Twelve Jyotirlingas are the divine forms of Lord Shiva, the Supreme God. The term Jyotirlinga is a Sanskrit word, in which Jyothi means light and Lingam means a form of Lord Shiva. So, the term literally means “the radiance of Lord Shiva”. According to Shiva Purana, there is a total of sixty-four Jyotirlinga shrines across India and Nepal, out of which twelve are popular in present day. Hence referred to as Dwadasha (Twelve) Jyotirlinga.
Sri Adi Shankaracharya composed a Stotram (shloka) addressed to all 12 Jyotirlingas which is as follows.
Dwadasha/Twelve Jyotirlinga Stotram:
सौराष्ट्रे सोमनाधञ्च श्रीशैले मल्लिकार्जुनम् ।
उज्जयिन्यां महाकालम् ॐकारेत्वमामलेश्वरम् ॥
पर्ल्यां वैद्यनाधञ्च ढाकिन्यां भीम शङ्करम् ।
सेतुबन्धेतु रामेशं नागेशं दारुकावने ॥
वारणाश्यान्तु विश्वेशं त्रयम्बकं गौतमीतटे ।
हिमालयेतु केदारं घृष्णेशन्तु विशालके ॥
एतानि ज्योतिर्लिङ्गानि सायं प्रातः पठेन्नरः ।
सप्त जन्म कृतं पापं स्मरणेन विनश्यति ॥
This beautiful stotram addressed to twelve jyotirlinga aids to remember the names and places of 12 holy jyotirlingas.
The story behind emerging of Twelve Jyotirlingas:
As per Shiva Purana once there was an argument between Lord Vishnu and Lord Brahma about each other’s supremacy. Seeing this, Lord Shiva took the form of a luminous pillar and threw a challenge to both saying whoever finds the end or source of the pillar will be declared as the superior.
Lord Vishnu took the form of a boar and went downwards to find the end. Similarly, Lord Brahma turned into a swan and flew upwards to find the origin. After days passed both came back to Lord Shiva. Lord Vishnu accepted his failure whereas, Lord Brahma chose to lie. Furious Lord Shiva cursed Lord Brahma saying he is not fortunate enough to be worshiped. Then after, the infinite pillar (Lord Shiva) emerged in 64 places on earth, thus forming 64 Jyotirlingas. As the jyotirlingas are the manifestation of Shiva himself, these are also known as Swayambhoo lingas.
Among the twelve Jyotirlingas, two are in the sea, three are on the banks of rivers, four are on top of mountains, and three are in villages/towns.
In this article let’s take a glance at 12 Holy Jyotirlingas in India.
- Lord Someshawara or Somanatha is first among all Jyotirlingas in India. It is situated in Saurashtra (Now Prabhasa) town in Gujarat. The legendary story behind this temple is that: The Moon or Chandra married twenty-seven daughters of King Daksha Prajapathi out of which he was very much fond of Rohini. Seeing this injustice to his remaining daughters, Daksha cursed the Moon to lose his luster. As a result, the entire Universe became dark and unstable. Seeing this, all the other Gods asked Moon to pray to Lord Shiva for the reoccurrence of his luster. The Moon hence took bath in the river Saraswathi and prayed to Lord Shiva after which he regained his Prabhasa (lustre). For the same reason, the name is given to the city. People believe on every moonless day (Amavasya) the moon prays to Lord Shiva in the same region to regain his luster. Hence the name Somanatha / Someshwara, in which Soma means Moon. It also says that this temple was built in Dwapar Yuga by Lord Krishna himself using pure sandalwood.
- According to history, the Somanatha temple has been attacked by many Islam rulers several times and the same was rebuilt after its destruction. The present-day temple was built under the supervision of the first Home Minister of India Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
- Mallikarjuna of Srishaila, Andhra Pradesh takes second place among jyotirlingas. This temple is located on the banks of river Krishna and is surrounded by Kadhali plants (Plantain), Bilva trees (Bael or Bhel tree), and Patalagange. The presiding deities of this place are Sri Mallikarjuna and Devi Bhramaramba.
- Coming to the mythological story; Once Lord Shiva and Parvathi gave a task to their two sons to go around the world and come back. They said, “whoever comes first will be worshiped as the primary deity in future days”. Immediately Lord Karthikeya began his tour on his vehicle, Peacock. Whereas, Lord Ganesha revolved around his parents and said “you both are my world”. Rejoiced Lord Shiva and Parvathi announced Ganesha as the primary deity. Aggravated by this, Lord Karthikeya settled in Krauncha Giri (known as the first abode of Lord Murugan in South India). Concerning this, the parents’ Shiva and Parvathi started to visit their son at this place on every moonless day and full moon day respectively. The same place is the present-day Srishaila, says the story.
- History: It says that the Maratha ruler Shivaji used to worship Lord Mallikarjuna on every Shivaratri. He also built a hall for rice consecration on the right side of the temple. Whereas, the other premises of the temple was built by the Vijayanagara rulers.
- Lord Shiva is worshipped as Mahaklaeshwar in Ujjain of Madhya Pradesh. As the golden pots are placed on the top of many temples in this place, Ujjain is also called Swarnshringa. Mahakaleshwar is addressed as King of Ujjain and is the only Jyotirlinga facing the South direction. This place is located on the banks of river Kshipra. This is the only place where Bhasmabhishekha is done to Lord Shiva. Every morning the rituals start here only after applying Bhasma (ash) to the jyotirlinga at 4.00 A.M.
- The story behind this temple: The ruler of Ujjain, King Chandrasena, and his citizens were great devotees of Lord Shiva. Once, two demons namely Triputhamana and Dhooshana attacked the empire and started troubling everyone. The people there prayed to Lord Shiva to save them, the Lord pleased by his devotees’ prayers, came to them and rescued them from the evil demons. People praised the Lord and requested him to stay with them forever and safeguard them. Lord Mahakala settled there as per people’s wish. Ujjain is the pioneer place to learn about art, religion, and science and is called as Aadhyapeetha.
- This is another Jyotirlinga in the state of Madhya Pradesh. Situated in Khandwa, surrounded by the river Narmada and its tributary, this place looks in shape of Om and hence the name Omkareshwar. There is practice at this place, after worshiping the Lord, people go to the river Narmada and make Lingas out of the sand there and pray. Believers say that worship is incomplete without this practice.
- The story behind this says, Mandhatha, ancestor of Lord Rama prayed to Lord Shiva in this place and attained salvation (moksha). There is also a belief that Lord Shiva travels through all the Jyotirlingas and rests at Omkareshwar. Along with Nirakara Shiva, Lord Brahma and Vishnu are also worshiped in this place.
- This is the pioneer Jyotirlingas among the twelve, where the Linga is in the shape of a triangle. Located in the Himalayan range, in Uttarkhand this temple is covered by snow all over. As we all know Kedarnath opens only six months a year, the rest six months it’s closed due to heavy snowfall. Before closing the temple, the priests light the ghee lantern and take out the Lingam/idol and place it in the Urvi Mutt in the valley.
- According to our mythology, Pandavas saw Lord Shiva here and built the temple. The tale says that, after the Kurukshetra war, Pandavas went in search of Lord Shiva to get rid of their sins of killing Kauravas. They first went to Varanasi but didn’t find him there. Meanwhile, Lord Shiva to test the devotion of Pandavas migrated from Varanasi to Gupta Kashi and then to Kedarnath. Knowing this, the Pandavas also reached Kedarnath. There Lord Ishwara threw another game before Pandavas by disguising himself as an Ox. Discovering this, Bheema stepped on two hills at a time and blocked the path of Oxen. All the oxen crossed the blockage, while Bheema chased the one which didn’t cross. After a while, the Ox went underground but Bhima managed to hold the hump of the Ox. Glad by this, Lord Shiva appeared before Pandavas, blessed them, and helped them in attaining salvation.
- It is the only jyotirlinga in the form of Ardhanareeshwara, that is both Shiva and Parvathi in the form of one Lingam. It is situated on the crests of the Sahyadri mountain range in a place called Dhakini near Pune, Maharashtra. There are two different stories that talk about the origin of this temple.
- One legend says, once there was a demon named Tripurasura who was harassing humans and Gods by his evil nature. The Gods thus prayed to Lord Shiva for help. Then Lord Shiva along with his consort Parvathi appeared there as Ardhanareeshwara and killed the demon. Then the Ardhanareeshwara inhabited the banks of river Bhima as Bhimashankara.
- Another tale tells that: Kumbhakarna’s (younger brother of Ravana) son Bhima, a demon lived along with his mother in the Dhakini forests. Learning that Lord Rama killed his father, Bhima performed a penance to please Lord Brahma. The Lord then gave him the boon of immense strength. Bhima troubled people and imprisoned King Kamrupeshwar who was a great devotee of Lord Shiva. He prayed in front of a lingam in the prison. Bhima then raised his sword to destroy the idol. Then Lord Shiva appeared and burnt him to ashes. Thus, the deity there became popular as Bhimashankara.
So, here ends this short pilgrimage to six Jyotirlinga shrines. But this is not the end yet, next article is coming to take you to remain six Jyotirlingas of India. Until then keep scrolling Curiousport to know interesting facts about our mythology, customs, and cultures.
Read Remaining Jyotirlingas Stories: 12 Jyotirlingas and their stories – part two
Jyotirlingas kumi na mbili ni maumbo ya kimungu ya Bwana Shiva, Mungu Mkuu. Neno Jyotirlinga ni neno la Kisanskrit, ambalo katika Jyothi linamaanisha nuru na Lingam inamaanisha aina ya Bwana Shiva. Kwa hiyo, neno hilo kihalisi humaanisha "ng'ao la Bwana Shiva". Kulingana na Shiva Purana, kuna jumla ya madhabahu 64 za Jyotirlinga kote India na Nepal, ambazo kumi na mbili ni maarufu leo. Kwa hiyo inajulikana kama Dwadasha (Kumi na Mbili) Jyotirlinga. Sri Adi Shankaracharya aliandika Stotra (Shloka) iliyoelekezwa kwa Jyotirlinga zote kumi na mbili ambazo ni kama ifuatavyo. "Wakati wa kuzaliwa kwa Yesu, Yesu aliitwa ""Mwanamke wa Milima ya Milima"" na ""Mwanamke wa Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima ya Milima.""" Hadithi nyuma ya kuibuka kwa Jyootirlingas kumi na mbili: Kama kwa Shiva Purana mara moja kulikuwa na mjadala kati ya Bwana Vishnu na Bwana Brahma kuhusu ukuu wa kila mmoja. "Mungu Shiva alipokuwa akiona hilo, alichukua umbo la nguzo yenye mwangaza na kuwapa changamoto wote wawili akisema, ""Yeyote atakayepata mwisho au chanzo cha nguzo hiyo, ataitwa mkuu.""" Bwana Vishnu alichukua umbo la mbwa mwitu na kwenda chini ili kupata mwisho. Vivyo hivyo, Bwana Brahma aligeuka kuwa swan na kuruka juu ili kupata chanzo. Baada ya siku kupita wote wawili walirudi kwa Bwana Shiva. Bwana Vishnu alikubali kushindwa kwake ilhali, Bwana Brahma alichagua kusema uwongo. Bwana Shiva mwenye hasira alimlaani Bwana Brahma akisema kwamba hana bahati ya kutosha kuabudiwa. "Kisha, nguzo ya infinity (Mungu Shiva) ilitokea katika maeneo 64 duniani, hivyo kuunda 64 Jyotirlingas. """ Kwa kuwa jiotirlingas ni maonyesho ya Shiva mwenyewe, hizi pia zinajulikana kama lingas Swayambhoo. Kati ya Jyotirlingas kumi na mbili, mbili ziko baharini, tatu ziko kwenye kingo za mito, nne ziko juu ya milima, na tatu ziko katika vijiji au miji. Katika makala hii hebu tuangalie Jyotirlingas 12 Takatifu nchini India. - Bwana Someshawara au Somanatha ni wa kwanza kati ya Jyotirlingas zote nchini India. Iko katika mji wa Saurashtra (Sasa Prabhasa) huko Gujarat. "Mungu wa mwezi, Chandra, aliolewa na binti 27 za mfalme Daksha Prajapati, ambaye alikuwa na shauku kubwa kwa Rohini.""" Alipoona ukosefu huo wa haki kwa binti zake waliobaki, Daksha alilaani Mwezi ili apoteze kung'aa kwake. Matokeo yakawa kwamba ulimwengu wote ukawa mweusi na usio na uthabiti. Kwa kuona hili, miungu mingine yote ilimwomba Moon amwombe Bwana Shiva ili mwangaza wake urudi. Kwa hiyo Mwezi aloga katika mto Saraswathi na kuomba kwa Bwana Shiva baada ya yeye alipata tena Prabhasa yake (luste). Kwa sababu hiyohiyo, jiji hilo limepewa jina hilo. Watu wanaamini kwamba kila siku isiyo na mwezi (Amavasya) mwezi husali kwa Bwana Shiva katika eneo hilo ili kupata tena mwangaza wake. Kwa hiyo jina Somanatha Someshwara, ambapo Soma inamaanisha Mwezi. Pia inasema kwamba hekalu hili lilijengwa katika Dwapar Yuga na Bwana Krishna mwenyewe kwa kutumia mbao safi ya msonobari. Hekalu la Somanath limepigwa na wafalme wa Kiislamu mara kadhaa na lilijengwa upya baada ya kuharibiwa. Hekalu la leo lilijengwa chini ya usimamizi wa Waziri wa Kwanza wa Mambo ya Ndani wa India Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. - Mallikarjuna wa Srishaila, Andhra Pradesh anachukua nafasi ya pili kati ya Jyotirlingas. Hekalu hili liko kwenye kingo za mto Krishna na limezungukwa na mimea ya Kadhali (Plantain), miti ya Bilva (Bael au mti wa Bhel), na Patalagange. Miungu inayoongoza mahali hapa ni Sri Mallikarjuna na Devi Bhramaramba. - Kuja kwa hadithi ya hadithi; Wakati mmoja Bwana Shiva na Parvathi waliwapa kazi wana wao wawili kwenda kuzunguka ulimwengu na kurudi. Walisema, "yule atakayekuja kwanza ataabudiwa kama mungu mkuu katika siku za baadaye". Mara moja Bwana Karthikeya alianza ziara yake kwenye gari lake, Peacock. Wakati, Bwana Ganesha alizunguka wazazi wake na kusema "ninyi wawili ni ulimwengu wangu". Bwana Shiva na Parvathi walifurahi na kumtangaza Ganesha kuwa mungu mkuu. Akiwa amechanganyikiwa na jambo hilo, Bwana Karthikeya aliishi katika Krauncha Giri (iliyojulikana kama makao ya kwanza ya Bwana Murugan katika India Kusini). Kuhusu hili, wazazi <unk> Shiva na Parvathi walianza kumtembelea mwana wao katika mahali hapa kila siku isiyo na mwezi na siku ya mwezi kamili. Mahali hapo ndipo ambapo sasa kuna Srishaila, masimulizi hayo husema. - Historia: Inasema kwamba mtawala wa Maratha Shivaji alitumia kumwabudu Bwana Mallikarjuna kila Shivaratri. Pia alijenga jumba la kuwekwa wakfu kwa mchele upande wa kulia wa hekalu. Wakati, majengo mengine ya hekalu yalijengwa na watawala wa Vijayanagara. - Bwana Shiva huabudiwa kama Mahaklaeshwar huko Ujjain ya Madhya Pradesh. Kwa kuwa vyombo vya dhahabu vimewekwa juu ya mahekalu mengi katika mahali hapa, Ujjain pia huitwa Swarnshringa. Mahakaleshwar anatajwa kama Mfalme wa Ujjain na ni Jyotirlinga pekee inayoelekea upande wa Kusini. Mahali hapa pana kando ya mto Kshipra. Hii ndiyo mahali pekee ambapo Bhasmabhisheka hufanywa kwa Bwana Shiva. Kila asubuhi, ibada huanza hapa tu baada ya kutumia Bhasma (mvua) kwenye Jyotirlinga saa 4 asubuhi. - Hadithi ya nyuma ya hekalu hili: Mtawala wa Ujjain, Mfalme Chandrasena, na raia wake walikuwa waabudu wakubwa wa Bwana Shiva. Wakati mmoja, pepo wawili, yaani, Triputhamana na Dhooshana, walishambulia milki hiyo na kuanza kuwasumbua kila mtu. Watu walipoomba kwa Bwana Shiva kuwaokoa, Bwana alifurahi na maombi ya waabudu wake, alikuja kwao na kuwaokoa kutoka kwa pepo waovu. Watu walimsifu Bwana na kumwomba abaki pamoja nao milele na kuwahifadhi. Bwana Mahakala aliishi huko kulingana na tamaa ya watu. Ujjain ni mahali pa upainia pa kujifunza kuhusu sanaa, dini, na sayansi na inaitwa kama Aadhyapeetha. - Hii ni Jyotirlinga nyingine katika jimbo la Madhya Pradesh. Iko katika Khandwa, imezungukwa na mto Narmada na kijito chake, mahali hapa inaonekana katika umbo la Om na kwa hivyo jina Omkareshwar. Katika eneo hili, baada ya kumwabudu Bwana, watu huenda kwenye mto Narmada na kufanya Linga kutoka kwa mchanga huko na kuomba. Waamini husema kwamba ibada haijakamilika bila zoea hilo. - Hadithi nyuma ya hii inasema, Mandhata, babu wa Bwana Rama aliomba kwa Bwana Shiva katika mahali hapa na kufikia wokovu (moksha). Pia kuna imani kwamba Bwana Shiva husafiri kupitia Jyotirlingas zote na kupumzika huko Omkareshwar. Pamoja na Nirakara Shiva, Bwana Brahma na Vishnu pia huabudiwa katika mahali hapa. Hii ni ya kwanza Jyotirlingas kati ya kumi na mbili, ambapo Linga ni katika umbo la pembetatu. Hekalu hili lililoko katika safu ya milima ya Himalaya, huko Uttarkhand limefunikwa na theluji kila mahali. Kama tunavyojua wote Kedarnath hufunguliwa miezi sita tu kwa mwaka, miezi sita iliyobaki imefungwa kwa sababu ya theluji nyingi. Kabla ya kufunga hekalu, makuhani huwasha taa ya ghee na kuchukua Lingam Idol na kuiweka katika Urvi Mutt katika bonde. - Kulingana na hekaya zetu, Pandavas aliona Bwana Shiva hapa na kujenga hekalu. Hadithi inasema kwamba baada ya vita vya Kurukshetra, Pandavas walienda kumtafuta Bwana Shiva ili kuondoa dhambi zao za kuua Kauravas. Kwanza walienda Varanasi lakini hawakumpata huko. Wakati huohuo, Bwana Shiva ili kujaribu ujitoaji wa Pandavas alihamia kutoka Varanasi hadi Gupta Kashi na kisha hadi Kedarnath. Wakijua hilo, Wapandawa pia walifika Kedarnath. Huko Bwana Ishwara alitupa mchezo mwingine mbele ya Pandavas kwa kujificha kama Ng'ombe-dume. Alipotambua hilo, Bheema alitembea juu ya vilima viwili kwa wakati mmoja na kuzuia njia ya Ng'ombe. Ng'ombe wote walivuka kizuizi hicho, huku Bheema akimfukuza yule ambaye hakuvuka. Baada ya muda, Ng'ombe huyo alienda chini ya ardhi lakini Bhima aliweza kushikilia kiganja cha Ng'ombe huyo. Akiwa na furaha kwa sababu hiyo, Bwana Shiva alionekana mbele ya Pandavas, akawabariki, na kuwasaidia kupata wokovu. - Ni Jyotirlinga pekee katika fomu ya Ardhanareeshwara, kwamba ni wote Shiva na Parvathi katika fomu ya Lingam moja. Iko kwenye vilele vya safu ya milima ya Sahyadri katika mahali paitwacho Dhakini karibu na Pune, Maharashtra. Kuna hadithi mbili tofauti zinazozungumzia chanzo cha hekalu hili. "Kama hadithi inaonyesha, ""Mungu wa majini"" aliitwa Tripurashtra, ambaye alikuwa akisumbua wanadamu na miungu kwa asili yake mbaya." Hivyo miungu ilimwomba Bwana Shiva msaada. Kisha Bwana Shiva pamoja na mke wake Parvathi alionekana huko kama Ardhanareeshwara na kuua pepo. Kisha Ardhanareeshwara aliishi kando ya mto Bhima kama Bhimashankara. - Hadithi nyingine husema kwamba: Kumbhakarna's (ndugu mdogo wa Ravana) mwana Bhima, pepo aliishi pamoja na mama yake katika misitu Dhakini. Alipojifunza kwamba Bwana Rama alimuua baba yake, Bhima alifanya toba ili kumfurahisha Bwana Brahma. Kisha Bwana akampa neema ya nguvu nyingi sana. Bhima aliwasumbua watu na kumfunga Mfalme Kamrupeshwar ambaye alikuwa mfuasi mkubwa wa Bwana Shiva. Aliomba mbele ya lingam gerezani. Kisha Bhima akainua upanga wake ili kuharibu sanamu hiyo. Kisha Bwana Shiva akajitokeza na kumchoma moto na kuwa majivu. Hivyo, mungu huyo huko akawa maarufu kama Bhimashankara. Kwa hiyo, hapa mwisho wa ziara hii fupi ya ziara ya patakatifu sita vya Jyotirlinga. Lakini hii si mwisho bado, makala ijayo inakuja kuchukua wewe kubaki sita Jyotirlingas ya India. Mpaka wakati huo endelea kuteleza Curiousport kujua ukweli wa kuvutia kuhusu hadithi zetu, desturi, na tamaduni. Jiji la Jyoti Lingam: 12 Jyoti Lingam na Hadithi zao