Naimisharanya

Naimisharanya

Did you know that Naimisharnya, renowned as thirthasthana since Satyuga in Hindu mythology, is believed to be the place where the pantheon of 33 Hindu Gods & Goddesses reside and is one of the Divya Desams, the 108 temples of Vishnu revered in Nalayira Divya Prabandham by the 12 poet saints, or Alwars?

Naimisharanya of antiquity traced to the first Satyuga in the cycle a of the Dharmic four ages in Hinduism is situated on the banks of river Gomathi, a tributary of river Ganges, in the state of Uttar Pradesh. Often, it is referred to as Nabhi Gaya Kshetra, as it is believed that when Lord Vishnu slayed and cut the demon Gayasur into three parts, the middle part of his body fell at Naimisharanya whereas the head part fell in Badrinath which is also called Kapali Gaya, and the feet part fell at Gaya and hence it is also called Pada Gaya. 

Naimisharanya is considered the foremost among the seven famous forests of India and has been described in Vamana Purana as the region where daityas (demons) were slain within a nimish (smallest unit of time, a wink) and converted to a region of peace. Another legend says that Maha Vishnu killed demons who were troubling the sages in a moment or Nimish, hence the place got its name. As such the Sri Vaishnavites consider this place as one of the 108 Divyadeshams, the 108 temples of Vishnu, revered and praised in Nalayira Divya Prabandham by the 12 poet saints, or Alwars, as a must visit religious place. Another legend says that Maharshi Dadhichi gave his bones to Devtas in order to destroy devils. In the Treta Yuga Sri Ram after returning from Lanka performed an Ashwamedha Yagna, that was also performed at Naimisharanya. It is also said to be the same place where Rama's consort Sita went back to mother earth when she was challenged to prove her fidelity. Mahabharata was first narrated by sage Shaunaka here in a congregation of saints. In the eight century AD, Adi Shankaracharya visited Naimisharanya when he travelled around the country preaching his Advaita philosophy. 

Naimisharanya's biggest claim to fame is that sage Veda Vyasa resided in a hermitage in the forests (Aranya which is part of the name Nimisharanya) where 88, 000 rishis also resided here, and he compiled the Vedic scriptures – Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Saama Veda, and Atharva Veda. It was also here that Lomharashana and his son Ugrashrava recited the Vedas and Puranas to the sages.

In Naimisharanya neither the temple or the presiding deity in the temple on whom Alvars composed verses, is in existence now. But the general belief is that god is in the form of a forest here. May be once upon a time , this town had the temple

 

However, now, the temple here, the Chakra Narayana Temple, is believed to be of significant antiquity with contributions at different times from the ruling kings. The temple is counted as one of the eight temples of Vishnu that self-manifested and is classified as Swayamvyaktha (self manifest) Kshetra. The holy tank adjacent to the temple is the Chakra Thirtha or Kunda, also known as Manomaya Chakra, a pilgrimage centre where devotees take a holy dip during festive occasions. It is a circular pond that is believed to be formed by the Chakra of Mahavishnu. Amavasya or the new moon day, particularly the Somavati Amavasya, is considered very holy to take a snana (bath) here. There is an 84 Kos (each kos is about 200 meters) Yatra or circumambulation, that takes place around Naimisharanya from the Amavasya to Purnima (new moon to full moon) of the lunar month of Phalgun (February/March).

Naimisharanya is also known as the place where Sri Chakra stopped when Lord Vishnu used it to cut the body of Sati Devi carried by Lord Shiva , which ended up creating 51 Shakthi Peet temples. Sri Lalita Devi Temple is the presiding Shakti of Naimisharanya. 

Nimisharanya the very name conjures up to memory a great vista of ancient India, is 45 miles north of Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh, off the NH from Sidhauli.

Narasipur Char