The city of Dwarka is regarded as the 'Gateway to Moksha (Salvation)'. The term 'Dwarkadish' refers to Lord Krishna, who is regarded as the "Lord of Dwarka". Sri Krishna Temple in Dwaraka is Known as Sri Dwarakadheesh Temple, One of the Best known pilgrim places in the world Around 5000 years ago, Dwarka is believed to have been built by Lord Krishna himself. As per the 'Harivansh' (an appendix to the Mahabharata), Dwarka was positioned on the bank of Gomati River. This holy city is said to have been the abode of Lord Krishna, for more or less 100 years, during his lifetime. Dwarka is assumed to have been immersed in the sea, when the Lord returned to his divine world. In the early eighties, archeological department revealed that the entire coast of western India sank by nearly 40 feet around 1500 B.C. The present temple is expected not to be older than the Mughal period. The inscriptions on the pillars date back to the 15th century. Necessarily, the ancient temple had been there, but it was possibly destroyed by Mohmud Begada in 1473 AD. The current structure must have been erected during the period of Mughal Emperor, Akbar
The majestic five-storied structure of Dwarkadhish Temple stands high on the confluence of Gomati River and Arabian Sea. Built with the support of 72 pillars, Dwarkadhish Mandir presents a sight to behold. Elevated to the height of 78.3 meters, the spire of temple dominates the skyline of Dwarka. An eighty-four foot long multicolored flag, adorned with the symbols of the sun and moon, waves from the dome of temple It is said that originally the temple was built over the 'Hari-Griha' (Lord Krishna's residential place) by Vajranabha, the grandson of Lord Krishna. Dating back to 2500 years, Jagat Mandir (Nija Mandir) makes the sanctum sanctorum of Dwarkadheesh Temple. It comprises a soaring tower and a hall of audience. The audience hall is comprised of both, ancient and existing sculptures. The temple can be entered by two doorways. The main doorway (north entrance) is known as "Moksha Dwara" (Door to Salvation), whereas the southern doorway is called as "Swarga Dwara" (Gate to Heaven). The outer side of this doorway has 56 steps that take to the Gomati River. Legend behind the Idol There is a legend behind the idol of Lord Dwarkadhish in the temple. Badana, an old devotee, used to come daily from Dakor to Dwarka, in order to have a glimpse of the Lord Dwarkadhish. The Lord was really appeased with her and one day, he went along with Badana to Dakor, in the form of idol. The priests at Dwarka temple got angry at Badana, who took the idol according to them. The enraged priests chased Badana to get back the idol. Badana convinced the priests to leave the idol instead of gold. The priests agreed upon the condition and to their surprise, the idol happened to be as light as one nose-ring. This miracle was done by the Lord himself, as he knew Badana had only a nose-ring to offer. However, the Lord didn't disappoint the priests and said that they would find a replica on a particular day. The priests could not resist their inquisitiveness and excavated the recommended site quite early. They found one yet to grow idol that is presently enshrined at Dwarka. In the main shrine, the central altar embraces the idol of Lord Dwarkadheesh. The image is presented in the form of four-armed Vishnu (Lord Krishna is the incarnation of Lord Vishnu) known as Trivikrama Apart from this main idol, there are idols of Baldevaji (Balrama), Pradyumna and Aniruddha (grandsons of Lord Krishna) too. There is a small shrine dedicated to Kuseswara Mahadeva (Shiva) also. Besides these, there are shrines dedicated to Devaki (mother of Lord Krishna), Veni-madhava (Lord Vishnu), Radhika, Jambuvati, Satyabhama, Lakshmi, Saraswati and Lakshmi-Narayan in the temple complex In the temple, worship or puja is conducted by Aboti Brahmins (a particular caste of Brahmins, who have been performing pooja for centuries). Every day, Arti is performed at regular intervals and 'abhishek' (bathing ceremony) is done. The Lord is decked in new clothes, jewels and flowers.Janmashtami is the major festival that is celebrated at Dwarkadhish Temple. At the time of festival, the entire temple is festooned with lights. Every year, the temple witness millions of devotees and pilgrims, who come to seek salvation, with the blessings of the Lord. May Lord Krishna bless our souls with salvation and make our lives free of pain, suffering and our bad karmas. Nageshwar near Dwarka in Gujarat is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga Shrines of Shiva. Lord Krishna Himself used to worship it and perform Rudrabhishekam. It is believed as the first Jyotirlinga on the earth. At the entrace of the temple , there is a 60 feet statue of Lord Shiva May Lord Shiva bless us to get rid of all the negative energies with in us ,which influence our lives and act as poison . We not only retain this poison within us but also spread it in the lives of all our loved ones. The jyotirlinga enshrined in the temple of Nagnath is known as Nageshwar Mahadev and attracts thousands of pilgrims all round the year. This powerful jyotirlinga symbolizes protection from all poisons and those who pray to the Nageshwar Linga therefore become poison free. Nageshwar Mahadev Sivalingam is facing South while the Gomugam is facing east. There is a story for this position. A devotee by name Naamdev was singing bhajans in front of the Lord. Other devotees asked him to stand aside and not hide the Lord. To this Naamdev asked them to suggest one direction in which the Lord does not exist, so that he can stand there. The enraged devotees carried him and left him on the southside. To their astonishment, they found that the Linga was now facing South with the Gomugam facing east. There once lived a rakshasa called Daruka, who was extremely cruel and tortured the good ones. But yet he was a great devotee of Lord Siva. A Siva devotee, Supriya who was a merchant reached the Darukavanam, where Daruka lived with his wife Daruki, while sailing with his goods. Daruka asked Supriya to teach him the path of devotion to Siva, the norms of performing pooja and penance. Fearing that Daruka would use any additional powers gained by such penance, to bad use, Supriya refused to guide him. The enraged Daruka began to torture Supriya. Supriya however was staunch is his faith in the Lord and was unmoved by any torture. Lord Siva was pleased and appeared and killed the demon Daruka. Daruki, Darukas wife, now started giving even more trouble than her husband. Siva vanquished her too and gives darshan to his devotees at this place as Nageshwar. This Jyotirlinga manifestation of Shiva is worshipped as Nageswara. Two other sites in India, one near Audhgram near Purna in Andhra Pradesh and another near Almora in Uttar Pradesh also enshrine temples to Nageswara Jyotirlingam. Rudra Prashna Veda chant in the Nageshwar temple According to the Shiv Purana, any one who ever with devotion reads the birth and greatness of this Jyotirlinga shall beget all material happiness and divine status in the end. Do not miss the video of the Shiv Mahapuran where you can see the Nageshwar Jyotirling ki katha... Click to the below links to see the video Nageshwar ki Katha- [11.1 to 11.5] Part 1 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGMHwSZ_wpg Part 2 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4Nd9mV0WCM Part 3 - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Al0uucZU4f0 Part 4- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EB9g1SI7RaI Part 5- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R8aZYwHV3Kc May Shri Nageshwar
