Hindu Temples Information

Trimbakeshwar Temple

Trimbakeshwar Temple

Trimbakeshwar or Tryambakeshwar is an ancient Hindu temple in the town of Trimbak, in the Trimbakeshwar tehsil in the Nashik District of Maharashtra, India, 28 km from the city of Nashik and 40 km from nashik road. It is dedicated to the god Shiva and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, where the Hindu genealogy registers at Trimbakeshwar, Maharashtra are kept. The origin of the sacred Godavari river is near Trimbak.

Kusavarta, a kunda (sacred pond) in the temple premises is the source of the Godavari River, the longest river in peninsular India. The current temple was built by Peshwa Balaji Baji Rao (Nanasaheb).

Trimbakeshwar Temple Architecture

The temple is located between three hills namely Brahmagiri, Nilagiri and Kalagiri. The temple has three lingams (an iconic form of Shiva) representing Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma. The temple tank is called Amritavarshini, which measured 28 m (92 ft) bu 30 m (98 ft). There are three other bodies of water, namely, Bilvatheertha, Viswananthirtha and Mukundathirtha. There are images of various deities, namely, Gangadevi, Jaleswara, Rameswara, Gautameswara, Kedarnatha, Rama, Krishna, Parasurama and Lakshmi Narayana. The temple has also several monasteries and samadhis of saints.

Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga Temple

As per the Shiva Purana, once Brahma (the Hindu God of creation) and Vishnu (the Hindu God of preservation) had an argument in terms of supremacy of creation. To test them, Shiva pierced the three worlds as a huge endless pillar of light, the jyotirlinga. Vishnu and Brahma split their ways to downwards and upwards respectively to find the end of the light in either directions. Brahma lied that he found out the end, while Vishnu conceded his defeat. Shiva appeared as a second pillar of light and cursed Brahma that he would have no place in ceremonies while Vishnu would be worshipped till the end of eternity. The jyotirlinga is the supreme partless reality, out of which Shiva partly appears. The jyothirlinga shrines, thus are places where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. Originally there were believed to be 64 jyotirlingas while 12 of them are considered to be very auspicious and holy. Each of the twelve jyotirlinga sites take the name of the presiding deity - each considered different manifestation of Shiva. At all these sites, the primary image is lingam representing the beginningless and endless Stambha pillar, symbolizing the infinite nature of Shiva. The twelve jyothirlinga are Somnath in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, Mahakaleswar at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath in Himalayas, Bhimashankar in Maharashtra, Viswanath at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Trimbakeshwar in Maharashtra, Vaidyanath at Deoghar in Bihar, Nageshwar Temple, Rameshwar at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and Grishneshwar at Aurangabad in Maharashtra.

Mythological History of Trimbakeshwar Temple

Trimbakeshwar is a religious center having one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. The extraordinary feature of the Jyotirlinga located here is its three faces embodying Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Rudra. Due to excessive use of water, the linga has started to erode. It is said that this erosion symbolizes the eroding nature of human society. The Lingas are covered by a jeweled crown which is placed over the Gold Mask of Tridev (Brahma Vishnu Mahesh). The crown is said to be from the age of Pandavs and consists of diamonds, emeralds, and many precious stones. The crown is displayed every Monday from 4-5 pm (Shiva).

All other Jyotirlingas have Shiva as the main deity. The entire black stone temple is known for its appealing architecture and sculpture and is at the foothills of a mountain called Brahmagiri. Three sources of the Godavari originate from the Brahmagiri mountain.

Story related to the Godavari river

Brahmadev worshipped God Trivikram when he came to Satya Loka (on earth) with the same holy water of the Ganges, to get the river Ganges held up by God Shankar on his head, to flow. There was a famine of 24 years and people were affected by the pangs of hunger. However, Varun - the God of Rains, pleased with Sage Gautama arranged rains every day in Gautama's Ashram (dwelling place) which was in Trimbakeshwar. Gautama used to sow rice in the surrounding fields of his Ashram in the morning, reap the crop in the afternoon and with it fed a large group of Hrishis, who took shelter in his Ashram on account of the famine. The blessings of the group of Hrishis increased the merit (Punya) of Gautama. Lord Indra's position became shaky because of his increased merit. So Indra ordered clouds to rain all over Trimbakeshwar, so that the famine will be over and Hrishis will go back and the increasing merits of Gautama will be weakened. Although the famine was over, Gautama urged the Rishis to stay back and kept on feeding them and gaining merit. Once he saw a cow grazing in the paddy field and he drove her away by throwing Darbha (sharp, pointed grass). The slender cow died by this. It was Jaya - Parvati's friend, who had taken the form of a cow. This news upset the Rishis and they refused to luncheon at his Ashram. Gautama requested Rishis to show a way out of this sin. He was advised to approach Lord Shiva and request him to release Ganges and a bath in the Ganges would set him free of his sins. Gautama then practiced penance by going to the peak of Brahmagiri for 1000 years. Lord Shankara was pleased by his worships and gave him the Ganges.

However, Ganges was not prepared to part with Lord Shiva, which irritated him. He made TandavNrutya (dance) on the peak of Brahmagiri and dashed his jata there. Frightened by this action, Ganges appeared on Brahmagiri. Later on Ganges appeared in the Trimbak Tirtha. Gautama praised her but she off and on appeared on the mountain at various places and disappeared in anger. Gautama could not bathe in her waters. Ganges then appeared in Gangadwar, Varaha-tirtha, Rama-Laxman tirtha, Ganga Sagar tirtha. Still Gautama could not bathe in her waters. The Gautama surrounded the river with enchanted grass and put a vow to her. The flow stopped there and the tirtha thus came to be called Kushavarta. It is from this Kushavarta that the river Godavari flows up to the sea. The sin of killing a cow by Gautama was wiped off here.

This place is famous for lots of religious rituals (vidhis). Narayan Nagbali, Kalsarpa Shanti, Tripindi vidhi are done here. Narayan Nagbali puja is performed at Trimbakeshwar only. This puja is performed in three days. This puja is performed on special dates. Some days are not suitable to perform this puja. This puja is performed for many reasons like to cure an illness, going through bad times, killing a Cobra (Nag), childless couples, financial crisis or you want to perform some religious puja to have everything.

Trimbakeshwar town has a large number of Brahmin households and is also a centre for Vedic Gurukuls (kind of boarding school). It also has ashrams and Muths devoted to Ashtanga Yoga, the Hindu art of living.

The existing temple was built out of basalt after it was commissioned by Peshwa Nanasaheb. It so happens that the Peshwa made a bet on whether the stone surrounding the Jyotirlinga, is hollow from the inside or not. The stone was proved to be hollow, and on losing the bet, the Peshwa built a marvelous temple out of it. The Shiva deity of the temple consisted of the world-famous Nassak Diamond. It was looted by the British in The Third Anglo-Maratha War and lies with one owner or the other ever since. The diamond presently lies with Edward J. Hand, a trucking firm executive from Greenwich, Connecticut, USA

The place is known for its scenic beauty in rainy/monsoon season and is surrounded by lush green hills untouched by pollution. Anjaneri mountain, the birthplace of Lord Hanuman, is 7 km from Trimbakeshwar.

Shri Nilambika/Dattatreya/Matamba Temple

This temple is on top of the Neel mountain. All goddesses ('Matamba', 'Renuka', 'Mananmba') came here to see 'Parashuram' when he was performing penance (tapas). After his penance he requested all goddesses to stay there and the temple was formed for these goddesses. God Dattatreya दत्तात्रेय (Shripad Shrivallabh) stayed here for some years, as well as neelkantheshwar mahadev ancient mandir is also situated right behind the Dattatrey temple & in the feet of this Neel parvat: Annapurna ashram, renuka devi, khandoba temples are also here.

Akhil Bhartiya Shree Swami Samarth Gurupeeth, Trimbakeshwar Temple of Shri Swami Samarth Maharaj. This temple is 1 km from Shiva Temple. This temple is marvelous example of Vastu Shastra.

Importance of the place

The temple is situated in a hill region called Sahyagiri. The Temple premises is called Brahmagiri, also considered as the most sacred place of river Godavari (Brahma Sthalam). The Sun, Moon and Agni form the three eyes located at different direction on this Jyotirlinga. Inside the main linga, there are three more lingas visible. These are considered as, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara. There is a belief that, anybody who performs puja for this Jyothirlinga, is considered as actually worshipping all these three Gods.

Other places to see near Trimbakeshwar Temple

Gangadwar or Gangadwaram where the river flows beneath the twigs of trees in a narrow place. Nearer to paapa Haarini Theertham, Mahadeva and Ganga Matha temples are located. On the way to Brahmagiri, Vithal Mandir and Ganga Dwar can be seen. Caves of 108 Shiva Lingas is a must see place where Maharshi Gowthama worshipped lord Shiva. Kushavartham is the origin of river Godavari, Parashuram temple and Ambika alayam are some more places which can be visited.

How to reach Trimbakeshwar Temple

By road from Nashik it is 35 KM. Nasik is well connected by train also. The journey from Nashik to Trimbakeshwar is through forest. People can stay here for one whole day and have to reach back Nashik for staying.

From Mumbai it is 210 KM.
Nashik is 185Kms from Mumbai.
The nearest airport is Oghur. This place is 16 Kms from Nashik. Nearest railway station is Nasik Road. Metropolitan airport - Mumbai.

We didn't find any problem in carrying our video, digital cameras, mobile phones. But photography is not allowed inside the main temple.

Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling Temple in Nashik

Trimbakeshwar Temple Timing 5.30 Am - 9.00 PM

Trimbakeshwar Temple Photos

Bhimashankar Temple

Bhimashankar Temple

Bhīmāshankar Temple is a Jyotirlinga shrine located 50 km northwest of Khed (alias Rajguru Nagar), near Pune, in India. It is located 127 km from Shivaji Nagar (in Pune) in the Ghat region of the Sahyadri hills. Bhīmāshankar is also the source of the river Bhima, which flows southeast and merges with the Krishna river near Raichur. The other Jyotirlinga shrines in Maharashtra are Trimbakeshwara near Nashik and Grishneshwar near Aurangabad.
Bhimashankar Temple History

Many decades ago,in the dense forests of Dakini, on the lofty ranges of the Sahaydris lived the evil Asura by the name Bhima with his mother Karkati. Compassion and kindness shivered in the presence of Bhima. The divine and the mortals were scared of him alike. But he was confronted by certain questions about his own existence which continuously tormented him. When Bhima could no longer sustain his agony and curiosity, he asked his mother to unveil the mysteries of his life. He urged his mother to tell him who his father was and why had he abandoned them in the wilderness of the forest. After much hesitation and with a lingering fear Karkati, his mother revealed to him that he was the son of the mighty Kumbhakarna, the younger brother of the Lankadhishwar the mighty all powerful King Ravana of Lanka. Lord Vishnu in his incarnation as Lord Rama annihilated Kumbhakarna. Karkati told Bhima, that her husband and his father was killed by Ram in the great war. This infuriated Bhima and he vowed to avenge Lord Vishnu. To achieve this he embarked on a severe penance to please Lord Brahma. The compassionate creator was pleased by the dedicated devotee and granted him immense powers. This was a terrible mistake that Brahma did. The evil tyrant caused havoc in the three worlds. He defeated King Indra and conquered the heavens. He also defeated a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva - Kamarupeshwar and put him in the dungeons. He started torturing Rishies and Sadhus. All this angered the Gods. They all along with Lord Brahma beseeched Lord Shiva to come for their rescue. Lord Shiva consoled the Gods and agreed to rescue them from the tyrant. On the other hand, Bhima insists and orders Kamarupeshwara to worship him instead of Lord Shiva. When Kamarupeshwara denied doing that and refused to do pooja to him, tyrant Bhima raised his sword to strike the Shiva Linga, to which Kamarupeshwar was doing abhishekam and pooja. As soon as Bhima managed to raise his sword, Lord Shiva appeared before him in all his magnificence. Then the terrible war began. But then the holy sage Narada appeared and requested Lord Shiva to put an end to this war. It was then that Lord Shiva reduced the evil demon to ashes and thus concluded the saga of tyranny. All the Gods and the holy sages present there requested Lord Shiva to make this place his abode. Lord Shiva thus manifested himself in the form of the Bhīmāshankar Jyotirlingam.
It is believed that the sweat that poured forth from Lord Shiva's body after the battle formed the Bhīmārathi River. This temple is closely associated with the legend of Shiva slaying the demon Tripurasura associated with the invincible flying citadels, the "Tripuras". Shiva is said to have taken abode in the Bhima form, upon the request of the Gods, on the crest of the Sahyādrī hills, and the sweat that poured forth from his body after the battle is said to have formed the Bhimarathi river.
Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga

As per Shiv Mahapuran, once Brahma (the Hindu God of creation) and Vishnu (the Hindu God of saving) had an argument in terms of supremacy of creation. To test them, Shiva pierced the three worlds as a huge endless pillar of light, the jyotirlinga. Vishnu and Brahma split their ways to downwards and upwards respectively to find the end of the light in either directions. Brahma lied that he found out the end, while Vishnu conceded his defeat. Shiva appeared as a second pillar of light and cursed Brahma that he would have no place in ceremonies while Vishnu would be worshipped till the end of eternity. The jyotirlinga is the supreme partless reality, out of which Shiva partly appears. The jyothirlinga shrines, thus are places where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. There are 64 forms of Shiva, not to be confused with Jyotirlingas. Each of the twelve jyothirlinga sites take the name of the presiding deity - each considered different manifestation of Shiva.At all these sites, the primary image is lingam representing the beginningless and endless Stambha pillar, symbolizing the infinite nature of Shiva. The twelve jyothirlinga are Somnath in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, Mahakaleswar at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath in Himalayas, Bhīmāshankar in Maharashtra, Viswanath at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Triambakeshwar in Maharashtra, Vaidyanath Jyotirlinga at Deoghar in Jharkhand, Nageshwar Temple at Hingoli in Maharashtyra, Dwarka|Nageswar]] at Dwarka in Gujarat, Rameshwar at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and Grishneshwar in Maharashtra.

Bhimashankar Temple Architecture

The Bhīmāshankar temple is a composite of old and the new structures in the Nagara style of architecture. It shows the excellency of the skills achieved by ancient Vishwakarma sculptors. It is a modest yet graceful temple and it dates back to the 13th century and the sabhamandap developed in the 18th century by Nana Phadnavis. The shikhara was built by Nana Phadnavis. The great Maratha ruler Shivaji is said to have made endowments to this temple to facilitate worship services. As with other Shiva temples in this area, the sanctum is at a lower level.
Although the structure here is fairly new, the shrine Bhīmāshankaram (and the Bhīmārathi river) have been referred to in literature dating back to the 13th century CE. Saint Jñāneshwar is said to have visited Tryambakeshwar and Bhīmāshankar. A unique bell (Roman style) can be seen in front of the temple. This bell has an idol of Mother Mary with Jesus.This large bell was presented by Chimaji Appa (Brother of Bajirao Peshwa I and uncle of Nanasaheb Peshwa).On 16 May 1739, Chimaji Appa collected five large bells after he won in war against the Portuguese from Vasai Fort. He offered one here at Bhīmāshankar and the others at Menavali near Wai in front of a Shiva Temple on the banks of the Krishna river, Banshanker temple( Pune), Omkareshwar Temple( Pune) and Ramlinga temple ( Shirur)

Bhīmāshankar Temple Surroundings

There are Buddha style carvings of Amba-Ambika, Bhootling and Bhīmāshankar in the hills of Manmaad near Bhīmāshankar at a height of 1034 metres. A big bell in Hemadpanthi structure built by Nana Phadanavis is a feature of Bhīmāshankar. Places that can be visited in are Hanuman Lake, Gupt Bhīmāshankar, Origin of River Bhīmā, Nag Phani, Bombay Point, Sakshi Vinayak and a lot more. Bhīmāshankar is a reserved forest area of 130.78 km2 was declared as wildlife sanctuary in 1985.This sanctuary is a part of Western Ghat, so it is rich in floral and faunal diversity. A variety of birds, animals, insects, plants can be seen. A rare animal Malabar Giant squirrel locally called as " Shekaru" can be found in deep woods. Bhīmāshankar is worth visiting for jungle lovers and trekkers as well as for pilgrims. This temple is very famous in Pune and people from all around the world come to visit this temple.The Bhorgiri fort is close to Bhīmāshankar.
Bhīmāshankar has also one very prominent trek and you can go to Nagfani when you have reached the highest point. Nagfani derives its name from head of the snake (फन in Hindi).
Other temples and shrines

There is a shrine known as Kalmaja near the Bhīmāshankar temple. Kalamaja is a goddess dedicated to a tree named Kalamb. It is a local tribal goddess and many other stories are formed after the influence of Hinduism to this region.
The Mokshakund thirtha is behind the Bhīmāshankar temple, and it is associated with the rishi Kaushika. There are also the Sarvathirtha, the Kusharanya thirtha where the Bhima river begins to flow eastward, and the Jyanakund.
Worship

Bhīmāshankar is an ancient shrine, one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Shiva. Far away from the tumult of the urban life, peeping through the white fleecy clouds, Bhīmāshankar can be termed a pilgrim paradise. The dense forests surrounding the high ranges are an abode for rare species of flora and fauna
Bhimashankar Temple Photos

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is one of the most famous Hindu temples dedicated to Lord Shiva and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingams, which are supposed to be the most sacred abodes of Lord Shiva. It is located in the ancient city of Ujjain in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. The temple is situated on the side of the Rudra Sagar lake. The presiding deity, Lord Shiva in the lingam form is believed to be Swayambhu, deriving currents of power (Shakti) from within itself as against the other images and lingams that are ritually established and invested with mantra-shakti.

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga Temple

As per the Shiva Purana, Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu once had an argument over who was supreme in the creation. To test them, Shiva pierced the three worlds as an endless pillar of light, the jyotirlinga. Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma decide to travel along the pillar downwards and upwards respectively, to find the end of the light. Brahma lied that he had found the end, while Vishnu conceded his defeat. Shiva appeared as a second pillar of light and cursed Brahma that he would have no place in ceremonies while Vishnu would be worshipped till the end of eternity. The jyotirlinga is the supreme partless reality, out of which Shiva partly appears. The jyotirlinga shrines, thus are places where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. There are 64 forms of Shiva, not to be confused with Jyotirlingas. Each of the twelve jyotirlinga sites takes the name of the presiding deity - each considered different manifestation of Shiva. At all these sites, the primary image is lingam representing the beginningless and endless Stambha pillar, symbolising the infinite nature of Shiva. The twelve jyotirlinga are Somnath in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, Mahakaleswar at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath in Himalayas, Bhimashankar in Maharashtra, Viswanath at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Triambakeshwar in Maharashtra, Vaidyanath at Deogarh in Jharkhand or at Baijnath in Himachal Pradesh, Nageswar at Dwarka in Gujarat, Rameshwar at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and Grishneshwar at Aurangabad in Maharashtra.

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga Temple

The idol of Mahakaleshwar is known to be Dakshinamurti which means that it is facing the south. This is a unique feature, upheld by the tantric Shivnetra tradition to be found only in Mahakaleshwar among the 12 Jyotirlingas. The idol of Omkareshwar Mahadev is consecrated in the sanctum above the Mahakal shrine. The images of Ganesh, Parvati and Karttikeya are installed in the west, north and east of the sanctum sanctorum. To the south is the image of Nandi, the vehicle of Lord Shiva. The idol of Nagchandreshwar on the third storey is open for darshan only on the day of Nag Panchami. The temple has five levels, one of which is underground. The temple itself is located in a spacious courtyard surrounded by massive walls near a lake. The Shikhar or the spire is adorned with sculptural finery. Brass lamps light the way to the underground sanctum. It is believed that Prasada(holy offering) offered here to the deity can be re-offered unlike all other shrines.

The presiding deity of time, Shiva, in all his splendor, reigns eternally in the city of Ujjain. The temple of Mahakaleshwar, its shikhar soaring into the sky, an imposing façade against the skyline, evokes primordial awe and reverence with its majesty. The Mahakal dominates the life of the city and its people, even in the midst of the busy routine of modern preoccupations, and provides an unbreakable link with ancient Hindu traditions.

On the day of Maha Shivaratri, a huge fair is held near the temple, and worship goes on through the night.

In the precincts of the Mahakaleshwar temple is Shri Swapaneshwar Mahadev temple, where devotees pray to Shiva as Mahakaal, to realize the most important dreams of their lives. Sadashiv Mahadev is so empathetic, benevolent and easy to please that devotees are sure to be granted the boons they wish for with a pure heart in this temple, it is believed. Here Mahadev is Swapaneshwar and Shakti is Swapaneshwari.

The temple is open from 4 am to 11 pm.

The temple is also glorified in 7th century.C.E, Tamil tevaram hymns of tirugnanasambandar, sundarar, tirunavukkarasar, and they refer to the same as tiru oonjai maakalam, oonjai being Tamil name of word ujjain.

The Mahakaleshwar Temple as a Shakti Peeth

The shrine is revered as one of the 18 Maha Shakti Peetham.

Shakti Peethas are shrines that are believed to have enshrined with the presence of Shakti due to the falling of body parts of the corpse of Sati Devi when Lord Shiva carried it. Each of the 51 Shakti Peethas has shrines for Shakti and Kalabhairava. The Upper Lip of Sati Devi is said to have fallen here and the Shakti is called as Mahakali.

References in Hindu scriptures

According to the Puranas, the city of Ujjain was called Avantika and was famous for its beauty and its status as a devotional epicentre. It was also one of the primary cities where students went to study holy scriptures. According to legend, there was a ruler of Ujjain called Chandrasena, who was a pious devotee of Lord Shiva and worshipped him all the time. One day, a farmer's boy named Shrikhar was walking on the grounds of the palace and heard the King chant the Lord's name and rushed to the temple to start praying with him. However, the guards removed him by force and sent him to the outskirts of the city near the river Kshipra. Rivals of Ujjain, primarily King Ripudamana and King Singhaditya of the neighbouring kingdoms decided to attack the Kingdom and take over its treasures around this time. Hearing this, Shrikhar started to pray and the news spread to a priest named Vridhi. He was shocked to hear this and upon the urgent pleas of his sons, started to pray to Lord Shiva at the river Kshipra. The Kings chose to attack and were successful; with the help of the powerful demon Dushan, who was blessed by Lord Brahma to be invisible, they plundered the city and attacked all the devotees of Lord Shiva.

Upon hearing the pleas of His helpless devotees, Lord Shiva appeared in his Mahakala form and destroyed the enemies of King Chandrasena. Upon the request of his devotees Shrikhar and Vridhi, Lord Shiva agreed to reside in the city and become the chief deity of the Kingdom and take care of it against its enemies and to protect all His devotees. From that day on, Lord Shiva resided in His light form as Mahakala in a Lingam that was formed on its own from the powers of the Lord and His consort, Parvati. The Lord also blessed his devotees and declared that people who worshipped Him in this form would be free from the fear of death and diseases. Also, they would be granted worldly treasures and be under the protection of the Lord himself.

Bharthari was the elder son of King Gandharva-Sena and received the kingdom of Ujjain from the celestial god Indra and the King of Dhara.

When Bharthari was king of 'Ujjayani' (modern day Ujjain) in his state there lived a Brahman who after years of austerities was given the fruit of immortality from the celestial tree of Kalpavriksha. The Brahman presented the same to his monarch, Raja Bharthari, who in turn, passed it on to his love, the beautiful, Pinglah Rani or Ananga Sena Raja Bhartrhari's last and youngest wife. The queen, being in love with the Head police officer of the state, Mahipaala, presented the fruit to him, who further passed it on to his beloved, Lakha, one of the maids of honour. Eventually, Lakha being in love with the king presented the fruit back to the king. Having completed the circle, the fruit revealed the downsides of infidelity to the king, he summoned the queen and ordered her beheading, and ate the fruit himself. After that, he abdicated the throne and became a religious mendicant.

He later became a disciple of Pattinatthar (Swetharanyar or Pattinatthu chettiyar is poorvashram name of this saint from Poompuhar, TamilNadu) who first indulged in an argument about samsari and sanyasi with king Bhartrhari. Later during the conversation pattinathar said that all women have 'dual mind' and it might be the true case even with Parameswari. King conveyed this news to rani Pingala and she ordered Pattinathar to get punished and to sit in 'Kalu maram' (Tree, whose top portion would be sharpened like a pencil and whole tree is fully coated with oil, a person who is punished for sitting in the top will be split into 2 pieces), they tried to kill pattinathar, but Kalu maram started burning and nothing happened to Pattinathar, the king came to know this news and went directly to Pattinathar and asked him to get ready to die the next day, but Pattinathar replied, " I'm ready right now, to die". The next day king came with tears in his eyes and released saint from jail because he actually noticed queen Pingala in love with horsemen that night, He threw away his empire, wealth, even full coat dress and dressed in a simple kovanam (loin cloth), the king became a disciple of Pattinatthar and got Mukti (salvation) in Kalahasthi temple.

Mahakaleshwar temple Ujjain history

The temple complex was destroyed by Sultan Shams-Ud-din Iltutmish during his raid of Ujjain in 1234-5.

The present structure was built by the Maratha general Ranoji Scindia in 1736 CE. Further developments and management were done by other members of his dynasty, including Mahadji Scindia (1730–12 February 1794) and Daulat Rao Scindia's wife Baiza Bai. (1827–1863). During the reign of Jayajirao Scindia (until 1886), major programs of the then Gwalior State used to be held at this temple.

After Independence, the Dev Sthan Trust was replaced by the municipal corporation of Ujjain. Nowadays it is under the collectorate office of Ujjain district.

Bhasma aarti Ujjain - Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga in Ujjain (Exclusive)

Mahakaleshwar Temple Photos

Omkareshwar Temple - Omkareshwar jyotirlinga Temple

Omkareshwar Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to God Shiva. It is one of the 12 revered Jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva. It is on an island called Mandhata or Shivapuri in the Narmada river; the shape of the island is said to be like the Hindu ॐ symbol.

There are two main temples of Lord Shiva here, one to Omkareshwar (whose name means "Lord of Omkaara or the Lord of the Om Sound") located in the island and one to Amareshwar (whose name means "Immortal lord" or "lord of the Immortals or Devas") located on the south bank of Narmada River on the mainland. As per the sloka on Dwadash jyotirligam, Mamleshwar the other name of Amareshwar is the jyotirling, nonetheless, many consider both Omkareshwar and Mamleshwar equally sacred and representative of jyotirling at this sacred place.

Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga

As per Shiv Mahapuran, once Brahma (the Hindu God of creation) and Vishnu (the Hindu God of Protection and Care) had an argument in terms of supremacy of creation. To test them, Shiva pierced the three worlds as a huge endless pillar of light, the jyotirlinga. Vishnu and Brahma split their ways to downwards and upwards respectively to find the end of the light in either directions. Brahma lied that he found out the end, while Vishnu conceded his defeat. Shiva appeared as a second pillar of light and cursed Brahma that he would have no place in ceremonies while Vishnu would be worshipped till the end of eternity. The jyotirlinga is the supreme partless reality, out of which Shiva partly appears. The jyothirlinga shrines, thus are places where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. Originally there were believed to be 64 jyothirlingas while 12 of them are considered to be very auspicious and holy. Each of the twelve jyothirlinga sites take the name of the presiding deity - each considered different manifestation of Shiva.[6] At all these sites, the primary image is lingam representing the beginningless and endless Stambha pillar, symbolizing the infinite nature of Shiva.

The twelve jyothirlingas are Somnath in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, Mahakaleswar at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath in Himalayas, Bhimashankar in Maharashtra, Viswanath at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Triambakeshwar near Nashik in Maharashtra, Vaidyanath at Deogarh in Jharkhand, Nageswar at Dwarka in Gujarat, Rameshwar at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and Grishneshwar near Aurangabad, Maharashtra in Maharashtra.

Legends and History of the Omkareshwar

As per Hindu legend, Vindya, the deity controlling the Vindyachal mountain range was worshipping Shiva to propitiate himself from the sins committed. He created a sacred geometrical diagram and a Lingam made of sand and clay. Shiva was pleased with the worhip and believed to have appeared in two forms, namely Omkareshwar and Amaleswara. Since the mud mound appeared in the form of [[Om], the island came to be known as Omkareswar. There is a shrine for Parvati and five-faced Ganapathi in the temple.

The second story relates to Mandhata and his son's penance. King Mandhata of Ikshvaku clan (an ancestor of Lord Ram) worshipped Lord Shiva here till the Lord manifested himself as a Jyotirlinga. Some scholars also narrate the story about Mandhata's sons-Ambarish and Muchukunda, who had practiced severe penance and austerities here and pleased Lord Shiva. Because of this the mountain is named Mandhata.

The third story from Hindu scriptures says that once upon a time there was a great war between Devas and Danavas(demon), in which Danavas won. This was a major setback for Devas and hence Devas prayed to Lord Shiva. Pleased with their prayer, Lord Shiva emerged in the form of Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga and defeated Danavas.

Adi Shankara's Cave - Omkareshwar is said to be the place where Sri Adi Sankara met his Guru Govindapada in a cave. This cave can be found even today just below the Shiva temple where an image of Adi Shankara has been installed.

Location:

It is situated in the Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh state in India. It is about 12 miles (20 km) from Mortakka in Madhya Pradesh. Omkareshwar is formed by the sacred river Narmada. This is one of the most sacred of rivers in India and is now home to one of the world's biggest dam projects. The temple is situated on Mandatha island on the banks of Narmada and river Kaveri (a tributary of Narmada). The island is 2.6 km2 (2,600,000 m2) in area and can be approached by boats

Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga campus

The temple has a grand Sabha Mandap (meeting or prayer hall) standing on about 60 huge brown stone pillar (14 feet high), elaborately carved with a curious frieze and fillet of satyrlike figures. Many of them have broad shoulders and meditating foreheads.The temple is 5 storeyed each having a different deity. There are three regular ‘Pujas’ in the temple. The morningone done by the temple trust , the middle one by the priest of Scindia state and the evening one by the priest of the Holkar state.The temple is always crowded with pilgrims, coming after a bath in the Narmada and with pots full of Narmada water, coconuts and articles of worship, many of them performing Abhishek or special worships through the priests.

Mahakaleshwar at Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga

Mahakaleshwar temple at Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga is on the first floor has beautiful look of maa narmada.

Siddnath ,Gupteshwar and Dhwajeshwar temples

Gupteshwar and Dhwajeshwar temples are located on the 3rd, 4th and 5th floore of Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga

Omkareshwar Photos