Hey! It’s amazing to know that you are thinking to plan a tour of 12 most pious Jyotirlingas to take blessings of Lord Shiva and his mythical and miraculous holy rivers. You will feel thousands times energetic and delightful by this trip. So, let’s get aware.
Jyotirlingas are the most religious pilgrimage of Hindus. Lord Shiva, the destroyer of the world is worshipped in the form of 'Linga' that is the Pillar of Radiance.
Lord Shiva is the Supreme God, according to the Shiva Purana and other epics it is believed that Brahma, the Creator of the Universe and Vishnu, the Savior of the World, clashed in the war to prove the most powerful one. When Lord Shiva arose in the form of Pillar of Light and asked them both to find the ends of the pillar. Vishnu went downwards of the pillar, however, could not discover the end of the light, he then accepted his failure.
On the other hand, Brahma went upwards he was also unable to find the end of the light but rather he chose to tell an untruth to Lord Shiva. Later, after hearing the responses Lord Shiva emerged and cursed Brahma for lying and blessed Vishnu for his loyalty. By now you must have got the reality behind the formation of Linga! So, let’s make a trip and pack your suitcase for 12 Jyotirlingas.
# Somnath JyotirlingaSomnath Jyotirlinga is located in Veraval in Saurashtra, Gujarat on the splendid shores of the Arabian Sea. This is the first Jyotirlinga, Lord Shiva is revered in the form of linga. According to the Shiv Purana, it is believed that Raja Chandra (Moon) was married to all 27 daughters of Raja Dakshprajapati. Out of all, he loved Rohini the most, seeing this made other wives miserable. Raja Dakshprajapati warned Raja Chandra to not discriminate among his wives, treat them equally. Still, because of his constant denial, he was cursed by Rajadakshprajapati. Later, Raja Chandra wholeheartedly worshipped Lord Shiva in the form of Linga, after the emergence of Lord Shiva he asked for forgiveness and apologized. Lord unleashed him from all the curses. Since then this linga is praised as Lord Shiva and believed in the presence of his existence.
# Magnificient Mallikarjun JyotirlingaThe mesmerizing temple is located at the Bhramaramba Hilltop, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh state. Lord Shiva with Goddess Parvati resides in this temple; they both came to this mountain to convince their second son Kartikaye to come back, when he deserted his home and headed towards mountain because his elder brother Ganesha got married first. Since, then Lord Shiva stays in the Linga form.
# Powerful Mahakaleshwar JyotirlingaDakshinimukhi that is south faced, Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is the only south-facing jyotirlinga among all. This powerful temple is located on the banks of the river Shipra in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. Lakhs of thousands of people come here to take the blessings of Lord Shiva in the form of Linga. According to Shiva Purana, it is said to be constructed in the 6th century by the Kumarasena, son of Chandpradyot. There are many tourist attractions spots to visit near Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga.
# Serene Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga is a spiritual island that is a shape in the pious symbol of Hinduism that is ‘OM’. At the nook and corner of the Omkareshwar Island, you will notice the spirituality and devotion towards God Shiva, wherever the holy Narmada flows there Lord Shiva marks his presence, and several devotees visit this Island throughout the year. Omkareshwar is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas located in the Khandwa district. The 270ft. a poised hanging bridge over Narmada gives memoirs to the spot.
# Kedarnath JyotirlingThe most fascinated and a paradise Jyotirlinga, kedarnath is situated at an altitude of 3,500 m above sea level on Garhwal Himalayas in Uttarakhand, that’s why it is the highest Jyotirlinga. It is located at the head of Mandkini and Saraswati River. It asks for the efforts to reach the temple due to its hilltop location and trekking is just rejoicing. There are porters available everywhere. However tens of thousands of devotees come to take the blessings of Lord Shiva, as it is considered his seat. Kedarnath is the most prominent Jyotirlinga as it is also one of the Char Dhams.
# Heartwarming Bhimashankar JyotirlingThe sixth Jyotirlinga, Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga is located in Bhorgiri near Pune in Maharashtra. The temple lies on the banks of river Bheema, who was the son of Kumbhkaran. It is also said that it was built by him. The other tale says that the war took place between lord Shiva and the demon Tripurasura. The beautiful temple of Lord Shiva worshipped in the form of Lingam is placed on the Western Ghats and surrounded by the wildlife Sanctuary, which adds rejoicing sightseeing for the travelers and pilgrims War bw Shiva God and Demon Tripurasura. At the time of Maratha reign, many chivalrous and great rulers visited here as the devotee of Lord Shiva.
# Prayerful Kashi Vishwanath JyotirlingaThe most prominent and most visited Jyotirlinga out of all 12 jyotirlingas is the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, which binds the spirituality and devotion of all pilgrims towards lord shiva. It is situated on the banks of river Ganga. It is located in Kashi aka Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. Whenever you plan to make a visit in Kashi, never ever, I repeat never ever forget to attend the mesmerizing and commendable Aarti at the ghats and the Puja, it takes nearly 2 to 3 hours to complete puja. The temple’s time is 2:30 AM till 11 PM.
# God-fearing Trimbakeshwar JyotirlingaAnother jyotirlinga and add one more pious river in your trip journal, the holy river Godavari aka Gautami Ganga believed as goddess Parvati resides in it. The jyotirlinga is located near Brahmagiri Mountain in Nashik district in Maharashtra. The crucial and salient feature of this temple is the three pillars as known from the name triambkeshwar tri means three and amb means pillars. These 3 pillars represent the tridev deity, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh.
# Graceful Vaidyanath JyotirlingaYou know what that historical place tells the distinct mythological stories. I personally prefer to know about them, these add a spark in the trip and makes it super and worth interesting. It is believed that Ravana prayed for years to Lord Shiva asking him to visit Sri lanka. Shiva made his presence in the form of Linga and told him to not put down the Shivlinga anywhere, if he does so the Linga will stay forever at that place. Due to some reasons he could not succeed in taking the Shivlinga to Sri Lanka. So, ithe Linga settled in Vaidhnath, it is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas located in Deogarh, Jharkhand.
# Divine Nageshwar JyotirlingaThe tenth jyotirlinga is one of the most alluring among all 12 Jyotirlingas, it is located in Dwarka, Gujarat. Bait Dwarka and Gomati Dwarka folds many mythological tales and existence of Lord Krishna. The shrine of lord Shiva is located at the underground in the temple. Devotees pay a visit to Nagnath temple with the belief that we will be freed from all the venom and evil. The spot will give you rejuvenating picturesque of Arabian Sea.
# Lord Ram's Rameshwaram JyotirlingaRameshwaram Jyotirlinga is the southernmost Jyotirlinga in the country located at Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu. It is said that when Ravana abducted Sita, Lord Rama with the Money’s Army went to kill him and free Sita. Here, in Rameshwaram Lord Rama worshipped the Linga of Lord Shiva. The temple has astounding carved and colored corridors with a bewitching scenic view of Sea. Rameshwaram is one of the char dhams, so tens of thousands devotees visit here.
# Peaceful Grishneshwar JyotirlingasGrishneshwar Jyotirlinga is the last of all the fascinating 12 Jyotirlingas. It is located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra; many devotees mark their presence in the temple throughout the year. The beautiful and finest architecture of the temple will blow your mind. Lord Shiva is revered here in the form of Linga, there is so much celebration and excitement flows in the air of Aurangabad at the time of Maha Shivratri.