Somnath Temple Patan Tours
Somnath Temple is situated in Gujarat, India. It houses one of the 12 Jyotirlingas in India and the first among all. According to a legend the Moon God built the original Temple of Somnath in gold. After the demolition of the Temple Ravana rebuilt it with silver. And after the demolition of silver temple, Krishna reconstructed it. According to historians, this Temple was looted and plundered seventeen times.
It is also known as Prabhas Patan. According to the Legend, Lord Shiva's Kalbhairav linga is situated at Prabhas. The exact date of the construction of the temple is not known but it is assumed that this Temple was constructed around 4 century A.D.
Famous architect Prabhaschandar designed the present temple and the first President of India Dr. Rajendra Prasad installed the Jyotirling in the new temple on May 11, 1951. Built in the Chalukya architectural style, the temple reflects Gujarat's artistic excellence. Various parts of the Temple are shikhara, the Garbhagriha, the sabha mandap and the nritya mandap.
The museum at the Temple keeps the remains of the earlier temples. Pottery shards, a seashells, a glass case of water bottles containing samples from the rivers Danube, Nile, St Lawrence, Tigris, Plate, Murray, seawater from Tasmania and New Zealand are exhibited in the museum.
Bhalka Tirth (a place where Lord Krishna was wounded by an arrow by mistake), Sun Temple, Junagarh Gate, Mai Puri (once a Sun Temple, now a mosque) and Ahilyabai Temple are some other famous places.
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