NAGESHWAR JYOTIRLINGA

The Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is located in Dwarka, on the coast of Saurashtra, in Gujarat. It is one of the 12 jyotirlingas in the world. A 25-meter tall statue of  Lord Shiva and a huge garden with a pond are the main attractions that attract devotees here every year. Some archaeological excavations claim five earlier cities at the site.

History

The Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is related to the devil Daaruka and the Shiva’s devotee Supriya. Supriya was once imprisoned along with numerous others in the city. Supriya asked everyone to chant Shiva’s name. Everybody there did so and the devil Daaruka was beaten by Shiva. Shiva then lived there in the form of jyotirlinga.

Later on, Daaruki worshipper of Mata Parvati penanced with high worship. She was blessed to be the owner of the forest where she did meditation. The forest was called Daarukavana after her name and it used to follow her anywhere she went. She afterward moved the forest to the sea to continue their work of kidnapping people and other evil works.

Supriya appeared there setting the linga of Shiva and asked culprits to shout the mantra of Shiva. Devils attempted to eliminate Supriya however Shiva appeared there. Shiva blessed Supriya with a weapon to save a life. Daaruki and some devils were defeated. Other devils were protected by Parvati to satisfy her promise to Daaruki. The lingam established by Supriya became known as Nagesha and Parvati lived in the form of Nageshwari.

The second legend is that according to the Shiv Purana, hundreds of years ago two demons Daruka and Daruki lived in Darukavan. Daruka was blessed by Goddess Parvati. However, he misused the blessings and terrorized the local folks. One such time, he imprisoned a local woman, Supriya. Supriya told her fellow inmates to take the name of Lord Shiva and no harm would come to them. When Daruka heard this, he was enraged. He rushed to kill her but Lord Shiv appeared to protect her. As Daruka was blessed by his own wife, the Lord could not kill him so instead, he took the form of a lingam and promised to protect Supriya and the local folks forever in Dwarka.

Importance

The significance of the Nageshwar temple is that this powerful Jyotirlinga secures the devotees from all kinds of poison. Devotees also believe that the one who wishes to the lord becomes free of poison i.e.negativities. The lingam at Nageshwar is special as it consists of a stone widely considered as the Dwarka Stone. Lord Shiva in the form of Nageshwar Jyotirlinga shows the right path to his worshipers.

Idol

The idol of the deity, Nageshwar Mahadev Sivalingam is facing South while the Gomugam is east facing.

Architecture

• This Temple is Constructed in the Western style of architecture and following the concepts of Vaastu Shashtra, the Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is organized on the Sayanam (sleeping) posture of the body. It is divided into 5 main parts/portions:
• Mahadwar (feet): the main gate to the temple, devotees enter through the feet
• Entrance Porch (hands): It falls in between the 2 spiritual idols of Lord Hanuman and Lord Ganesh symbolizing the 2 hands
• Sabha Mandapa (abdomen and chest): The primary prayer hall comprising prayer seats is strongly believed to symbolize the human abdomen and chest
• Antarala: This is the worship place of Nandi, Lord Shiva’s vehicle
• Garbhagriha (head): Housing the main Shiva Linga, the garbagriha is the head in the human body

Other Place Near Nageshwar Temple

• Siddeshwar Mahadev Temple
• Swaminarayan Temple
• Sudama Setu
• Dwarkadhish temple
• Gopi talav
• Bhadkeshwar Mahadev Mandir
• Gomti river
• Rukshamanee Mandir
• Bet Dwarka

Festivals

• Mahashivrarti
• Shravan

Legend Of Jyotirlingas

• According to the Shiva Purana, Brahma and Vishnu had an argument in terms of the supremacy of creation. In order to resolve the dispute, Shiva decided to pierce the 3 worlds as a countless pillar of light. Both Vishnu and Brahma started downwards and upwards respectively to discover the end of the light. Brahma lied that he had discovered the end while Vishnu accepted that he could not and accepted defeat. Shiva cursed Brahma and as punishment for lying to him, Brahma would not be part of any ceremonies while Vishnu would always be worshipped.

• The jyotirlinga is the supreme partless reality, out of which Shiva partly appears. The jyothirlinga temples, hence are locations where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. Each of the twelve jyothirlinga sites takes the name of the presiding deity– each believed to be a various manifestation of Shiva. At all these sites, the main image is the jyotirlingam representing the infinite nature of Shiva. The twelve jyotirlingas are Somnath in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna in Andhra Pradesh, Mahakaleswar in Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath in Himalayas, Bhimashankar in Maharastra, Viswanath at Varanasi, Triambakeshwar in Maharastra, Vaidyanath in Jharkhand, Nageshwar at Dwarka, Rameshwar in Tamil Nadu and Grishneshwar in Maharastra

12 Jyotirlingas of Shiva in India

1. Somnath Jyotirlinga – Gir Somnath in Gujarat
2. Somnath Jyotirlinga – Gir Somnath in Gujarat
3. Nageshwar Jyotirling – Daarukavanam in Gujarat
4. Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga – Pune in Maharashtra
5. Trimbakeshwar Jyotirling – Nashik in Maharashtra
6. Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga – Aurangabad in Maharashtra
7. Baidyanath Jyotirlinga – Deoghar in Jharkhand
8. Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga – Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh
9. Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga – Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh
10. Kashi Vishwanath Jyotirlinga – Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh
11. Kedarnath Jyotirling – Kedarnath in Uttarakhand
12. Rameshwaram Jyotirlinga – Rameshwaram Island in Tamil Nadu
13. Mallikarjuna Jyotirling – Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh

How To Reach

By Air – The nearby Airport is Porbandar Airport and it is about 116 km from Nageshwar Temple. 

By Train – The Dwarka Railway Station is located near Nageshwar Temple and is about 15 km from the Temple. 

By Road – There are government-run buses available and also private deluxe buses available from the main cities of Gujarat to Dwarka. 

Temple Timings

Temple Darshan Timing

Darshan	06:00 AM TO 09:00 PM
Shringar Darshan	04:00 PM to 04:30 PM

Temple Aarti Timing

Shayan Aarti	07:00 PM to 07:30 PM
Nightly Aarti	09:00 PM to 09:30 PM