The Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Temple, also called Dhushmeshwar or Ghrneshwar Temple is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga temples and holds much importance due as it is the last or twelth temple. In a Jyotirlinga Temple Lord Shiva manifests himself in the form of a column of light and the power of thel Lord comes from this source. Those who go on a pilgrimage to such a temple is freed of his or her sins or visits all of the 12 Jyotirlinga temple is free from the cycle of birth and death.
It is located in the village of Verul, which is 30 km from Aurangabad district. The presiding diety is Lord Ghrneshwara and the name means "Lord of Compassion". A unique practise that devotees follow ehre is the sliding of infants wrapped in a blanket down a 50 ft high tower. It is an age old tradition which the local people say gives the baby a long and successful life. Thousands of devotes throng to this temple from all corners of the coutnry and the world to gain blessings of this Lord, who is a pwoerful source of removing bad karms. Those who are on a pilgrimage tour to visit the 12 Jyortinglas will find that their journey has finished with a visit to this shrine which is the 12th one on the list.
Those who visit this temple find it a place of utter serenity and spiritual bliss. It is indeed a tranquilizing and mesmerizing place with its ancient stone carvignsa and imrpessive shviva Linga which is so pwoerful that it instantly frees the devottee from various sins. The lovliness of this place coupled with tis spirituality make visit it an experience that is simply unforgettable. The pciteresque beauty of the temple isl like none other, totally enchanting, wonderful and immesnly majestic, striking a pose right away against the dramatic background of beautful trees and wilderness. Ejoy the spiritual bliss, ancient legend and prehistoric structure that is simply unique and special to this particular Jyotirlinga temple.
Archeitecture of Grishneshwar Temple
The Grishneswar Temple impresses you with its majestic archeitectural beauty, most of which can be seen in its inricate carvigns and lovely sculpures. The expertise of experinced masons can be see and it is indeed a place to come aand study medeival building structure. As it ws built with materials used thousands of centuries ago, it withstood the test of time and is a pillar of strenght that cannot be broken down by the ravages of weather. Those who like to study ancient Indian temple archeitecture will find this temple structure to be the eprfect means of understanding it better and to learn the many methods used to create a strong and exquisite temple structure.
Ahilyabhai built the temple and he also reconstructed the Kashi Vishvanath temple at Varanasi as well as the Vishnu Paada Temple at Gaya Bihar. The temple structure is simply stunning with its majestic height and beautiful exterior carvings and sculptures. It is a 240 ft x 180 ft temple that is made from red rcks which give it a very distinct and interesting apperance. Its pre-historic style of construction makes it very different from any other temple construction. Its unique five tier Shikara reflects breathtaking beauty with tis many statues of gods and godesses. The Shiva Lings faces east and in the courthall is the Nandikeshwar. On the walls, you can also observe Dashavatars, which are exquisitely carved. The court hall is supported by 24 pillars on which you can see some of the most beautiful carvings from Hindu Mythology.
Those who love to study ancient temple releif work will find this temple to be the perfect specmenit as it display those features that are typical to ancient archeitecture. The impressive columns are worth photograhing as they are the perfect example of ancient sculpture work and intricate pattern carvigns. Beautiful, lovely and full of cratsmanship, this temple is a delight for those who revel in Indian culture, tradition and historical past. Its struxture is indeed a trat to the eyes with tis large.
The structure is simply beautiful when viewed against the backgrund of immense natural beauty. Its immaculate structure is indeed beautiful, lovely and iterestin for all to view. You will find the entire structur to be one that is exquisite due to the huge amount of masonry work that has gone into its construction. This temple in particular has some very impressvie sculptures which show the keen detail work that mason did in yesteryears and the strenght of the materil used to make it, through which it has withstood the test of time.
History of Grishneshwar Jyotirling
There are many legends behind the construction of the majestic Grishneswar temple, each of which is simply spellbinding to read. Goddess Parvati was at once washing her hair with vermillion mixed with saffron, a symbol of marrried woman. Keeping them in her left palm, she mixed the waters of Shivalay into them and started mixing with the right palm. This small action of friction caused light who was Lord Shiva to appear on her palm, which she named as Grishneswarto symbolize it.
There is another legend behind it, that which is associated with Brahmvetta Sudharm and his wife Sudeha. As the ouple had no child, Sudeha got frustrated and her prayers for a child were not answered no matter how much she prayed or took in remedies. She had a sister Grishma, who she got married to her husband, who was a utter devotee of Lord Shiva. She would make 101 lingas everyday and pray to them, afte which the lingas were dissolved into the lake nearby. Due to her piousness, Lord Shiva blessed her with a baby boy.
One night Sudeha out of jealousy killed the baby, but upon hearing this, Grishma did not break her reglar mornign prayers to Lord Shiva. So much was the Lord pleased with her devotion that when she threw the lingas into the river, her son started walking towards her. She asked Lord Shiva to pardon her sister. Once again the Lord pleased with her generosity, made her ask for antother boon t which she requested hm to manifest himself in this location in the form of a Jyotirlinga and take on the name of Gumeshwar, with the lake beside being called I as Shivalay.
As with every Jyotirlinga shrine, this too has the most exquisite story behind it which enthralls readers and makes the temple a must-visit. This particular story shows the immense compassions of Lord Shiva towards his devotee and the extent that the Lord will take steps to show how much he is pelased with his devotee.
Grishneshwar Temple Facts
Temple archeitecture is in he fomr of a pre historic style and is worht to study due to this particular method of construction
The Ajanta and ellora caves lies very lie to the temple so afer a darshan you can visit them to expericne their beauty
Grandfather of Maharaja Shivaji is credited with having re-constructed the temple in the 16th century. In the 18th century, reconstruciton was carried out by Queen Ahilyabai Holkar.
Holy water is said to come out from inside the temple and there are many intricate carvings, sculpting work of Gods and Goddessess
In the 24 pillars that made up the court hall, you can see various carings that depicted the lengeds and stories of Lord Shiva
Before coming here many devotees stop and pray at the small temple of Kokila Mata, a goddess whose statues is seen with her hand over her ear to hear the arrival of devotee so that she can tell Lord shiva that they are arriving
When you step into the sanctum, you will find the inner snactum to be an uderground chamber.
The lovely sabha Mandap has 16 columns each of which display exquisite, intricate carvings and the doors of the shrine have silver sheets spread across them with images of Lord Shiva etched on them
The shrine is a cubic with a size of 240 x 185 feet and has the most beautiful sculptures and freizes. On top of the temple is a majestic and beautiful golden kalash
The 5 tier shikara is outstadingly impressive and the carvigns on the pillars are most stunnin, beautiful and exquisite
You can see beautiful holy water springing from inside the temple
How to Reach Grishneshwar
Aurangabad is well connected to varius cities through a network of flights, train services and busses. You can book on any of these services either online or through a travel agent.
By Air – Fly to the Aurangabad airport which is 39 km away from the temple and reach it by auto or taxi service.
By Train – Reach the Aurangabad railway station, which is 30 km away from the temple and arrive at it by taxi service.
By Road – Reach Elora by taxi as it is just 10minutes away from the temple. You can aso arrive here through roadways by tax service from cities Shiridi, Nasik and Pune.
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