Sri Nageshwar Jyotirlinga, Gujarat
Introduction
Sri Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is also known as Nageshvara Temple, located on the coast of Saurashtra, Gujarat. This 2nd Jyotirlinga is dedicated to Lord Shiva, one of the 12 Jyotirlinga Shrines, mentioned in Shiva Purana and is in an underground sanctum. The main attraction of this Jyotirlinga temple is a 25 mtr tall statue of Lord Shiva in a large garden with a pond surrounding the Shiva statue.
The lingam at Nageshwar is an oval Rudraksha with three faces. Rudraksha is said to be the tears of Lord Shiva.
The significances of the Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is that this powerful Jyotirlnga protects the devotees from all kinds of poison. Hindu devotees also believe that the one who prays lord shiva becomes free of poison i.e. negativities. The lingam at Nageshwar temple is unique as it consists of a stone popularly known as the Dwarka Stone.
Nageshwar Temple Timings …..
Darshan 06.00 am to 09.00 pm
Shringar Darshan 07.00 am
Shayan Aarti 12.00 noon
Nightly Aarti 07.00 pm
Poojas takes place at Negeshwar Temple :
- Rudrabhishek : Performed with Panchamrit (Milk, Ghee, Honey, Curd and Sugar) amongst the recital of several mantras and shlokas. This pooja is said to be conducted when Lord Shiva is in his Rudra Avatar (angry form).
- Laghurudra Pooja : Laghurudra Pooja is done to resolve issues related to health, wealth and also removes bad effects of planets in the horoscope.
Some of the Festivals Celebrated at Nageshwar Jyotirlinga :
- Mahashivratri : Maha Shiv Ratri occurs in February / March. It its believed, on this day Lord Shiva married Goddess Parvati and this day is famous for rigorous poojas, bhajans and abhishekams. Hindu devotees of Lord Shiva decorate the lingam with flowers and conduct the abhishek with milk.
- Shravan Month : Shravan Maas (month) falls on fifth month of Hindu calendar (Vikram Samvat / Bikram Samvat) which starts in mid July and ending mid August.
Jyotirlinga
Shivalingam of Nageshwar Mahadev is facing south while the Gomugam is facing east. There is a story behind this.
Once, there was a devotee name “Naamdev”. He was a saint who used to dedicate songs to Lord Shiva. One day he was singing bhajans in front of Lord Shiva, other devotees asked him to stand aside and not to hide Lord Shiva. At this point Naamdev asked them to suggest one direction in which Lord Shiva does not exist, so that I can stand there. The devotees carried him and left him on south and they found that the linga was now facing South with the Gomugam facing east.
History
There are two stories behind Nageshwar Jyotirlinga.
The first story is about a demon couple named Daruka and Daruki which dates back to a hundred years in the Shiva Purana.
Dwarka city was earlier named after the Asura couple and called “Darukavana”. Daruka’s wife Daruki was a devotee of Goddess Parvati. But Daruka was a cruel demon who found joy in troubling people around him.
Once, he imprisoned an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva named, Supriya, with many others. Daruka misused the blessings granted to him and continued to torment the local folks by one means or another. Supriya, while in captivity, advised all the people to loudly chant the mantra of “Om Namaha Shivaye”.
Supriya told all the villagers, this mantra is powerful enough to protect them all. When Demon Daruka came to know about this, he was furious and went to kill her. This is when Lord Shiva appeared in the form of a Linga on earth. Shiva could not kill the demon Daruka because of the boon granted to him by his wife Parvati. Hence, Lord Shiva assured Supriya and all others that he would protect them all ini the form of Jyotirlinga.
The Jyotirlinga of Darukavana
According to another legend, a group of dwarf sages known as “Balakhilyas” worshipped Lord Shiva in Darukavana for a long time. To test their persistence as well devotion, Lord Shiva went to them as nude wearing only nagas, i.e. serpents on his body.
All the wives of sages got attracted to Lord Shiva (wearing nagas) and went after him, leaving their husbands. This made all the sages angry and they cursed Shiva to lose his linga. Hence, the Shiva linga fell on earth due to which the whole earth trembled.
Then, Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma appeared and requested Lord Shiva to save the planet from getting destroyed and to take back his linga. Lord Shiva then took back his linga, after consoling the sages, and promised his divine presence in the form of Jyotirlinga in Darukavana forever.
Some other temples near Nageshwar Jyotirlinga :
- Shree Dwarkadish Temple : Sri Dwarkadish Temple is also known as Jagat Mandir and dedicated to Lord Krishna (also known as the “King of Dwarka”). This 5 storied building has 72 pillars and is about 2,200 years old. It is a Pushtimarg temple, therefore it follows the guidelines and rituals of Shree Vallabhacharya and Shree Vitheleshnathji.
- Gomti Ghat Temples : This Gomti Ghat of Gujarat has plentiful of temples that are devoted to Lord Krishna, Lord Rama, Lord Shiva and Sudama – the closest friend of Lord Krishna. Temples around the Ghat present an amazing view of River Gomati and are just at the entrance of the Dwarkadhish Temple.
- Rukshmani Mandir : Rukshamanee or Rukshmani Temple is an important place of Hindu Pilgrimage and is dedicated to the most adored consort of Krishna, Devi Rukmini. This temple is located in the main city of Dwarka.
- Bhadkeshwar Mahadev Temple : Bhadkeshwar Mahadev Mandir is at a distance of 18.2 km from Nageshwar Jyotirlinga and dedicated to Lord Chandra Mouliswar Shiva. During high tide, water surrounds this Mahadev Temple and a fair takes place here every year on the day of Mahashivratri.
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