Somnath Temple

Somnath

Ancient Glory Known as prabhAsa kshetra, Somnath occupied a much-esteemed place in the Hindu holy places. It finds many references in the Puranas & itihAsas. 

   The inner temple of the Garbhashay was supported to be aglow with the luster of these gemstones. The Nanda Deep was always kept lighted with Kannauji attar. The treasure of the temple was forever full of vast wealth and was kept safe.

For the worship of the Lord and Abhishek (worship with holy water) sandalwood-scented water was brought from Haridwar, Prayag Kashi every day. However, flowers for special festivities were imported from Kashmir. For the routine daily worship, one thousand Brahmins were appointed. About three hundred and fifty dancing girls were appointed for the regular music and dance concerts that took place in the Temple courts.

This religious place of worship was earning the produce of ten thousand villages. Among the twelve JyotirLingas (Lingas of light) Somanath is considered the primary one. Because this deity is supposed to be Swayanbhu (self-born) and is always awake, lakhs of devotees visited this temple and considered themselves blessed and to have achieved piety. Offerings made by crores of devotees amounted to crores of rupees which kept the Temple always rich and abundant. Along with this, the Sun worshipping foreigners (probably Parsis) also contributed a part of their profits to the temple treasury which kept its coffers full, all the time.

Somnath Temple

Sthala Puranamu 

Chandra, (moon) was the first one to receive the benefit boon of Shri Somanath of Saurashtra, the Shiva pilgrimage, Agni Teerth, and Surya Teerth. Then Chandra built a beautiful golden temple and put a glorious JyotirLinga in it, the first of its kind in India.

According to Prabhaskhand of Skanda Purana, the legend goes like this:

Chandra married the twenty-seven daughters (stars) of Daksha, but was very partial and showed lot more love and affection to Rohini. The remaining twenty-six wives not only felt neglected but also insulted. They were disappointed with their husband and went and complained to their father. Daksha was upset to see his daughters suffer thus, and tried twice to convince his son-in-law to change himself, but in vain. He put a curse on him that Chandra would be “decreasing” in size.

The Devas (Celestial gods) were very sad at Chandra’s plight and went to Brahma. The Creator, in order to find out a remedy for the condition of Chandra and get a solution for redressing the curse. Brahma told them that the only way out was to worship Vrishabhdhwaj Shankar at Prabhas Kshetra Mahamrityunjay. Chandra went on a penance for six months and prayed to Lord Shiva, at the end of which Shankara appeared before him. He gave Chandra the boon that in a month, he would grow for fifteen days in one half, and in the other half, he would keep losing one Kala (shade) per day and decrease in size. He was pleased with the Devas and in order to increase the prestige of the place, Lord Shiva Himself came to be known as Someshwar, meaning the famous moon (Soma). The Devas established a Someshwar Kund there. By taking a holy dip in this pond or Kund, it is believed that one would obtain release from all the sins.

Chandra or moon is also called Som. That is why this JyotirLinga has become famous as Somanath. Chandra or the moon looks very bright here. Therefore, this place is also known as “Prabhasapattana”. Later, Shri Somnath Mandir was built by Ravana from Rupa in the Treta yuga and Lord Krishna fro Chandran. Emperor Vikramaditya built the temple in the kali yuga.

Somnath temple stands at the shore of the Arabian ocean on the western corner of the Indian subcontinent in Gujarat State. This pilgrimage is one of the oldest and finds its reference in ancient texts like Skandpuran, Shreemad Bhagavat, Shivpuran, etc. The hymn from Rig-Veda quoted below mentions the Bhagavan Someshwar along with great pilgrimages like Gangaji, Yamunaji, and Eastward Saraswati. This signifies the ancient value of this Tirthdham.

Somnath is in Prabhas Patan very near to Veraval. 

The Moon God is said to have been relieved from the curse of his father-in-law Daksha Prajapati by the blessings of Bhagavan Somnath. In the Shiva Purana and Nandi Upapurana, Shiva said, `I am always present everywhere but especially in 12 forms and places as the jyotirlingas`. Somnath is one of these 12 holy places. This is the first among the twelve holy Shiva Jyotirlingas.

The shore temple of Somnath is believed to have been built in 4 phases-in gold by Lord Soma, in silver by Ravi, wood by lord Krishna and stone by King Bhimadeva. It has withstood the six-repeated desecration by the Muslim invaders. The very existence of this temple is a symbol of the reconstructive spirit and cultural unity of our society. The seventh existing temple is built in the Kailas Mahameru Prasad style. The Iron man of India Sardar Shri Vallabhbhai Patel is the pioneer of the existing temple. The temple is consisting of Garbhgruh, Sabhamandap, and Nrityamandap with a 150 feet high Shikhar.

The Kalash at the top of the Shikhar weighs 10 tons and the Dhwajdand is 27 feet tall and 1 foot in circumference. The Abadhit Samudra Marg, Tirsthambh (Arrow) indicates the unobstructed sea route to the South Pole. The nearest land to the South Pole is about 9936 km. away. This is a wonderful indicator of the ancient Indian wisdom of geography and the strategic location of the Jyotirling. The temple renovated by Maharani Ahalyabai is adjacent to the main temple complex.

Hari Har Tirthdham is here in Somnath. This is the holy place of Bhagavan Shri Krishna's Neejdham Prasthan Leela. The place where Bhagavan Shri Krishna was hit by an arrow of a poacher is known as Bhalka Tirtha. After being hit by the arrow, Bhagavan Shri Krishna arrived at the holy confluence of Hiran, Kapila, and Saraswati and their Sangam with the ocean. He performed his divine Neejdham Prasthan Leela at the sacred and peaceful banks of river Hiran.

The Geetamandir is built here where the divine message of Shrimad Bhagavat Geeta is carved on eighteen marble pillars. Shri Lakshminarayan Mandir is close by. The Balramjiki Gufa is the place from where Bhagavan Shrikrishna's elder brother Balaramji took a journey to his nijdham-patal.

Here is the Parshuram Tapobhumi, where Bhagavan Parshuramji carried out penance and he was relieved from the sin of Kshatriya killings. The Pandavas have said to have visited this place and taken holy baths in the Jalprabhas and built five Shiv temples.

Shree Somnath is first among the twelve Aadi Jyotirlingas of India. It has a strategic location on the western coast of India.

Ancient Indian traditions maintain a close relationship of Somnath with the release of Chandra (Moon God) from the curse of his father-in-law Daksha Prajapati. Moon was married to Twenty-Seven daughters of Daksha. However, he favored Rohini and neglected other queens. The aggrieved Daksha cursed Moon and the Moon lost the power of light. With the advice of Prajapita Brahma, Moon arrived at the Prabhas Teerth and worshipped Bhagavan Shiva. Pleased with the great penance and devotion of Moon, Bhagavan Shiva blessed him and relieved him from the curse of darkness. Pauranic traditions maintain that Moon had built a golden temple, followed by a silver temple by Ravana, Bhagavan Shree Krishna is believed to have built Somnath temple with Sandalwood.

The research based on ancient Indian classical texts shows that the first Somnath Jyotirling Pran-Pratistha was done on the auspicious third day of the brighter half of Shravan month during the tenth Treta yuga of Vaivswat Manvantar. Swami Shri Gajananand Saraswatiji, Chairman of Shrimad Aadhya Jagadguru Shankaracharya Vedic Shodh Sansthan, Varanasi suggested that the said first temple was built 7,99,25,105 years ago as derived from the traditions of Prabhas Khand of Skand Puran. Thus, this temple is a perennial source of inspiration for millions of Hindus since time immemorial.

The later sources of history account for several desecrations by Muslim invaders during the eleventh to eighteen century A.D. The temple was rebuilt every time with the reconstructive spirit of the people. The modern temple was reconstructed with the resolve of Sardar Patel who visited the ruins of Somnath temple on November 13, 1947. Then President of India, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, did the Pran-Pratistha at the existing temple on 11 May 1951.

Other spots in the temple are Shri Kapardi Vinayak and Shri Hanuman Temple in addition to Vallabhghat. Vallabhghat is a beautiful sunset point. The temple is illuminated every evening. Similarly, the Sound & Light Show “Jay Somnath” is also displayed every night from 8.00 to 9.00, which allows the pilgrims an ethereal experience in the backdrop of the grand Somnath temple and the holy wave sounds of the Ocean. Ahalyabai temple is also close by, which was built by the queen mother Shri Ahalyabai Holker in 1782. This temple maintained the Pooja Parampara of Bhagavan Shiva during the hostile political conditions.

Darsan Timings at Somnath temple: 6.00 AM to 9.00 PM 

Aarti: 7.00 AM, 12.00 Noon, and 7.00 PM 

Sound and Light Show: 8.00 PM to 9.00 PM

How to reach Somnath 

Amdavad is connected by Rail, Road, and Air to all the major destinations. Veraval Somnath is connected with Amdavad through Rail and Road facilities. Somnath is at a distance of 465 km. from Amdavad. At present Jet Airways operates passenger flights from Bombay to Diu every day except Thursday. Somnath is connected with Diu by road (95 km).

Accommodation in Somnath

Shree Somnath Trust is managing different categories of guest houses for pilgrims.

The contact details are as follows: 

Dilip Chavda Office Superintendent Phone: +91-94282 14901

Surubha Jadeja 

Asst. Guest house Supervisor Phone: +91-94282 14911 

Lilavati Guesthouse 

Phone: 02876 233033 

Shree Somnath Trust 

C / 12-A, Shree Om Villa Apartment 

F.C.I. Godown Road, 

Shahibaug, Ahmedabad -380 004 

GUJARAT, INDIA. 

Fax: +91-79-22686335 

Phone: +91-79-22686442, +91-2876-231212 

email: somnathad1@sancharnet.in

Dy. Secretary & General 

Manager Shree Somnath Trust 

Prabhas Patan -382 268, 

Dist.: JUNAGADH, 

GUJARAT STATE, INDIA. 

Ph. No.: +91-2876-231200 

Fax No.: +91-2876-232694 

Mobile: 98242 85667

Email: kmraval@yahoo.com

Note: The contact details are furnished according to the available information from the Somnath Trust. We are not responsible if there are any discrepancies in the contact information.

Courtesy: www.somnath.org