Srisailam Mallikarjuna Swamy temple Kurnool district -Andhra Pradesh, Jyothirlingam

A pilgrimage to this temple of Lord Mallikarjuna  at Srisailam hill is considered to be  equal to a trip to holy Kailash.This temple is set in Nallamalai forests in picturesque surroundings with river Krishna flowing near by.

The temple complex is  unique as it houses  Jyothirlinga  as well as  a Shakthipeeta. Here in this temple ,devotees can offer pujas directly to Lord Mallikarjuna but advance booking is required and one has to follow specific dress code (wearing Veshti and Angavastra) to enter the sanctum sanctorum. The Vimana of the temple is covered with gold plates and is in the shape of a pyramid. The Lord's consort Braharambha is one of the 18 Mahasakthis and it is believed that neck portion of Sathi Devi fell here after things that followed  Daksha yagna . There are many shrines around the temple complex  for Ganesha, Ardhanareeshwara, Kalabhairava, Veerabhadra . There's also a beautiful Nandimandapa here.

Barely 3 Kms away from the temple is the shrine of Sakshi Ganapati. Pilgrims do not miss paying obeisance to this Ganesha and it is believed Lord here keeps an account of pilgrims visiting Srisailam temple . The idol here holds a book in left hand and a pen in the right.

The roads here are excellent and it passes through Tiger Reserve. the roads remains closed from 9 Pm to 6 Am. Those travelling to temple must make a note of the same.

A detailed description can  be found in the link provided.

Mobile/ cameras are not allowed in this temple and there  are locker facilities to store the same.

check my earlier Jyothirlinga posts on 1. Ramanathaswamy temple Rameshwaram, 2.Somnath temple, Gujarat, 3.Bhimashankar near Pune,4.Mahakaleshwar, Ujjain, 5.Nageshwara Jyothirlingam Dwarka

a few pictures from  Sakshi Ganapati are shared below.

check this link too for temple gallery pictures

  

                                                                     Srisailam town

                                                                           Sakshi Ganapati

Mahakaleshwar, Ujjain, Madhya pradesh Jyothirlinga

Mahakaleshwar , Lord Shiva's  temple is situated in ancient Ujjain city . It is one among the 12 Jyothirlingas ; the most sacred abodes of Shiva. The Shivalinga here is a swamybhu and is situated near Kshipra river.

As per Shiva Purana once Brahma and Vishnu had an argument to find who among them was the supreme one. Lord Shiva in order to test them, became a column of light and asked them to find the beginning and end of the  light. Vishnu gave up as he could not see end of the  column of light and he conceded defeat but Brahma lied and Shiva was furious with Him. Shiva cursed  Brahma that He won't be worshipped on earth but Vishnu would be worshipped till the end of all Yugas.

The temple of Mahakal attracts huge crowd and one can find long lines of devotees waiting to catch a glimpse of God. The Bhasmarti worship is very famous here which is conducted every morning at 4 am.  The aarti rituals are spectacular which goes on for about  2 hours and devotees can book tickets online for the same. Bhasmarti is adorning Mahakaleshwar with ash followed by Alankara and worshipping with  Maha aarti. Do watch the You tube video in the link by Health Vatika to understand and get a feel of the aarti. 

Electronic gadgets and bags are not allowed inside the temple. Temple administration has made locker facilities for safe keep of the belongings of devotees.

Check here my earlier posts on Jyothirlings temples of Ramanathaswamy - Rameshwaram

Somnath temple- Gujarat

No photos to share on Mahakaleshwar temple.  

Grishaneshwar-Ellora caves road, Aurangabad

Grishneshwar means Lord of compassion and  there is reference of this temple  in  Shiva Purana.

This  is one of the 12 Jyothirlingams and is highly revered by Hindus all over the world.

This  temple was destroyed in 14th century and was rebuilt in the present form by Ahilyabai Holkar in 18th century. The temple is built with reddish stone and the 5 tier spire is very beautiful .

The temple allows devotees to offer worship directly to the Lord Shiva here.

Check this link for details

This temple is situated 30 Kilometers  from the town of Aurangabad and just a Killometer from the famous Ellora caves.

Mobile /camera and all electronic gadgets banned inside the temple.

Somnath Temple - Veraval, Gujarat.

On the Occasion  of Maha Shivarathri, here's a post on Lord Shiva.

Just back from a Pilgrimage and it was a time well spent soul searching, refreshing the mind and body, understanding the significance of various  pilgrimage places and how it relates to us. It  is decided by the Almighty that we must be present in such and such places at such and such times and here I was at Somnath . He commanded, I just obeyed. Usually temple Somnath remains crowded but the  Lord made sure it wouldn't be so and we could be in the temple as long as we could wish for. 

I would say these experiences in life help one to  grow and evolve into better human beings.

Somnath is a small town, its  name derived from the presiding deity of the temple. This is also  known as Adi Linga , the first among the 12 Jyothirlingas. 

The temple stands tall , grandeur incomparable  on the shore of the Arabian sea at  Prabhas Patan near Veraval , Gujarat. This temple has excellent marble work and ornamentation on walls, ceilings and spires.

The Lingam of Somanth is quite huge, radiant and is  decorated well with brightly coloured flowers  resplendent with shimmering  silk . Head bows , hands fold in prayer and mind focuses on Lord in sanctum without our knowledge. Such is power of the deity. The sanctum of Shiva is brightly lit, it adds to the ambience . Behind the Lingam is Goddess Parvati and on either  sides Lord Kartikeya and Ganesha. 

There are also niches with Gods and Goddesses just outside the sanctum.

Evening Aarti is an important and colourful ritual and should not be missed at any cost. It will also let one surf on a great spiritual journey as the atmosphere inside is charged with divine music and cling and clang of bells. External world totally forgotten and one feels the bliss. Great experience.

Outside the temple, the  parambulatory path extends up to the sea and is built like a terrace.  There's an arrow on a pillar known as Baan Stambh  which points to South pole indicating there is no land area between these two .  Interesting right? Note these when you visit.More here and here

There is  also a smaller temple just outside the Main temple known as Old Somanth . Here one can worship the Lingam directly by bathing the deity with milk, water, or just flowers all of which is available just outside the temple.

It is also believed that Krishna worshipped Lord Shiva here before embarking on His Last journey of Neej Dham Yatra.
The last picture is from Balka Teerth , the place where Krishna was hit by a arrow when he was resting under a tree.

 Important things to remember during the visit

No electronic gadgets and devices are allowed inside the temple, Leather belts are also a taboo here. 

 Free and safe locker facilities are available here.  Security screening is done at a couple of points as it is mandatory before one enters the temple.

Mookambiga Temple- Kollur, Karnataka

When I was in college my friends told me about the famous Kollur Mookambiga temple. They visited this temple to seek the Goddess's blessings before writing exams. It was only then I knew that the temple is popular among students.People worship her in the form of Saraswathi, Parvathy and Lakshmi here. I too had the desire to visit this temple at that time but had to wait for a long time.

When my son was born I wanted to take him to Kollur to seek the Goddess’s blessings as I had faith that it would be good for my son. So when my son was 4 years old we made a trip to this temple. I think it was Devi Mookambiga’s blessings, my son achieved academic excellence. I have a belief also that if I pray to her fervently all my prayers will be answered. I also worship her daily by praying to her and last visit of mine to that temple was in February 2009. I would like to share what ever I know about this wonderful temple with my readers. Given a chance I would love to visit this temple again as it gives me solace and makes my mind pure.

This ancient temple is situated in the Kodajadri hills and the Sowparnika, a perennial river flows very close to the temple. This temple is dedicated to Siva -Sakthi and it exists in the form of a Jyothirlingam which is situated right in front of the Mookambiga Devi’s Panchaloha idol (A Mixture of 5 metals) which is kept on Sri Chakra. On either side of this idol we find Kali and Saraswathi. This idol was installed by Adi shankaracharya and when Goddess appeared before him he sang the famous Soundarya Lahari in praise of the goddess which people chant even today and get the blessings of the Mother Goddess.

The deity here looks beautiful adorned with jewels and silk. The Devi has a good collection of jewels as the devotees make it as an offering to the temple. This temple attracts lot of pilgrims and the Navrathri festival here is very famous. Little children are brought here for Vidyarambham. ( A cermoney conducted before the child starts his school)

The legend says that a demon who was deaf and dumb called Mookasura was creating trouble for the Gods was killed by the Goddess, hence she is known as Mookambiga. The temple looks more like a Kerala temple and it has a Dwaja sthambam and Deepa sthambam (a tall lamp post with concentric circles arranged one above the other) in the front of the main entrance of the temple. The sanctum sanctorum of the temple is copper plated. Just behind this is small place where the Goddess appeared before Sankara charaya Swami.

In the outer prakaram there is Vidyaramba Mandapam and where the vidya rambam is performed during the last day of Navrathri i.e. Vijaya dashami. Devotees flock here on that day with their wards to seek Goddess’s blessing. As we circumambulate the outer prakaram we can find the shrines of other deities like Pancha mugha Ganesha, Krishna, Siva and Veerabhadrar. Devotees perform various rituals here and this temple provides Annadanam (Free meals) to all its devotees in the afternoon and night. It’s really helpful for the devotees who traverse miles to reach the temple. Serving food to thousands is not an easy task and this is very well organized and done very quickly by the temple authorities. During my last visit I too had a chance to taste this prasadam and though the menu was simple it tasted heavenly.

It is also believed that one cannot just visit Mookambiga temple unless the Goddess wishes .This belief is there among many people and I too believe in the same. I am just waiting for her next call.

Jai Mookambigai!


Mookambiga temple front view

The Dwaja And Deepa Sthamba

Access
By Air - Mangalore, the nearest airport. Kollur is 135 Km. from this city.

By train- Nearest railway station is Udupi. But very few trains pass through this station. Mangalore is well connected with all the cities.

By road- There are plenty cabs, State transport and private buses frequently to Kollur from Mangalore as well as Udupi. The hotels also arrange taxi services for those who are interested. It’s a 3hours drive from Mangalore and one and a half from Udupi.

Accommodation- Mangalore and Udupi have good hotels.

Those who want to stay in Kollur, there are many guest houses and small hotels.