Sourashtre Somanadham, cha Sri Shaile
Mallikarjunam,
Ujjayinyam Maha Kalam, Omkaram, amaleshwaram,
Paralyam Vaidyanatham, cha Dakinyam
Bhimasankaram,
Sethubandhe thu Ramesam, Nagesam thu Darukavane,
Varanasyam thu Viswesam, Trayambakam Gouthami
thate,
Himalaye thu Kedaram, Ghushmesam cha Shivalaye,
Ethani Jyothirlingani sayam pratha paden nara,
Saptha janma krutham papam smaranena vinasyathi.
The twelve Lingas of light are,
Somanatha in Sourashtra,
Mallikarjuna in Sri Shailam,
Mahakala in Ujjain,
Omkaram in Amaleshwara,
Vaidhyanatha in Parali,
Bhimasankara in South,
Rameshwara near the bridge in Sethu,
Nageswara in Daruka forest,
Visweswara in Varnasi,
Trayambakeshwara in the shores of Godavari,
Kedareshwara in Himalayas,
And Ghushmesha in Sivalaya.
He who remembers them,
Morning and evening,
Would wash away sins,
Committed in his seven births.
Sourashtra dese Visadhethi ramye,
Jyothirmayam Chandra kalavathamsam,
Bhakthi pradhanaya krupavatheernam,
Tham Soma nadham saranam prapadhye.1
I seek refuge of the Soma Nadha,
Who is in the holy and pretty Sourashtra,
Who is dazzling with light,
Who wears the crescent of the moon,
Who has come there to give,
The gift of devotion and mercy.
TheSomnath temple is dedicated to Someshwara,
another name of Lord Shivawith moon on his head.
The temple is situated in Saurashtra in a
placecalled Prabhas Pattan near the port of
Veravel. It is believed that theMoon God himself
had originally built the temple out of gold.
Somnathis the first of all the 12 jyotirlingas.
The Somnath temple has beendestroyed six times
and has been rebuilt. Last time it was
afterindependence. The temple faces the east
direction.
Sri Shaila sange vibhudathi sange,
Thulathi thune api mudha vasantham,
Thamarjunam mallika poorvamekam,
Namami samsara samudhra sethum.2
I salute him who is the bridge to the ocean of
life,
Who is in the company of all gods,
And living in the union of Sri Shaila,
Who resides on the peak of Thula,
And who is called Mallikarjuna.
TheSri Shailam Temple located in Kurnool
district. Sri Shailam is a smallcity situated in
the densely forested Nallamalai hills. This
temple isconsidered very holy and is dedicated
to Mallikarjuna Swamy andBhramaramba. One unique
feature of the temple is that all the
devoteeswho visit the temple are allowed to
touch the idol which is notprevalent in any
other temple in South India. According to
popularlegends, Adhi Shankara had composed his
famous Sivananda Lahiri here Itis also believed
that Goddess Durga had taken the form of a bee
andworshiped Lord Shiva here and selected this
holy place as her abode.
Avanthikayam vihithavatharam,
Mukthi pradhanaya cha sajjananam,
Akalamruthyo parirakshanatham,
Vande maha kala maha suresam. 3
I salute that Maha Kala,
Who is the lord of all devas,
Who has incarnated in the city of Avanthi,
For giving salvation to good people,
And to save people from untimely death.
MahakaleshwarJyotirlinga Temple is situated in
Ujjain, the historical capital ofCentral India.
This Temple is situated near a lake. The idol in
thetemple is known as Dakshinamurti, facing the
south and is white incolour. Among the 12
Jyotirlingas, the Mahakal Jyotirlinga is
believedto be swayambhu, meaning born of itself.
The Mahakaleshwar temple ismade in five levels,
one of which is underground. The
undergroundsanctum is lightened by brass lamps.
The prasada in the temple can bere-offered
unlike other temples. According to the legends,
a demoncalled Dushana tormented the people of
Avanti and then Lord Shivaappeared from the
ground and rescued the people and then on the
requestof the people, Lord Shiva permanently
settled there as MahakaleshwarJyotirlinga.
Kavaerika narmadhayo pavithre,
Samagame sajjana tharanaya,
Sadaiva mandha tripure vasantham,
Onkarameesam shivameka meede.4
I meditate only on Shiva,
With the form of the letter Om,
Who lives In the city of Mandhatripura,
Which is in the holy confluence
Of rivers Cauvery and Narmadha,
For helping good people cross,
The Ocean of the misery of life.
LordOmkareshwara or Amaleshwara temple is
located in an island on the banksof the Narmada,
is located on the Mandhata hill in Madhya
Pradesh. TheOmkareshwar Jyotirlinga shrine and
the Amareshwar temple is one of the12 revered
Jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva. The river Narmada
branchesinto two which forms an island Mandhata
or Shivapuri in the center.Ironically, the
island's shape resembles the visual
representation ofthe Omkara sound, Om. The
temple can be reached by ferry. As per
thelegend, Vindhya mountain once prayed to Lord
Shiva or Omkareshwara andgot blessed in return.
Other story says that the Shivalinga was
splitinto two upon the request of the Devas.
Thus, the formation ofOmkareshwara and
Amareshwar.
Poorvothare prajjwalika nidhane,
Sada vasantham girija sametham,
Surasuradhitha pada padmam,
Sri Vaidyanatham tham aham namami.5
I salute that Vaidyanatha,
Whose lotus feet are worshipped,
By all asuras and devas,
And who lives in place of eternal shine,
In the north east of India,
Along with his consort Parvathi.
Vaidhyanathis located at Deogarh in the Santal
Parganas area of Bihar. Deogarh isalso known as
Vaidyanath. The temple faces the east. The top
of theShiva Lingam is slightly broken which as
per the legend happened whenRavana tried to
uproot it. Sivaganga lake is positioned just
near thetemple. While the Chandrakoopa well
found near the main entrance issaid to have been
filled with water by Ravana from several
thirthams.The Shiva's temple is almost 72 feet
tall in the form of a lotus. Thereare three
ascending shaped gold vessels on the top. Then
there is aPunchsula as well as an eight petalled
lotus jewel called ChandrakantaMani. According
to mythology, Ravana meditated hard to invoke
LordShiva. In his desire to become invincible,
he attempted to lift LordShiva's abode, Mount
Kailash. The act offended the Lord. He
punishedhim but with Ravana pleading for mercy,
he left him on one condition.He gave him one of
the twelve lingas which were not supposed to be
kepton ground in any case. But Ravana's promise
gave way in front ofnature's call & kept the
linga on the ground. In order to rectifythe
mistake, Ravana started cutting off nine of his
heads as a part ofhis repentance. Shiva was
pleased by this & he joined the headsagain to
the body. Worshipping Vaidhyanath Jyotirlinga is
considered toeliminate one's all worries and
miseries. It even imparts salvation.
Yaamye sadange nagare adhi ramye,
Vibhooshithangam vividaischa bhogai,
Sad bhakthi mukthi prada meesa mekam,
Sri Naganatham saranam prapadhye. 6
I seek refuge of Lord Naganatha,
Who lives in the pretty town
Of Sadanga in the southern part,
Who is well decorated,
Who grants all kinds of pleasures,
And who is the only God who grants,
Devotion and salvation.
Thetemple is located between Dwarka and Dwarka
Island in Gujarat on thecoast of Surat. The
Jyotirlinga in the temple is known as
NageshwarMahadev. The temple is being visited by
thousands of pilgrims everyyear. The Jyotirlinga
situated in the temple is considered to
protecteverybody from all sorts of poisons. It
is believed that one who offersprayers in the
temple becomes poison free.
Mahadri parswe cha thate ramantham,
Sampoojyamanam sathatham muneendrai,
Surasurair yaksha mahoraghadyai,
Kedarameesam shivameka meede. 7
I meditate on Shiva who is the Lord of Kedara,
Who takes pleasure in the valley of the great
mountain,
Who is always worshipped by great sages,
And also devas, asuras, yakshas and nagas.
Kedarnathis a Hindu holy town located in the
Indian state of Uttaranchal. And isthe northern
most Jyothirlinga. The place is located at an
altitude of3,584 m and at the origin of the
river Mandakini, The place isaccessible after a
steep 13 km trek over a paved path from
Gaurikund.Rishikesh, Haridwar, The credit for
the construction of this heavenlytemple is given
to the Pandavas. According to the saying it is
believedthat the Pandavas came to Lord Shiva to
seek blessings to atone theirsins after the
battle of Mahabharata. Lord Shiva evaded
themcontinuously and took refuge in Kedarnath in
the form of a Bull. Onbeing chased, Lord Shiva
left his hump behind. This conical protrusionis
worshiped in the temple. The temple is located
on the Rudra Himalayarange, also known as the
Pancha Parvata. It is believed that four ofthe
Pandavas died on one of the peaks, Swargarohini.
Sahyadri seershe vimale vasantham,
Godavari theera pavithra dese,
Yad darsanal pathakamasu nasam,
Prayathi tham Traimbaka meesa meede.8
I meditate on the lord of Triambaka,
Who lives on the peak of western ghats,
In the holy shores of river Godavari,
And who destroys all sins,
Of his devotees who see him.
Tryambakeshwaris one of the 12 Jyotirlinga
shrines situated 30 km from Nasik inMaharashtra.
Considered to be the birth place of the river
Godavari,the shrine's beauty is still well
intact. A small Shivalingam orTryambaka, is
placed amidst a spacious courtyard & the
sanctumwhich is crowned with a graceful tower, a
giant amalaka (goose berry)and a golden kalasha.
The Shivalingam is situated in a depression
onthe floor of the sanctum. Continuous flow of
water from the top of theShivalingam adds to the
mystic beauty. Shivalingam is generally
coveredwith a silver mask which is then
substituted with a golden mask withfive faces on
festive occasions. These faces have their
respectivegolden crowns. While, the silver mask
is similar to the processionalimages seen in
South Indian temples.
Suthamra varnee jala rasi yoge,
Nibhadhya sethum visikhaira sankyai,
Sri ramachandrna samarpitham tham,
Ramesamakhyam niyatham smarami. 9
I meditate with devotion the lord of Rama,
Who lives in the confluence of river,
Thamravarnee with the sea,
Where a bridge has been built.
With the help of umpteen arrows,
By the Lord Sri Rama Chandra.
TheRameshwar Jyotirlinga is considered as the
southern most Jyotirlingamsof India. According
to belief, it was installed there by Lord
Ramaafter his return from Sri Lanka. Since
Ravana was a Brahmin, Rama gotBrahma hathi dosha
and to get rid of it, he installed and
worshippedShiva. The Lord is known as Ramanatha.
The temple is situated on anisland located on
the south eastern coast of Tamil nadu. It is
believedthat the ancient shrine was a thatched
hut till it was rebuilt in the12th century by
Parakrama Bahu of Sri Lanka. The rest of the
temple wascompleted by the Sethupathy rulers of
Ramanathapuram. There are 36Theerthams meaning
water springs in Rameshwaram out of which 22
aresituated in the temple.
Yam dakini sakinika samaje,
Nishevyamanam pisithasanaischa,
Sadaiva bheemadhi pada prasidham,
Tham shnkaram bhaktha hitham namami.10
I salute that Lord Sankara
Who is the darling of his devotees,
Who is being worshipped by rakshasas,
In the company of Ghosts called Dakini and
Sakini,
And who is well known as Bheema.
Thistemple is located near Pune of Maharashtra
on the shores of riverBhima. And is located on a
high peak, surrounded by thick denseforests. The
shrine Bhimashankaram, dates back to the 13th
century.Lord Shiva's killing of the demon
Tripurasura is the main legendassociated with
the temple. It even states that Shiva took abode
on theSahyadri hills in the form of a Bhima upon
the request of the Gods, onthe crest of the
Sahyadri hills. The sweat of Shiva poured after
thebattle ultimately led to the origin of
Bhimarathi river.
Sayanda mananda vane vasantham,
Mananda kandam hatha papa vrundam,
Varanasi nadha manadha nadham,
Sri Viswanadham saranam prapadhye. 11
I seek the protection of the Lord of universe,
Who lives is happily in the forest of joy,
Who is the basis of all happiness,
Who destroys all accumulated sins,
Who is the lord of the city of Varanasi,
And who is the lord of all who do not have
anybody.
Thistemple holiest of the holies to any Hindu is
situated in the banks ofthe holy river Ganga in
Varanasi. The temple has been destroyed
severaltimes by invaders but has been rebuilt
every time. It is believed thepriests of the
temple have sacrificed their all several times
topreserve the holy Lingam. The present temple
has been built byAhalyabhai, a Maharashtrian
queen.
Ilapure ramya visalake asmin,
Samullasantham cha jagad varenyam,
Vande maha dhara thara swabhavam,
Ghusruneswarakhyam saranam prapadhye.12
I seek the refuge of Ghusraneswara,
Who lives and plays in the pretty city of
Ilapura,
Who is the greatest among the universe,
And who is by his nature extremely kind.
TheGrishneshwar Jyotirlinga Temple is one of the
ancient and holiestshrines of India.. The temple
is located at a distance of 11km fromDaulatabad
near Aurangabad in Maharashtra. Daulatabad was
once known asDevagiri. Ahilyabhai Holkar
constructed the Grishneshwar Temple.Grishneshwar
is also known as Ghushmeswara. According to
legend, adevotee called Kusuma worshiped Lord
Shiva by immersing a Shivalingameveryday in a
nearby tank. Kusuma's husband's first wife out
ofjealousy because of Kusuma's piety in the
society killed her son. An aggrieved Kusuma
continued her daily ritual and when she dipped
theShivlingam in the tank her son miraculously
revived. From then on thepeople started
worshiping Lord Shiva in the form of a
JyotirlingaGhusmeshwar.
Jyothir maya dwadasa linga kanam,
Shivathmanam prokthamidham kramena,
Sthothram padithwa manujo athi bhakthyo,
Phalam thadalokye nijam bhajescha. 13
This prayer which tells about,
The twelve resplendent lingas,
If read with devotion by men,
Would make them be worshipped by others.
- Compiled with
gratitude with info from different web sites
by Ariguhanatha
