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A GREAT DESTINATION
Eternal India
encyclopedia
PILGRIM CENTRES
Amarnath
: (Jammu & Kashmir), At a height of 3962m (12,729 ft)
caveshrine famous for ice lingam (Lord Shiva's form) which
waxes & wanes with the moon. Cave remains covered with ice
from Sept.-June, thousands of Hindus visit here during full-moon
day in the month of Shravan (July-Aug.)
Vaishno Devi
: (Jammu & Kashmir) Ancient caveshrine to
goddess Vaishno Devi, at a height of 5,300 feet. Three images of
Goddess representing creation, preservation and destruction.
Golden Temple
: (Amritsar) Built by Guru Arjun Dev, in the
midst of a lake,
Granth Sahib
holy book of the Sikhs is enshrined
here; temple renovated by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, in 1803, by
covering it with gold.
Akal Takht
(Throne Eternal) is next to the
temple.
Kurukshetra
: In Haryana, legendary site of Mahabharat war.
Lake here attracts lakhs of Hindus during solar eclipses. La-
kshminarayan temple, Gita Bhavan, shrine of Sita and very an-
cient banyan tree existing from the time of Mahabharata war is
one of the main attractions.
Dilwara Jain Temples
: (Rajasthan) On Mount Abu, five fa-
mous temples, Vimal Vasahi and Tejpal temple unique for their
architecture, built entirely of white marble.
Pushkar
(Rajasthan) : Lake Pushkar, one of the holiest places in
India has the only temple for Brahma in India.
Omkareshwar
(Madhya Pradesh): One of the twelve Jyotirlinga
shrines of Shiva, island shaped like the sacred symbol
om.
Re-
built by Peshwa Baji Rao II.
Mahabaleshwar
(Madhya Pradesh) : One of the twelve Jyot-
rirlingas, destroyed by Muslims, restored by Maharaja Scindia.
Allahabad
(Uttar Pradesh) : Hindu sacred place at confluence of
three rivers. Kumbha Mela takes place here every 12 years.
Ayodhya
(Uttar Pradesh) : One of seven sacred Hindu cities,
birthplace of Lord Rama.
Mathura
(Uttar Pradesh): Birthplace of Lord Krishna, Dwar-
akadeesh temple, Gita Mandir.
Varanasi
(Uttar Pradesh) : Holiest place of Hindus. Vish-
wanatha Temple, Benaras Hindu University, Bharat Mata
temple, Annapurna temple, Durga temple.
Badrinath
(Uttar Pradesh): Vishnu temple in Himalayas; snow-
covered for six months.
Kedarnath
(Uttar Pradesh) : Shiva temple in Himalayas at an
elevation of 11,735 ft.
Hardwar
(Uttar Pradesh): Shiva temple, Manasa Devi Mandir &
Ganga Matha Mandir. Kumbh Mela takes place every 12 years.
Har-ki-podi to take holy-bath.
Rishikesh
(Uttar Pradesh) : Bharata temple, Pushkar temple,
Geeta Bhawan, Ashram of Swami Shivananda, Laxman Jhoola
(Swing of Laxman)
Dwaraka
(Gujarat) : On the west coast, one of the four most
sacred places of India, legendary kingdom of Lord Krishna, Dwar-
akadhish temple. There is also a Rukmini temple, Shankara-
chary a math.
Somnath
(Gujarat): One of the twelve Jyotirlinga shrines of
Shiva.
Nasik
(Maharashtra) : Sundarnarayan temple, Trimbakeshwar
temple, Kala Rama and Kapaleshwar temple; Kumbhmela takes
place here every twelve years.
Shirdi
(Maharashtra) : Samadhi temple of mystic saint Shri Sai
Baba.
Basilica of Bom Jesus
(Goa): In Old Goa, tomb & mortal
remains of St. Francis Xavier who died in 1552, exposed to public
view once every 10 years (next in 1994).
Sravanabelagola
(Karnataka) : Sacred place for Jains, statue of
Gomateshwara, between Indragiri and Chandragiri hills (world's
tallest
monolithic
statue).
Spectacular
Mahamastakabhisheka
every 12-14 years.
Sringeri
(Karnataka) : Adi Shankara's math, on the banks of river
Thunga, Vidyashankar temple with zodiac pillars, Sharada temple
(goddess of learning).
Guruvayur
(Kerala) : Famous temple of Krishna idol believed to
be original which was installed in Dwaraka.
Trivandrum
(Kerala) : Sri Padmanabhaswamy temple, huge idol
of Lord Padmanabha in sleeping pose, constructed by Maharaja of
Travancore in 1733. 388 pillars in temple corridors.
Sabarimala
(Kerala) : Hill top temple of Lord Ayyappa (son of
Shiva & Vishnu). Makara Jyothi on Sankaranti day (January).
Kanyakumari
(Tamil Nadu) : Place where three seas meet, land's
end, extreme southern tip of India, temple of Virgin Goddess,
Vivekananda Rock memorial.
Puttaparthi
(Andhra Pradesh) : Prashanti Nilayam (Abode of
Highest Peace) Ashram and place of residence of Baba. Also
present are Vidya Vihar, Space Theatre, Museum & Shrines
Tirupathi
(Andhra Pradesh) : At the foot of seven hills, famous
for the temple of Sri Balaji (Vishnu), known as Tirumala, Gov-
indarajaswami, Kodandaramaswamy & Padmavathi temple.
Puri
(Orissa) : Temple of Lord Jagannath, Rath Yatra is world
famous.
Dakshineswar
(West Bengal) : Kali temple associated with
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. Belur Math, headquarters of
Ramakrishna Mission founded by Swami Vivekananda.
Nabadwip
(West Bengal) : Birthplace of Sri Chaitanya Maha
Prabhu, pilgrim centre for Vaishnavites.