STATES+
GOD AND GODDESS+
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23. Sri Mahabaleshwara Swami Temple Gokarna
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History of the temple
Gokarnam Mahabaleswara Temple
The Mahabaleshwar Temple, Gokarna is a 4th-century CE Hindu temple located in Gokarna, Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka state, India which is built in the classical Dravidian architectural style. It is a site of religious pilgrimage. The temple faces the Gokarna beach on the Arabian Sea.
The temple deifies the Pranalinga ("the reality of God which can be captured by the mind") also called Atmalinga or Shiva Linga In legend, it is said that the deity of the temple will bestow immense blessings to devotees, even to those who only glimpse it.
The temple is one of the seven sacred Muktikshetras or Muktistala ("places of salvation") in Karnataka. It is a place where many Hindus of Karnataka perform obsequies (death rites) for their departed. The six other Muktikshetras in Karnataka are at Udupi, Kollur, Subrahmanya, Kumbasi, Koteshvara and Sankaranarayana.
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>According to legend, the Atmalinga was perforce placed at Gokarna, in the temple precincts where it is now deified. It was Ravana, the demon King of Lanka, known from the epic, Ravana had carried it there from Mount Kailash in the Himalayas.
This is one of the holiest site for shiva and finds its mention in several Puranas, Ramayana and the Mahabharata.
The temple's first construction was by the king Mayurasharma of the Kadamba dynasty (reign 345 CE – 365 CE). Again, legend holds that Mayurasharma wished to learn of the Vedic rites and the Ashwamedha Yagna (ritual of horse sacrifice). He travelled to Kanchipuram, a major religious learning centre, but there, he was insulted by a horseman guard.
He was angered and swore to defeat the ruling Pallava dynasty. Following his defeat of the Pallavas, the king asked some priests to perform a daily yajna to maintain his suzerainty over the region. Mayurasharma's son, King Kangavarma brought Brahmin families from different lineages to maintain administration at the temple.
The classical Sanskrit writer, Kalidasa mentions the "Lord of Gokarna" in his 4th century work, Raghuvamsha. The Gokarna temple is recorded as one of the Paadal Petra Sthalams in the 7th century Tevaram by Appar and Sambandar wrote canon of devotional poetry.The temple is a large complex of shrines and much of it belongs to the later Vijayanagara period (1336–1646 CE). A Vijayanagara emperor once visited the temple and weighed himself in gold.
During the 17th century reign of Queen Chennammaji and her son, Soma Sekharanayaka of Keladi, Visvesvaraya of Halasunadu-Kundapura built the Chandrasala and Nandi pavilions. In 1665, the warrior king, Shivaji (1630 CE - 1680 CE) worshipped at the Mahabaleshwar temple after disbanding his army in Gokarna.
In 1676, Fryer, an English traveller, visited Gokarna during the Maha Shivaratri festival and wrote in detail about it at the temple.
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 LOCATION
 ADDRESS
 TIMING
| Wednesday
(Diwali (Observed))
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6am–12pm, 5–7pm
Hours might differ
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| Thursday |
6am–12pm, 5–7pm |
| Friday |
6am–12pm, 5–7pm |
| Saturday |
6am–12pm, 5–7pm |
| Sunday |
6am–12pm, 5–7pm |
| Monday |
6am–12pm, 5–7pm |
| Tuesday
(Karnataka Rajyotsava)
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6am–12pm, 5–7pm
Hours might differ
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 CONTACT
Koti Teertha Rd, Kotiteertha, Dandebagh, Gokarna, Karnataka 581326
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