The word ‘Jyoti’ means light and ‘linga’ means sign. Jyotirlinga is the light of Lord Shiva. A Jyotirlinga is a holy representation of Lord Shiva.
Out of 12 Jyotirlingas, 3 are in Maharashtra. The three Jyotirlingas of Maharashtra are Bhimashankar, Ghrishneshwar, and Trimbakeshwar.
1. Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga, Maharashtra
The Bhimashankar Temple is located in the Sahyadri region of Pune. It is located in Bhorgiri village, near Pune. In recent times, it has gained a lot of significance as it was also declared the Bhimashankar Wildlife Sanctuary. River Bhima originates from Bhimashankar. The river is considered sacred because it is believed that the river is actually the perspiration of Lord Shiva after he defeated the demon Tripurasura. A holy dip in the river is believed to relieve one of their sins.
2. Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga, Nasik
The Trimbakeshwar Temple is located about 30kms from Nasik in Maharashtra near the mountain named Brahmagiri from the river Godavari flows. This temple is considered to be a source of the river Godavari which is known as “Gautami Ganga”. The most unique feature of this temple is that the Shiva Linga here has three faces of the three almighty Gods of Hindu mythology – Brahma, Vishnu, and Maheshwara.
3. Ghrishneshwar Jyotirlinga, Aurangabad
The Ghrishneshwar Jyotirlinga is located in a village called Verul, which lies 20 km from Daulatabad, near Aurangabad in Maharashtra. This temple was built by Ahilyabai Holkar who also rebuilt the Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi. The Ghrishneshwar temple is also known by other names like Kusumeswarar, Ghushmeswara, Grushmeswara and Grishneswara.
FAQs
The three Jyotirlingas of Maharashtra are Bhimashankar, Ghrishneshwar, and Trimbakeshwar.
Out of 12 Jyotirlingas, 3 are in Maharashtra.