Mountain Pearl Tours - Somnath Temple

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The Somnath temple, also called Somanātha temple or Deo Patan, is a Hindu temple located in Prabhas Patan, Veraval in Gujarat, India. It is one of the most sacred pilgrimage sites for Hindus and is believed to be first among the twelve jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva.

Shree Somnath Jyotirlinga Temple Gir Somnath. About Place: The intricately carved honey-coloured Somnath temple on the western edge of the state is believed to be the place where the first of the twelve holy jyotirlingas emerged in India – a spot where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light.

Somnath means "Lord of the Soma" or "moon". The site is also called Prabhasa ("place of splendor"). Somnath temple has been a jyotirlinga site for the Hindus, and a holy place of pilgrimage (tirtha ). It is one of five most revered sites on the seacoast of India, along with the nearby Dvaraka in Gujarat, Puri in Odisha, Rameshvaram and Chidambaram in Tamil Nadu.

Somnath Temple ruins (1869)

Turkic Muslim ruler Mahmud of Ghazni raided and plundered the Somnath temple, broke its jyotirlinga. He took away a booty of 20 million dinars. According to Romila Thapar, relying on a 1038 inscription of a Kadamba king of Goa, the condition of Somnath temple in 1026 after Ghazni's is unclear because the inscription is "puzzlingly silent" about Ghazni's raid or temple's condition. This inscription, states Thapar, could suggest that instead of destruction it may have been a desecration because the temple seems to have been repaired quickly within twelve years and was an active pilgrimage site by 1038.

The raid of 1026 by the Turkic Muslim ruler Mahmud of Ghazni is confirmed by the 11th-century Persian historian Al-Biruni, who worked in the court of Mahmud, who accompanied Mahmud's troops between 1017 and 1030 CE on some occasions, and who lived in the northwest Indian subcontinent region – over regular intervals, though not continuously. The invasion of Somnath site in 1026 CE is also confirmed by other Islamic historians such as Gardizi, Ibn Zafir and Ibn al-Athir. However, two Persian sources – one by adh-Dhahabi and other by al-Yafi'i – state it as 1027 CE, which is likely incorrect and late by a year, according to Khan – a scholar known for his studies on Al-Biruni and other Persian historians.

According to Al-Biruni:

The location of the Somnath temple was a little less than three miles west of the mouth of the river Sarasvati. The temple was situated on the coast of the Indian ocean so that at the time of flow the idol was bathed by its water. Thus that moon was perpetually occupied in bathing the idol and serving it."

— Translated by M.S. Khan.

Sommnath Temple Reconstruction

Before independence, Veraval was part of the Junagadh State, whose ruler had acceded to Pakistan in 1947. India contested the accession and annexed the state after holding a referendum. India's Deputy Prime Minister Vallabhbhai Patel came to Junagadh on 12 November 1947 to direct the stabilization of the state by the Indian Army, at which time he ordered the reconstruction of the Somnath temple.

When Patel, K. M. Munshi and other leaders of the Congress went to Mahatma Gandhi with their proposal to reconstruct the Somnath temple, Gandhi blessed the move but suggested that the funds for the construction should be collected from the public, and the temple should not be funded by the state. He expressed that he was proud to associate himself to the project of renovation of the temple.However, soon both Gandhi and Sardar Patel died, and the task of reconstruction of the temple continued under Munshi, who was the Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, Government of India headed by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

The ruins were pulled down in October 1950. The mosque present at that site was shifted few kilometres away by using construction vehicles. On 11 May 1951, Rajendra Prasad, the first President of the Republic of India, invited by K M Munshi, performed the installation ceremony for the temple.

Sri Somnath Jyotirling

The construction of the original Somnath Temple is associated with the legend of Daksha’s curse on the Moon (Chandra Deva), the lore that explains the waxing and waning phenomena of the moon.

When Chandra Deva favored Rohini more than his other wives (who were all daughters of Daksha) as opposed to his promise that he would love all his 27 wives (the 27 nakshatras) equally, an infuriated Daksha puts a curse of Kshay (gradual degeneration of the body) on him. Gutted, Chandra Deva rushes to Lord Brahma, who advises him to bathe in Triveni Sangam at Prabhas Teerth and worship Lord Shiva, the ultimate savior. As instructed, Chandra Deva recites Mahamrityunjaya Mantra invoking Lord Shiva, who offers Chandra refuge in his dreadlocks (Lord Shiva thus came to be known as Chandrashekara). Lord Shiva also releases Chandra Deva from the curse inflicted on him for his unjust behavior, but without completely revoking it. Chandra Deva would wither, as cursed, however, Lord Shiva blesses him that he would steadily grow in size and radiance during the next 15 days of shrinking to a charming crescent, thus shining in full glory on Poornima.

Having received this boon, Chandra Deva constructs a beautiful temple in gold for Lord Shiva, which is the Somnath Temple (Soma meaning moon) and installs the first Jyotirlinga which he names Somnath Mahadev. Chandra also began to spend equal time with each of his 27 wives (1 day in each nakshatra) ever since.

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Somnath Temple ruins (1869)

Sommnath Temple Reconstruction

Sri Somnath Jyotirling

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