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About the best Somnath Temple
Facing the wide open Arabian Sea, the temple at Somnath is an
imposing structure offering a spectacular sight to the beholders. At
a distance of 79 km from Junagadh and 25 km from Chorwad is the
temple of Somnath, one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva. The
legend says, Somnath was built by none other than the Moon |
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God himself at the time of creation. The remains
of the temple "braved the shocks of time and survived the attacks of
destroyers."
The Legend
Soma is the name for the moon, the son in-law of Daksha. Once Soma
disregarded certain directions of his father-in-law Daksha. As a
result Daksha became angry and cursed him, saying, "Thou shalt
wane!" The moon, who used to shine in full splendour every night
till then, started to shrink. However, before the curse brought
about an absolute end to the moon, many a god appealed Daksha to
take back his curse. Daksha asked Soma to take a bath in the sea at
the mouth of the river Saraswati and then to pray to Lord Shiva.
Lord Shiva pleased with his penance restored his light for half of
the month. Hence the deity here is known as Someshwar or Somnath,
Lord of the moon and the place as Prabhas.
It is believed that the Somnath temple here was originally built by Somraj, the Moon God himself, out of gold, and then rebuilt by
Ravana in silver and then by Krishna in Wood, then by Bhimdev in
stone.
Tourist Information
Photography is prohibited inside the temple, and you must
leave your camera at the hut outside.
Other Attractions Near the Somnath Temple
Veraval Beach : Just about 5 km from the Somnath Temple is
this amazing beach, which is great place to relax and refresh your
body, mind and soul.
Not very from the Somnath temple is Bakhla Tirth, where Lord Krishna
was said to have been struck by the stray arrow of a Bhil tribal.
The Present Temple, Kailash Mahameru Prasada is built in the
chalukya style of temple architecture and displays the inherent
skill of Sompuras, Gujarat's master masons. There is a grey-sand
beach outside the temple which is part of the temple's lonely
seaside charm.
Ahalyeshwar Mahadev Temple built by Queen Ahalyabai, Gita Mandir,
Laxmi Narayan temple, Baldev Gufa, Mahaprabhuji's Bethak, Triveni
Sangam, Parshuram Kshetra, SUN Temple, Prachi and Shashibhushan
temples are other places of religious significance in and around the
Somnath Temple.
Getting There
Air - The nearest airport from Somnath is Keshod 55 km away
and linked to Mumbai. There are regular buses and taxis plying
between Keshod and Somnath.
Rail - The nearest railhead is seven km away at Veraval,
which is connected by train to Ahmedabad and some other cities in
Gujarat.
Road - State transport corporation buses and private coaches
run regular service to other cities in the region. Somnath is
connected by a good road network to the other nearby places like
Veraval 7 km, Mumbai 889 km, Ahmedabad 400 km, Bhavnagar 266 km,
Junagarh 85 km, and Porbandar 122 km.
Accommodation
You might not find a major hotel chain near Somnath. For the
pilgrims and tourists, there are guesthouses, rest houses and inns
etc. Services are simple but reasonable for a comfortable stay.
Accommodation options are also available in Veraval.
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