Where are those 12 Jyotirlingas of Shiva?

A Jyotirlinga or Jyotirling or Jyotirlinga, is a devotional object representing the Supreme God Shiva. Jyoti means 'radiance' and lingam the 'Image or Sign' of Shiva; Jyoti Lingam thus means the The Radiant Sign of The Almighty Shiva. Once Brahma and Vishnu had an argument over supremacy of creation. To settle the debate, Shiva pierced the three worlds appearing as a huge Infinite Pillar of Light, the Jyotirlinga. Vishnu and Brahma tried to find the end of the light in either directions. Brahma lied that he found out the end, while Vishnu conceded his defeat. The jyotirlinga is the Supreme Siva, part reality. The jyotirlinga shrines are Temples where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. There are twelve jyotirlinga located at:

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Jyotirlingas are positioned in a progressive spiral? 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 hs attained a certain degree of spirituality sees these lingas as columns of fire piercing through the earth.

Now let me show you the solar irradiation map of India. Rings a bell? The little deviations could be because Jyotirlingas have been on earth since very very long. I can not exactly point to the form of energy which flows from one linga to the other but I'm convinced Jyotirlingas ae sources of high energy. Be it solar,nuclear or spiritual energy! Exact form of energy not known. Did you knw Lotus, holy flower in Hinduism, also follows Fibonacci pattern? Burj Khalifa in UAE has been inspired by the shape of flowers as winds cause lesser damage to such shapes. Ostensibly! To every Hindu, ultimate purpose of life is moksha, which can be attained only when u're at peace with urself. Or let's say, when one achieves balance of flow of energy within oneself.

The above shloka defines the 12 different Jyotirlingas along with their location. Now let's move to the story behind them.

1.Somnath(Gujarat) - The story goes like this. Chandra (moon) married all the twenty seven daughters of Daksha. Nevertheless, he loved only Rohini. He gave all importance to her while the other daughters of Daksha were lonely and upset. This made Daksha very upset and he wanted to ensure that Chandra spends quality time with his other wives too. Chandra never gave any heed to this and kept spending time with Rohini alone.

Daksha one day lost his temper and cursed Chandra. He said that Chandra will lose all his light. Chandra immediately became lightless as a result the whole world became dark. All the gods met and decided that they should request Daksha to forgive Chandra. After a lot of request from the gods Daksha said that Chandra will have to start worshiping lord Shiva and when lord Shiva gives him his light he will start shining again. Chandra immediately reached Prabas and started to worship the lord Shiva. Soon he was blessed and lord appeared. He gave him the light and moon started to shine again. It is believed that even today on moonless night Chandra comes and dips in the holy water of the sea here and starts shining again. This is how lord Shiva also got the name of Someshwar.

2. Mallikaarjuna (Andhra Pradesh) - The story goes like this. Shiva and Parvati were not able to decide which son of theirs should get married first. So they told them to go around the world. The one who would be able to do this first will get married first. Lord Kartik took his peacock and started the trip but Ganesh decided to go round his parents and said this was his world. Shiva and Parvati were very pleased at this so they got him married to Riddhi and Siddhi the daughters of Viswaroopan. Lord Kartik on his return got to know what happened. He was very ashamed of himself and said he will never get married. He went to the mount Kravunja and started living there. Shiva and Parvati when got to know this they decided to visit their son. Lord Shiva visited on a no moon day and Parvati on a full moon day. This is exactly where this temple is.

3. Mahakaleshwar in Ujjain- It is a very sacred place and is situated on the bank of Rudra sagar. This part of the country was once ruled by a king named Chandrasena. He used to worship lord Shiva. The people would also regularly worship the lord. One day the kingdom was attacked by king Ripudamana who had a demon with him named Dushan. This demon got a unique ability it could become invisible. The kingdom was shattered and all the people started to pray to Lord Shiva. Lord appeared and protected the city. The people of Ujjain requested him to stay there itself and protect them. Shiva could not say and he decided to stay in Ujjain and take care of his devotees. It is believed that the lord still lives there.

4. Omkareshwar, Madhya Pradesh- There are many stories that revolve around this shrine. However, it is believed that Lord Shiva had appeared here to defeat the danavas on request of the gods. Some say he had appeared here on request of mount Vindya and blessed him that he would become a mighty mountain unless he stops affecting lord Shiva’s followers. Some say that king mandhata used to worship lord Shiva here. The lord was so pleased with him that he decided to live here.

5. Kedarnath, Uttarkahand - Pandavas wanted to get rid of their sins so that they could go to Swarg. However, they were told that they could do so only if they could see lord Shiva and be blessed by him. So they started their search. After a long search they finally saw lord Shiva at this spot where the Jyotirlingam is today. The lord said that he will stay in this place in the form of a triangular shaped Jyotirlingam.

6. Bheemashankar, Maharashtra - In this area lived an Asura named Bhima. When he grew a little old he was told by his mother karkati that Kumbhakaran the brother of King Ravana was his father. His mother also told him that his father was killed by lord Vishnu in one of his incarnations (lord Rama). Bhima decided he will avenge the death of his father. He started to pray Lord Brahma and was granted immense powers by the lord. Bhima as expected misused his powers and started havoc. He would kill innocent people. He would torture saints and even kill children. He once took Kamarupeshwar a big Shiva devotee as captive. The lord got very upset at this. The anger even increased when Bhima told Kamarupeshwar to worship him and not the lord Shiva. Kamarupeshwar denied this and as a result Bhima raised his sword to kill him. This is when lord Shiva came to the rescue of his devotee and he killed Bhima. All the gods requested the lord Shiva to stay in this place and so he manifested himself as the Bheemashankar Jyotirlingam.

7. Kashi Vishwanath, Varanasi Uttar Pradesh. It too has an interesting story to it. The city is the oldest in the world and has a three thousand five hundred year old history. It is said that this city can never be destroyed. It is a place where Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh live at the same time. Anyone can attain Moksha here. There is no sin on earth that cannot be washed here. It is said that lord Shiva himself had made this city.

8. Trimbakeshwar, Nashik- There are three lingas here signify Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. There is a crown that is bejewelled with gems that is used to cover these lingas. It is now a days kept from four to five in the evening only on Monday. The use of water is eroding the actual Jyotirlingam. That is why it is covered and kept with a metal shield. The legends say that Gautam rishi used to live here with his wife Ahilya. Gautam Rishi was blessed by lord Shiva with a bottomless pit from where he could get any amount of grain and food. The other Rishi’s got very jealous of Gautam Rishi. They decided to send a cow there and killed it. Gautam Rishi got very upset with this and he prayed to lord Shiva that he wants Ganges to flow in this part of the country so that his sins are washed off. Lord Shiva granted his wish. The lord decided to stay here by the name of Trimbakeshwar. It is said that it can full fill all desires.

9. Parli Baijnath Maharashtra. (Location is disputed, for either Parli.) Belief - Along with Jyotirling, there is a Shaktipeeth, where Sati's heart fell. Folklore - Shiva's arduous devotee, Lankeshwar Ravan, performed extreme penance to get boon from Shiva. Shiva appeared to him and asked to wish for a boon, Ravan asked Shiva himself to come with him to lanka, and to leave kailash. Shiva was obliged to grant him boon, thus Shiva gave him a ling, but with a condition, to only put it down, where he wanted to establish it, once it will touch the ground it will remain their forever. Ravan happily went to lanka, through 'Akash-marg', on the way to lanka Ravan felt strain in bladder, It was Devatas who compelled Ravan to land on ground for nature's call. Ganesh disgused as veju, arrived on the scene, Ravan handed ling to veju and went for urination. Veju felt immense weight and kept the ling on ground, thus ling got stick to the ground. Tireless efforts of Ravan to take Shiva to tge Lanka, failed by this leela of Ganesha.

10. Nageshwar, Dwarka (Gujarat) It is said that there was a Shiva devotee named Supriya who lived in this area. She was once attacked and captivated by Daaruka. When she started to call lord Shiva he appeared and he killed Daaruka. After this he started to live here as Nageshwar Jyotirlingam. Nageshwar was believed to be known as ‘Darukavana’, which is an ancient epic name of a forest in India. Below are well-known legends attached to this mystical temple. According to the legend, ‘Balakhilyas’, a group of dwarf sages worshipped Lord Shiva in Darukavana for long a time. To test their devotion and patience, Shiva came to them as a nude ascetic wearing only nagas (serpants) on his body. Wives of sages got attracted to the saint and went after him, leaving their husbands behind. Sages got very disturbed and outraged by this.They lost their patience and cursed the ascetic to loose his linga (one of the limited meanings is Phallus, but it has has a deeper theistic symbolism). Shiva linga fell on the earth and the whole world trembled. Lord Brahma and Lord Vishnu came to Lord Shiva, requesting him to save the earth from destruction and take back his linga. Shiva consoled them and took back his linga. (From Vamana Purana CH.6th & 45th). Lord Shiva promised his divine presence in Darukavana as ‘jyothirlinga’ for ever. Some considner 10th Jyotirlinga Nageshwar at Hingoli District.

Aundha Nagnath (Nageshwaram) is a Temple in Hingoli District in the state of Maharashtra, India, an important place of pilgrimage. The present temple is said to have been built by the Seuna (Yadava) dynasty and dates to 13th century.The first temple is said to be from time of the Mahabharata and is believed to have been constructed by Yudhishthira, eldest of the Pandavas, when they were expelled for 14 years from Hastinapur. It has been stated that the temple building was seven-storied before it was sacked by Aurangzeb.

11. Rameshwar, Tamil Nadu - It is one of the Char Dham. There are two lingams here. One was brought by Hanuman from Kailash and the other by Sita. The vishwalingam is worshiped first as it was brought by Hanumana. The one brought by Sita is worshiped second. The same is done even today. This is exactly the place where lord Rama worshiped lord Shiva after he defeated Ravana. It is also known for its unique architecture. It has the largest hallway as compared to any other temple in India. It was built over years.

12. Ghrishneshwar, Maharashtra - Many years ago a woman named Kusuma used to live here. She would worship the lord. Her ritual she would immerse the shiv linga in a tank and then worship it. The villagers would respect her a lot and come to her for advice. Her husband’s other wives were very jealous of her so they killed her son in cold blood. After her son’s death too she continued the rituals. One day while she immersed the shiv linga in the tank. Lord Shiva appeared along with her son. The villagers were surprised to see this. Since then it is said that lord Shiva resides here. It is also known as Kusumeshwar Jyotirlingam.

In Hindu Mythology and particularly in shaivism sect, Lord Shiva is considered as eternal and supreme. Shiva is considered to be sakar i.e having form and also at the same time nirakar i.e formless. Shiva in sakar form is the one which you must have seen in most of his images while in nirakar form shiva is considered to be in linga swarup. Shivlinga signifies source of creation and productiveness. Shivlinga are of two types, first which are established by someone for the purpose of worship of lord shiva generally named after that person. Another type is self manifested or self existing, these are called 12 jyotirlinga. These jyotirlingas are considered more important and sacred as they are sought to be came into existence upon the accord of lord shiva. Om Namah Shivay