Taraknath Temple
This is the major temple of Tarakeswar. It is
very dissimilar with the temple of Lord Shiva- TarakeshwaraTemple in Karnataka,
India. The Taraknath temple is dedicated to the lord Shiva and it is a major
prominent pilgrimage spot in the town of Tarakeswar, West Bengal, India.
Taraknath is one of the names of Lord Shiva and the temple- Tarakeswar is being dedicated to lord Shiva. Lord Shiva is worshipped with the name Taraknath at the temple. This temple of Shiva is one of the well known and popular temples of the state of West Bengal, India. It is located in Tarakeswar city of Hooghly district. In the books of History, it has been written that the temple was built by Raja Bharamalla in 1729 AD. The temple was constructed in Atchala style- which is a well known architectural style of West Bengal. Inside the temple premises, shrines of Goddess Lakshami Narayan and Goddess Kali are placed in the sanctums. Dudhpukur water tank is positioned on the right side of the main temple, which is believed to be a holy tank and people in order to get salvation and to get their wishes fulfilled, take dip into the Dudhpukur water tank. There’s a marble pathway in the balcony along with an inner shrine right in front of the balcony and a large hall for devotees to sit and meditate.
How
to Reach:
By
Road- Tarkeswar is connected to all the major
cities of West Bengal so one can conveniently reach from any of the towns using
the road.
By Railway Station –Kamarkundu- the
nearest railway station to the temple.
History
As per the Hindu Mythology, the temple was
constructed, after a dream which came to Raja Vishnu Das’s brother to discover
a Linga in the jungles near Tarakeswar. Later on, in 1729AD, the temple was
built near the Swayambhu linga (self-manifested) which is referred as Baba
Taraknath. In Short, The history of the temple is associated to 18th century
which is considered to be the time when Lord Shiva came in his devotee’s dream
and asked him to get the Shiva Linga discovered deep in the forest in the town
of Tarlkeswara and also to build a temple of Lord Shiva at the place. After
wards, the temple was built near the Swayambhu linga which was called as Baba
Taraknath. It’s a belief that one of the avid devotees of Lord Shiva named-
Vishnu Das has travelled all across from Ayodhya to Tarakeshwar. On one
particular day his brother found a place in the temple where his cows used to
give their milk every day. He discovered a Shiva Linga at the same place to
surprise him.
The temple is one of the most renowned pilgrimages
of India and people visit this highly divine temple to get their all wishes
fulfilled. They pray from their pure hearts to get peace, relief, serenity, tranquillity,
happiness and salvation and to get rid from diseases and many more. Devotees
chant various mantras, one of which is as mentioned:
“Kailaasarana Shiva Chnadramaouli Phaneendra Maathaa Mukutee Zalaalee Kaarunya
Sindhu Bhaava Dukhaa Haaree Thujaveena Shambho Maaja KonaTaaree.
