Shri Mandhata Omkareshwar Mahadev

Namah Shivay Om !!!!

Dear all,
As all of u know that Shri Omkareshwar is revered as the fourth Jyotirling in India. I have always wondered , how many pilgrims actually understand the meaning of the word "Jyotirling". As i could understand, it means "light of fire". It is only a these twelve revered places that the Lingam appears as a blazing light of fire, special place of worship.
By lord' grace I have been to five jyotrilings. I'll randomly post all my visits together with pics wherever possible.
njoy !!!!


Let us begin our journey from New Delhi ( since i began it from here)
To reach Omkareshwar , one needs to travel to Indore first. U can board local buses travelling to Omkareshwar from Indore. The road distance between Indore and Omkareshwar is around 75-80 kms. The roads are in pretty good condition and it takes around three hours to reach there. The Indore bus stand is just across the railway station. U will be received by people shouting location names where buses travel. Pick the right one and it'll escort u to the bus leaving for Omkareshwar. Just remember one thing,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, confirm to the conductor whether he'll be taking u straight to Omkareshwar or Mortakka (A small town 14 km from Omkareshwar). In case it is Mortakka then tell him to arrange the bus for u to Omkareshwar.

The main bridge leading to other side of the island

It a long bridge to pass !!

First view of the main temple






The main Swayambhu Shivling

This Shivaling satnds around one feet tall. Chemically it is constituted of limestone. This ling is believed to be around 25 lac yrs old.

Narmada Ji

There are a very few ghats at Narmada ji where u can take a dunk. I have known "NAGAR GHAT" as one of the better ghats for the purpose. Anybody can guide you to Nagar ghat there.

A closer look

There is sense of peace in this place. out from the crowded metropolitans one can feel inner peace here. The locals are very helpful and do not ask for money like other places ( except the pandas).

There is a parikrama that is being performed by the side of Narmada ji. It is said that Adi Jagadguru Shri Shankaracharya ji started this parikrama. Legend is that Lord Ram also undertook Narmada Parikrama when he visited this place during exile. It humbly takes over three hrs to complete this parikrama. Go for it only when u have time and ability to walk in terrain.

One can see the parikrama marg atop the hill

A lord Shiv statue installed in the parikrama marg

If someone has set foot for the parikrama then it is advisable to complete it before dawn as there is no lighting facility in the marg. MP tourism has taken many initiatives to modernize the parikrama path. It is the only parikrama in the world where one circumbulates a river.

Way to Mamleshwar (the other half of the Shivaling)

Main temple structure

Temple premises

View of Omkareshwar from Mamleshwar

It is relatively easy to visit Mamleshwar first and then board a ferry (its cheap) across the river to Omkareshwar temple. As a matter of fact Omkareshwar temple draws more crowd than Mamleshwar.

There area lot of things to be seen at this place. The irony is that Indore is being the central place everybody ( including me) visits here in a rush and due to akward timings of the bus and train usually ends up visiting only these two temples only & ultimately it is something that matters !!!!!!
I have some more pics in my mobile which I intend to load very soon. Anybody visiting here requires any kind of help, just mail me or leave a comment, i'll reply back.
Thanx
Nitin Datta