PM Modi visits Baba Baidyanath temple: Why is it an important Hindu pilgrimage, what are the other 11 jyotirlingas?
PM Modi visits Baba Baidyanath temple: Why is it an important Hindu pilgrimage, what are the other 11 jyotirlingas?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated a number of development projects during his Bihar-Jharkhand visit. One of the most important projects that was unveiled is the Deoghar airport in Jharkhand.
During his trip, Modi also visited the famous Baba Baidyanath Dham temple, one of the 12 jyotirlingas, to inaugurate “some components of the development project at the temple” to boost spiritual tourism.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi offers prayers at Baba Baidyanath Temple in Deoghar, Jharkhand. pic.twitter.com/wvIyQSP6a0
— ANI (@ANI) July 12, 2022
The Deoghar airport will provide direct connectivity to Baba Baidyanath Dham. According to the Live Mint, the latest airport has been constructed at an estimated cost of around Rs. 400 crore.
What are jyotirlingas, what is there significance and what are the legends behind each one of them, let’s take a look:
What are the jyotirlingas?
The word jyotirlinga is formed of jyoti, which means radiance, and lingam that denotes the Shiva Lingam. Hence, a jyotirlingam can be understood as a ‘pillar of radiance/light’.
According to Shiva Mahapurana, the legend has it that once lord Brahma and Vishnu had an argument over supremacy of creation. To settle this debate, Shiva took the form of a beam of light and challenged the duo to find the source or the end of the radiant pillar. The one that succeeds will be declared superior.
Vishnu took the form of a boar and plunged downwards, while Brahma flew upwards after transforming into a swan. After spending days looking for the light’s end, Brahma returned and lied about having found it, while Vishnu conceded defeat.
Aware of Brahma’s lie, Shiva cursed him that he wouldn’t be worshipped, a possible legend why there are very few Brahma temples. Another version of this legend states that both Brahma and Vishnu conceded defeat.
The jyotirlinga shrines are the places where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light.
The Shiva maharapurana mentions 64 jyotirlingas in India, however, only 12 jyotirlingas are considered the most sacred.
Baba Baidyanath Dham, Jharkhand
Located in Jharkhand’s Deoghar district, Baba Baidyanath Dham is one of the 12 jyotirlingas. It is one the most sacred abodes of Lord Shiva.
As per the legends, the demon king Ravana, who was an ardent worshipper of Lord Shiva, offered his ten heads one after another to Shiva as a sacrifice at this site.
Pleased with Ravana’s sacrifice, Shiva descended to tend to his injuries. As he acted as a doctor, he is referred to as vaidya (doctor). Thus, the temple got its name from Shiva’s vaidya form.
Somnath Temple, Gujarat
It is believed to be the first of the twelve jyotirlinga. The Somnath temple is located in Prabhas Patan.
The word Somnath means “Lord of the Soma”, an epithet of Shiva. As per the legend, the temple was created by the Moon god after Lord Shiva relieved him of a curse by his father-in-law, Daksha Prajapati.
As per the curse, the Moon lost the power of light. On Brahma’s advice, Moon worshipped Shiva and was relieved from the curse of darkness. Puranic traditions maintain that Moon had built a golden temple, followed by a silver temple by Ravana, Bhagvan Shree Krishna is believed to have built Somnath temple with Sandalwood.
Mahakaleshwar, Madhya Pradesh
Shri Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is situated in the ancient city of Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh. It is the only jyotirlinga shrine that is ‘dakshinamurti’, which means the idol of Lord Shiva is facing the south.
The lingam representing Shiva at the temple is believed to be swayambhu (born of itself), deriving currents of power (shakti) from within itself, unlike other lingas that are ritually established.
The shrine also happens to be one of the 18 Maha Shakti Peetha.
Kashi Vishwanath, Uttar Pradesh
One of the most famous Shiva temples in India, the Kashi Vishwanath Jyotirlinga shrine is located in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. It stands on the banks of holy river Ganga.
Called the holiest of Shiva temples, Vishwanatha means the ‘Ruler of The Universe’. Vishwanatha Jyotirlinga has a very special and unique significance in the spiritual history of India. Tradition has it that the merits earned by the darshan of other jyotirlingas scattered in various parts of India accrue to devotees by a single visit to Kashi Vishwanath Temple.
Mallikarjuna, Andhra Pradesh
Sri Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga Temple is located at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh. According to the mythological story, Shiva and Parvati stayed in Shrishailam, in order to remain close to their son Kartikeya who had decided to stay alone on Mount Kravunja.
As per Hindu legend, Lord Shiva in the form of Linga is traditionally worshipped with jasmine (locally called in Telugu as Mallika), leading to the name Mallikarjuna.
Omkareshwar, Madhya Pradesh
Omkareshwar Jyotrilinga is situated at Mandhata, an island in the Narmada river in Madhya Pradesh. The name “Omkareshwar'' is based on the shape of the island, which appears to be Om.
There are two main Lord Shiva temples – Omkareshwar which literally means “Lord of Omkaara or the Lord of the Om Sound” and other is, Amareshwar which stands for “Immortal lord” or “lord of the Immortals or Devas”. This is the second jyotirlinga shrine in Madhya Pradesh, first being Mahakaleshwar in Ujjain.
Kedarnath, Uttarakhand
It is one of the most difficult pilgrimages of Lord Shiva. Located at the height of 3,583 metres from Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, visiting Kedarnath Temple is a challenging affair due to extreme weather conditions. It is accessible only for six months a year.
It is believed to be built by the Pandavas and revived by Adi Sankaracharya.
The name "Kedarnath" means "the lord of the field": it derives from the Sanskrit words kedara ("field") and natha ("lord").
As per the legend, Pandavas after killing their cousin Kauravas in the battle of Kurukshetra wished to atone for their sins and left in search of Lord Shiva. However, angered by the death and dishonesty during the war, Shiva wanted to avoid them and he assumed the form of a bull (Nandi) and hid in the Garhwal region.
When the Pandavas finally caught up with Shiva in the form of Nandi, the supreme god disappeared into the ground to later appear in parts. Nandi’s hump rose in Kedarnath, the arms appeared in Tungnath, the face showed up at Rudranath, the nabhi (navel) and stomach surfaced in Madhyamaheshwar and the hair appeared in Kalpeshwar.
The Pandavas, pleased with this reappearance in five different forms, built temples at the five places for venerating and worshipping Shiva.
Bhimashankar, Maharashtra
Located in Pune, Bhimashankar temple is one of the five jyotirlinga shrines in Maharashtra. It is also the source of river Bhima in the Bhimashankar hills in Khed Taluka.
Built in the Nagara style of architecture, this temple dates back to the 18th century. According to the legend, it is believed that the ancient shrine was erected over a Swayambhu Linga or a Self Emanated Shiva Linga.
Ramanathaswamy, Tamil Nadu
The Ramanathaswamy jyotirlinga temple is located on Rameswaram island in Tamil Nadu. As per Hindu mythology, the jyotirlinga was made by Lord Rama to make amends for killing Ravana, a Brahmin in the battlefield.
To worship Shiva, Rama directed his trusted lieutenant Hanuman, an avatar of Shiva himself, to bring a lingam from the Himalayas. However, Hanuman’s return was delayed meanwhile Sita built a lingam out of sand from the nearby seashore, which is also believed to be the one in the sanctum of the temple.
This account is well supported by the original Ramayana authored by Valmiki were it is written in Yudha Kanda. According to another version, as quoted in Adhyatma Ramayana, Rama installed the lingam before the construction of the bridge to Lanka.
Nageshvara, Gujarat
Nageshvara Jyotirlinga temple is located near Dwarka in Gujarat. According to the Shiva Purana, Nageshvara Jyotirlinga is in Darukavana, an ancient name of a forest in India.
As per the legend, a demon named Daruk attacked a Shiva devotee named Supriya and imprisoned him along with many others in his city of Darukavana, a city under the sea inhabited by sea snakes and demons.
At the urgent exhortations of Supriya, the prisoners started to chant the holy mantra of Shiva and immediately thereafter Lord Shiva appeared and the demon was vanquished, later residing there in the form of a Jyotirlinga.
Trimbakeshwar, Maharashtra
Another jyotirlinga shrine in Maharashtra is Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple located in the city of Nashik. The temple lies at the foothills of Brahmagiri Mountain.
According to the legend, Lord Shiva decided to reside as Trimbakeshwar on the request of Godavari and Gautam Rishi. Unique in its structure, the linga has three faces symbolising Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva. The Jyotirlinga is covered by a jewelled crown, which is placed over the golden mask of the three gods.
Grishneshwar, Maharashtra
Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga or Ghrneshwar Jyotirlinga or Dhushmeshwar temple is located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra.
Touted to be the last or 12th Jyotirlinga, Grishneshwar means the ‘lord of compassion’. The Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga temple is built of red rock and composed of a five-tier shikhara. It is also the smallest Jyotirlinga temple of Lord Shiva in India.
With inputs from agencies
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