Govindji Temple (Jaipur, Rajasthan)

Govind Dev Ji Temple is one amongst the major tourist attractions of Jaipur. The Temple represents the royal past of Jaipur. The Temple is dedicated to Govind Dev Ji (Other name of Lord Krishna). Govind Devji Temple of Jaipur is situated in the City Palace complex, between the Chandra Mahal and Badal Mahal. Govind Dev Ji is the principal deity of Amber’s Kachawaha Dynasty. In the earlier times, the idol of the lord used to reside in the temple of Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh.

According to a legend, Govind Dev Ji appeared in the dream of Raja Sawai Jai Singh and asked him to bring his idol from Vrindavan to Jaipur. As a consequence, Raja Sawai Jai Singh brought the idol and placed in the City Palace complex of Jaipur. After the sad demise of Jai Singh, many successors acquired the throne, but Raja Man Singh took the initiative to build the temple in 1890.

The beautiful image of Radha-Krishna doesn’t let people to take off their eyes from the lovely view. Different ‘Aartis’ and ‘Bhog’ are offered to the deity at seven different times of the day. Every time, when the idols are revealed to the devotees, they are clothed in a different manner. The Devotees, who come here to get the glance or ‘Darshan’ of the deities, reverberates the temple with the pious phrase “Jai Govind”.

A large number of tourists and devotees visit this temple of special importance. Janmashtmi, the birthday of Lord Krishna, is a special event and is celebrated with full enthusiasm. Govind Dev Ji Temple is a sacred place of the Hindus. The Temple has also become a tourist attraction in the contemporary times.

Kamakhya Temple ( Guwahati,  Assam )

image credit : byronic501

Kamakhya temple is one of the biggest Shakti shrines in the whole of India and also serves an important pilgrimage center for the tantric worshippers as well as the general Hindus. It is a place where the beliefs and practices of the Aryan communities coincide with those of non-Aryan communities, in Assam. The earlier form of the temple was destroyed by the Kala Pahar and was later reconstructed by the reigning king of the Koch Dynasty, Chilarai, in the year 1565. The current structure is a sacred complex consisting of three major chambers.

The large western chamber of Kamakhya temple is rectangular in shape, while the middle chamber is square and contains inscriptions and images of Naranarayana of the Koch Dynasty. However, the most sacred shrine located within the temple is in the third chamber. This chamber is in the form of a cave and has a yoni-like cleft in the bedrock. There is a natural spring that flows through the cleft and keeps it moist. The whole temple, in general, is dedicated to the different forms of Mother Shakti, namely Sundari, Tripura, Tara, Bhuvaneshvari, Bagalamukhi and Chinnamasta.

image credit : sir_watkyn

Apart from these shrines dedicated to Mother Goddess, there are five temples located within the complex of Kamakhya temple, dedicated to the different forms of Lord Shiva (Heruka, Tatpurusa, Aghpra, Umananda and Siddhesvara) and three temples of Lord Vishnu as well, in the form of Kedara, Gadadhara and Pandunath. The temple is one of the biggest Tantra worshipping centers in India, attracting thousands of sanyasins and babas every year, to honor the Mother.

A number of legends and myths have been associated with Kamakhya temple. Some believe that it is one of the Shakti Peeths, where, the reproductive organ (yoni) of Sati settled on the earth, following Her death. Many others associate the temple with Goddess Kali and emphasize the creative symbolism of the yoni. The major festival of the temple is the Ambubachi mela, held annually to celebrate the yearly menstruation of Goddess Kamakhya. It is said that during the month of Ahar (i.e. mid June), the natural spring that flows through the yoni like image of the Goddess turns red, resembling menstrual fluid.

At the time of Ambubachi mela, Kamakhya temple remains closed for three days and on the fourth day, the door is opened and a number of rituals are performed. Thousands of devotees and tourists line up at the temple, on this day every year, to observe the unique phenomenon and get the blessings of the Goddess. Besides this, a number of other pujas are held in the temple all round the year. These pujas include Durga Puja, Durgadeul, Madandeul, Manasa Puja, Pohan Biya and Vasanti Puja. Offerings are mainly in the form of flowers and fruits, but may include animal sacrifices as well.

Jain Temple Jaisalmer ( Rajasthan )

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Jain Temples situated in the Jaisalmer Fort are a must visit site in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. You will find these temples to be very old and high pilgrimage as well as archeological value attached to them. These are a group of Jain temples dating back 12th and 15th centuries and are dedicated to various Jain Tirthankars (Hermits). On the walls of the temples, you can find animal & human figures, carved in famous Dilwara style.

image credit : pavangupta

These temples are built in the Dilwara style that is famous all over the world for its architecture. The style got its name from the famous ‘Dilwara Temples’ situated on Mount Abu, a famous Hill station and pilgrimage destination in Rajasthan. The Jain temples in the Jaisalmer Fort are dedicated to Rikhabdevji and Shambhavdev Ji, the famous Jain hermits known as ‘Tirthankars’. Like all other structures in Jaisalmer, these temples are craved of yellow sandstones. The beautifully carves decorations on the wall will give you divine peace. The Astapadhi Temples that are situated in the same complex are a must visit too.

image credit : pavangupta

The temple complex is open through out the morning till 12noon, for the visitors. So try to get up a bit early or you might miss this splendor. The campus also contain Gyan Bhandar library. Well if you are a student of comparative archeology or otherwise, the library will prove to be a good place to prowl as it contains some of the rare manuscripts available in India.