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45-636: Jawalamukhi, or Jwalamukhi also Jawalaji, is a temple town and a nagar parishad in Kangra district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh . Hindu genealogy registers are kept here like that of Haridwar . The town takes its name from the holy Jwalamukhi Temple, located in Jawalamukhi. Firuz Shah Tughlaq during his campaign of Nagarkot destroyed the temple and desecrated its main deity. He stole 1300 Sanskrit Manuscripts from this temple's library that

90-621: A chairperson and vice chairperson among themselves to preside over and conduct meetings. A chief executive officer, along with officers like an engineer, sanitary inspector, health inspector, and education officer who come from the state public service are appointed by the state government to control the administrative affairs of the Nagar Palika. Employees of the state government of India, including Chief Officer, Town Planning Engineer, Auditor, Sanitary Inspector, Medical Officer for Health , and Education Officer , among many others, who come from

135-418: A circumference of about three feet. At the bottom of this pit, there is another small pit about one and a half feet deep with hot water bubbling all the time. The temple is identified as one among the 51 Shakti Peethas . It is also one of the most renowned temples of Goddess Durga . Hindu genealogy registers at Jawalamukhi are the genealogy registers of pilgrims maintained there by pandas . The shrine

180-431: A grihastha (householder). Nagar parishad In India , a municipal council , also known as nagar palika , nagar parishad or nagar parisad , is a self-governing Urban Local Body that administers a smaller urban areas than municipal corporations, with population of 100,000 or more. However, there are exceptions to that, as previously Nagar Palikas constituted in urban centers with populations over 20,000, so all

225-632: Is Tripura Sundari herself. Many legends are associated with Vindhyavasini, she is also called Mahadurga . She is the combined form of all 108 Shakta pithas as mentioned in the Devi Bhagavata Purana text. This is because it is the place where the goddess chose to reside after her birth in Dvapara Yuga . At the time of the birth of Krishna to Devaki and Vasudeva , Vindhyavasini took birth in Gokula to Nanda and Yashoda as per

270-413: Is based on the story of the death of the goddess Sati . Out of grief and sorrow, Shiva carried Sati's body, reminiscing about their moments as a couple, and roamed around the universe with it. Vishnu had cut her body into 51 body parts, using his Sudarshana Chakra , which fell on earth to become sacred sites where all the people can pay homage to the goddess. To complete this massively long task, Shiva took

315-652: Is currently in a ruined state. Only ruins are found in these places. Its ruins are near the Line of Control (LOC) between the Indian and Pakistani-controlled portions of the former princely state of Kashmir and Jammu . Instead, Sringeri Sharada pitham , Sringeri in Karnataka even though not a Shakta pithas, is this aspect of the goddess. It is believed that Goddess Sharada moved from her ruined temple in Kashmir to live in

360-402: Is hung. Usually, milk and water are offered to the deity and abhisheka is offered to the sacred flames in the pit. The prasada of the deity is Bhog made of Rabri or thickened milk, Misri or candy, seasonal fruits, and milk. There is a Sri Yantra in front of the flame, which is covered with, shawls, and ornaments. The puja has different 'phases' and goes on practically the whole day. Aarti

405-464: Is no evidence. The Vindhyavasini Shakta pitha is considered a Shakta pitha even though any body parts of Sati did not fall there. Vindhyavasini is the ultimate and the highest form of the goddess, she is called Adi Parashakti . Goddess Vindhyavasini is considered the embodiment of all of the Mahavidyas , Navadurgas , Matrikas , Yoginis and all the other goddesses present in this universe, she

450-463: Is performed five times in the day, havan is performed once daily and portions of Durga Saptasati are recited. For Aarti, the temple remains open from 11.00 A.M. to 12.00 P.M. and from 06.00 P.M. to 07.00 P.M. Maharaja Ranjit Singh paid a visit to the temple in 1815 and the dome of the temple was gold-plated by him. Just a few feet above the Jwalamukhi temple there is a six-feet deep pit with

495-533: Is regarded as a Shakti Peetha . It is believed that Sati 's tongue fell here. Shakti Peethas are the shrines of Adi Parashakti , the primordial Mother Goddess. Each Shakti Peetha has a shrine for Shakti and Bhairava , an incarnation of Shiva , the consort of Shakti. Here, Jwalamukhi is the Shakti and Unmatta Bhairava is the Bhairava. The Daksha yaga and Sati's self-immolation had immense significance in shaping

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540-725: Is situated in Jaintiapur Upazila, Bangladesh , which was previously the capital of the Jaintia Hills tribe kingdom, which became the Jaintia hills district of Meghalaya, India, excluding Jaintiapur. However, some people say that it is the Nartiang Durga temple which is the real Jayanti Temple, though there is a shortage of evidence. Some other people argue the actual shrine is at Amta in West Bengal, where

585-596: The ASI . The Hindus claims that the temple was destroyed and the minar was built there. It is claimed that Shrinkhala Mata Murti was taken to Shringeri Karnataka but no such temple exits there till date. At present in Hooghly district only one Ratnabali Shaktipeeth is present (Third mahavidya) (main form of Parvati ) Currently in Kumartoli Kolkata , West Bengal Other Shakipeeths:- These are not recognised as

630-521: The Bengal region, 14 of these are located in what is now West Bengal , India, 1 in Baster (Chhattisgarh), while 7 are in what is now Bangladesh . According to legend, lord Brahma once conducted a huge yajna (ritual sacrifice), where all the prajapatis, deities, and kings of the world were invited. Shiva and Sati were also called on to participate in the yajna. All of them came for the yajna, and sat in

675-613: The Bharat or Greater India including present-day India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, some parts of Southern Tibet in China and parts of southern Pakistan. Another text which gives a listing of these shrines, is the Shakta Pitha Stotram , written by Adi Shankara , the 9th-century Hindu philosopher. According to the manuscript Mahapithapurana (c. 1690–1720 CE), there are 52 such places. Among them, 23 are located in

720-646: The Constitutional (74th Amendment) Act, 1993 . Under Article 243Q, it became obligatory for every state to constitute such units. The 74th amendment made the provisions relating to urban local governments (nagar palikas). Three tier structure: Four tier structure: The members of the Municipal Council or Municipality are elected representatives for a term of five years. The town is divided into wards according to population, and representatives are elected from each ward separately. The members elect

765-529: The sanctum sanctorum . Nine flames, symbolising the Navadurgas , are believed to be worshipped in the shrine. It is unknown when the flames have been burning and from where the flames emerged. Scientists predicted that an underground volcano exists beneath the temple and the volcano's natural gas burns through the rock as the flames. Akbar , the erstwhile emperor of the Mughal dynasty , once tried to extinguish

810-503: The 51 pithas are in the present day countries of India, Sri Lanka , Bangladesh , Nepal , Tibet, Bhutan and Pakistan. The Shivacharita besides listing 51 maha-pithas, speaks about 26 more upa-pithas. The Bengali almanac , Vishuddha Siddhanta Panjika too describes the 51 pithas including the present modified addresses. A few of the several accepted listings are given below. In South India, Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh became

855-458: The Bengal region. During partition the numbers were West Bengal (18, 1 disputed as Shrinkhala Devi Temple ) and Bangladesh (7). After the secret transfer of Dhakeshwari Shaktipeeth to Kolkata the numbers stand as West Bengal (19,1 disputed Shrinkhala Devi Temple) and Bangladesh (6). The Brahmanda Purana , one of the major eighteen Puranas mentions 64 Shakta pithas of the goddess Parvati in

900-650: The Indian Government and the Sringeri Sharada Peetham in 2023, in Kupwara district, Jammu and Kashmir, on the other side of the LOC and much farther from the original temple. The Indian Government is planning an international corridor between the old Sharada pitha and mainland India. As per Sankara Samhita of Skanda Purana , In the listings below: More details on this are available in

945-635: The Shakta pithas, but still claimed by the followers, for various reasons. 1. Jwala Devi Jobner 2. Jayanti Kali Temple 3. Asamai Devi Temple in Kabul, Afghanistan 4. Juranpur Kali Temple , West Bengal 5. Sarbamangala Temple Burdwan West Bengal ( it is said that Devi Shakti's part fell here as claimed by the pujaris and local legends) There are disputes about the location of the Jayanti Shakta pitha. Based on most presented manuscripts and facts it

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990-584: The Temple. The main gem of Goddess Sati is lost long before (the factual date is unknown). So for actual Darshan visit the Kumartoli kolkata West Bengal one. 2) The Shrinkhala Shaktipeeth (one of 18 Maha Shakta pitha) in West Bengal Hooghly is a disputed site and today only an Islamic Minar is seen there and a door claimed by the locals as the door to the garbagriha of the temple is closed by

1035-574: The ancient Sanskrit literature and even had an impact on the culture of India. It led to the development of the concept of Shakti Peethas and thereby strengthening Shaktism . Enormous stories in puranas took the Daksha Yagna as the reason for its origin. It is an important incident in Shaivism resulting in the emergence of Parvati as the reincarnation of Sati and by marrying Shiva and giving birth to Ganesha and Kartikeya , which made Shiva

1080-406: The area is more than 25000 and below 100000. The population requirement for a municipality to be classified as a Municipal Council can vary from state to state but typically ranges from around 20,000 to 100,000 residents. Again, the exact population requirement may vary depending on the state. The establishment of municipalities is primarily based on several factors that are taken into consideration by

1125-483: The beginning of Shiva's house-holder ( grihastāshramī ) life from an ascetic. This event is ahead of the emergence of both of the couple's children, Kartikeya and Ganesha . Each temple has shrines for Shakti and Kalabhairava , and most Shakti and Kalabhairava in different Shakta pithas have different names. The scriptures, which include the Kalika Purana , recognize four Shakta pithas as sites where most of

1170-509: The celestial dance of destruction, across all creation. Frightened, the other deities requested Vishnu to intervene to stop this destruction. As a recourse, Vishnu used the Sudarshana Chakra on Sati's corpse. This caused various parts of Sati's body to fall at several spots across the world. The history of Daksha yajna and Sati's self-immolation had immense significance in shaping the ancient Sanskrit literature and influenced

1215-447: The ceremonial place. Daksha came last. When he arrived, everyone in the yajna, with the exception of Brahma and Shiva, stood up, showing their reverence for him. Brahma, being Daksha's father, did not rise. Shiva, being Daksha's son-in-law, and also due to the fact that he considered himself superior in stature to Daksha, remained seated. Daksha misunderstood Shiva's gesture, and considered this act an insult. Daksha vowed to take revenge on

1260-510: The culture of India. Each of the places on Earth where Sati's body parts were known to have fell were then considered as Shakta pithas and were deemed places of great spiritual importance. Several stories in the Puranas and other Hindu religious books refer to the Daksha yajna. It is an important incident in both Shaivism and Shaktism , and marks the replacement of Sati with Parvati , and of

1305-474: The energy is. Vimala where the feet fell (Pada Khanda), Tara Tarini housing the breasts (Stana Khanda), Kamakhya , where the genitals fell ( Yoni Khanda) and Dakshina Kalika , where the toes of right foot fell. These four temples originated from the lifeless body of Sati. Apart from these 4 there are 48 other famous pithas recognized by religious texts. According to the Pithanirnaya Tantra

1350-437: The flames by covering them with an iron disk and even splashing water on them, fearing the fire might burn down the town. But the flames blasted all these efforts. Akbar then presented a golden parasol (chhatri) to the shrine. However, the parasol fell suddenly and the gold formed another metal that is still unknown to the world. His belief in the goddess was all the more strengthened after this incident. Thousands of pilgrims visit

1395-774: The form of Bhairava . Most of these historic places of goddess worship are in India, but there are seven in Bangladesh, four in Nepal, two in Pakistan, and one each in Tibet , Sri Lanka and Bhutan. There were many legends in ancient and modern sources that document this evidence. A consensus view on the number and location of the precise sites where goddess Sati's corpse fell is lacking, although certain sites are more well-regarded than others. Maximum number of Shaktipeeths are present in

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1440-725: The goddess is worshiped as Maa Melai Chandi in Melai Chandi Mandir . But this fact can not be corroborated with any evidence. Moreover, refuting most texts, in Melai Chandi Mandir, the Bhairava is Durgeshwar rather than Kramadishwar . Some also identify the Jayanti shrine with the Mahakal cave temple situated in the village Jayanti of Alipurduar, where many statues were created by Stalagmites and Stalactites (combination of limestone and water), but there

1485-503: The instruction of Lord Vishnu . Vasudeva replaced his son Krishna with this girl child of Yashoda so that Krishna could escape his demon uncle Kamsa , whom he would kill later according to a prophecy. When Kamsa tried to kill the girl, she slipped from his hands, assumed her true form and warned Kamsa that his killer (Krishna) still lived on. She left Mathura and the goddess chose the Vindhya Mountains as her abode to live on

1530-419: The insult in the same manner. Daksha performed a yajna with a desire to take revenge on Shiva. Daksha invited all the deities to the yajna, except Shiva and Sati. The fact that she was not invited did not deter Sati's desire to attend the yajna. She expressed her desire to Shiva, who tried his best to dissuade her from going. He relented at her continued insistence, Sati went to her father's yajna. However, Sati

1575-577: The new temple in Sringeri. Requests have been made by the Hindu community in Pakistan to the Pakistani government to renovate the temple, the issue being raised by former Indian Home minister L. K. Advani to the Pakistan authorities as a confidence-building measure, by increasing the people-to-people cross-border interaction. Currently, a new Sharada pitha temple has been inaugurated and consecrated by

1620-403: The population and females 48%. As of 2001 India census, The temple is a famous shrine to the goddess Jwalamukhi , considered to be an incarnation of the goddess Adi Parashakti , also known as Durga or Kali . The temple is regarded as one of the 51 Shakti Peethas . History says that the ruling king, Raja Bhumi Chand , Katoch of Kangra , a great devotee of the goddess Durga , dreamt of

1665-520: The sacred place and the king sent people to find the whereabouts of the site. The site was traced and the Raja built a temple at that location. The present shrine consists of a gold-gilded dome, various pinnacles and a silver entrance door. The temple is located within the Dhauladhar mountain range. The goddess Jwalamukhi is worshipped as an eternal flame that emerges from a small fissure in a rock inside

1710-595: The shrine around the year to satisfy their spiritual urges. The temple is located on a small spur on the Dharamshala - Shimla road at a distance of about 20 km from the Jawalamukhi Road Railway Station and attracts hundreds of thousands of pilgrims every year. There is a small platform in front of the temple and a big mandapa where a huge brass bell presented by the King of Nepal

1755-631: The site for a 2nd-century temple. There are believed to be 64 locations. Adi Shankara 's Ashtadasha Shakta pitha Stotram mentions 18 locations known as the Maha Shakta pithas . Among these, the Shakta pithas at Kamakhya , Gaya and Ujjain are regarded as the most sacred as they symbolize the three most important aspects of the Mother Goddess viz. Creation (Kamarupa Devi), Nourishment (Sarvamangala Devi/Mangalagauri), and Annihilation (Mahakali Devi). Modern location Sharadha pitha

1800-410: The state governments. These factors may vary from state to state but generally include the following: The Municipality is responsible for: A steady and adequate supply of funds is essential for the smooth running of all these programmes. The various sources of income of municipal bodies are: Shakti Peethas Various legends explain how the Shakta pithas came into existence. The most popular

1845-473: The state public services, are appointed to handle the administrative affairs of the Municipality. The population requirements for forming a Municipal Council or Municipality vary across different states in India. The specific population thresholds are defined by the respective state governments through their municipal acts or legislation. In Andhra Pradesh, a Municipality can be formed if the population of

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1890-630: The text 'Tantrachūḍamanī' where Parvati tells these details to her son Skanda . Important : 1) The main vigraha of Dhakeshwari Shaktipeeth in Bangladesh is currently relocated in Kumartuli Dhakeshwari Temple in Kolkata West Bengal. The temple pujari came with the main murti during the Bengal violence during partition via a special chartered plane. While in Dhaka Bangladesh a replica is placed in

1935-523: The urban bodies which were previously classified as Nagar Palikas even if their population was under 100,000. Under the Panchayati Raj system. It interacts directly with the state government, though it is administratively part of the district it is located in. Generally, smaller district cities and bigger towns have a Nagar Palika. Nagar Palikas are also a form of local self-government entrusted with some duties and responsibilities, as enshrined in

1980-401: Was later translated into Persian language , becoming the first Sultanate administration to do such translation. Jawalamukhi is located at 31°52′32″N 76°19′28″E  /  31.87561°N 76.32435°E  / 31.87561; 76.32435 . It has an average elevation of 610 metres (2,001 feet). At the 2001 India census, Jawalamukhi had a population of 4931. Males constitute 52% of

2025-463: Was not given her due respect at the yajna, and had to bear witness to Daksha's insults aimed at Shiva. Anguished, Sati cursed her father and self-immolated. Enraged at the insult and death of his spouse, Shiva in his Virabhadra avatar destroyed Daksha's yajna and cut off his head. His anger not abated and immersed in grief, Shiva then picked up the remains of Sati's body and performed the Tandava ,

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