The Somnath Temple of Gujarat, India

Hello everyone, hope all are doing well. With the exams behind me, and summer vacations on, I have some time to get back to what I love. And, today, we are going to have a look at the Somnath Mandir.

The Somnath Temple, also known as the Deo Patan, is a Hindu temple located in Prabhas Patan, Veraval in Gujarat, India and is the first jyotirlinga among the twelve and is dedicated to Lord Shiva. The world “Somnath” means “Lord of the Moon” and is known to be one of the five most revered sites on the seacoast of India, along with the Dwarka, Puri, Rameswaram and Chidambaram temples located in different parts of India.

Somnath Temple

This temple has a rich and interesting history which came into being even before the start of the Christian Era. The second version of this temple came to be under the initiative of the Vallabhi King around 408 AD – 768 AD. Historians and archaeologists report that the Somnath Mandir had been rebuilt a lot of times, precisely six times by invaders, and now what we see in Veraval, Gujarat is the seventh version of the mandir! This shows how important this mandir was for the architects and how they ensured that the temple was in a good state. Ancient texts and historians state that Somnath Mandir was first built using gold by King Somraj during the Satya Yuga. The Satya Yuga (age of truth) is a period that was part of the Yuga Cycle consisting of 4 such yugas which approximately lied for 1,728,000 years.  After it being demolished, Ravana had built it out of silver, followed by Lord Krishna constructing it out of wood and later by King Bhimadev from stone. Finally, the seventh version of the temple was said to be finished in the year 1947, by Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the Prime Minister of that time. Soon in a matter of three years, the president of India, Rajendra Prasad inaugurated the temple.

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Visiting Somnath Temple

Now, let’s understand the temple’s architectural excellence along with its interior beauty. The seven storied temple is decorated beautifully with its intricate and detailed carvings and is known to be the Chalukya Architectural Pattern.

Chalukya Architectural Pattern

One unique feature of this mandir is its positioning where not a single piece of land is visible from the Somnath seashore until Antarctica. This shows us the architectural marvel present in Gujarat, India, inspiring future architects and designers. The temple’s interior architecture is nothing less of a brilliance. Consisting of a Garbha Griha embodying the Jyotirlingam followed by a Sabha Mandar also known as an assembly hall and a Nrityamandap where a lot of dance performances and cultural presentations are shown, reflecting the unique bond of art and spirituality. The ceiling mainly made of loadstone is decked with elaborate and extravagant watercolor paintings. It is said that once upon a time, there used to be precious gems and jewels in the temple, however invaders attacked the temple and plundered all these riches.

Somnath Temple Interior

A temple is famous for its multitude of festival celebrations and traditions. These festivals are a way to bring happiness and fraternity among pilgrims. Some festivals celebrated in the Somnath Temple are Maha Shivratri, Kartik Purnima, Somnath Sthapana Divas and much more where pilgrims witness many dance performances and cultural practices along with several pujas and aartis. These festivals are celebrated with immense pomp and grandeur and enthusiasm.

So, this was all about the divine Somnath Temple of Gujarat, India. I hope you enjoyed this blog and learnt something new, something culturally and religiously important. Thank You!

Credits

Nishita Molleti for the idea of the blog

Wikipedia.org, gujaratexpert.com for sources of information.