders unto me totally I shall be ever indebted.
Blessed is he who has become one with me.
Worship and devotees[edit]
Main article: Shirdi Sai Baba movement
The Shirdi Sai Baba movement began in the 19th century, while he was living in Shirdi. A local Khandoba priest, Mhalsapati Nagre, is believed to have been his first devotee. In the 19th century Sai Baba's followers were only a small group of Shirdi inhabitants and a few people from other parts of India. The movement started developing in the 20th century, with Sai Baba's message reaching the whole of India.[3] During his life, Hindus worshiped him with Hindu rituals and Muslims considered him to be a saint. Many Hindu devotees – including Hemadpant, who wrote the famous Shri Sai Satcharitra —consider him as an incarnation of Lord Krishna[28] while other devotees consider him as an incarnation of Lord Dattatreya. In the last years of Sai Baba's life, Christians and Zoroastrians started joining the Shirdi Sai Baba movement.[3]

Because of Sai Baba, Shirdi has become a place of importance and is counted among the major Hindu places of pilgrimage.[29] The first Sai Baba temple is situated at Bhivpuri, Karjat. The Sai Baba Mandir in Shirdi is visited by around 20,000 pilgrims a day and during religious festivals this number can reach up to a 100,000.[30] Shirdi Sai Baba is especially revered and worshiped in the states of Maharashtra, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat. In August 2012, an unidentified devotee for the first time donated two costly diamonds valuing Rs 11.8 million at the Shirdi temple, Saibaba trust officials revealed.[31]

The Shirdi Sai movement has spread to the Caribbean and to countries such as the United States, Australia, United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, and Singapore. The Shirdi Sai Baba movement is one of the Hindu religious movements in English-speaking countries.[32]

Notable disciples[edit]
Sai Baba left behind no spiritual heirs, appointed no disciples, and did not even provide formal initiation (diksha), despite requests. Some disciples of Sai Baba achieved fame as spiritual figures, such as Upasni Maharaj of Sakori. After Sai Baba left his body, his devotees offered the daily Aarti to Upasni Maharaj when he paid a visit to Shirdi, two times within 10 years.[33]

Claimed miracles[edit]
Sai Baba's disciples and devotees claim that he performed many miracles such as bilocation, levitation, mindreading, materialisation, exorcisms, making the river Yamuna, entering a state of Samādhi at will, lighting lamps with water, removing his limbs or intestines and sticking them back to his body (khandana yoga), curing the incurably sick, appearing beaten when another was beaten, preventing a mosque from falling down on people, and helping his devotees in a miraculous way. He also gave Darshan (vision) to people in the form of Rama, Krishna, Vithoba and many other gods depending on the faith of devotees.[34]

According to his followers he appeared to them in dreams even after he left his body and gave them advice. His devotees have documented many stories.[35]Even today if one prays to baba and ask him any question with full devotion, he answers through his biography "sai satcharitra." Not only that he may give an exact answer through any book.

Historical sources[edit]

Shirdi Sai Baba in 1910
Biographers of Sai Baba (e.g., Govindrao Raghunath Dabholkar, Acharya Ekkirala Bharadwaja, Smriti Srinivas, Antonio Rigopolous) have based their writing on primary sources. One such source is the Shirdi Diary by Ganesh Shrikrishna Khaparde, which describes every day of the author's stay at Shirdi.

Speculation about the unknown episodes of Sai Baba's life are primarily based on his own words.

The most important source about Sai's life is the Shri Sai Satcharita, written in Marathi in 1916 by Govindrao Raghunath Dabholkar, whom Sai Baba nicknamed 'Hemadpant'. Consisting of 53 chapters, it describes Sai Baba's life, teachings, and miracles. The book compares Sai Baba's love to a mother's love: caring and loving, but reprimanding when needed. It describes Baba's lifestyle, his selfless attitude, and his love for his devotees. The book describes how one should surrender one's egoism at God's feet and trust one's guru. It explains how God is supreme and His devotees should trust Him and love Him. It teaches that God is omnipresent in all living things, so that everything on Earth must be treated with love and respect.

Sai Baba of Shirdi and His Teachings by Acharya Ekkirala Bharadwaja is an in-depth study of Sai Baba's life routine and activities. Shortly after Sai Baba's passing, devotee B.V. Narasimhaswamiji compiled accounts by eyewitnesses such as Sri Sai Baba's Charters and Sayings and Devotee's Experiences of Sai Baba.

Regarding the original photographs of Shirdi Sai Baba, research still needs to be done to identify the authentic ones, as there are also paintings as well as photographs of other persons of similar appearance in circulation besides the few genuine photographs.

In various religions[edit]

Sai Baba depicted on a tapestry
Hinduism[edit]
During Sai Baba's life, the Hindu saint Anandanath of Yewala declared Sai Baba a spiritual "diamond".[36] Another saint, Gangagir, called him a "jewel".[36] Sri Beedkar Maharaj greatly revered Sai Baba, and in 1873, when he met him he bestowed the title Jagad guru upon him.[37][38] Sai Baba was also greatly respected by Vasudevananda Saraswati (known as Tembye Swami).[39] He was also revered by a group of Shaivic yogis, to which he belonged, known as the Nath-Panchayat.[40]

According to B.V. Narasimhaswami, a posthumous follower who was widely praised as Sai Baba's "apostle", this attitude was prevalent up to 1954 even among some of his devotees in Shirdi.[41]

Zoroastrianism[edit]
Sai Baba is worshiped by prominent Zoroastrians such as Nanabhoy Palkhivala and Homi Bhabha, and has been cited as the Zoroastrians' most popular non-Zoroastrian religious figure.[42]

Meher Baba, who was born into a Zoroastrian family, met Sai Baba once, during World War I, in December 1915. Meher Baba was a youngster named Merwan Sheriar Irani, when he met Sai Baba for a few minutes during one of Sai Baba's processions in Shirdi. This event is considered as the most significant in Meher Baba's life. Shri Sai Satcharita (Sai Baba's life story), makes no mention of Meher Baba. But in Lord Meher, the life story of Meher Baba, there are innumerable references to Sai Baba.[33]

Meher Baba credited his Avataric advent to Upasni, Sai Baba, and three other Perfect Masters: Hazrat Babajan, Hazrat Tajuddin Baba, and Narayan Maharaj. He declared Sai Baba to be a Qutub-e-Irshad (the highest of the five Qutubs, a "Master of the Universe" in the spiritual hierarchy).[43]


Islam[edit]
From a Sufi perspective, Sai Baba of Shirdi is considered as a Pir or Fakir. Sai Baba's teachings attracted a lot of Muslim devotees as his teachings and lifestyle was severely influenced by Sufism like uttering "Allah Malik" (God is King) and "Sabka Malik Ek" (One God Governs All) continuously . Baba was extremely well-versed in Quran. He occasionally quoted passages from the Quran. His devotee Abdul Baba went on writing down what Baba used to utter which is mentioned in the book (in Marathi and Modi script) which contains the gracious utterances of Baba. He gave spiritual experiences to many Muslim devotees about eternal spiritual love for God as explained in Quran. Shirdi was one among the very few places in British India, where the Hindus and Muslims lived peacefully even during the intense communal riots. Many fundamentalists left behind their fanaticism being in contact with Sai Baba. Hindus and Muslims devotees never realized any differences between them in their spiritual journey.

In culture[edit]
Sacred art and architecture[edit]
In India, it is a common sight to see a Sai Baba temple in any city or town; in every large city or town there is at least one temple dedicated to Sai Baba.[3] There are also temples located in countries outside India, including in the United States, Netherlands, Kenya, Cuba, Canada, Pakistan, Australia, United Kingdom.[44] In the mosque in Shirdi, in which Sai Baba lived, there is a life-size portrait of him by Shama Rao Jaykar, an artist from Mumbai. Numerous monuments and statues depicting Sai Baba, which serve a religious function, have been made. One of them, made of marble by a sculptor named Balaji Vasant Talim, is in the Samadhi Mandir in Shirdi where Sai Baba was buried.[45] In Sai Baba temples, his devotees play devotional religious music, such as aarti.[46]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sai_Baba_of_Shirdi

Ram Navmi At Bandra Bazar Road 2015

The holy day falls in the Shukla Paksha on the Navami, the ninth day of the month of Chaitra in the Hindu calendar. Thus it is also known as Chaitra Masa Suklapaksha Navami, and marks the end of the nine-day Chaitra-Navaratri (Vasanta Navaratri) celebrations. Rama navami is one of the most important Hindu festivals.

Rama Nawami (Devanāgarī: राम नवमी; IAST: Rāma navamī) is a Hindu festival, celebrating the birth of the god Rama to King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya in Ayodhya. Rama, the seventh avatar of Vishnu, is the oldest known god having human form. [2][3] [4] The holy day falls in the Shukla Paksha on the Navami, the ninth day of the month of Chaitra in the Hindu calendar. Thus it is also known as Chaitra Masa Suklapaksha Navami, and marks the end of the nine-day Chaitra-Navaratri (Vasanta Navaratri) celebrations. Rama navami is one of the most important Hindu festivals.

At some places the festival lasts the whole nine days of the Navaratri, thus the period is called 'Sri Rama Navaratra'.[5][6] It is marked by continuous recitals, Akhand Paath, mostly of the Ramacharitamanas, organized several days in advance to culminate on this day, with elaborate bhajan, kirtan and distribution of prasad after the puja and aarti. Images of the infant Rama are placed on cradles and rocked by devotees. Community meals are also organized.[7] Since Rama is believed to have been born at noon, temples and family shrines are elaborately decorated and traditional prayers are chanted together by the family in the morning. Also, at temples, special havans are organized, along with Vedic chanting of mantras and offerings of fruits and flowers. Many followers mark this day by vrata (fasting) through the day followed by feasting in the evening, or at the culmination of celebrations.[2][8][9] In South India, in Bhadrachalam the day is also celebrated as the wedding anniversary of Rama and his consort Sita. Sitarama Kalyanam, the ceremonial wedding ceremony of the divine couple is held at temples throughout the south region, with great fanfare and accompanied by group chanting of name of Rama.[10][11]

The important celebrations on this day take place at Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) Sita Samahit Sthal (Sitamarhi) (Bihar), Bhadrachalam (Telangana) and Rameswaram (Tamil Nadu), thronged by thousands of devotees. Rathayatras, the chariot processions, also known as Shobha yatras of Rama, Sita, his brother Lakshmana and Hanuman, are taken out at several places,[2][12][13] including Ayodhya where thousands of people take a dip in the sacred river Sarayu.[14]

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In the epic Ramayana, Dasharatha, the Emperor from Ayodhya, had three wives named Kausalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyi in the Treta Yuga (which follows the Satya Yuga and succeeded by the Dwapara Yuga). Rama is born to Kaushalya, Lakshmana & Shatrughna to Sumitra and Bharata to Kaikeyi. Rama is known as 'Maryada Purushottam' which means an ideal, righteous and a great or a perfect human being, being the best son, brother, husband and father.

Rama who takes birth by his own will, on Bhuloka (Earth) when Adharma rules over Dharma. He protects all his devotees by vanquishing the roots of Adharma. Vishnu decided to incarnate, as Rama, to destroy the Asura (person with demonic and evil designs) called Ravana who is a Brahmin king of Lanka. Lord Rama & Lord Krishna are the only gods in Hinduism or Aryan Vedic context that really existed (and some gods are their manifestations or devotees) and all others are mythological figures based on Puranas. Hence the mahamantra: II Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama Hare Hare II II Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare II

Natal chart of Rama[edit]
Valmiki in his Sanskrit text Ramayana describes the natal or birth chart of young Rama,[15] and this day is celebrated as Ramanavami festival throughout India and amongst Indian diaspora:[16]

““On completion of the ritual six seasons have passed by and then in the twelfth month, on the ninth day of Chaitra month [March–April], when the presiding deity of ruling star of the day is Aditi, where the ruling star of day is Punarvasu (Nakshatra), the asterism is in the ascendant, and when five of the nine planets viz., Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Venus are at their highest position, when Jupiter with Moon is ascendant in Cancer, and when day is advancing, then Queen Kausalya gave birth to a son with all the divine attributes like lotus-red eyes, lengthy arms, roseate lips, voice like drumbeat, and who took birth to delight the Ikshwaku dynasty, who is adored by all the worlds, and who is the greatly blessed epitome of Vishnu, namely Rama.”
— Book I: Bala Kanda, Ramayana by Valmiki, Chapter (Sarga) 18, verses 8, 9, 10 and 11[17]”
Celebrations[edit]
Followers of Hinduism in South India normally perform Kalyanotsavam (marriage celebration) with small deities of Rama and Sita in their homes, and at the end of the day the deity is taken to a procession on the streets. This day also marks the end of the nine-day utsava called Chaitra Navaratri (Maharashtra) or Vasanthothsava (Telangana, Andra pradesh, Karnataka & Tamil Nadu) (festival of Spring), which starts with Gudi Padwa (Maharashtra). According to recent astrological studies, some consider his date of birth to be January 10, 5114 BC[18][19]


A Home temple with deities of Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Hanuman, on Sri Rama Navami
Some highlights of this day include

Kalyanam, a ceremonial wedding performed by temple priests
Panakam, a sweet drink prepared on this day with jaggery and pepper.
Procession of murtis in the evening, accompanied by playing with water and colours.
For the occasion, Followers of Hinduism fast or restrict themselves to a specific diet in accordance to VedaDharma. Vedic temples are decorated and readings of the Ramayana take place. Along with SriRama, people also worship Sita, Rama's wife; Lakshmana, Rama's brother; and Hanuman, an ardent devotee of Rama and the leader of his army in the battle against the rakshasa Ravana, the Brahmin king of Lanka.

Some people put a small idol of Rama in a cradle, symbolising the significance of the day and offer prayers to it. Community meals are also organised.[7]


Sri Ramanavami Kalyanam utsava at Bhadrachalam Temple, in Telangana
The Kalyanam performed in the Bhadrachalam Temple, in Telangana is very famous.[20]

A number of ISKCON temples introduced a more prominent celebration of the occasion of the holiday with the view of addressing needs of growing native Hindu congregation. It is however always was a notable calendar event on the traditional Gaurabda calendar with a specific additional requirement of fasting by devotees.[21]

Sri Rama Navami is shared with Swaminarayan Jayanti, the birth of Swaminarayan, who was born in the village of Chhapaiya in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

Rama Rajya[edit]
Main article: Ram Rajya (The rule of Rama)

This section does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (March 2015)

This article's tone or style may not reflect the encyclopedic tone used on Wikipedia. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articles for suggestions. (March 2015)
Rama Rajya, the reign of Sri Rama, is a rare period of peace and prosperity bestowed by him alone. This festival commemorates the birth of Sri Rama who is remembered for his prosperous and righteous reign.

In Northern India, an event that draws popular participation is the Rama Navami procession, also called Ratha Yatra. The main attraction in this procession is a gaily decorated chariot in which four persons enact the divine pastimes of Rama, His brother Lakshmana, His queen Sita and His pure devotee, Hanuman. The chariot is accompanied by several other persons dressed up in ancient costumes as Rama's soldiers. The procession is a gusty affair with the participants praising echoing the blissful days of Rama's rule as the Supreme Emperor on Bhuloka (Earth).

“The Ramrajya means the reign, the kingdom and the general circumstances (the ‘Rajya’) that Shreeram gave to Ayodhya. Moulding the people on the lines of the subjects of Ayodhya; to make of them, what the citizens of Ayodhya were; creating a society and social order like Ayodhya had, grooming every single individual from this point of view leading to a corresponding response from the human community in its entirety - that is what the Ramrajya means”

“When the subjects (the people of the kingdom) are happy, they are not sad, not miserable, not helpless, not starved or hungry, they are not targets for abuse and contempt, they are not kicked around, the reign or the prevailing state is called the Ramrajya”, said Sadguru Shree Aniruddha Bapu in His special discourse on 6 May 2010 as he spoke about the Ramrajya, His dream, His aim, His word and His motto, all for His friends’ sakes - our sakes.

And so we understand that the Ramrajya is as much a ‘state of affairs’ at the general level as it is a ‘state of mind’ (mind as in mental capacities, inner resources of a person) at the particular level. This is a destination, a situation we have to attain and so ushering in the Ramrajya calls for committed and consistent effort at both the individual and the collective levels.


en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rama_Navami

Our Perfumed Garden Of Garbage at Bandra Bazar Road

I shot this at 7.30 am today while going for my morning walk.. I had stopped walking for last three days due to my hectic schedule and even this morning due to the horrendous heat I had thought of skipping my walk..but the idea of walking in the evening at the MET gardens is chaotic with unruly kids ..in the evening the MET Cricket grounds becomes a Miya Park..of utter confusion and the security guards are too scared of being beaten by the Muslim kids so they shut their lips .. and the senior citizens bear the brunt.

I walked about 5 km came home slept and went out in the evening and shot the Ram Navmi Saibaba Palki at Jain Mandir Road Bandra on my mobile phone.

For me  in the mornings there is no escape from garbage ,,god had decided that it is garbage I must shoot and end up as garbage once I leave this filthy earthly surroundings of my backyard..and for the dirt filth and neglect of Bandra Bazar Road the residents , the Bandra Municipality and the BJP local representatives and the lone Congress corporator are equally to blame ,, and whether one local representative lives at Bazar Road and the other at Worli matters not our area got defeated badly by its vote for the Modi Wave ..

And so I shall keep on shooting the insanity of my garbage moments , those at Pali Hill Carter Road Band Stand Turner Road Joggers Park dont have to face the agony of living or buying fish mutton no beef at Bandra Bazar Market , even God wears a hijab when he comes to shop in our area covered from head to toe with two slanting slits for eyes.

Modijis Swach Bharat is a total eyewash,, on the soul of Bandra Bazar Road.. instead of removing the dirt in our system , rogue police officials worse than terrorists , bureaucrat extortionists ,rapists child molesters , crooks in the Parliament and hoodlums murderers and cheaters we are busy trying to cleanse India by removing garbage generated by man with a lousy system of garbage management .

Because The Muslims Dont Give Him Alms At A Hindu Temple He Begs

he is a blind man
with the aid of a
stick he walks
he begs he pleads
but in silence to
me he talked
the hindu
devotees
gave him
alms he
blessed them
around the
temple block
when you are
hungry hopeless
religion does not
matter ..it is charity
the essence of
humanity .. bulwark
beggars gods lost
tribe forgotten flock

Babulnath Temple

Babulnath is an ancient Shiva temple in Mumbai, India. Situated on a small hillock near Girgaum Chowpatty, it is one of oldest temples in the city,[1] Shiva in the form of the Lord of the Babul tree is the main deity in this temple. The faithful climb up to the temple and obtain Darshan of the shivling and obtain blessings of the Lord. It is also possible to take an elevator up to the temple. The temples is visited by lakhs of devotees on annual Mahashivratri festival.[1]

Since Raja Bhimdev's Time[edit]

Front view of the Temple'
Babulnath Temple Shiva Linga and Idols were originally consecrated in the 12th century by the then Hindu king Raja Bhimdev of the region. Over a period of time the temple was buried and lost over a period of time. The idols were re-discovered (unearthed) during the period of 1700 to 1780. The first temple was built in the 1780 year.


'Babulnath, Maharashtriyan style'
When rediscovered, 5 original idols were dug out. That of the main Shiva Linga, Ganesh, Hanuman, Parvati and one more. Out of this the first four are in the temple. The fifth one was immersed in the sea because it was broken when it was dug out in the 18th century.

History[edit]
When the first temple was built the land belonged to the Parsi community. There were 5 Dakhma's (Parsi final resting place) existing in the vicinity. There was a lot of resistance for the Parsi community at that time for building of the temple. This resistance continued till the late 1800 when the issue was settled by the courts in favour of the temple.

Old Temple[edit]
The Babulnath Temple was patronised when built for the first time by Hindu merchant of that time and mainly the Gujarati community. A bigger temple was built in 1890 by contributions from the Gujarati merchants and the likes of Maharaja Sayajirao Gaikwad of Baroda state. The current temple structure can be dated back to 1890. The temple height was considerable when built in 1890 but a lightning strike in the 1960s and damage to the spire lowered the height of the present temple considerably. Till the 1980s Babulnath Temple was one of the Tallest structure & location in the city of Mumbai.

There is limited reference to Babulnath Temple in the historical texts, because in the initial days the temple was frequented by yogis who used to stay there for Bhang and Ganja. However the temple famed in the 20th century. Currently the temple is thronged by people on Mondays and during Mahashivratri & Shravan months.

Banganga Tank Walkeshwar

Banganga or Banganga Tank is an ancient[1] water tank which is part of the Walkeshwar Temple Complex in Malabar Hill area of Mumbai in India.
History[edit]
See also: History of Mumbai
The Tank was built in the 1127 AD, by Lakshman Prabhu, a minister in the court of Silhara dynasty kings of Thane.[2][3]

It was rebuilt in 1715 AD, out of a donation for the Walkeshwar Temple by Rama Kamath.[4] The main temple, has been reconstructed since then and is at present a reinforced concrete structure of recent construction.

Banganga in Mythology[edit]

Banganga Temple sikhara
According to local legend, it sprang forth when the Lord Ram, the exiled hero of the epic Ramayana, stopped at the spot in search of his kidnapped wife Sita.

As the legend goes, overcome with fatigue and thirst, Rama asked his brother Lakshmana to bring him some water. Laxman instantly shot an arrow into the ground, and water gushed forth from the ground, creating a tributary of the Ganges, which flows over a thousand miles away, hence its name, Banganga, the Ganga created on a baan (arrow).[5]

The Banganga also houses the 'Shri Kashi Math' and 'Shri Kaivalya or Kawle Math' of the Goud Saraswat Brahmins at its banks and samadhis of their various past heads of the Math.[6]

The area also has a Hindu cremation ground[7] which after 2003, received a makeover to house a Gas crematorium.[8]

The area still has an old Hindu cemetery consisting of samadhi shrines of various Advaita gurus, such as Sri Siddarameshwar Maharaj (1888–1936) and his disciple, Sri Ranjit Maharaj (1913–2000).[9][10]

Today[edit]
The tank today is a rectangular pool structure surrounded by steps on all four sides. At the entrance are two pillars in which oil lamps called diyas were lit in ancient times.

The tank, as well as the main Walkeshwar Temple and the Parshuram Temple belong to the Goud Saraswat Temple Trust, which once owned most of the property in the complex. Many Goud Saraswat Brahmin families (Rege, Anaokar, Mulgaonkar, Kenkre, Sakhardande, Sukthankar, Keni, Marudkar, Naik, Wartikar, Warerkar, Bidikar, Bhende, Prabhawalkar, Pagnis) used to reside / still reside in the Temple Trust buildings in the complex.

The tank is spring fed and so its water remains sweet, despite being located only a few dozen meters away from the sea. Apart from being a cultural hub, the place over the years has provided inspiration to many artists, be it on film or on canvas.

PATRON SAINT OF OUR PARISH – ST PETER

Simon Peter or Cephas, the first Pope, Prince of the Apostles, and founder, with St. Paul, of the See of Rome. Peter was a native of Bethsaida, near Lake Tiberias, the son of John, and worked, like his brother St. Andrew, as a fisherman on Lake Genesareth. Andrew introduced Peter to Jesus, and Christ called Peter to become a disciple.

In Luke is recounted the story that Peter caught so large an amount of fish that he fell down before the feet of Jesus and was told by the Lord, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men”.

Jesus also gave Simon a new name: Cephas, or the rock. Becoming a disciple of Jesus, Peter acknowledged him as “…the Messiah, the son of the living God”. Christ responded by saying: “…you are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church… He added: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”.

Peter was always listed as the first of the Apostles in all of the New Testament accounts and was a member of the inner circle of Jesus, with James and John.

He is recorded more than any other disciple, and was at Jesus’ side at the Transfiguration, the raising of Jairus’ daughter, and the Agony of the Garden of Gethsemane. He helped organize the Last Supper and played a major role in the events of the Passion. When the Master was arrested, he cut off the right ear of a slave of the high priest Malchus and then denied Christ three times as the Lord predicted. Peter then “went out and began to weep bitterly”. After the Resurrection, Peter went to the tomb with the “other disciple” after being told of the event by the women. The first appearance of the Risen Christ was before Peter, ahead of the other disciples, and when the Lord came before the disciples at Tiberias, he gave to Peter the famous command to “Feed my lambs… Tend my sheep… Feed my sheep”.

In the time immediately after the Ascension, Peter stood as the unquestionable head of the Apostles, his position made evident in the Acts. He appointed the replacement of Judas Iscariot; he spoke first to the crowds that had assembled after the descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost; he was the first Apostle to perform miracles in the name of the Lord; and he rendered judgment upon the deceitful Ananias and Sapphira.

Peter was instrumental in bringing the Gospel to the Gentiles. He baptized the Roman pagan Cornelius, and at the Council of Jerusalem he gave his support to preaching to Gentiles, thereby permitting the new Church to become universal. Imprisoned by King Herod Agrippa, he was aided in an escape by an angel. He then resumed his apostolate in Jerusalem and his missionary efforts included travels to such cities of the pagan world as Antioch, Corinth, and eventually Rome. He made reference to the Eternal City in his first Epistle by noting that he writes from Babylon.

It is certain that Peter died in Rome and that his martyrdom came during the reign of Emperor Nero, probably in 64. Testimony of his martyrdom is extensive, including Origen, Eusebius of Caesarea, St. Clement I of Rome, St. Ignatius, and St. Irenaeus. According to rich tradition, Peter was crucified on the Vatican Hill upside down because he declared himself unworthy to die in the same manner as the Lord. He was then buried on Vatican Hill, and excavations under St. Peter’s Basilica have unearthed his probable tomb, and his relics are now enshrined under the high altar of St. Peter’s.

From the earliest days of the Church, Peter was recognized as the Prince of the Apostles and the first Supreme Pontiff; his see, Rome, has thus enjoyed the position of primacy over the entire Catholic Church. While Peter’s chief feast day is June 29, he is also honored on February 22 and November 18. In liturgical art, he is depicted as an elderly man holding a key and a book. His symbols include an inverted cross, a boat, and the rooster.
www.stpetersbandra.org/our-parish/patron-saint/

St Peter Church History Bandra

The Old Church: The foundation of the original St Peter’s Church was laid in April 12, 1852, by Bishop Hartmann. The Church was completed in September 1853. It measured approximately 100 by 75 feet. In 1867 a second storey was added to the old top floor.
The storey above the Church was at first used as the priests’ residence and parish school. In 1855, the Jesuit Seminary was transferred from Surat to Bandra, and the seminary and the parish schools were merged. In 1863, the seminary was again transferred to Bombay, and the Boys’ Orphanage from Bombay came to Bandra. This was the beginning of the St Stanislaus’ High School.

The New Church: As far back as August 1887, the then Archbishop of Bombay issued the following appeal: “The poor parish of St. Peter’s Bandora, numbers with the orphans (boys and girls) 2215 souls and has for a church the floor of the boys’ Orphanage. This place is much too small and is ill-suited for divine service. A new and more spacious Church is much needed and will be a great benefit to the poor Parishioners and the Orphans”.

The growing needs of the parish necessitated the building of a larger Church, and so in September, 1938, Archbishop Thomas Roberts, S.J. blessed the foundation stone of the present St Peter’s Church.

The new Church has been built on the site of the old and has been designed on the Romanesque style.

The cost of the new St. Peter’s Church was Rs. 2,70,000/-. The whole Church building measures 130 ft by 80 ft.

In front, as one enters, stands a life-size marble statue of Christ bearing the inscription I am the Resurrection and the Life.

St Peter’s is capacious and can accommodate a thousand people easily. Inside, its excellent stained-glass windows, around twenty in number, look resplendent in the sunshine or when the lights are on.


st peter church bandra 

Eton College Chapel Choir Rehearsal At St Peter Church Bandra

The heat was giving these kids a real bad time but this disciplined polite lot represented the spirit of their College Country and Jesus Christ.

They were dedicated and with their music touching the hearts of peace and humanity ,,they were focused and watching them added joy to my photography I wish I could have shot each face and their emotional ecstasy and their passion.

This new series is my humble tribute as a Muslim photographer to the parents of these gifted members of Eton College Chapel Choir at my favorite Church St Peter Bandra where God actually peaks in through the colorful stained windows .

About Eton College Chapel.
Eton College Chapel is the chapel of Eton College, an independent school in the United Kingdom.

Never completed owing to the Wars of the Roses, the Chapel should have been a little over double its current length; a plaque on a building opposite the West End marks the point to which it should have reached.[1] The Chapel is built in the late Gothic or Perpendicular style.

The fan vaulting was installed in the 1950s after the wooden roof (there was no money for a vault to be installed in the 15th century after King Henry VI was deposed) became infested with deathwatch beetle. It was completed in three years and is made of concrete, faced with stone, supported from steel trusses, with hand-carved Clipsham stone for the stone ribs supporting each bay.


ervices[edit]
Eton College Chapel is in frequent use, with at least one service a day, and many additional services which are in popular demand, ranging from Taizé to Roman Catholic Communion, to Compline. Almost every morning there is a compulsory service, attended by different 'Blocks' (school years) depending on the day, something which has been both criticised and defended by boys in The Chronicle (the school magazine). These last no more than twenty minutes.

Founder[edit]


Henry attached the greatest importance to the religious aspects of his new foundation and he planned that the services would be conducted on a magnificent scale by providing an establishment of 10 priest Fellows, 10 chaplains, 10 clerks and 16 choristers. There were 14 services a day plus prayers that were said. There would also be masses offered for the founder's parents and after his death for the Founder instead. This last custom reflected the belief in the Middle Ages that prayers said for a dead person's soul hastened the progress of said soul from Purgatory to Paradise.

This was befitting for a church that was to become a great place of pilgrimage in Europe: for about a decade pilgrims attracted by the relics and the Indulgences flocked to Eton on the Feast of the Assumption in August, when there was a fair lasting six days on the fields.

For around forty years before the present Chapel was completed, services were held in the parish church which was dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin. In the 1460s the annual influx of pilgrims died out, and the large establishment of clergy was permanently reduced in size.

Today the Chapel services still remain a key part of the life of the College: boys attend Chapel once on Sundays in addition to compulsory services three or four days a week, and the numerous optional services that take place out of school hours.

The choir[edit]
The choir which sings in the Chapel is made up of boys from the school, and is directed by the Precentor and Director of Music, Tim Johnson. Up to 75% of the choir are former members of various cathedral and collegiate choirs, and many have been admitted under the school's Music Scholarship scheme. Many go on to continue their singing careers as choral scholars at Oxford or Cambridge.

Nowadays the choir only sings at three or four compulsory services a week, as recent cuts in the services mean that the choir only makes appearances to boys on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. There are a number of other services that are optional. As second chapel Lower Chapel was built in 1890 to accommodate the growing number of boys at the school.

Acoustics and lighting[edit]
The Chapel is unique amongst its comparably-sized peers in that it eschews sound boards (a common feature of English churches and chapels in which medium-to-large-scale services and concerts are heard) in favour of what the former Precentor, Ralph Allwood, calls a more "organic" sound produced without the use of equipment (apart from microphones in the pulpit and lectern).

The audio reinforcement system in the chapel, installed by DRV Integration, was the winner of the AV Magazine audio project of the year award in 2003.

Wall paintings[edit]
The wall paintings in the Chapel are considered to be the most remarkable work of art in the College. They are the work of at least four master painters{who?}, including William Baker, who took eight years to complete them (1479–87). In the Flemish style, they adorn the sides of the chapel. On the North side the paintings depict the Virgin Mary (to whom the chapel is dedicated), while those on the South side tell a popular medieval story about a mythical Empress. These paintings were whitewashed over in 1560 as a result of an order from the new protestant church authorities which banned depictions of mythical miracles. They were left obscured and forgotten for the best part of 300 years until they were rediscovered in 1847, and it was not until 1923 that they were cleaned, restored and revealed by the removal of the stall canopies.[1]


In World War 2, all of the chapel glass, excepting a window above the organ, was shattered by a bomb that fell on the nearby Upper School, The fine East Window is the work of Evie Hone. The designs for the windows on either side are by John Piper and were executed in glass by Patrick Reyntiens. The subjects are divided into four miracles on the North side and four parables on the South side. The miracles are: The Miraculous Draft of Fishes, the Feeding of the Five Thousand, the Stilling of the Waters, and the Raising of Lazarus. The parables are: The Light under a Bushel, the House built on the Rock, the Lost Sheep, and the Sower.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eton_College_Chapel

The Eton College Chapel Choir At St Peter Church Bandra

These kids from the elite Eton College were at the Church rehearsing their music for their performance at the Church after 8 Pm Mass,, Much as I wanted to go and shoot it but I was with Linda and did not go for the same .

But at the rehearsal I shot two videos and loads of images . I hope the English kids who were having a tough time to coping the Mumbai hot humid weather will enjoying seeing these as sweet memories of their sojourn in Mumbai.

And for me even as a Muslim St Peter Church adds to my inner peace and my Church memories of my old school and the exquisite Wodehouse Holy Name  Cathedral at Colaba .

St Peter Church used to be my escape and I shot Jesus his followers his clergy and the Silhouette of the Holy Spirit plying hide and seek with me near the marble statue of Jesus Christ.

And Fr Jaun the Vhurch pastor has been my friend teacher mentor , this Spanish Priest who speaks fluent Marathi has spent 63 years in Mumbai.. he too had met Mother Theresa that is why I had bought Linda to to meet him in the sacristy while I left them to their privacy of spiritual thoughts I shot these English kids  as they followed their Music teachers instructions ,,

This was shot on my mobile phone rest of it on my Canon 60 D

Once A Street Photographer Always A Street Photographer

This ends a backlog I have another memory card to go...I have had a tiring week, a tiring day and I slept ..and this series are pictures in and around Bandra Bazar  Road close to where I stay and after using Facebook to be connected to my friend I finall shut it down I am not much into likes and pokes and hugs .

I guess I dont have the required time or patience to use Facebook but it is nice to get back to your friends I was out of Facebook for almost one year and now I dont know when I shall go back to the loony bin.


Well man must live with good memories only .. I enjoyed revisiting places that perhaps would have never visited on my own.. I feel emancipated in spirit .. now I have to get back to my work to my walking routine and getting back to controlling my blood sugar .

Ever since I began strenuously walking at MET I have no appetite and for last three days I have not gone for my daily walks ,, I will start again from tomorrow ,, people who dont have much money consider time their wealth .. and I am exhausted to say the least .

This morning I took Linda to Banganga and Babulnath Mandir dropped her at Lucky Hotel and came home .. she leaves late afternoon for Saudi Arabia .

And none of us want to change another persons style of shooting ... I am a point and shoot Canon photographer and I have no pretensions of another kind I am happy to shoot the way I shoot I hope never to change my attitude my style my rhythm and the humility of god given camera eye ,,

We see things but as individuals we see what we see differently I have had no formal training or school in photography and I am a school of photography for my 3 year old granddaughter Nerjis Asif Shakir who understands the moment and uses the camera to hold that moment in her childs grip.

Sometimes Nerjis makes me see things I would have never seen I now see it with her eyes ..she is gifted I was not gifted I merely parroted the working of my camera .. just shot what I intuitively and cosmically I had to shoot ,,and what my Canon refused to shoot I shot with my mobile phone.

The camera made me win friends and also lose friends and sadly every loss is regretful but we have to move with the flow we have to carry our own cross only Jesus can carry other peoples cross ..I cannot live your life and would never ask a sane God to give you my life ,, my life is full of  camera shake dreams bordering on a distorted circle of confusion..

And for some people shooting pictures  eases a pain for me it is blogging adding words were words were never meant to exist ..

And I shoot what others may not want to shoot for me Garbage is the beginning and the end the day I breathe my last I will be garbage too, I poeticize the pain of Garbage it speaks to me in a language of its own, it gives that language mellowed fragrance of a moment lost a moment gained .

And when I die ,, I hope  god does not stretch my life and if you see a burkha clad girl shooting Garbage you will know that Nerjis is exorcising the pain of her beggar poet grandfather shooting garbage to remind her take her back to the Bandra Bazar Garbage dump , the poetic memories , the catharsis and the holistic healing yes garbage heals those who shoot garbage ,, it does not heal those who stealthily throw garbage on the streets in the night or the wee hours of the mornings.

  Ok no more metaphors enough of it the man in the picture is a North Indian migrant buying old clothes he will bargain as much as the lady in the picture , say that the clothes are bad torn etc etc but he wants those clothes badly in exchange he will give her aluminium vessels or plastic buckets ,, making her believe that she earned a good item in return.. and the old clothes have been rid off ..

The North Indian migrant hawker will now go from house to house till all the items he has is given away and old clothes taken in exchange ..these old clothes he will sell at Chor Bazar the Great Indian  Thieves market to a big fat bargaining miserly second hands clothes dealer .

These clothes will now now be sorted , those torn will be darned , they will be washed ironed made new starched and will be finally sold on the Chor Bazar bylanes on Friday..the dealer has hawkers on his roll who work on commission  or daily wages .. so nothing goes waste  old jeans baggies become hifashion tights after they are narrowed , sarees , shirts blouses , even jeans that are in very bad shape are made into micro shorts for sexy girls.

And a simple picture becomes informative and adds to the lost moment bought back to life.

Haji Ali

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Haji Ali Dargah is a mosque and dargah (tomb) located on an islet off the coast of Worli in the Southern part of Mumbai. Near the heart of the city proper, the dargah is one of the most recognisable landmarks of Mumbai.[1][2][3]

An exquisite example of Indo-Islamic Architecture, associated with legends about doomed lovers, the dargah contains the tomb of Sayed Peer Haji Ali Shah Bukhari.

Background[edit]
The Haji Ali Dargah was constructed in 1431[4] in memory of a wealthy Muslim merchant, Sayyed Peer Haji Ali Shah Bukhari, who gave up all his worldly possessions before making a pilgrimage to Mecca. Hailing from Bukhara (present day Uzbekistan), Bukhari travelled around the world in the early to mid 15th century, and then settled in present day Mumbai.

According to legends[5] surrounding his life, once the Saint saw a poor woman crying on the road, holding an empty vessel. He asked her what the problem was, she sobbed that her husband would thrash her as she stumbled and accidentally spilled the oil she was carrying. He asked her to take him to the spot where she spilt the oil. There, he jabbed a finger into the soil and the oil gushed out. The overjoyed woman filled up the vessel and went home.

Later, Pir Haji Ali Shah Bukhari had a recurring and disturbing dream that he had injured Earth by his act. Full of remorse, he soon fell ill and directed his followers to cast the coffin carrying his body into the Arabian Sea. Haji Ali died during his journey to Mecca and miraculously the casket carrying his body, floated back to these shores, getting stuck in the string of rocky islets just off the shore of Worli. Thus, the Dargah was constructed there.

On Thursdays and Fridays, the shrine is visited by at least 40,000 pilgrims. Irrespective of faith and religion, people visit the dargah to get the blessings of the legendary saint. Sometimes, especially on Fridays, various Sufi musicians perform a form of devotional music called Qawwali at the dargah.

The Structure[edit]

The entrance to the Dargah.
The Dargah is built on a tiny islet located 500 meters from the coast, in the middle of Worli Bay,[6] in the vicinity of Worli. The edifice is a brilliant specimen of the Indo-Islamic style of architecture. The islet is linked to the city precinct of Mahalakshmi by a narrow causeway, which is nearly a kilometre (0.62 mile) long.

The accessibility to the dargah is very much dependent on the tides. As, the causeway is not bound by railings, when the causeway gets submerged during high tide it becomes inaccessible[citation needed]. Therefore, the dargah is accessible only during low tide. This walk on the causeway, with the sea on both sides, is one of the highlights of a trip to the shrine.


Haji Ali Dargah


The whitewashed structure occupies an area of a marble courtyard contains the central shrine. The tomb within the mosque is covered by a brocaded red and green chaddar (tomb cover sheet). It is supported by an exquisite silver frame, supported by marble pillars. The main hall has marble pillars embellished with artistic mirror work: blue, green, yellow chips of glass arranged in kaleidoscopic patterns interspersed with Arabic patterns which spell the ninety-nine names of Allah. As per the Muslim traditions separate praying rooms for ladies and gents are provided here to pay their respects. During the high tide, the dargah seems completely isolated with no access. It looks more like a little island.

Repair and Renovation[edit]
The six hundred year old[7] Dargah structure has corroded, due to constant erosion, saline winds and constant flow of 80,000 people per week.[8] The structural upgradation of the Dargah started in October 2008. The Dargah will be beautified with first and second quality white marble, which will be brought from Makrana, Rajasthan, the same place from where marble for the Taj Mahal was brought.

The repair and structural upgradation work is envisaged to take 24 months divided into two Phases.[9] Phase One will involve reconstruction of Mosque and Minarets, Phase Two will involve renovation of the Sanitarium Building. When the reconstruction work is complete, the holy shrine will give the feel of a Taj right in Mumbai’s brackish sea water.

The North Indian Muslim Migrant

He is a Muslim migrant from Uttar Pradesh  he works at a decorators shop as a helper at Bandra Bazar Road. I dont know his name but I like to shoot him and he obliges me without getting mad as some Muslims do.

And there are some faces in Bandra I can go on shooting forever ,, this is one of those faces ..

Muslim Beggar Lady Bandra SV Road

This picture has a story , I saw her shot her and than realized I had no memory card in my camera , so I was moving away but a part of me , the street photographer part got the better of me I inserted a card in my camera gave her money and shot these few frames on my telly lens .

And she is begging , she is not from Bandra  perhaps from one of the distant pockets in the suburbs Mumbra.

They come to Bandra as people are kind and generous towards beggars , and as there are many Mosques in Bandra they get money food clothing from the rich Muslims and even the poor Muslims offer them alms.


And one of my photo documentary thesis is on Muslim beggars over 4000 images shot of Muslim beggars in Mumbai and other parts of India that I have visited .

Most Muslim beggars are found outside Jama Masjid Delhi , Nizamuddin Aulia Delhi and you can go on shooting them , in my case forever .

There are Muslim beggars in Mumbai at Holy Shrines Mosques.

In Lucknow you find them in the old city and during religious feasts like Eid Shabbarat or Moharam .

But the greatest number of beggars can be found in Ajmer during the Urus annual celebration of the Holy Saint of Beggars ,, Khwajah Garb Nawaz or Hazrat Moinuddin Chishty and beggars  are found on the way to another Holy Shrine of Taragadh.

There are mostly Hindu beggars at Pushkar .

Beggars at Deva Sharif Barabanki, Beggars at Unava  Mira Datar and Hussain Tekri Jaorah..

I have documented the beggar angst ,,I have also documented the Hijra beggars in trains this set is disabled from public view .