the journey continues…

The Vishnu sahasranama is a list of 1,000 names of Lord Vishnu.The Vishnu sahasranama as found in the Mahabharata is the most popular version of the 1000 names of Vishnu.
During the battle of Kurukshetra,Yudhisthira asks Bheeshma who is the supreme god to all and who is the one divinity by worshiping him a man attains good?Then Bheeshma answers him by stating that Vishnu is the supreme god of whole universe and by chanting 1000 names of Lord Vishnu you can attain the prosperity in life.
Its believed that person who hears the names every day or who recites them every day, never meets with any evil either here or hereafter and will have their desires fulfilled.
I personally believe that chanting Vishnu SahasraNamam gives good health,happiness and peace in life.
I have uploaded the MP3 file of MS Subbalakshmi which I downloaded from internet.Original size was 13.5MB I have resized it to 3.9MB so that I can attach it here.
Here is the link(Right click and select Save Link As).

Shri Veeranarayana temple in Gadag is built by Hoysala King Vishnuvardhana.The temple is a mixture of Chalukya, Hoysala and Vijayanagara sculptures.The main entrance gate reminds us the Vijayanagara Art.Inside GarudaGamba and Rangamantap are in the manner of Hoysala sculpture.
Temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu/Veera Narayana.Inside the temple we can see many pillars and one of them is called Kumaravyasana Sthambha.Its believed that Mahakavi Kumaravyasa wrote Karnataka Bharatha Katha Manjari (classic Mahabharatha in Kannada) sitting beneath this pillar.This temple is one among the 5 Narayana Temples in Karnataka established by King Vishnuvardhana.

How to reach?
Gadag is around 500 km from Bangalore and 60 km from Hubli.Hubli is well connected with other cities through rail and road.There are many buses to gadag from Hubli,Dharwad and Hospet.
Temple would be open in the morning and evening hours.I couldn’t take any photos inside as it was closed.
You can find more photos and info here .

Onion Chutney
Onions – 1 ( medium size,chopped)
Grated Coconut – 1/4 cup
Chana dal – 5 tsp
Green Chillies – 3-4
Oil – 2 tsp
Mustard – 1 tsp
Urad Dal – 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds – 1/2 tsp
Hing – a pinch
Tamarind (dry) – small piece
Jaggery – small piece
Corriander leaves(Cilantro) – 10 leaves (Should not add more as it will change the taste)
Salt – to taste

For seasoning
Oil – 1tsp
Mustard seeds -1 tsp
Urad dal – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 4-5

In a pan heat the oil.add 1 tsp of urad dal,fenugreek seeds, 1 tsp of mustrad, green chilliies,grated coconut and onions.Fry for 2 minutes.Add the tamarind,jaggery, hing and grind it to a fine paste.
Do the seasoning with urad dal , mustard seeds and curryleaves in a tsp of oil.

Coconut(Green Chilly) Chutney
Grated Coconut – 1 cup
Green Chillies – 3-4
Oil – 2 tsp
Mustard – 1 tsp
Urad Dal – 1 tsp
Fenugreek seeds – 1/2 tsp
Hing – a pinch
Tamarind (dry) – small piece
Jaggery – small piece
Ginger – small piece
Salt – to taste

For seasoning
Oil – 1tsp
Mustard seeds -1 tsp
Urad dal – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 4-5

In a pan heat the oil.add 1 tsp of urad dal,fenugreek seeds, 1 tsp of mustrad, green chilliies and grated coconut.Fry for a minute.Add the tamarind,jaggery, hing and grind it to a fine paste.Do the seasoning with the other tsp of urad dal , mustard seeds and curryleaves in a tsp of oil.

Garlic Chutney
Grated Coconut – 1 cup
Garlic – 4-5
Chana Daal – 1/2 cup
Green Chillies – 3-4
Oil – 2 tsp
Salt – to taste

For seasoning
Oil – 1tsp
Mustard seeds -1 tsp
Urad dal – 1 tsp
Curry leaves – 4-5

Grind all the ingredients to a smooth paste and do a seasoning with curryleaves and mustard.

Red Chilly Chutney
Ingredients :
Dry Red Chillies – 4-5
Grated coconut – 1/2 cup
Corriander seeds – 1/4 cup
Urad dal – 2 tsp
Mustard seeds – 2 tsp
Dry Tamarind – small piece
Jaggery – small piece
Salt – to taste
Oil

Seasoning:
Oil
Mustard
Curry leaves

Heat oil in a pan.Add red chillies,corriander seeds,urad dal,mustard seeds and fry for 2 minutes.Add the grated coconut.Keep it aside for a 2 minutes to cool.Then add tamarind,jaggery and salt.Grind it to a smooth paste.
Do the seasoning with mustard and curry leaves.

Tips : Heating the grated coconut before grinding keeps it fresh for longer time.
Jaggery is source of iron.Its a good practice to use jaggery while cooking which adds taste also.

Gund Pongal/Gunta Pongalu is a telugu word.Gunta/Gund means round shape so the name is Gund Pongal.
This is a popular breakfast in South India.In TamilNadu they will call it as Paniyaram.
You need to have a separate pan, Paniyaram Pan (as they call it in stores) for preparing this.


Ingredients :
Rice -1 cup
Chana Daal – 1/4 cup
Urad Daal – 1/4 cup
Moong Daal – 1/4 cup
Toor Daal – 1/4 cup
Salt – to taste
Onions – 1 (finely chopped) [optional]
Jeera – 4 tsp [optional]
Corriander leaves – 1/2 cup ( finely chopped) [optional]
Green chillies – 4-5 ( chopped) [optional]

Soak all the dals with rice in a bowl for about 5-6 hours and grind it to batter like dosa batter.
Keep it for about 7 hours/overnight for fermentation.
Next day add onion,chillies,jeera,cilantro and salt.Pour it in to Paniyaram Pan and cover with lid.
Let it turn golden brown and serve with chutney.