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.  

Kala bhairav temple - Ujjain

India the land of mysticism,  strange beliefs systems and unique rituals never cease to surprise and amaze  me. The visit to Kalbhairava temple in Ujjain was no different. 

I witnessed an extraordinary ritual where the devotees were queuing up to offer liquor to the deity. This one deity, many who love booze would never fail to admire. 

There are many shops selling liquor and shopkeepers coax you get a bottle before you enter the temple premises. Its not compulsory to carry the bottles. The Lord here blesses everyone who prays in his durbar. 

Once inside the sanctum the priest pours out the content from the bottle on to a plate and holds it close to the mouth of the idol  by tilting the plate little  and one would  see the contents going down. Its a mystery as gallons of liquor goes down and disappears here everyday.

This visit was really  intriguing and felt so happy I could witness this strange ritual.
Check this link to see Kalabhairav temple ritual.

Things to remember: no mobiles and electronic gadgets and avoid carrying huge bags. 

Its at a distance of 6 kms from Mahakaleshwar Ujjain main temple and is on jail road, Bhairavar Garh.