The creator, preserver and destroyer of all living beings Lord Shiva, is the Supreme God of Hindus. Followers of Lord Shiva are known as Shaivites or Shaivas and they worship Lord Shiva in the form of lingam. For Hindus and Shaivites "12 Jyotirlinga" or "Dwadasa Jyotirlinga" of Lord Shiva are very auspicious. Jyotirlinga is a Sanskrit word, which is a combination of two words- Jyoti (radiance) and linga. Siva Mahapurana or Shiva Purana has a mention of about 64 Jyotirlinga shrines in India and Nepal. Out of 64, only 12 are considered as most sacred and have been called as 'Maha Jyotirlinga'. Each Jyotirlinga is considered as a different manifestation of Lord Shiva. It is believed that once Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu had an argument regarding their supremacy over each other. To balance this, Lord Shiva appeared in the form of a huge pillar of light and asked them to find the ends of this pillar. Brahma lied that he found the end whereas Vishnu accepted his defeat. Following this Shiva emerged from the pillar and blessed Vishnu and cursed Brahma that he won't be worshiped till the end of eternity. Basically ‘Jyotirling’ is this pillar of light and Jyotirlingas are believed to have appeared from this infinite pillar of light that Lord Shiva produced. Hence the 12 Jyotirlingas are worshiped as manifestations of Lord Shiva. In India, three Jyotirlingas are in Maharashtra, two in Gujarat, two in Madhya Pradesh, one Andhra Pradesh, one Jharkhand, one Uttar Pradesh, one Uttarakhand, and one in Tamil Nadu. Adi Shankaracharya, in his Dwadasha Jyotirlinga Strotram, has mentioned 12 Jyotirlingas situated in different parts of India. Here're some interesting facts about these 'Dwadasha Jyotirlinga':
Somnath Jyotirlinga (Gujarat): Located near Veraval in Kathiawad district, Somnath is considered as first and foremost of the 12 Jyotirlingas. This Jyotirlinga is named after the Moon (Soma), who worshiped Lord Shiva to regain his radiance, after he was cursed by his father -in-law Daksha. Somnath temple has been destroyed and rebuilt several times. It is believed that it was originally built by Moon in gold, and currently it is made with reddish yellow stones, which was inaugurated by first Indian President Dr. Rajendra Prasad in 1951. One is not allowed to go inside the sanctorum and touch the linga. However everyone can offer Ganga water through a mechanical device.
Mallikarjuna temple, Srisailam (Andhra Pradesh): Mallikarjuna Swamy Jyotirlinga, located in Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh, is the second jyotirlinga of Shiva. It is also known as “Kailash of the South”. It is believed that Shiva emerged here in the form of a Jyotirlinga and resided on the mountain by the name of Mallikarujna. Mallika is Parvati, while Arjuna is another name of Shiva.
Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga (Madhya Pradesh): Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is located in the dense Mahakal forest in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. According to the Puranas, there was a five-year-old devotee of Shiva who took a stone and started worshiping it as Shiva. Because of his devotion, Lord Shiva emerged here in the form of a Jyotirlinga and resided in the Mahakal forest. The Mahakaleshwar Temple is also one among the seven “Mukti-Sthal”.
Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga (Madhya Pradesh): Located on an island called Shivapuri in the Narmada River, Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga is one of the highly revered Jyotirlinga. According to the Hindu scriptures, once upon a time a great war between the Devas and Danavas (Gods and Demons) took place wherein the Danavas won. Then Lord Shiva emerged here in the form of Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga and defeated the Danavas. Thus this place is considered to be highly sacred by the Hindus.
Baidyanath Jyotirlinga (Jharkhand): Baidyanath Jyotirlinga is located at Deogarh in Jharkhand. It is also known as Vaijnath or Baidyanath. This Jyotirlinga is believed to help devotees to attain moksha or salvation. This Jyotirlinga is called Baidyanath Jyotirlinga because it is believed that Shiva revived Ravana here as a vaid and joined his heads to the body.
Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga (Maharashtra): The Bhimashankar Temple is Located in Pune, Maharashtra. It is the sixth Jyotirlinga of Shiva. Lord Shiva resides here in the form of Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga. It is believed that the sweat poured from Lord Shiva's body, after a battle with Kumbhakarna’s son Bhima, who had created havoc in the world, formed the Bhima River. The temple is made in Maratha style with black stones.
Rameshwar Jyotirlinga, (Tamil Nadu): Rameshwar Temple is located on the island of Rameshwaram, in Tamil Nadu. The temple's architecture is Dravidian style. The temple has two jyotirlingas; one is believed to be made by Lord Rama and another brought by Hanuman from Kashi. This Jyotirlinga is a replica of the Kashi Vishwanath jyotirling. In Rameshwar Temple, devotees first take bath in the 22 water bodies present in the temple complex and then they worship the Jyotirlinga.
Nageshwar Jyotirlinga, (Gujarat): Located on the coast of Saurashtra in Gujarat, the Nageshwar Temple is also known as Nagnath Temple. This Jyotirlinga symbolises protection from all types of poison. The Shiva Purana mentions that Shiva in the form of Nageshwar rescued his devotee Supriya by defeating a demon named Daruka. The Nageshwar temple is built with pink stone and the idol is Dakshinamurti. Here an idol of Shani is also worshiped under a huge pipal tree.
Kashi Vishwanath, (Varanasi): The Kashi Vishwanath Temple is located in the holy city Kashi, Varanasi. It is the ninth Jyotirling and is visited by many devotees worldwide. It is believed that Lord Shiva resides here and devotees attain liberation here. The temple has been attacked, destroyed and rebuilt several times and it continues to hold its significance. The temple that stands today was built by Ahilyabai Holkar.
Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga, (Nasik): The Trimbakeshwar Temple is located on the banks of the River Godavari, in the town of Trimbak near Nasik in Maharashtra. Temple is located at the foothills of a mountain Brahmagiri. According to the Shiva Purana, following requests of River Godavari, Gautam Rishi and other Gods, Lord Shiva decided to reside here and assumed the name Trimbakeshwar. Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga has three faces embodying Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva. The temple was constructed by Peshwa Balaji Bajirao. You can also get genuine Rudraksha here at Trimbakeshwar temple.
Kedarnath Jyotirlinga, (Uttarakhand): Located in Uttarakhand, the Kedarnath temple is the highest of all Jyotirlingas and it is situated at a height of 12000 feet on a mountain named Kedar. As per the Hindu belief, Lord Shiva had taken up the permanent abode in Kedarnath in the form of this Jyotirlinga after he was impressed by the severe penance of Lord Vishnu' incarnations Nara and Narayana. This temple is named after King Kedar who ruled here in Satyuga. Adi Shankaracharya is also believed to have taken samadhi here.
Ghrishneshwar Jyotirlinga, (Aurangabad): The Ghrishneshwar temple was built by Ahilyabai Holkar. The temple is located in a village Verul near Ellora Caves, Aurangabad, Maharashtra. It is often known as Kusumeswarar, Ghushmeswara, Grushmeswara and Grishneswara temple. According to Shiva Purana, Lord Shiva's devotee Ghusma's son was killed by her sister Sudeha out of Jealousy and Lord Shiva revived her son. As per the legend, Lord Shiva resided here in the form of the Jyotirlinga, on the request of Ghushma and her husband Sudharma. The temple has Maratha style architecture with red and black stone work.
