Somnath Temple – We don’t know how blessed we are! No wonder in that though, we tend to lose value for the things that we have within our reach. No, I am not blabbering. This is to make you aware of the two divine Jyotirlingas we have in our vicinity. Any Guesses?
Well, we’ll tell you – Somnath and Nageshvar Jyotirlinga(Dwarka)
Today we are going to take you to the place which is believed to be the first Jyotirlinga – our very own Somnath Mahadev Temple.
Some of you might have seen the Sound and Light Show in the temple after the evening Arti(in the magical voice of superstar Amitabh Bachchan), but some of you might have missed it. Read this and you’ll be tempted to go to Somnath for this particular show and many more places that are to unfold here.
History of Somnath Temple:
It is believed that the original temple of Somnath was built by the Moon God in Gold. After its destruction, Ravana rebuilt it in Silver. Later, after the destruction of this temple too, Krishna reconstructed it in Wood. In the end, King Bhimdev constructed the temple with Stone.
The present Somnath temple is the vision of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and was carried out under the guidance of K.M. Munshi and is built in Chaulukya Style of architecture. The first President of independent India installed the Jyotirlinga in this temple in 1951.
The temple is believed to have been destroyed almost 17 times to ruin its glory and loot its belongings but it withstood every attempt only to get resurrected again and again!
An interesting fact which you should remember is, the temple is situated at such a place that there is no land in a straight line between Somnath seashore until Antarctica. Now, this is something that you can show off to everyone when you visit there.
This is a short summary of the Sound and Light show. One must watch it because it’s a once in a lifetime experience!
Sometimes, during high tides, it appears as if the sea itself is doing abhishek, its waves dashing against the temple walls to honour Lord Shiva. This is a sight to behold!
There are other places to visit apart from the main temple. These are:
Somanth Beach:
After appreciating the architecture of the temple and the Shringar of Lord Shiva, head on to see the beach from the temple premises itself which lie on the left side of the main entrance. From here you can see the boats in the ocean sparkling in sunlight and making their move against the waves.
The sight of the beach is tempting and so now you should set out from the temple to go the beach. On the way to the beach, there will be many vendors and you’ll get to see interesting items sold by them, especially for the girls, who can get their stock of shell-bracelet, anklets or necklaces. There are several home-decoration kind of stuff that you can purchase. For the guys, you can concentrate on the stock of Coconuts that are available here in cheap rates.
Now, be careful on the beach and don’t go beyond the limits that are marked over there because this sea is a bit fierce(and by bit we mean to say way too much!) Make no plans for swimming. Strictly No. To compensate this, you can take a camel ride on the shore.
Bhalka Tirth:
This is believed to be the place where Lord Krishna took his last breath. He was mistakenly shot in the foot by a hunter who took it for a deer. Today, at this place stands a plant of “Tulsi” in the memory of Lord Krishna. This temple is situated on a point where three rivers meet, so the name – Triveni Sangam.
There is a place called Baldev Gufa near this temple, where Lord Krishna’s brother Baldev is believed to have disappeared to go to the other world.
Prabhas Patan Museum:
Visit this museum to get a glimpse of the history of Somnath. The remains of the previously destroyed Somnath temple are kept here and various stone scriptures can also be found here. It is a delight for the archaeology lovers!
That’s all from our side. It’s over to you now. Plan a trip to Prabhas Patan i.e. Veraval – Somnath and let us know if this information helped you in knowing the place better and discovering new places. Then get back to us in the comment section and share your knowledge.
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