Gods and Goddesses of Nainital

Image courtesy of:   https://pixabay.com/en/india-nainital-lake-hill-station-2714556/ While God is everywhere in the universe, in different parts of it, one sees his power in different names and forms. In Nainital it is as Naini Mata, the lovely goddess of the pristine Himalayan Lake of Nainital, a daughter of the most majestic of lakes on Earth, Mansarovar, higher up in the Himalayas from where she draws her water through underground water channels. It is so believed by many, although not yet verified by modern scientific methods but believers need no such proof. My own work in life has spanned from modern science and technology to the spiritual side of life through social, educational and philosophical work. While in one area of activity, I try not to mix in the other for clarity for just as one does not talk of one’s home affairs in office, one does not talk of office work at home for best life practices. However segregation of activities requires the use...

My mother’s name was Nand Rani Malhotra (1924-1999) but except for official purposes all knew her by just her home name of, Nando. One of the most significant phases of her life was spent in Nainital and she loved this town, as did the people of Nainital who met her then in the fifties and knew her simply by her home name of Nando. The more humble of Kumaon who came to know her closely said she is a Devi but to me she was just mother. She lived a simple life of a housewife serving her family with full dedication but simultaneously she did not miss an opportunity to serve anyone she came across. In Nainital she contributed her opinion to the leading voices of the town urging them to retain the best of customs and unique heritage of the town that the British had created and left. Some of these continue until this day. She was a spiritual lady who loved Lord Hanuman keeping a fast in his honor and to thank him every Tuesday most of her life. She also had huge faith in Sikh G...

SATTAL, the seven lakes near Nainital town F or places to visit in Nainital town check http://www.uaoa.in/top-7-places-to-visit-in-nainital/ The entire surrounding distric of Nainital is full of beautiful lake destinations to visit. It  is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. Many who hear of it wish to visit. The present blog is confined largely to spiritual and other special interests from Nainital but an interested tourist can find a large amount of information useful to a tourist on the Web. One Excellent website for this information is h ttp:///nainitaltourism.com http://tripadvisor.com is another site where you can find exhaustive reviews by public of individual locations that you happen to choose for the visit for cross checking Many of my own reviews would be found on that website.. If you wish to visit Nainital head straight to this comprehensive website for most all information you might need for the trip. It would be wise to skip the rainiest of mo...

Among the various single word mantras for meditation and chanting, the divine name Ram is one of the most excellent and easiest to practice. In my mystic travels through Nainital District in the summer of 2007, I learnt a particularly beautiful and rhythmic way to recite this mantra. Its effects were magical. Some of those effects have been described by me in another blog devoted to spirituality. This recitation was recently recorded by me in three YouTube videos so as to make them available to any interested person. One of them is as shown with this post. Ancient records describe that Ram was also the favorite mantra of Lord Hanuman a divinity revered highly in Nainital, India and all over East Asia. Ancient recorded descriptions of Hanuman ji vary from nation to nation. It is because, no human can fully know or understand the divine and therefore all human words about Him and His Angels are approximate attempts. However, through love and devotion, one can sense H...

S ome years ago when I visited Her temple beside the Lake in Nainital, I looked for a book on Her in stores nearby. I found a small one in Hindi by Dr. Kiran Kumari.   There was a need for another one in English describing much more about Her and Her place in the Universe. Therefore I decided to undertake this task. My background is one from Science yet I have had deep interests in the mystic side of life. Therefore when I wrote this book it was from this combined perspective. It must be admitted that the task was a difficult one and although the first attempt resulted in a book, it had shortcomings.. The loving Mother Naini Mata let her child try his hand at this homework on his own without active help. Parts of it were difficult to understand, even confusing. Therefore, recently I began work on new edition again. This new version has now been released at Amazon and other stores around the world in both paperback and electronic formats. It was also an opportunity to im...

2084 Babaji by Ashok Malhotra M uch of my spiritually inspired writing has its roots in Nainital. My new short novel 2084 Babaji too was inspired similarly. While many seem to connect it with the famous novel 1984 by George Orwell, the 2084 is the height of Nainital town in Kumaon. Either way, if you get a chance, do read this novel. In it is a story of our world, a little village in India and a mystic from the Himalayas. While being an engrossing story the book is interspersed with mystic knowledge that shall surely help to make the life of reader more meaningful and joyous. The book is available at Amazon at the following link as well as several other places if you google for it, https://www.amazon.com/2084-Babaji-Ashok-Malhotra/dp/1544761104 Note: The cover image shown here is different from the one in commercially available editions. A screenshot of some of  the images connected to this book on goolge images is below. Jai Baba haidakhan

A s a result of fate and destiny, I have lived in many different continents and parts of the world in my brief something life of sixty and some years. My experience tells me that it is fate and destiny where one ends up living rather than one’s own choices in the matter.   As I look back, it is clear that the happiest periods of my life were spent in Nainital with the grace of the Goddess of Nainital – Naini Mata – and the Lord. I spent my childhood in Nainital and have visited later whenever opportunity permitted. The scriptures assert that when one leaves this body and is born again in a new life, it is usually in a place that is most on one’s mind during one’s last days and I suspect in my case it shall be Nainital. The District of Nainital is indeed one of the most beautiful districts on our planet with a diverse flora and fauna depending on where one is in the district with the Naintal town in its center. Unlike the plains, in Himalayan districts, the flora and ...

M ount Kailash situated in Tibet  is regarded as the abode of Shiva-Shankar who was charged with the spirit of the formless and infinite Almighty known by many Hindus as Shiva. Lake Mansarovar, the largest fresh water lake of the Himalayan region is situated at the foot of this mountain. It is situated to the north-east of Nainital District. Many believe that  lakes of Nainital District are fed by waters of this lake through underground rivers. According to mythology, the connection was a result of prayers of ancient sages that medidated on the banks of Naini Lake. Bhim Tal lake also in Nainital District is held by some to be fed from the adjoining Rakshas Tal. It is one of the poorly developed and mantained lakes of the district. Its water constitute a portion of the water supply of Haldwani town situated at the foot of Nainital Hills. Surprisingly the less beautiful parts of Nainital district are those fed by Rakshas Tal, whereas others fed by Mansarovar Lake are char...

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Roti_Cane_Kari_Kambing.jpg A mong one of the most delicious dinners on earth is a dinner consisting of a curry of meat or chicken served with flat bread and a salad. Those who do not eat meat substitute it with paneer (a cheese that does not melt) or more simply peas and potatoes etc. Even when the main ingredient is meat, peas and potatoes may be added to the dish. It may be pointed out that when curry is mentioned here it does not refer to a dish made with curry powder as many do in the west, particularly North America but it is a dish with a sauce prepared from a mix of individual spices and herbs that usually include onions, garlic, tomatoes, ginger and cilantro added last as a garnish and a large variety of spices that includes cardamom, cloves, black pepper and cumin. In the richest of curries, some nuts such as cashew nuts and almond are added while cooking. Yoghurt is also used frequently in the preparation at the frying ...

The lake in Nainital town, there are several more in the surrounding Nainital District. Jai Naini Mata ki     Scroll down to towards the end of the post for the recipe of drink A n ancient highly revered Sanskrit book, the Rig Veda describes the powerful Soma drink obtained from the god amongst plants called Soma. This plant appears to have become extinct from the Himalayas some three thousand years ago perhaps due to over harvesting, grazing and ancient climate change around the time the ancient Saraswati River began to disappear from the Indus valley. Ever since then many attempts have been made to search for it and many proposals of alternative substances made, several narcotic, intoxicating or psychedelic. But the heavenly Soma was none of these. It was neither intoxicating nor psychedelic but made warriors alert and strong for battle and others full of happiness, wisdom and poetry. The best thing is that compounds in the drink appear to retard or stop aging ...

Naini Mata, Goddess of Nainital A new edition of the book – Naini Mata, Goddess of Nainital -  is available with amazon and several other outlets. This book describes the spiritual philosophy surrounding the Mother Goddess of Nainital from a modern scientific perspective. This wonderful little book describes the philosophy surrounding the goddess of Nainital, a beautiful district in the Himalayas. The book explains the spiritual philosophy behind the worship of the Mother Goddess as well as much other Himalayan spirituality from a modern perspective. This book is as scientific as it is spiritual. The book includes a highly thought provoking section on creation that is backed by modern scientific findings, especially the origin of humans on earth and their relationship with gods and goddesses. The book is available in both print and kindle electronic versions. The latter can be downloaded in minutes. The book is an excellent introduction to the spiritual philosophy emana...

The Babaji Affair A new revised edition of my book the - The Babaji Affair -  has been released recently. The book is available in both print and electronic versions at various Amazon outlets around the world. it is also available with most other online retailers. Just search on nearest you on Google. If you are interested in the Nainital District, Babaji, and the spirituality of the region interpreted form a modern global viewpoint and have not read the book yet, do acquire a copy soon. The message of the book is bound to improve your life dramatically towards greater, peace, joy and beauty. The image above is an unfolded designers proof image of the cover. The design of the Neeltal Hotel in the book- The Babaji Affair - was based on the Neuschwanstein Castle

Countryside around Nainital Lake The Nainital Lake is so captivating that most photos end up taking pictures of the lake from close and miss to photograph the countryside around it that is just as pretty. here is one picture.