Monday, August 13, 2012

Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh

Drove down to Ujjain from Indore in an hour and checked in, in a lodge near the Mahakaleshwar temple.


As we had just a day in Ujjain, decided to hire a guide refferred by the Lodge keeper.
Our first visit was to the Kal Bhairav temple which is famous for the liquor offering to the presiding deity of 


the temple. This temple is believed to have been built by King Bhadresen, on the banks of the river Shipra.


The dog is the vehicle of Kal Bhairav and is parked outside looking in at the diety. Apparently the dog is also worshipped as most of the devotees in the earlier days were hunters who were always accompanied by their loyal dogs.


The street leading to the temple is lined with shops selling baskets of offerings to Kal Bhairav, containing 


flowers, incence sticks and a bottle of liquor. The priest in the temple will open the liquor bottle, pour it on a 


plate and hold it near the mouth of the deity for it to consume! Amazing practice!
After satiating Kal Bhairav we were led to Kaliadeh Palace. This too is on the banks of Shipra river. This 


palace was destroyed by the Pindaris (horsemen, plunderers, or foragers attached to a Muslim army in India who were allowed to plunder in lieu of pay) and was restored by Madhav Rao Scindia in 1920. Unfortunately it is badly in need of further restoration. It seems there are Persian inscriptions in one of the corridors of the palace, which record the visit of Emperor Akbar and Jehangir to the site.
Now it was time to visit the most famous temple in Ujjain – the Mahakaleshwar temple. This temple


dedicated to Lord Shiva has one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. For the history and mythology of this temple please visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahakaleshwar_Jyotirlinga


On the way back to the lodge we stopped by the Bada Ganesha temple which also houses a Panchmukhi 


Hanuman.
Ujjain indeed is a spiritual city tempered by science as is evident from the presence of Jantar Mantar (an 


observatory that has instruments to measure time and planetary positions). It was built in the 1725  when Jai Singh was the Governor of Malwa under the Mughal Emperor, Muhammad Shah.

How to reach :

By Air : Devi Ahilyabai Holkar Airport in Indore is the nearest airport to Ujjain, which is situated 55 km away. Indore is connected to major cities in India by public and private domestic airlines.

By Rail: Ujjain Junction  is an important railway station in Western railway zone. It is well connected to all major railway stations in India.

By Road: Ujjain is well connected by state road transport public bus services. Regular bus services are available from Indore (55 km), Gwalior (450 km), Ahmedabad (400 km) and Bhopal (183 km) to Ujjain.

39 comments:

  1. The temple looks so beautiful... your photos are great. I love the colours!! Great shots!
    Thanks for sharing the details..

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    1. Thank you so much Panchali. Pleasure to share.

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  2. I didn't know that Ujjain has a Jantar Mantar ! And the lit up temple of the Mahakaleshwar Temple is absolutely beautiful.

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  3. Liked your blog. Raja Vikramaditya (Vikram and Vetal fame) was said to be from Ujjaini who was known for his judgement skills which he acquired whenever he sat on his seat/ throne.

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  4. Beautiful pictures. I have also visited this place but I knew about Kaliadeh Palace through your post. There are some caves there which are of great antiquity said to have been a place where Bharathari meditated. Did not know about this either.

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  5. A deity that consumes liquor? Whoa!! ha ha

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  6. Interesting customs. Nice post.

    http://www.rajniranjandas.blogspot.com

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  7. You really never know what you'll find in India! Very interesting. I thought one wasn't allowed to click pics in the kalabhairav temple.

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    1. Indeed! Was allowed to click in the Kalbhairav temple but cameras not allowed in the Mahakaleshwar temple.

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  8. Lovely pictures! Thanks for taking us to the beautiful temples of Ujjain. Keep them coming! :)

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  9. A temple in Central India, looks so different , from the South Indian ones. I have seen this temple picture for the first time. A unique offering.
    Thanks for sharing.

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  10. Thanks for sharing this. I was not aware about this Kala Bhairava temple and the history.

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  11. beautiful shots and the narration is too good..

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  12. Ujjain one of the oldest cities in India, love to visit this place.
    Nicely you have captured this.

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  13. i have visited ujjain and these temples too your clicks brought back those memories. Awesome ,fantastic capture

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  14. Beautiful shots :) So colorful and stunning :)

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  15. Very informative post with beautiful pictures...

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  16. It feels like we really visited the place along with you. Amazing!
    India Violet

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  17. Thank you for sharing.
    I am really surprised as Dog as the vahan and also why is alcohol being offered?
    Please pardon my ignorance, is kal bhairav shivji ? :(

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    1. Pleasure to share Divenita.
      Kal Bhairav is a manifestation of Lord Shiva associated with annihilation. For more details click on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhairava

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  18. it was a short visit to ujjain, you visited some main places but still there are some more places left...come soon and we both will visit those places together.
    nice post..

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Chirag. Will surely take up on your offer soon!

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  19. nice blog with beautiful pix
    thanks for sharing

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