Somnath temple

Hey friends,

It's my 5th blog I hope u people have like my previous blog which were the different places in Gujarat. Today I'm going to tell u about somnath temple which is situated on coastal areas of Gujarat.

The Somnath temple located in Prabhas Patan near Veraval in Saurashtra on the western coast of Gujarat, is believed to be the first among the twelve jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva. It is an important pilgrimage and tourist spot of Gujarat.  According to tradition, the Shivalinga in Somnath is one of the 12 jyotirlingas in India, where Shiva is believed to have appeared as a fiery column of light. The jyotirlingas are taken as the supreme, undivided reality out of which Shiva partly appears. Each of the 12 jyotirlinga sites take the name of a different manifestation of Shiva. At all these sites, the primary image is a lingamrepresenting the beginning-less and endlessstambha (pillar), symbolizing the infinite nature of Shiva. In addition to the one at Somnath, the others are at Varanasi,Rameswaram, Dwarka, etc.
The site of Somnath has been a pilgrimage site from ancient times on account of being aTriveni sangam (the confluence of three rivers: Kapila, Hiran and Sarasvati). Soma, the Moon god, is believed to have lost his lustre due to a curse, and he bathed in the Sarasvati River at this site to regain it. The result is the waxing and waning of the moon, no doubt an allusion to the waxing and waning of the tides at this sea shore location. The name of the townPrabhas, meaning lustre, as well as the alternative names Someshvar and Somnath("The lord of the moon" or "the moon god") arise from this tradition.