Omkareshwar jyotirlinga temple is the temple of lord shiva situated in Mandhata in the city of Khandwa in Madhyapradesh. Omkareshwar jyotirlinga temple is one of 12 revered jyotirlings of lord shiva.
About Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga Temple:
Omkareshwar jyotirlinga temple that is in Madhya Pradesh is situated at Shivpuri on the banks of Narmada river in the city of Mandhata. It is said that the island where Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga temple is situated has shape in the form of om ॐ.
The temple of Lord Shiva, Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga, is located near Mandhata in the Madhya Pradesh city of Khandwa. One of Lord Shiva’s 12 famous jyotirlings is the temple of Omkareshwar.
History and mythology of Omkareshwar Jyotirling Temple:
According to the legend, once there was a war between the gods and the demons where demons were more powerful than the gods and during the war it became difficult for gods to defeat the demons.As a result all the gods worshiped and called lord shiva to help them to attain victory in the war between gods and demons. As we all know lord shiva always accepts the prayers and will help if you will ask for it from him. So he appeared there and helped the gods by defeating demons.
The second story says that once the king of mandhata who was of Ikshvaku clan (the clan or ancestors or lord ram) worshipped lord shiva after which lord shiva manifested himself in the form of jyotirlinga. Some also says that the sons of Mandhata who were Ambarish and Muchukunda had practiced severe penance and austerities here and were successful to please lord shiva and a result of this the mountain was named Mandhata.
The third story says that once Sage Narada that is also known as Narad muni, provoked mount vindhya by saying and comparing mount meru is greater than mount Vindhya. As a result in jealousy or to prove Narad muni wrong, mount Vindhya started doing penance to Lord omkareshwar and Parthiv linga. As a result lord shiva was pleased by his devotion and gave him the boon of growing. When all gods and sages requested lord shiva then lord shiva made two parts of the Linga, one of which is in Madhya Pradesh on Mandhata island and the temple is known as omkareshwar jyotirlinga temple.
The other half is known as Mamaleshwar which is situated on the opposite bank of narmada river.
Location of Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga temple:
The Omkareshwar jyotirlinga temple is situated in Shivpuri which is in the city of Mandhata in Khandwa, of the state of Madhya Pradesh. The temple is approx. 16km from Barwaha in Madhya Pradesh. The temple is on the island of Mandhata/Shivpuri on the bank of narmada and kaveri river i.e, the tributary of narmada river. Mandhata is 4km long island and you can reach there through bridge or boats.
Omkareshwar Jyotirling temple is famous for:
Some very important festivals in hindu religion like Maha Shivratri, Kartik utsav and Narmada Jayanti are celebrated with great enthusiasm here in Omkareshwar jyotirlinga temple.
There are total of twelve (12) Jyotirlings and those are:
- Somnath (Gujrat)
- Mallikarjuna (Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh)
- Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh)
- Omkareshwar (Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh)
- Kedarnath (Rudraprayag, Uttrakhand)
- Bhimashankar (Maharashtra)
- Vishwanath (Varanasi, Uttar pradesh)
- Triambakeshwar (Nashik, Maharashtra)
- Vaidyanath temple (Jharkhand)
- Nageshwar (Dwarika, Gujrat)
- Rameshwar (Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu)
- Grishneshwar (Aurangabad, Maharashtra)
Connectivity to reach the Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga temple:
Nearest airport from the temple: Indore
Nearest Railway station from the temple: Mhow and Khandwa junction
Omkareshwara temple is conveniently situated in the town of Madikeri. Madikeri’s connections to the rest of the state of Karnataka are excellent. Once in Madikeri, visitors can travel locally by taxi or auto-rickshaw to get to the temple.
Tourists can choose between private or KSRTC buses when travelling by road; these buses frequently depart from places including Bangalore, Mysore, Virajpet, and Mangalore. Regular buses are available from Kerala to Madikeri. If you only have one day, check out this Mysore to Coorg tour package from the OneDay Tours website.
Hiring a cab to drive their own automobiles is an option for individuals who prefer to go at their own pace while discovering the road to Madikeri. From Bangalore to Madikeri, it takes a total of 5 hours and 30 minutes to drive the 265 kilometres.
It takes 3 hours to go from Mysore to Madikeri, which is a distance of about 118 km, whereas it takes 3 hours and 15 minutes to travel from Mangalore to Madikeri, which is a distance of around 138 km.
There isn’t a train station in Madikeri. Therefore, the closest train stations to your destination are Mysore, Hassan, Kasargod, and Kannur, where you must disembark if you choose to travel by train.
Omkareshwara Temple hours
All days of the month are open at the temple.
The Omkareshwara Temple is open daily from 6.30 AM to 12 PM.
Once more, it starts at 5 PM and ends at 8 PM.
The temple has no admission charge.
The temple is open throughout the year
Omkareshwara Temple is visited in around an hour.
The Omkareshwara Temple’s Pooja schedules are listed here.
Travelers and devotees can organise their trips appropriately.
- 6:30 to 6:45 AM Abhisheka
- 7:00 AM Ganga Pooja
- Maha Pooja begins at noon
- 8:00 PM: Maha Pooja
Every full moon day of the month, there is a Satyanarayana Pooja. At the Kote Ganapathi temple, a Ganahoma is also performed on the first Tuesday of each month.
Rules to follow in Omkareshwar jyotirlinga temple:
Without performing the parikramas (circumambulations) around the OM-shaped island and visiting the mamaleshwar temple on the other side of the river bank, a pilgrimage to the Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga is deemed incomplete.
The jyotirling parikrama could be completed on foot or by using a boat. Given that the parikrama trail is around 6-7 kilometres in length, the latter is obviously thicker than the former.
Before finishing the rest of the Parikrama, the boat makes a brief stop at the sangam and may take close to 30 minutes to travel. Due to the river’s currents, a little distance still needs to be traversed on foot.
The jyotirling parikrama could be completed on foot or by using a boat. Given that the parikrama trail is around 6-7 kilometres in length, the latter is obviously thicker than the former.
Before finishing the rest of the Parikrama, the boat makes a brief stop at the sangam and may take close to 30 minutes to travel. Due to the river’s currents, a little distance still needs to be traversed on foot.
