Top Religious Places

Vaishno Devi Temple, Jammu and Kashmir

 

Vaishno Devi temple is one of the holiest place for Hindu religion followers. Vaishno Devi is also known as “Mata Rani”, “Vaishnavi” or “Mother Goddess”. Every hour, every day, every year a mass of humanity surges up steep pathways that cut across the hillside for mile after mile. Popular belief holds that anybody who walks the Himalayan trail to her abode to ask for a boon rarely goes back disappointed. There are many who journey here year after year to pay obeisance regardless of their faith or belief, creed or class, caste or religion, for Mata Vaishno Devi transcends all such barriers.

As the legend goes, more than 700 years ago Vaishno Devi a devotee of Lord Vishnu, used to pray to Lord Rama and had taken vow of celibacy. Bhairon Nath, a tantric (demon-God) tried to behold Her. Making use of his tantric powers, Bhairon Nath was able to see Her going towards the Trikuta mountains and gave chase. The Goddess felt thirsty at Banganga and shot an arrow into the earth from where water gushed out. Charan Paduka, marked by the imprints of Her feet, is the place where she rested. The Goddess then meditated in the cave at Adhkawari. It took Bhairon Nath nine months to locate Her, the reason why the cave is known as Garbh Joon. Mata Vaishno Devi blasted an opening at the other end of the cave with Her Trident when the demon-God located Her.

On arriving at the Holy Cave at Darbar, she assumed the form of Maha Kali and cut off Bhairon Nath's head which was flung up the mountain by the force of the blow and fell at the place where the Bhairon Temple is now located.

The boulder at the mouth of the Holy Cave according to the legend is the petrified torso of Bhairon Nath who was granted divine forgiveness by the benevolent Mata in his dying moments.

How To Visit

Mata's cave shrine is nestled in the mighty Trikuta mountain 61 kilometres north of Jammu at a height of 5,200 feet above the sea level in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, India.

Airway :
Nearest airport - Jammu (48 km from Katra)
Daily Flights are available from Delhi, Srinagar, Mumbai and Other Major Towns. These flights (Indian Airlines, Go Air, Indigo, Jet Airways, Spicejet, Kingfisher) connect Chandigarh & Amritsar on some days of the week.

Railway :
Nearest Railway Station - Jammu By rail, Jammu is directly connected cities like Mumbai, Delhi Kolkatta and Chennai. Besides, it is connected with other major cities of the country.

Roadways :
Jammu is the terminus of a large number of Inter State Bus Services.

Jammu to Katra :
Buses leave for Katra every 10 minutes from the main bus stand at Jammu between 5.30 am to 8.30 pm. During rush periods, additional buses are also pressed into service between Jammu and Katra. Private Taxis are also available for hire between Jammu and Katra. These can be hired from Jammu Airport, Jammu Railway Station and the Tourist Reception Centre at Jammu.

Where to stay :
Jammu
Yatri Niwas managed by the Shrine Board. Various private hotels, the room rent ranging from Rs.300/- per day to Rs.3000/- per day.

Shri Ram Mandir Ayodhya, Faizabad – Uttar Pradesh

 

 

                                                                    Ayodhya is the most sacred place in India and in the World for Hinduism followers. It is the birthplace of Lord Rama as per the Hindu belief. It attracts millions of pilgrim tourists every year due to the mandir / temple of Lord Rama. It is one of the holy city in seven holy cities of India.

Ram Janmabhoomi refers to a tract of land in the North Indian city of Ayodhya which is believed to be the birthplace of the Rama. Prior to 1528, a famous and important temple stood at this site.
In 1528, the temple was demolished on the orders of Mughal invader Babur and a mosque was built on its ruins. This mosque came to be known as the Babri Masjid. The name Ram Janmabhoomi means "birthplace of Rama." On the morning of December 6 1992, the building which was known as "Babri Masjid" (The Mosque of Babur) by Muslims and "Ram Mandir" by Hindus on this spot was demolished by activists.
A movement was launched in 1984 by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad(VHP) eventually leading to the destruction of the building which stood here. The VHP wants to erect a temple dedicated to Ram Lala (infant Ram) at this spot. Many Muslim organizations, most of them accused of being fundamentalist in nature, on the other hand strongly oppose the building of the temple.

It was until about 1990 the standard view that an ancient Ram Janmabhoomi temple was demolished and replaced with the Babri Mosque. References such as the 1986 edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica reported that "Rama’s birthplace is marked by a mosque, erected by the Moghul emperor Babar in 1528 on the site of an earlier temple". According to the Hindu view, the ancient temple could have been destroyed on the orders of Mughal emperor Babur.

With little over 10 sq Km in area, lying on the banks of the river Ghagra or Saryu, this ancient city is believed to be the birth place of Lord Rama, the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu. The holy book of Hindus- the Ramayana- says, the city was founded by Manu. Later, it became the capital of the descendants of the Surya dynasty. Lord Rama was the most celebrated King of this dynasty. Known as 'Kosaldesa' in ancient times, the place has been described as "a city built by gods and being as prosperous as paradise itself", in the Atharvaveda. From the time immemorial, this place has been noted for the performance of various rituals and Yajnas, including 'Asvamedha Yajna'. From the epic and puranic ages, Ayodhya rose to prominence again in the 6th century B.C,the times of Buddha. Situated just about 10 Km from the district headquarters of Faizabad, Ayodhya is a city of temples of several religions. Various faiths have grown and prospered simultaneously and that also in different periods of time in the history. Jain traditions, for example, consider that five Tirthankaras were born at Ayodhya including Rishabhadeva, the first Tirthankar. Don't miss the remnants of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Jainism, that can still be found in Ayodhya.

Skand and some other Puranas rank Ayodhya as one of the seven most sacred cities of India. It was the venue of many an event in Hindu mythology, today preeminently a temple town, The illustrious ruling dynasty of this region were the Ikshvakus of the solar clan (Suryavansa). According to tradition, Ikshvakus was the eldest son of Vaivasvata Manu, who established himself at Ayodhya. The earth is said to have derived its name `Prithivi’ from Prithu, the 6th king of the line. A few generations later came Mandhatri, in whose line the 31st king was Harischandra, known widely for his love of truth. Raja Sagar of the same clan performed the Asvamedha Yajna and his great grandson Bhagiratha is reputed to have brought Ganga on earth by virtue of his penance. Later in the time came the great Raghu, after whom the family came to be called as Raghuvamsa. His grandson was Raja Dasaratha, the illustrious father of Rama, with whom the glory of the Kausala dynasty reached its highest point. The story of this epic has been immortalized by Valmiki and immensely popularized by the great masses through centuries.

Ayodhya is preeminently a city of temples yet, all places of worship here, are not only of Hindu religion. At Ayodhya several religions have grown and prospered simultaneously and also at different periods of time in the past.

How to reach Ayodhya:

AIR
For Ayodhya the nearest airports are Amausi Airport (Lucknow-134 km), Bumrauli Airport (Allahabad - 166 km)


RAIL
Ayodhya is situated on the broad gauge Northern Railway line on Mughal Sarai – Lucknow main route. Ayodhya junction and Faizabad Railway Station are connected to various parts of the country.

Ayodhya Railway Station; Enquiries and Reservations. Phone: (05278) 232023.
Faizabad Railway Station; Enquiries and Reservations. Phone: (05278) 139.


ROAD
Connected by road to several major cities and towns. Some of the major road
Ayodhya is :

    Lucknow (134 km),
    Gorakhpur (132 km),
    Jhansi (441 km),
    Allahabad (166 km),
    Sravasti (109 km),
    Varanasi (209 km)
    Gonda (51 km).