Famous Temples in India
India is known for its temples, which are beautiful serene places of worship, significant religious and historical backgrounds. Unparalleled in their beauty and artistic grandeur these temples have survived as exquisite works of art and given birth to different architectural styles which have evolved over hundreds of years.
In 2019, there were reportedly more than 500000 temples across the country. Many foreigners are come to India to visit its beauty and temples.
These famous and ancient intricately designed and faithfully maintained places of worship attract many foreigners who come to India to visit its beauty and temples. These are Must Visit temples for devotees and all those who nurture an interest in history and architecture. Here are eight most famous and popular temples in India which need your attention for their popularity and devotion:
1. Golden Temple :
The Golden Temple also known as Harminder Sahib and also spelled as Harimandir Sahib meaning ‘Abode of God’ or ‘Darbar Sahib’ is a gurudwara located in the city of Amritsar, Punjab, India.
It is not only a central religious place of Sikhs but also a symbol of human brotherhood and equality and the most important pilgrimage site of the Sikhs. The first Harmindir Sahib was built by Guru Arjan Dev, the fifth Sikh guru. The foundation stone was laid by Mian Mir Mohammad, a Muslim divine of Lahore. The temple includes entrances on all four sides signifying that it is open to worshippers of all castes and creeds. There is a large dining hall named Guru Ramdas Langar, that serves meals to thousands of pilgrims and visitors free of cost.
The gurudwara was rebuilt several times after the Muslim and Afghan invaders destroyed it. Ultimately Maharaja Ranjit Singh, after founding the Sikh empire rebuilt if in marble and copper in 1809, overlaid the Sanctum with gold foil in 1830, this led to the name ‘Golden Temple’.
2. Maa Vaishno Devi :
Vaishno Devi is a manifestation of Hindu mother Goddess, Devi. The word ‘Maa’ and ‘Mata’ are commonly used in India for ‘mother’, and thus are often heavily connected with Vaishno Devi. Vaishnavi was formed from the combined energies of Kali, Lakshmi and Saraswati. Other names are : Vaishnavi, Mata Rani, Ambe, Trikuta, Sherawali, Jyotawali, Pahadawali, etc.
A pilgrimage to the Holy Shrine of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi is considered to be one of the holiest pilgrimages of our times. Popular in the world as “Munh Mangi Muraddan Poori Karnewali Maa” which means the ‘mother who fulfills whatever Her children wish for’.
Deviji resides in a Holy Cave which is at an altitude of 5200 ft is located in the folds of three peaked mountain named Trikuta. It attracts millons of devotees every year which exceeds 1 crore annually. The Yatris take a trek of nearly 12 kms from the base camp at Katra for the Darshan of Mother Goddess inside the Sanctrum Sanctorum : the Holy Cave. Darshans are in the form of three natural formations called Pindis, there are no idols or statues inside the cave. The shrine is managed by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board.
3. Kashi Vishwanath Temple :
Kashi Vishwanath Temple is one of the most famous Hindu temples, dedicated to Lord Shiva, located in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India ad stands on the western bank of the holy river Ganga. It is one of the twelve Jyotirlings or Jyotirlingams, the holiest of Shiva temples and regarded among the holiest and important places of worship in Hindu religion.
The main deity is known by the name Vishwanath or Vishveshavara meaning ‘ ruler of the Universe’. It is said that the temple was built several times. The latest structure standing here dates back to the 18th century. Thousands of pilgrims converge here to perform ‘abhishekam’ to the sacred Jyotirlingam, with water from holy Ganga. People offer their ‘sankalp’ or statement of intent; a tradition that one should give up at least one desire after a pilgrimage to the temple.
Besides its religious significance, the temple is also an architectural marvel.
4 . Somnath Temple :
The Somnath Temple also known as Deo Patan, located in Veraval in Saurashtra, on the western coast of Gujarat, India is believed to be the first among the twelve Jyotirling shrines of Lord Shiva and is a specimen of fine architecture. Dubbed as the ‘Eternal Shrine’, it is believed to be the place where Lord Krishna ended his Lila and thereafter left for heavenly abode.
Somnath literally translated as ‘Lord of Moon(Soma) houses the ‘first’ of the 12th Jyotirlings or the symbolic representation of Lord Shiva. There were invaluable gemstones fixed in different places that kept the place lustrous all the time and the temple was overflowing with a vast amount of treasure all the time. It is because of this that the temple was looted and destroyed as many as 17 times and reconstructed every time.
It is said that everyday, sandal wood scented water was brought from Haridwar, Prayagraj Kashi for bathing the idol and the flowers were brought from Kashmir. For daily worship there were 1000 priests appointed and 350 dancing girls performed the traditional dance to engage the Lord.
The Iron man of India, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was instrumental in the construction of the present temple.
5. Tirupati Balaji Temple :
Tirupati Balaji or Venkateshwara Swamy Temple is one of the most popular cultural and religious destinations in India. Located in the 7th peak of Tirumala Hills in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India, the temple is dedicated to the incarnation of Vishnu: Venkateshwara, and is called the Temple of Seven Hills.
The major attraction is the idol of Lord Venkateshwara with eyes closed. The explanation while going around the covering of the eyes is that ‘gaze’ coming out of the idol cannot be tolerated by a human being and hence are covered to reduce the effect.
It is considered to be the world’s richest temple and the average monthly income of the temple at Tirumala stood at around Rs.200 to Rs.220 crores.
Tradition of donating hair at Balaji is very old and the reason given is that Lord Venkateshwara repays the loan taken from Kuber. It is believed that the hair we give, Lord Venkateshwara gives you ten times more than that. Often referred to as the richest God, Balaji blesses His devotees with the wish they ask for.
6. Meenakshi Temple :
It is believed that Lord Shiva assumed the form of Sundeshwarar ( the handsome) and married Parvati ( Meenakshi) at the site where the temple is currently located.
Renowned for its astonishing architecture Meenakshi Temple was nominated as one of the ‘wonders of the world’ but unfortunately could not make it to the ‘Seven wonders of the World’, however it is definitely one of the ‘wonders of cultural India’
7. Dwarkadhish Temple, Gujarat, India
Also known as the Jagat Mandir, this Mandir is a Chalukya style architecture, dedicated to Lord Krishna, who is worshipped here as ‘ Dwarkadhish’ or ‘ Dwarkadheesh’ or ‘the King of Dwarka’.
According to a legend the Dwarkadheesh temple was built by Vajranabha, Krishna’s grandson. The temple, 5 stories tall and with its main shrine supported by 72 pillars, is considered to be over 2200 years old. The flag atop the temple shows the Sun and the Moon, which is believed to indicate that ‘Krishna’ would be there till the Sun & Moon exist on earth. The flag, triangular in shape is 50 ft ( 15 mtrs) in length is changed 4 times a day but the symbol of the sun & the moon remains the same. Hindus pay a huge sum to hoist it by purchasing a new flag and the money thus collected is credited to the trust of the temple to meet the operation and maintenance of the temple expenses.
Located at Dwarka, Gujarat, India, it is one of the destination of ‘Char Dham’ of the Hindu pilgrimage circuit, the other 3 being ‘Badrinath, Puri and Rameshwaram’. ‘ Char Dham’ is a set of 4 pilgrimage sites in India. It is believed that visiting these sites helps attain ‘Moksha’ or salvation.
8. Jagannath Puri
The Shri Jagannath Temple is an important Hindu Temple dedicated to Lord Jagannath , a form of Lord Vishnu, in the state of Odisha on the eastern coast of India. Famous for its ‘Annual Rath Yatra’ or ‘chariot festival’ in which three principal deities are pulled on huge elaborately decorated temple cars ( chariots).
Rath Yatra
It holds an important place of importance for devotees and is one among the ‘ Char Dhams’ pilgrimage sites in India.
Friends, for centuries temples have remained integral to the Indian society. As the nerve centers of Indian religious life, these temples came to wield enormous powers, catering not only to the religious needs of man but they went on to dominate the socio-economic and political life of the community while profusely contributing to the cultural and architectural heritage of the country.
Inputs & pics courtesy Google,Wikipedia, IndiaTV
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