Ghṛṣṇeśvar

Lord of compassion · Verul, near Ellora, Maharashtra

Ghṛṣṇeśvar, often counted as the twelfth Jyotirliṅga, stands in the village of Verul, a short distance from the Ellora caves near Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (Aurangabad). The red-stone temple was rebuilt in the 18th century under Queen Ahilyābāī Holkar, who also restored Kāśī Viśvanāth and many other shrines.

It is a small, intimate temple; by local custom men remove their shirts before entering the sanctum. Many pilgrims combine a visit with Ellora and its great rock-cut Kailāsa temple. The monsoon and winter months, roughly July to February, are pleasant.

According to the Śiva Purāṇa, a devout woman named Ghuśmā worshipped Śiva daily by making clay liṅgas and immersing them in a lake. Her jealous co-wife killed Ghuśmā’s son. Ghuśmā did not curse anyone and simply continued her worship. Moved by her faith, Śiva restored her son and remained there as Ghṛṣṇeśvara, the Lord of Ghuśmā.

Maharashtra · Near Ellora caves · Ahilyābāī Holkar · Mahāśivarātri

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