In the Taittiriya Upanishad, the twelve Principles of Brahma, Maya, the jiva, the mind, intellect, subconscious mind, ego and the Panchamahabhutas have been referred to as the 12 Jyotirlinga. A representation of the twelve Adityas (Species of Deities who are designated into groups).
सौराष्ट्रे सोमनाथं च श्रीशैले मल्लिकार्जुनम्।
उज्जयिन्यां महाकालम्ॐकारममलेश्वरम्॥१॥
परल्यां वैद्यनाथं च डाकिन्यां भीमाशंकरम्।
सेतुबंधे तु रामेशं नागेशं दारुकावने॥२॥
वाराणस्यां तु विश्वेशं त्र्यंबकं गौतमीतटे।
हिमालये तु केदारम् घुश्मेशं च शिवालये॥३॥
एतानि ज्योतिर्लिङ्गानि सायं प्रातः पठेन्नरः।
सप्तजन्मकृतं पापं स्मरणेन विनश्यति॥४॥
The above shlok defines the 12 different jyotirlings along with their location. The sites of eruption of fire from the dormant volcanoes. Since Yama, the master of southern direction is a subordinate of Shankar, south becomes the direction of Shankar. The Jyotirlingas are south-oriented, meaning, the opening of their shalunkas face southwards.
There is a mention of these Jyotirlingas in several ancient Hindu scriptures such as Shiva Purana, Skanda Purana, and Linga Purana. The twelve Jyotirlingas are considered to be the embodiment of the Lord Shiva's divine energy and power.
According to Shiv Purana's Rudra Sanhita; There are 64 jyotirlingas but 12 out of them are the majors which are powerful enough to neutralise all your sins just by a darshan of them. A Shiva Linga consists of three parts, the lowest of which is the Brahma-Pitha, the middle one, the Vishnu-Pitha, and the uppermost one, the Siva-Pitha.
Shiva is the absolute reality, the primal soul, and the pure consciousness. He is the one who created the cosmos. The Swayambhu (self-manifested), the Adiyogi, the Eternal soul of this universe who has no creator above him. He is the one who is beyond the circle of life and death and has no Origin or End.
According to legend, on the night of Ardra Nakshatra, Lord Shiva, for the very first time manifested himself into the jyotirlinga, wherein a common man can only see and feel the presence of Lord Shiva through his radiant lights like fire emerging from the earth and it is only then, he can consider himself closer to his spiritual attainment and closer to the lord.
When Shiva and Shakti decided to create humans and everything that has life, they manifested in the form of 12 jyotirlingas and navdurga, to control everything on earth. The 12 jyotirlingas represent the 12 rashis like scorpio, Capricorn and others and 9 forms of Shakti called Navdurga represent the 9 planets.
The 12 Jyotirlingas also correspond to the 12 zodiac signs and remove afflictions from them. We can do a lot remedies based on this knowledge. All jyotirlinga hold the power to remove sufferings at a soul level as they directly influence one's soul. The soul is also a tiny spark of light siting in our Ahatana Chakra.
The 12 Jyotirlingas in India have been positioned in a progressive spiral.If you draw a line over the Jyotirlinga temples on map then the final result is the shape of a conch shell or the Fibonacci pattern. They say, this pattern is nature's secret code. Law of energy states - Energy always balances itself. Energy flows from a point where it is concentrated to the colder universe. This is exactly the reason why air flows from a region of high pressure to low pressure.
Now look at the spiral pattern of Jyotirlingas. Arrows show the flow of life energy. It's believed that Lord Shiva appeared at d 12 Jyotirlingas as a column of fire. To a person who has attained a certain degree of spirituality sees these lingas as columns of fire piercing through the earth.
Exactly point to the form of energy which flows from one linga to the other as Jyotirlingas are sources of high energy. Be it solar, nuclear, electromagnetic or spiritual energy; Exact form of energy not known. Even Lotus, holy flower in Hinduism, also follows Fibonacci pattern.
Just like Shiva represents the cosmos, cosmic phenomena (maha-ishvara) remind us of the presence of Shiva. Jyotirlinga is inspired by a cosmic phenomena known as a pulsar, a highly magnetized rotating compact star that emits beams of electromagnetic radiation out of its magnetic poles.
Mostly these stars are visible as “pulsating” stars, unless the beams intersect proximate megallanic clouds. Fibonacci pattern is wat prevents universe frm collapsing. Most common shape of galaxies is spiral. So its very possible that the shape also helps in 'ease of flow' of energy like conch.
India remains as a mystery to geologists, archaeologists, paleontologists, historians, and mathematicians. The nature’s secret code is hidden in this growing Fibonacci pattern. The fact that our bodies, and that of animals, birds, fish, insects, micro-organisms, plants/ trees, mountains and galaxies and universe; even our bodies are nothing more than self-replicating fractals of an interactive biological software program.
Bee hive has a geometric pattern, migrating birds travel in perfect formation just as schools of fish do in the ocean. Each tree according to its kind has sequences of leaves, branches and flowers based on the Fibonacci sequence.
Most of all these blueprints are based on the Golden Ratio and the Fibonacci spiral in this creation. The Golden ratio and the Fibonacci spiral occur everywhere in nature, in the spirals of DNA and in the dimensions of the earth and moon and planets. The nature shaped by specific mathematical formula shows that they have been specially created, each species having its own proportions based on the Golden ration and the Fibonacci sequence.
Fibonacci sequence is that each number after the second 1 is equal to the sum of the two previous numbers. So 1+1 = 2, 1+2 = 3, 2+3 = 5, 3+5 = 8, 5+8 =13, 8+13 = 21 and so on. This interesting connection is only a mystery for human beings but not for Nature. This is known as the divine proportion and is usually represented by the φ (pi).
Similarly all the five holy Lord Shiva Temples starting from Kedarnath to Rameshwaram are built on the same longitude of 79° E 41’54”, another mathematical beauty which we will discuss in a separate blog. Coming back to Jyotirlinga Temples backing up the Golden Ratio of 1.618, this is a geometrical magic. The twelve Jyotirlingas are as follows:
Somnath Jyotirlinga: Located in Gujarat, it is considered to be the first Jyotirlinga and is also known as the "Protector of Moon God." It is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here as a self-manifested lingam, which was installed by the Moon God himself.
Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga: Situated in Andhra Pradesh, it is believed to be the place where Lord Shiva and Parvati appeared in the form of Mallikarjuna Swamy and Brahmarambika Devi, respectively.
Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga: Located in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, it is one of the most revered Jyotirlingas. It is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here as a Jyotirlinga to save the city from the clutches of demons.
Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga: Situated on an island in the Narmada river in Madhya Pradesh, it is considered to be one of the holiest Jyotirlingas. It is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here as a self-manifested lingam.
Kedarnath Jyotirlinga: Located in Uttarakhand, it is one of the most revered shrines of Lord Shiva. It is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here in the form of a bull and his hump is worshipped here.
Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga: Situated in Maharashtra, it is believed to be the place where Lord Shiva appeared in the form of Bhima, one of the Pandavas.
Kashi Vishwanath Jyotirlinga: Located in Varanasi, it is one of the most famous and oldest Jyotirlingas. It is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here in the form of a fiery pillar of light.
Trimbakeshwar Jyotirlinga: Located in Maharashtra, it is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here in the form of three lingams representing Lord Brahma, Lord Vishnu, and Lord Shiva.
Vaidyanath Jyotirlinga: Situated in Deoghar, Jharkhand, it is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here in the form of Vaidyanath or the "Lord of physicians."
Nageshwar Jyotirlinga: Located in Dwarka, Gujarat, it is believed that Lord Shiva appeared here in the form of a Jyotirlinga to save his devotee, Supriya from a demon.
Rameshwaram Jyotirlinga: Located in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, it is believed to be the place where Lord Rama worshipped Lord Shiva and installed a Jyotirlinga to absolve himself of the sin of killing Ravana.
Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga: Located in Aurangabad, Maharashtra, it is believed to be the place where Lord Shiva appeared in the form of a Jyotirlinga to a devout woman named Kusuma.
All the twelve Jyotirlingas hold immense significance in Hinduism and are associated with various legends and stories. The devotees visit these Jyotirlingas to seek the blessings of Lord Shiva and attain spiritual upliftment.
Apart from this, each Jyotirlinga is associated with specific rituals and customs. For example, at the Kedarnath Jyotirlinga, the devotees offer "Abhishekam" or pouring of water over the lingam to seek the blessings of Lord Shiva. Similarly, at the Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga, the devotees offer "Akshata" or unbroken rice grains to the deity. Moreover, each of the Jyotirlingas has a unique historical and psychological significance.
For instance, the Somnath Jyotirlinga is believed to have been built by the moon God, Chandra, as an act of penance for his curse by his father-in-law, Daksha Prajapati. The Nageshwar Jyotirlinga is believed to be the place where Lord Shiva defeated the demon Daruka and protected the world from his tyranny. The Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is believed to be the spot where Lord Shiva appeared in the form of light to save King Chandrasena from the demon Dushana.
One of the significant beliefs associated with the Jyotirlingas is that visiting all twelve Jyotirlingas and performing the holy rituals can help one attain Moksha or liberation from the cycle of birth and death. This is called the "Jyotirlinga Yatra" and is considered to be one of the most important pilgrimages for the devotees of Lord Shiva.
The significance of these Jyotirlingas extends beyond their religious and spiritual importance. They have played an essential role in shaping the cultural and historical identity of India. The Jyotirlingas have witnessed the rise and fall of empires, invasions, and conflicts throughout history.
They have served as symbols of resistance against foreign rule and oppression, and many devotees have fought to protect them. For instance, the Somnath temple was destroyed multiple times by foreign invaders, but it was rebuilt each time, signifying the unshakable faith of the people in Lord Shiva and their devotion to their heritage.
The Jyotirlingas are not only places of worship but also centers of cultural and social activities. They serve as hubs of knowledge, where scholars and philosophers gather to discuss and debate various topics.
They also host various festivals and events, which attract a large number of visitors from across the country and the world. These festivals are an integral part of the cultural heritage of India, and they showcase the diversity and richness of the country's traditions and customs.
About change as is change for good the spiritual transformation happens because of gyan and sadhna though these famous and highly spiritual places help immensely but gyan, bhakti and sadhna are necessity in life, the true transformation happens with gyaan which shiva poojan surely does as mantra says buddhi vivardhan kaaran lingam, And more over Shiva is lord of all gyan (knowledge) he is known as Ishanah Sarva vidyanaameshwara.
In fact he is Guru and God of Bramha and Vishnu and all Rishis also. All knowledge of every kind mundane or spiritual is ordained by Shiva in Vedas, Agamas, Tantra etc are known as Breath or Shiva (Yasya nihshwasitam Veda, vande vidya teertham maheshwaram).
In conclusion, the Jyotirlingas are not just a set of twelve sacred shrines; they are an embodiment of the rich and diverse cultural heritage of India. These shrines have played an essential role in shaping the history, culture, and identity of India.
The Jyotirlingas continue to inspire and guide people on their spiritual journey, and they will remain an integral part of the Indian cultural heritage for generations to come. They are revered by millions of devotees worldwide, who seek the blessings of Lord Shiva and strive to attain spiritual liberation.
ॐ नमः शिवाय ॐ
Authored by Anadi Sahoo
