NAINA DEVI TEMPLE, UTTARAKHAND

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The first structure made on the upper edge of the lake Naini on Naina Hillock was destroyed by a landslip in 1880. The destroyed structure was replaced by what stands there today as Naina Devi Temple. It is one of the most revered Hindu temples in India. Once a devotee reaches the top of the hill, he can buy prasad from any of various stalls put up. They can also bring offerings from home. After crossing the main gate, a big peepal tree stands on the left. On to the right, one will find idols of Hanuman and Ganesh. Towards the main entrance, there are two statues of Lion. Inside the temple, three deities stand for darshan. Mata Kali Devi, Maa Naina Devi at the centre and Lord Ganesh constitute the three deities.

Temple History

The word Naina is synonymous with Sati’s eye. It is considered as one of the Shakti Peeth. According to a popular legend, Goddess Pārbati and Lord Shiva jumped into the sacrificial bonfire. To mourn the death of his wife, Shiva carried her on his shoulder and performed the Dance of Destruction. Vishnu’s chakra- Sudarshan Chakra- went through Parvati’s body and various parts of the body fell at different places. Her eyes fell on the place where the Naina Devi Temple stands today.

Temple Location

The Goddess Kamakshi prevails in the form of Shakti. There are 51 Shakti Peetas across the country. The goddess residing place in Kanchi is called as “Nabisthana Ottiyana Peetam”. The Goddess is called as “Sri Kamakshi. The word is derived from the heritage “Ka” means Goddess Saraswati (God of Education), “Ma” means Goddess Lakshmi (God of Wealth), “Akshi” means Eye. The name as a whole refers as the god lives in Kanchi with Goddess Saraswati and Goddess Lakshmi as her both eyes. The Lalitha Sahasranama poem is an idle example for the goddess power.

Kanchi is also called as Satyavrita Kshetra . The Goddess worshipped Lord Siva by creating a mud idol in Kanchi. At that moment, Lord Siva incarnated as Kamba River with high tides to test the worship of the goddess, the goddess grasped the idol closely with her two hands from eroding in the tides. This prevented the idol from getting eroded in the floods. The goddess also performed Pooja by sitting in a needle tip surrounded by “Panchakagni” (surrounded by 5 fires) to free herself from the interest of livelihood. The Lord Shiva became happy, gestured before her and married the goddess. Though there are many Shiva temples in the city, the only temple to have the sanctorum of the goddess is ‘SRI KAMAKSHI AMMAN TEMPLE’. There are also eight other Shakti goddesses surrounding the temple.

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