Pashupatinath temple, Mandsaur

Pashupatinath Temple (Hindi:पशुपतिनाथ मन्दिर) in Mandsaur, India is a famous Hindu temple of Lord Pashupatinath. Situated on the banks of the Shivna River, Pashupatinath Temple is one of the prominent shrines in the city of Mandsaur in Madhya Pradesh. Lord Shiva in the form of Pashupatinath is the principal deity here. The highlight is a unique "Shiv Ling" with eight faces of Lord Shiva. The shrine has four doors in four directions.

The "Shiv Ling" in the temple is 2.5 x 3.2 metres (8' x 10.5') and weighs 4,665.525kg (4.6 tons). It is said that the "Shiv Ling" emerged from the waters of the Shivna on Monday, which is considered as an auspicious day by the devotees of Lord Shiva. On Sunday, it reached the Tapeshwar Ghat of the river and was placed there. On Monday, after exactly, 21 years, 5 months and 4 days it was incarnated. The day of incarnation of the idol is celebrated as a Mela in the area surrounding the temple.

The temple built on the river is 90 feet (27.6m) long, 30 feet (9.2m)wide and 101 feet (31m) tall. On top of the temple is a 100kg (45.5kg) gold plated pitcher. Every monsoon the water level in the Shivna river raises to touch the holy "Shiv Ling" of lord Shiva. This phenomenon is termed as "Jalaabhishek" which means worshiping god through water.

External links

* [http://www.shripashupatinath.nic.in/ Shri Pashupatinath Temple official Site]