Naina Devi Temple
Naina Devi Temple is a holy shrine that is dedicated to Shri Naina Devi, one of the forms of Goddess Shakti. Located on the top of a hill in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh, Naina Devi Mandir is one amongst the fifty one Shakti Peeths.
Raja Bir Chand got this temple constructed in the 8th century. The popular hill resort located in Himachal known by the name of Nainital has been named after the famous Naina Devi Temple.
Naina Devi Temple is a sacred place especially for the Hindus. Pilgrims come to visit this temple to pay their homage to the Goddess. According to the legends, the different body parts of Sati fell on the earth during the time of self-sacrifice. It is believed that Sati's eyes fell at this point and subsequently, a temple was built here to commemorate the goddess. The term 'Naina' suggests 'eyes', so the goddess came to be known as Naina Devi. The picturesque blue green Naina Lake located near the temple is said to be the eyes of Sati.
Shri Naina Devi Temple is also known as Mahishapeeth because of defeat of demon Mahishasur by the Goddess. According to the legends, Mahishasur was a powerful demon who was blessed by the boon of immortality by Lord Brahma, but the condition was that he could be defeated only by an unmarried woman. Due to this boon, Mahishasur started spreading terror on Earth and Gods. To cope with the demon, all Gods combined their powers and created a Devi to defeat him. The Devi was gifted different types of weapons by all Gods. When Mahishasur got mesmerized by the immense beauty of Devi and proposed her to marry him. Devi told him that she will marry him if he would overpower her. During the battle, Devi defeated the demon and took out both his eyes. This urged Gods to happily applaud "Jai Naina" and hence the name.
Another story related to the temple is of a Gujjar boy named Naina. The boy, while grazing his cattel discovered the abstract manifestation of Devi. He witnessed a white cow showering her milk upon a stone for several days, he finally discussed about his experience with the King, Raja Bir Chand. The king then built this temple at this spot after witnessing the act and named the temple after Naina's name.
The temple is situated on Shivalik Mountain and devotees have to cover a distance of above 2 km on foot. It takes for the normal Devotee about half an hour to reach the temple from the foothill.
In the temple complex, there is huge Peepal tree that is acclaimed to be present from past many centuries. On the right side of the entrance to the main shrine, idols of Lord Hanuman and Lord Ganesha are placed. After crossing the main gate of the shrine, two striking statues of Lions are visible. The main shrine reveals the images of three deities. Goddess Kali can be traced on the extreme left. In the centre, image of Naina Devi is visible, while Lord Ganesha is on the right side.
Close to the main shrine, there is a small cave, which is known as Shri Naina Devi Cave.
In the earlier days, people used to trek the steep path of 1.25 kms to reach the temple at the hill-top. Now, the facility of cable car has been launched to make to journey easy and enjoyable. On Shravan Ashtami, a big fair is held annually at this temple. During the time of Navratras, the temple is visited by large number of people.
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