12 Famous Jyotirlingas of The Lord Shiva

Sawan or Shravan The holy month in India is started, During this month India offers numerous fair and festivals across the country. Every state has its own traditional festivals to celebrate, some of the monsoon festivals are Teej a fasting festival, Nag panchami, then Raksha Bandhan and Janmashtmi. Apart from these festivals, All Mondays of sacred holy month of Shravan is devoted to the worship of great God Lord Shiva. The holy yatra or march of Kanwariya also start during this sacred month and Pilgrims called Kanwariya, reciting Bol Bam can be seen at Land of Shiva and every other holy sites or holy places such as confluences of sacred rivers and at famous 12 Jyotirlingas of lord Shiva. The Holy men of India are also spotted during this month at various temples of Lord Shiva, As they are the true devotees of God of God’s Lord Shiva. Originally there were believed to be 64 jyothirlingas while 12 of them are considered to be very auspicious and holy. The famous 12 Jyotirlingas of God Shiva are spread all over India, Jyothi lingam means, Lord Shiva appeared in the form of light (Jyothi) lingam. Other famous temples of Lord Shiva are Amarnath, Bhojpur Shiva Linga Temple, Amareshwar temple Amarkantak, Murudeshwara, Shankaracharya temple Kashmiri, Lingaraj temple Bhubaneswar, Mukteswara temple, and great Kailasanathar Temple.

Somnath Jyotirlinga:

The Somnath Temple is located in the Saurashtra, on the western coast of Gujarat. Somnath temple,also known as the Shrine Eternal is considered to be the most significant and revered 12 Jyotirlinga temples across India The Protector of Moon God temple is destroyed six times and rebuilt six times,recently it was rebuilt in November 1947. The Aadi Jyotirling Shree Somnath Mahadev temple is dedicated to Someshwara, the Lord Shiva, with moon on his head.

Somnath Jyotirlinga Gujrat

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga: 

Sri Mallikarjuna Swamy Temple is located at Srisailam in Nallamala hills of Andhra Pradesh. The temple is situated in the town of Srisailam near the banks of Krishna river. Mallikarjun Jyotirlinga is one of the greatest shrines in India and it constitutes one of the 12 Jyotirlingam shrines of Lord Shiva. The temple in hill looks like a great fort and is also known for its treasure of sculptures, There are number of sculptures on the walls appear as a gallery.

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga Andra-Pradesh

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga: 

The most famous Mahakaleshwar Hindu temples is situated in the holy and ancient city of Ujjain in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The most lively Shiva Temples of India is located on the side of the Rudra Sagar lake in heart of Ujjain city. Mahakaleshwar idol is also known as dakshinamurti, as its facing the south. This is only temple of lord Shiva among the 12 Jyotirlingas where the idol of Great God is facing the south. The holy temple which is credited with citations in the great works of Poet Kalidasa.

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga Ujjain

Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga: 

Omkareshwar is a famous Jyotirlinga temple located is a holy island of Shivpuri in Maheshwar, Madhay Pradesh. This holy shrine of Lord Shiva is located at the convergence of Kaveri and holy river Narmada. One of the Dwadasa jyotirlingas is spread on the Mandhata hills in Vindhya Mountains of Madhya Pradesh. Shape of the holy island is looks like the holy symbol of Shiva “the Om”. There are two temples Omkareshwar and other one is Amareshwar, The Mamleshwar jyotirling is situated on other side of Narmada river. Narmada river’s hold one of the biggest dams project in India, Sardar Sarovar Dam.

Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga Madhya-Pradesh

Kedarnath Jyotirlinga: 

The kedarnath jyotirlinga temple,one of the holiest Hindu temples dedicated to Lord Shiva is located in Uttarakhand. The holiest pilgrimages for the devout Hindu is situated at the head end of the River Mandakini in the Garhwal Himalayas. Kedarnath temple is not directly accessible by road,a 14 km uphill trek from Gaurikund has to be cross to be reached here. The Temple is one of the four major sites in India’s known as Chota Char Dham, other three are Yamunotri,Gangotri and and Badrinath. Shri Kedarnath temple is open only between the end of April to Kartik Purnima, During the winters, the murtis (idols) from Kedarnath temple are brought to Ukhimath and worshiped there for six months. Image source: admirableindia.com

Kedarnath Jyotirlinga

Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga: 

Bhimashankar Temple Jyotirlinga is situated in the Sahyadri ranges near pune in Maharashtra. The ancient shrine of lord Shiva is one of the most famous pilgrim places in Maharashtra. Bhimashankar jyotirlinga temple is far away from the tumult of the urban life and wrapped in the congregations of the majestic western ghats. Bhimashankar, One of the oldest Shiva temple is surrounded by Buddha style carvings, dense forests of high hill ranges and home to rare species of flora and fauna.

Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga Maharashtra

Vishwanath Jyotirlinga: 

Kashi Vishwanath JyotirLinga temple is located in the oldest city of India, Banaras Uttar Pradesh. Kashi, Banaras now Varanasi is the holiest city of India and fully dedicated to the Lord Vishwanath. The city is situated on the bank of holy river the Gange and considered the most sacred place for Hindus. The Aarti is held in the temple five times in a day, the evening Aarti is called  Ganga Aarti held every evening at Dasashwamedha Ghat.

Vishwanath Jyotirlinga Kashi

Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga: 

The Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga is located at the source of the holy Godavari river in the town of Trimbak, in the Nashik, Maharashtra. The Trimbakeshwar Temple is an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. Triambakeshwar owns spectacular distinction of the Jyotirlinga having three faces exemplifying Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwara (Shiva). All other 11 Jyotirlingas have only Shiva lingam.

Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga Nashik

Baidyanath Jyotirlinga: 

The Baidyanath dham also known as Baba dham is the most sacred abodes of Shiva. One of the twelve Jyotirlingas is located in Deoghar in the tribal state of Jharkhand. Baba Dham temple located where the heart of Bhagwati Sati had fallen, so this place is also referred as Mahashakti peeth. It is believed that the Baidynath (Vaidyanath) Jyotirlingam in Deogarh is associated with legendary stories of Ravana and Lord Shiva. This shrine is very famous, as Kanwariya Offers holy water of river Gange to the Lord Shiva during the month of shravan.

Baidyanath Jyotirlinga Jharkhand

Nageshwar Jyotirlinga: 

The Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is believed as the first Jyotirlinga on the earth. The great Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is located near Dwarka, in the Gujarat state of India. Nageshvara Jyotirlinga is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines of Lord Shiva mentioned in the Shiva Purana. This Nagaeshwara Jyotirlingam is facing south with the Gomugham facing east. There are three major shrines in India which are believed as identical to this Jyotirlinga, Those are the Jageshwar temple near Almora in Uttarakhand, the Nageshwara temple near Dwaraka in Gujarat, and the Nagnath temple in Aundha in Maharashtra.

Nageswar Jyotirlinga Dwarka

Rameshwaram Jyotirlinga: 

Rameshwaram is a religious town located in the state of Tamil Nadu. The Rameshwaram temple is dedicated to the Hindu god Lord Shiva and its one of the 12 famous Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva. Amongst the 12 Lord Shiva Jyotirlinga, Rameshwaram is one of the most sacred shrines of Hindus in India. This place is one of the holiest places in India to Hindus and part of the Char Dham pilgrimage. Rameswara means Lord of Rama,the seventh incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu is believed to have prayed to Shiva here. So this place is considered holy pilgrimage site for both Shaivites and Vaishnavites. The Pamban Bridge of Rameshwaram on the Palk Strait connects Rameswaram on Pamban Island to mainland India.

Rameshwaram Jyotirlinga

Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga: 

The Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga temple is placed at a close distance of about 11 km from Daulatabad in the neighborhood of Aurangabad in Maharashtra. Grishneshwar temple is a famous Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva and near to rock-cut Ajanta Ellora caves. The ancient pilgrimage site revered as the abode of one of the 12 Jyotirlinga manifestation of Lord Shiva. Holy month of Shrawan is filled with devotional fervours for the devotees of Lord Shiva at all Jyotirlinga shrines across India.

Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Maharashtra

Rise Bowl of India - Chhattisgarh - The Tribal State of India

The tribal state also known as “The Rise Bowl of India” was formed on 1 November 2000, by partitioning 16 Chhattisgarhi districts of Madhya Pradesh. Chhattisgarh is the 10th largest state with an area of 135,190 km, situated in central India. Due to very good irrigation system with big dams and long canals on different mighty rivers,hundreds of varieties of rice are grown in the state so named as Rise Bowl of India. The state is extremely skilled in tribal art,Kosa silk,lost wax art and full of ancient monuments, rare wildlife and exquisitely carved temples. Main attractions of Chhattisgarh are Chitrakot waterfalls, Kutumsar caves, Ramgarh and Sita Bengra, Bambleshwari temple at Dongrigarh, Danteshwari temple in Dantewada and a major Buddhist center in Malhar village. Because of abundant minerals Chhattisgarh is become one of the most important electrical power and steel producing state of India. Today Chhattisgarh is facing some of the big problems of nation such as Naxalism ,Witchcraft and Malnutrition.

Culture: 

Chhattisgarh has a mixed culture, Hinduism is the main religion along with Muslims, Christians and Buddhists. The tribal of Chhattisgarh have their distinctive languages, cuisines, music, dance and lifestyle. Chhattisgarhi is the local language used by most of the people lives in village and rural area, they love to converse in this language. The tribal people also known for colorful and unique crafts made from bamboos, jute, clay wood and Dhokra wax art.

Chhattisgarh Culture

People: 

Chhattisgarh synonymous to tribes, It is a tribal dominated state,majority of the population are tribal known as Adivasi. The indigenous people are used to situate their villages near their food and water source, Bastar district of Chhattisgarh has the largest tribal population. About 35 big and small tribes spread all over Chhattisgarh, few of them are Agariya,Birhor, Baiga, Kharia,Pardhan and Gond, The Gond tribes include Asur, Korba, Abhuj Maria, Nagarchi,Gaiki and Badi Maria. The tribal women love to wear ornaments made of cowries, shells, bones, mixed metals, copper and bronze.

Tribal Women Chhattisgarh

Food: 

Chhattisgarhi cuisines are very delicious, rice is one food item that is eaten widely in various ways. Most of the traditional and tribe foods are made of rice and rice flour like Pakhal Bhat,Kosra, Angakar Roti and Rice Flour Chapati. The tribal and village people enjoys native delicacy brew made of small, creamy white fruit of a local tree called Mahuwa. Mahuwa is extremely popular across the width and breadth of Chhattisgarh, other cuisines are rakhia badi and jalebis to bafauri and petha.

Mahua Chhattisgarh

LifeStyle: 

Tribes of Chhattisgarh are unique in their lifestyles and have beautifully retained their own culture and traditions for centuries. The tribal women love to wear ornaments made of cowries, shells, bones, mixed metals, copper and bronze. The livelihoods of thousands of tribal people depend on the forest,river or farming of crops and goat. Raut Nacha is a famous and traditional folk dance of cowherds, Some of the other prominent dance forms are Panthi, Karma, Pandwani and Soowa.

Raut Nacha Chhattisgarh

Festivals: 

The indigenous state has treasure of tribal and non-tribal festivals and fairs,celebrated with great zeal and passion across the state. Festivals and fairs of Chhattisgarh includes Dassera, Goncha, Hareli, Dantewada fair, Champaran Mela and famous Rajim Lochan Mahotsav. The Hareli festival of Chhattisgarh is one of the most important harvest festival praying for good crops, celebrate during the monsoon. There are so many other religious and colorful local festival, celebrated by tribes all round the year.

Festival In Chhattisgarh

Villages: 

There are around 15000 villages in Chhattisgarh and As much as 77 percent population lives in villages. The villages represent a real India, most of the tribes are prevalent in the hill and forest areas of the state. The huts of tribes called as Ghotul, made by bamboo sticks and surrounded by earthen or wooden walls, situated around the water resource. Some of the villages of Chhattisgarh are not connected to the national grid because they are in a remote area or in dense forest. The traditional transport ‘bailgadi’ is used by the villagers for traveling around.

Village In Chhatisgarh

Temples: 

Chhattisgarh tour is incomplete without visiting its ancient temples, located in the hill tops or surrounded by mountains and dense forests. Some of the famous temples in Chhattisgarh are Bambleshwari temple situated at hilltop in Dongargarh, Bhoramdeo temple dedicated to Lord Shiva surrounded by Maikal mountains and dark forests near Kawardha, Chandrahasini Devi temple at Chandrapur, Laxman temple in Mahasamund,Vishnu temple, Champaran in Raipur and the most popular Danteshwari Devi temple situated in Dantewada district at the confluence of the Dankini and Shankini rivers. Devi Danteshwari is the Goddess of tribes as well as other Hindu peoples of entire Bastar region, Best time to visit the temples is during the Bustar Dashera festival season.

Danteshwari Temple Chhattisgarh

Natural Beauty: 

The very young tourist destination of India is still untouched and unexplored. Chhattisgarh offers breathtaking natural beauty blended with rich history, astonishing waterfall, natural caves and dramatic mountain ranges. The Vindhyachal and the Satpura ranges has many beautiful water falls and caves carved temples, such as Chitrakot waterfall Jagdalpur, Tirathgarh waterfall and Akuri Nala, Caves – Gadiya mountain in Kanker district, Kutumsar cave, Jogimara Cave and Kailash Gufa. Other attractions includes incredible hilly regions, river basins, beautiful lakes, densely forested, landscapes and unique tribal populations.

Chitrakot Waterfall Chhattisgarh

Forest: 

The Green State of India has 44% of its area under dense forests, These hill forests have mostly covered with Sagoun,teak and sal other important tree species are bamboo, Mahua, Achar, Amaltas, Amla, jamun and Tendu. Deep jungles of Chhattisgarh is home to a variety of plant,wild animals and very rich in other natural resources. The green virgin forests offer one of the best Eco tourism of the country.

Forest In Chhattisgarh

Wildlife: 

The tribal state has richest bio-diversity areas in the country and full with numerous rare and unique wild animals including endangered species. The 3 national parks and 11 wildlife sanctuaries offers home to some of the rare wildlife, reptiles and bird species. Indravati national park is one of the finest and most famous national park, others are Kanger valley, Sanjah national park, Achanakmar wildlife sanctuary, Barnawapara wildlife sanctuary and Sitanadi wildlife sanctuary . The wild buffalo is the state animal of Chhatisgarh and endangered hill myna is state bird.

Wildlife In Chhattisgarh

Witchcraft: 

Chhattisgarh people and tribes are still believe in superstition, they branding woman as a witch and belief of practice of witchcraft. There are so many cases of atrocities against women in the name of witchcraft.  In 2005, the Chhattisgarh government passed the Witchcraft (Prevention) Act and committee for elimination of witchcraft was formed but witch hunts still occur today.

Witchcraft Chhattisgarh

Chhattisgarh is one of the fastest growing tourism destinations in India, Apart from the tribal tour and above list there are so many other attraction in Chhattisgarh to visit such as Asia’s second largest catholic church in Kunkuri,Civic Center Bhilai, Kawardha Palace, Ghadi Chowk Raipur,Rajim and Ram Jharna. The list is very long, so lets plan a visit to the most beautiful state of tribal India.

Tribal States of India

Tribes in India: India is a land of multitudinous culture and peoples.Every state of India has its own culture and tradition. The different forms of people found here out numbers any country.There are certain states in India where the number of tribal  population is much more than that of the other states. Due to the presence of these tribes India has receive various flavors and the tribal people are the real treasures of our countries. Major population of tribes are found in Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesha and North East “The Seven Sister States of India. The tribes peoples of India are also know as “Adivasis”. The specific meaning of Adivasis is the original inhabitants of a given region. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands  are also the home for various tribes like The Great Andamanese, Onge, Jarawa and Sentinelese.

Tribes of India

It must be very interesting reading to know tribes peoples and their culture.

Chhattisgarh: 

“Rice bowl of India” This is a newly formed state and situated in situated in the heart of India, it is very well known for its cultural heritage, attractive natural diversity and for tribes community. Tribes of Chhattisgarh are unique in their lifestyles and have beautifully retained their own culture and traditions for centuries. Bastar is the largest tribal district of Chhattishgarh and Gonds tribes Gonds of Bastar being the most prominent among them. The Gond Tribes include the Baiga, Korba, Abhuj Maria, Muria and Dhurvaa tribes.The tribal women love to wear ornaments made of cowries, shells, bones, mixed metals, copper and bronze.

Chhattisgarh tribes peoples

Orissa: 

The number of tribes that reside in Orissa is the highest anywhere in India. Chhattisgarh is the neighbor state of orissa, so Gond and Baiga tribes also found in some part of Orissa. The major tribes of the state are Kondhs, Koyas, Gadabas, Oraon, Juangs and Santals. Tribes of Orissa are very hard worker, they work in mills and plants. The major occupation of tribes are agriculture, fishing or hunting. Bamboo is used to make arts and crafts by the tribe peoples, and these are really very attractive. Tribes women wear a lengthy cloth material that they wrap around themselves, girls are seen with tattoos on their faces. The tribal state also offers best natural beauty in India, sparking waterfalls, magnificent lakes and big dams are the major attraction.

Baiga Girls of orissa

Jharkhand: 

State of tribal peoples, it is one of the most industrialized states of India, including Wildlife Sanctuaries and Forest. The tribes of Jharkhand are expert in making plates made up of Sal leaves joined together by tiny sticks. Kharias are one of the important tribes of Jharkhand, other tribes of Jharkhand are are Baiga, Asur, Santals, Oraons, Mundas and Hos.The tribes of Jharkhand also use bamboo for making baskets,hunting & fishing. Tribal peoples have tattoos called Godna, on their bodies instead of wearing ornaments, Bow and arrow is the symbolic weapon of the tribal of this area.

Tribes of jharkhand

Madhya Pradesh: 

Madhya Pradesh is a medley of ethnic groups and tribes, castes and communities. Tribes of Madhya Pradesh also known for well preserved traditions presented in the form of tribal music and dance. Madhya Pradesh was the largest state in India before the state of Chhattisgarh was carved out. Dhar, Jhabua and Mandla  districts have more than 50 percent tribal population. The main tribal groups in Madhya Pradesh are Gond, Bhil, Baiga, Maximum population is Gond tribes. The Bhils live in the mountain regions in the states of Madhya Pradesh and Bhils are considered as the third largest and most widely distributed tribal groups in India. Bhils tribes also found in some states of Rajsathan.

Traditional bils tribes

North East States: 

Also know as seven sisters of India, The north eastern states of India holds a large number of tribal population. The tribal chiefs enjoying a lot of power and status in the region. The northeastern states comprise thick forest and the virgin land are home of several North east tribal. The main tribes of north east states are Naga, Garo, Khasi, Maram, Tripuri, Reang, Monpas, Bamons. The Naga tribes had social and political links with tribes of Assam. Each tribes is having its own custom, language, dress and jewelery. The main occupation of these tribes is cultivation.

Naga Tribes of NorthEast