First Set of Bronze Panels Installed
March 2, 2023It has been a journey of some 10 years, designing the frames that would hold the 35 bronze panels, carving these into the perimeter wall in Bengaluru, shipping to Kauai and installing the wall. Then designing the 14" by 47" panels, sculpting the bas-relief art on 20 of them, casting the art, writing the text for each one (not easy to write something you hope will be relevant in 1,000 years), casting the text in Pennsylvania, shipping to Colorado, casting the sculpted images, adding the patina, welding the art and text together and shipping to Kauai. Whew!
Two days back the final step happened for 9 of them, drilling six holes for each one in the hard granite and then another team affixing them with anchored bolts to the granite wall. Enjoy this final stage which took our teams five days in all.
These panels are heavy, about 80 pounds, so two men are required to move them.
Holes are drilled with a diamond bit using plywood templates for accuracy.
Even with a diamond bit, the drilling takes 8-12 minutes for each hole.
The first one, Yogaswami and Chellappaswami, goes in the Northeast corner following vastu science.
The monks fabricated a simple and adjustable support system.
Getting ready.
Aaron makes the hydrolic cement mix.
They use a delivery device that resembles a pastry piping bag, but much larger for mortar.
The just-right mortar is squeezed into the holes
Then the panel is positioned and the bolts on the back pressed into the holes. It only takes five minutes for this special cement to dry. So they move quickly.
In the next slides we show eight of the 9 panels (one is hidden today under a rain tent, so no photo). This one speaks of Yogaswami and his guru, Chellappaswami.
The monastery\
s mission summarized.'
All about sadhana and its centrality to spiritual progress.
Tirumular and his Tirumantiram text, with excerpts.
The traditional forms of Siva are explained.
The three worlds of existence.
About the temple\
s founder, Gurudeva.'
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