The Mangalagauri temple

Name : The Mangalagauri temple

Location : Mangalagauri hill in Gaya, Bihar

Legend : This temple has been mentioned in Padma Purana, Vayu Purana and Agni Purana and in other scriptures and tantric works. The present temple dates back to 1459 AD. The shrine is dedicated to Shakti or the mother Goddess in the predominantly Vaishnavite pilgrimage center of Gaya. Mangalagauri is worshiped as the Goddess of benevolence. This temple constitutes an Upa-Shakti Pitha (of 51 Sakthi Peethams) - where it is believed that a part of the body of Shakti fell - according to mythology. Here Shakti is worshiped in the form of a breast symbol, a symbol of nourishment.

The temple is facing east, and is built on top of the Mangalagauri hill. A flight of steps and a motorable road lead to the temple. The sanctum houses the symbol of the Goddess and it also has some finely carved ancient relief sculptures. A small hall or mandap stands in front of the temple. The courtyard also houses a fire pit for the home. There are also two minor shrines dedicated to Shiva and images of Mahishasura Mardini, Durga and Dakshina Kali.

Naina Devi Temple

Name : Naina Devi Temple

Location : Temple of Shri Naina Devi Ji is situated on hill top in Bilaspur Distt. of Himachal Pradesh in India. This famous temple is connected with National Highway No. 21.Nearest Airport is Chandigarh which is connected with New Delhi by Jet Airways and Indian Airlines Flights. The distance of the shrine from Chandigarh is approx. 100 kms.

Legend : According to legends, Sati or Parvati was the daughter of Prajapati Daksha and later, became the consort of Lord Shiva. Once her father insulted Lord Shiva and unable to accept this, she killed herself. When Lord Shiva heard of his wife's death his rage knew no bounds and holding Sati's body he began stalking the three worlds. The other gods trembled before his wrath and appealed to Lord Vishnu for help. Lord Vishnu let fly a volley of arrows which struck Sati's body and severed it to pieces. At the places where the pieces fell, the fifty-one sacred 'shaktipeeths' came into being. It is believed that Sati's eyes fell at the place where this temple is situated. Therefore, this temple is called Naina Devi.

The word Naina is synonymous with Sati's eyes. Since then, devotees started visiting this temple. Once the devotee reaches the hill top, prasad can be bought from any of the various shops or it can also one's own offerings from home. After crossing the main gate, there is a big Peepal tree on the left side. On the right side of the temple there are idols of Lord Hanuman Ji and Ganesh Ji. After reaching the main entrance of the temple, there are two statues of lions.

Inside the temple, devotees have darshan of three deities. On the extreme left is Mata Kali Devi, the centre representing two Netras or eyes is Maa Naina Devi and to right side is idol of Lord Ganesh.

Hanuman Garhi - Nainital

Name : Hanuman Garhi ( Nainital )

Location : Nainital

Description : This place is of religious importance. Situated at a height of 1951 meters this place was established by Baba Neem Kiroli. A very beautiful Hanuman mandir is at the top. From Hanuman Garhi watching the Sunset is very soothing. You can walk down from Nainital to Hanuman Garhi.

The Hanuman Garhi - Ayodhya

Name : The Hanuman Garhi

Location : Situated in the center of Ayodhya, this temple is approachable by a flight of 76 steps.

Legend : It is said that Hanuman lived here in a cave and guarded the Janambhoomi or Ramkot. The main temple contains the statue of Maa Anjani, with Bal Hanuman seated on her lap. The faithful believe that all their wishes are granted with a visit to this holy shrine.

Hanuman Garhi is located in a fort situated at the western gate of Ram Kot as a place of watchman. Hanuman ji, (a brave devotee to Lord Ram) is considered (on the basis of mythological faith), the Kotwal (watchman) of Ayodhya city.

King Vikramaditya constructed this temple of Hanuman ji. After a period Nawab Mansoor Ali constructed a fort around the temple through Tikait Rai which is now famous as Hanuman Garhi. In this temple, golden idol of Shri Hanuman ji in the lap of his mother Anjani is established.

For the management of Hanuman Garhi, there are four arrays of saints named as Haridwari Patti, Basantia Patti, Ujjainia Patti and Sagaria Patti. They have their own Chief as well as a principal Chief who is known as Gaddinashin.

At present, Mahant Shri Ramesh Das is Gaddinashin. In this temple, anniversary of Shri Hanuman ji is celebrated with great enthusiasm.

A massive structure in the shape of a four sided fort with circular bastions at each corner houses a temple of Hanuman and is the most popular shrine in Ayodhya.

Shravanabelagola - Gomateshwara

Name : Gomateshwara

Location : Shravanabelagola, Hassan District situated 158 km away from Bangalore

Description : Gomateshwara or Bahubali is a monolithic statue standing at 60 feet (18 m) above a hill in a place called Shravanabelagola. The statue was built by the Ganga minister and commander Chamundaraya in honour of Lord Bahubali. It was built in the 10th century AD and is the size Jains believe humans used to be. Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, devotees and tourists from all over the world flock to the statue once in 12 years for an event known as Mahamastakabhisheka.

This gigantic statue of lord Bahubali, the Jain saint, is carved out of a single block of granite and stands majestically on top of a hill. For centuries, Shravanabelagola has remained a great Jain center and thousands of pilgrims flock to see the magnificent, gigantic statue. The saint is shown completely nude, in the Jain custom. It is 17 m. (55 ft) high and is visible from a distance of 30km.

This statue is regarded as one of the largest monolithic statues in the world. It was created around 983 AD by Chavundaraya, a minister of the Ganga King, Rachamalla (Raachmalla SathyaVaak IV 975-986 AD). The neighbouring areas have Jaina bastis and several images of the Jaina Thirthankaras. One can have a beautiful view of the surrounding areas from the top of the hill.

Festivals : At Shravanabelagola the Mahamastakabhisheka festival is held once in 12 years, when the image of Gomateshwara is bathed in milk, curds, ghee, saffron and gold coins.

Murudeshwara Temple

Name : Murudeshwara Temple

Location : Murudeshwara is a town in the Bhatkal Taluk of Uttara Kannada district in the state of Karnataka, India.

Deity : "Murudeshwara" is another name of the Hindu god Shiva.

Description : Famous for the world's tallest Shiva statue, this beach town lies on the coast of the Arabian Sea and is also famous for the Murudeshwara Temple.

This temple is built on the Kanduka Hill which is surrounded on three sides by the waters of the Arabian Sea. It is a temple dedicated to the Lord Shiva, and a 20-storied Gopura is being constructed on the temple. Two life-size elephants in concrete stand guard at the steps leading to the temple.



Murudeshwara Fort : A fort present behind the temple is said to have been renovated by Tipu Sultan.

Statue of Lord Shiva : A huge towering statue of Lord Shiva, visible from great distances, is present in the temple complex. It is the tallest statue of Shiva in the world.[1][2] The statue is 123 feet (37 m) in height, and took about 2 years to build. The statue was built by Shivamogga's Kashinath and his son Sridhar and several other sculptors, at a cost of approximately 10 million Rupees. The idol is designed such that it gets the sun light directly and thus appears sparkling.