- Gupteswar Cave
Gupteswar is a famous
cave shrine dedicated toLord Shiva . It is located nearJeypore ,India , at the top of alimestone hill which is about 500 metres above sea level.Surrounded by a dense forest of
sal trees and flanked by Kolab river, a 2m highlingam stands in the cave. The shrine is called "Gupteswar" which means the "Hidden God". It is so named because it was lying hidden in the cave for a very long period. One can reach it by climbing the 1000 steps flanked with rows ofchampak trees. The entrance of the cave is about 3 m wide and 2 m in height. There are also several other caves nearby. Inside the second cave there is a largestalactite . People worship it as the udder of GodKamadhenu (the divine cow) and wait under it with outstretched palms to collect drops ofwater which fall only at long intervals.Popularly known as "Gupta Kedar" in the vicinity, this
sacred place, endowed with unusual natural beauty, is associated withShri Rama of the epicRamayana . The nearby hill has been named "Ramagiri". According to mythology, the lingam was first discovered by Lord Rama when he was roaming in the thenDandakaryana forest with wife Sita and brother Laxman and later worshipped it calling it "Gupteswar". The poetKalidas too, described the scenic beauty ofRamgiri forest where the cave temple is referred to in his famous "Meghadutam ".However, with the passing of time, the
temple was abandoned. Later, in the last part of the 19th century, ahunter of the Ramgiri area found the lingam. Since then the lingam has been worshipped by the tribes ofKoraput region. InShivaratri (aHindu festival) Gupteswar Temple draws over 200,000 devotees fromOrissa ,Andhra Pradesh andChattisgarh . People suffering from incurable diseases come here to worship the God and remain here for months in the hope of getting cured.How to get there
This is located 60 km south-west of
Jeypore . You can get there either bybus or taxi. October to March is the best time to visit this place.
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