Manikaran

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Outer view of the Manikaran temple and Manikaran Sahib gurudwara located at Manikaran featuring the hot water well and the Parvati river flowing by it. This is the most famous place in the town. Outer view of the temple's hot water well and the parvati river flowing by it.jpg
Outer view of the Manikaran temple and Manikaran Sahib gurudwara located at Manikaran featuring the hot water well and the Parvati river flowing by it. This is the most famous place in the town.
Upstream view of Parwati river from Manikaran. Upstream view of Parwati river from Manikaran.jpg
Upstream view of Parwati river from Manikaran.

Manikaran Manikaran.jpg
Manikaran

Manikaran is located in the Parvati Valley on river Parvati, northeast of Bhuntar in the Kullu District of Himachal Pradesh. It is at an altitude of 1760 m and is located 4 km from Kasol, about 45 km from Kullu and about 35 km from Bhuntar.

Contents

This small town attracts tourists visiting the hot springs and pilgrim centres of Manali and Kullu. An experimental geothermal energy plant has also been set up here.

Religious centre

Tourists and pilgrims having a bath in a hot spring in Gurudwara Complex, Manikarn, May 2009. Hot springs at Manikaran,Himachal Pradesh.jpg
Tourists and pilgrims having a bath in a hot spring in Gurudwara Complex, Manikarn, May 2009.

Manikaran is a pilgrimage centre for Hindus and Sikhs. The Hindus believe that Manu recreated human life in Manikaran after the flood, making it a sacred area. It has many temples and a Gurudwara. [1] There are temples of the Hindu deities Rama, Krishna, and Vishnu. [2] The area is well known for its hot springs [3] and its beautiful landscape.

According to legend, when the Hindu God Shiva and his consort Parvati were walking in the valley, Parvati dropped one of her earrings. The jewel was seized by Shesha, the serpent deity, who then disappeared into the earth with it. Shesha only surrendered the jewel when Shiva performed the cosmic dance, the Tandava and shot the jewel up through the water. Apparently, jewels continued to be thrown up in the waters at Manikaran until the 1905 Kangra earthquake. [4]

Sikh belief

Manikaran gurdwara ManikaranGurdwara.JPG
Manikaran gurdwara
Sikh man bathing at Manikaran hot springs Sikh man bathing at Manikaran hot springs.jpg
Sikh man bathing at Manikaran hot springs
Traditional feeding (Langar) of visitors at Sikh gurdwara at Manikaran, Himachal Pradesh, in 2004 Diners at Manikaran Gurdwara.jpg
Traditional feeding (Langar) of visitors at Sikh gurdwara at Manikaran, Himachal Pradesh, in 2004

According to the Sikhs, during third Udasi, the founder of Sikhism Guru Nanak came to this place in 15 Asu 1574 Bikrami with his disciple Bhai Mardana. Mardana felt hungry and they had no food. Guru Nanak sent Mardana to collect food for the langar (the community kitchen). Many people donated atta (flour) to make roti (bread). The one problem was that there was no fire to cook the food. Guru Nanak asked Mardana to lift a stone and he complied and a hot spring appeared. As directed by Guru Nanak, Mardana put the rolled chapatis in the spring, but to his despair, the chapatis sank. Guru Nanak then told him to pray to God saying that if his chapatis float back then he would donate one chapati in His name. When he prayed all the chapatis started floating up duly baked. Guru Nanak said that when anyone who donates in the name of God, his drowned items float back.[ citation needed ]

Hindu belief

Shiv Parvati Temple at Manikaran Manikaran Vashnu temple.JPG
Shiv Parvati Temple at Manikaran

The legend of Manikaran says that while walking around, Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati once chanced upon a lush green place surrounded by mountains. Enamoured by the beauty of the place, they decided to spend some time there. It is believed that they actually spent eleven hundred years here.[ citation needed ]

During their stay, Goddess Parvati lost her mani (precious stones [5] ) in the waters of a stream. Upset over the loss, she asked Shiva to retrieve it. Lord Shiva commanded his attendant to find the mani for Parvati. However, when they failed, he was extremely angry. He opened his third eye, a tremendously inauspicious event which led to disturbances in the universe. An appeal was made before the serpent god, Sheshnag, to pacify Lord Shiva. Sheshnag hissed, thereby giving rise to a flow of boiling water. The water spread over the entire area, resulting in the emergence of precious stones of the type Goddess Parvati had lost, and Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati were happy.[ citation needed ]

Hindu temples at Manikaran

Lord Ram Chandra Ji Temple

History

The temple was constructed by Raja Jagat Singh in the 15th century.

It is at an altitude of 1756 m [6] and is located about 35 km from Kullu.

It is claimed that even before 1905, these hot water springs, sprang with full force. Making an 11 to 14 feet high fountain. The temperature of different springs at Manikaran is 64 to 80 °C . There is no sulphur in these springs.

Food is cooked in these springs. Bathing here is considered a balm for arthritis.

Manikaran viewed from Shiva temple Manikaran view from Shiva Temple.jpg
Manikaran viewed from Shiva temple

Temple of Lord Shiva

However, an earthquake in 1905 caused damage to the temple and it was slightly tilted. The importance of Manikaran is also judged from the fact that devas of Kullu valley pay regular visit to this place on specified dates. [7]

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kullu district</span> District of Himachal Pradesh, India

Kullu is a district in Himachal Pradesh, India. It borders Shimla district to the south, Mandi and Kangra districts to the west, Kinnaur to the east and the Lahaul and Spiti district to the north and east. The largest valley in this mountainous district is the Kullu Valley. The Kullu valley follows the course of the Beas River, and ranges from an elevation of 833 m above sea level at Aut to 3330 m above sea level at the Atal Tunnel South Portal, below the Rohtang Pass. The town of Kullu, located on the right side of the Beas River, serves as the administrative headquarters of the Kullu district. The Kullu district also incorporates several riverine tributary valleys of the Beas, including those of the Parvati, Sainj, and Tirthan rivers, and thus some regions somewhat distant from the Kullu valley. The economy of the district relies mainly on horticulture, agriculture, tourism, and traditional handicrafts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manali, Himachal Pradesh</span> Town in India

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parvati Valley</span> Valley in Himachal Pradesh, India

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Parvati River (Himachal Pradesh)</span> River in Asia

Parvati River is a river in the Parvati Valley in Himachal Pradesh, northern India that flows into the Beas River at Bhuntar, some 10 km south of Kullu. It rises from the Man Talai Glacier below the Pin Parbati Pass and flows in a gradual curve from north-northwest to west-southwest past the important temple town of Manikaran.

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References

  1. "Manikaran Travel Guide" . Retrieved 23 September 2006.
  2. "Lord Shiva, the principle deity of Himachal Pradesh" . Retrieved 23 September 2006.
  3. "Hot Springs in Himachal Pradesh" . Retrieved 23 September 2006.
  4. Minakshi Chaudhry, Destination Himachal, p. 208. Rupa and Co. Publ. (2006) ISBN   81-291-0715-5
  5. "मणि (Mani) meaning in English - मणि मीनिंग - Translation".
  6. "Google Maps elevation for a route". www.doogal.co.uk. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  7. Official Website of Gurudwara Sahib Manikaran Archived 3 February 2014 at the Wayback Machine