mata na madh maa ashapura temple | Best Places To Visit In Kutch

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Bhuj TO Matana Madh Distance is 95 KM,Best Places to Visit in matana madh route are following:

Ashapura Mata Temple

mata na madh maa ashapura temple is in a village in Lakhpat Taluka of Kutch district, Gujarat, India.

The village is in kutch gujarat lies surrounded by hills on both banks of a small stream and has a temple dedicated to mata na madh maa ashapura temple

The household deity of former Jadeja rulers of Kutch State.

She is also considered patron deity of Kutch.The village is located about 95 km from Bhuj, the headquarters of Kutch district.

This is one of the best places to visit in kutch

Deshdevi Maa Ashapura | mata na madh maa ashapura temple

The mata na madh maa ashapura temple was built in the 14th century by two Karad Vanias(Gujarati Caste), Ajo and Anagor.

They were the ministers in the court of the father of Lakho Phulani.

The temple was damaged by the earthquake in 1819.

mata na madh maa ashapura temple was rebuilt by Sundarji Shivji and Mehta Vallabhaji, two Brahmakshatriya in 1823 (Samvat 1880).

The temple is 58 ft. long, 32 ft. wide and 52 ft. tall. Except that it has a passage for walking round the deity, it is much the same as the temple at Koteshwar.The temple was damaged again by the earthquake in 2001 but was repaired again.

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The image of Ashapura Mata in the shrine is a red-painted stone, about six feet high and six feet broad at the base,

narrowing to a point in a shape, with some rough likeness to a human form. It is said to have come from Jashod in Marwar. Here every year during the Navaratri,

the Rao of Kutch used to offer a sacrifice of seven male buffaloes.The practice of animal sacrifice has been stopped.

This shrine or Ashapura is steeped in antiquity as far as its origin is concerned. There are references to this goddess in the Puranas, Rudrayamal Tantra and so on which are all said to point to this shrine in Kutch.

Be that as it may, today there is no trace of any ancient records or writings which give any indications of the beginning of worship at this shrine amongst the existing records in the possession of the trust.

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One fact firmly stands out that this deity was very much there in 9th century AD

when the Samma clan of Rajputs from Sindh first entered western, or more correctly, north-western Kutch.

They were followed in the later centuries by more families or this clan which eventually

established them in the region and one of their line got control of the whole state of Kutch in the beginning of the 16th century.

This was Khegarji I, the son of Jam Hamirji who was murdered by Jam Rawal earlier. Both the Jams (in Sindh a Raja or Chieftain was called ‘Jam’) were profound devotees of maa ashapura

Connected with this temple are two classes of people known as Bhuvas and Kapadis, who; though now very different, are said to be sprung from two brothers.

The Bhuvas, though not devotees, enjoy the mata na madh maa ashapura temple revenues and live a life of ease in the village. They (1827) marry, wear long beards, and eat with all except the lowest castes.

The Kapadis are devotees who do not marry, wear no hair on their faces, and eat only among themselves.

According to their own account, they came from Gujarat around 1100 CE, and of this, they say, they had evidence as late as the battle of Jara (1762), when, leaving their villages, they lost their records.

They are chiefly Lohanas, but all, except outcastes, are allowed to join.

Around 1680, the succession to the headship of the monastery was disputed, and, on reference to the Rao,

it was decided that one of the claimants should be head or Raja, and the other with the title Rorasi be head elect.

This custom has ever since been kept up. The Raja and all, except twenty-five Kapdis, live in one court and take their meals together.

The Rorasi with his twenty-five disciples lives separate, but receives every necessary of life from the Raja’s house.

If the Rorasi dies, the eldest of his disciples succeeds. If the Raja dies the Rorasi succeeds and the eldest of the Raja’s disciples becomes Rorasi. The Raja is treated with much respect and had the privilege of receiving the Rao of Cutch sitting. In past, they owned and held the revenues of the villages of Madh, Netraj, Murchbanu, Kotda, and Dedarani.

There are also subordinates priests of Chauhan, who performs pooja of the deity.

There is a legend associated with Mian Ghulam Shah Kalhoro of Sindh. In 1762, when his army attacked this temple, his soldiers became blind by the curse of Ashapura. Then, Ghulam Shah took a swear to set up a huge bell in the temple. Finally, his soldiers regained their sight and Ghulam Shah kept his words. The huge bell still stands there in temple.

Jamadar Fateh Muhammad, the military leader of Kutch State, had presented this temple with a deepmala weighing 2 kg silver, and with 41 lamps carved in it.

Thousands of devotee from Gujarat and other states visits the temple during auspicious days of Chaitra Navaratri and Ashvin Navaratri of which the later hold more significance.

Camps and relief facilities are set up around the road leading to Mata no Madh, every year for this pilgrimage.

Lakhpat Fort

After the visit of mata na madh maa ashapura temple next destination must be lakhapat fort

Historically it has been very important trading post connecting Gujarat to Sindh. The waters of Sindhu river used to flow into Lakhpat and further onto Kutch. Within historic times Lakhpat has had only one very short period of prosperity.

Rice used to be cultivated and Lakhpat used to give an annual revenue of 800,000 Koris just from rice. It is also said that Lakhpat used to generate an income of 100,000 Koris everyday from maritime activities.

Fateh Muhammad, about the close of the eighteenth century (1801), enlarged and rebuilt its wall, and here for a time great part of the trade of Sindh centred.

Though he thought it one of the chief supports of his power, Lakhpat declared against Fateh Muhammad when he opposed the Rao of Kutch State in 1804.

A few years later (1809), the commandant of the fort, Mohim Miyan, drove out the agents of Hansraj and governed the town on his own accounts.

In 1818 Lakhpat had 15,000 people and yielded a yearly revenue of £6000 (₹60,000). After the earthquake of 1819 a natural dam known as the Allahbund was formed, Indus river changed its course of flow and started flowing into the Arabian sea further north.Thus Lakhpat lost its importance as a port.

By 1820, the population reduced to 6000 inhabitants, consisting chiefly of mercantile speculators from other countries and families of Hindus driven from Sindh. The walls were in good repair, but the houses were ruined and did not fill one-third of the area. In 1851 all trade had left the town, and it has since remained poverty-stricken and half deserted. The population reduced to 2500 by 1880.

Today it is sparsely populated ghost town, a city of ruins of buildings and a magnificent fort surrounding them. The population was 463 in 87 households 2001.which increased to 566 in 108 households in 2011.

During the period of Muslim invasion, the Hindus who had not converted to Islam under the Ghaznavids moved to Vighokot and Lakhpat around 1028 AD, to avoid genocide at the hands of the invading Muslims and to live peacefully under Hindu Samma rulers.

Places of visit in koteshwar route (Lakhpat)

Fort

The fort rebuilt and expanded in 1801 by Fateh Muhammad is an irregular polygon, defended by round towers and built of hard brown stone. The 7 km long walls are of considerable height but not thick.

Pir Ghaus Muhammad tomb

Pir Ghaus Muhammad, a Sufi saint and Syyed of Lakhpat, half-Muslim and half-Hindu in his customs, who was believed to have supernatural power.

Dying in 1855, his brother Bava Mia or Sa Saheb, from contributions made by Gosh Muhammad’s followers, began to build a tomb locally known as Kubo.

This tomb, of black stone, on a platform fifty-four feet square and seven high, rising in a conical dome 63 feet 3 inches high, is octagonal in shape, with four side doors arched and richly carved, and the walls decorated with patterns of flowers and leaves.

Inside, the floor is paved with white and black marble, and the grave is covered with a white marble canopy. On the walls are passages from the Quran. It is still unfinished. The water tank opposite the tomb is believed to have healing characteristics for skin diseases.

Lakhpat Gurudwara Sahib

Lakhpat Gurudwara Sahib is a Gurudwara, a place of worship for the Sikhs.

It is believed that Guru Nanak on his way to Mecca for Haj stayed over here. This Gurudwara have his relics like footwear and palkhi. They are worshiped by the Udasi Sect. The Gurudwara is declared a protected monument by the state archeological department and has won the UNESCO award for restoration after the earthquake.

Other

Sayyed Pir Shah Dargah has nine-domed with intricate carvings. Nani Mai Dargah, Hatkeshwar Temple amongst others in the old town are reminisces of the past.

Narayan Sarovar

According to Hindu theology, there are five sacred lakes; collectively called Panch-Sarovar; Mansarovar, Bindu Sarovar, Narayan Sarovar, Pampa Sarovar and Pushkar Sarovar.

They are also mentioned in Shrimad Bhagavata Purana.As per legends, one of the holy rivers of India, Sarasvati River had an out let in to sea near present-day Narayan Sarovar and waters of lake were filled with holy waters of River Saraswati,

that is why this place was and is still considered as one of the five holy lakes by Hindus.

Vallabhacharya visited the place during his lifetime as such the site is sacred also for the follower of Pushtimarg.

The temples, the chief buildings in the place, are surrounded by a fortified wall, outside of which cluster the villagers’ houses. It was formerly connected with the mainland by a yellow stone causeway, about 3000 feet long and fifteen wide, built in 1863 by a Bhatia of Bombay, named Gokaldas Liladhar Padsha, at a cost of about £2500 (1,00,000 Kutch koris). Now the new causeway is built.

It was in very ancient times famous for its great lake. This, agreeing with the account of the lake found by Alexander, and perhaps lasting till the change of the course of the Indus river (about 1000), was in part renewed by the earthquake of 1819. Beside the lake, there was, from early times, a temple of Adinarayan in the village. For long under priests of the Kanphata sect, the temple was, about 1550 (Samvat 1607), wrested from them by a Sanyasi or Atit named Narangar from Junagadh. Narangar made long and broad embankments about the pool, an oblong sheet of water, 1056 feet by 990, divided by perforated stone walls into a number of bathing places, and furnished on all sides except the east with flights of stone steps, and surrounded by rest-houses.

There are seven stone temples in a paved courtyard of 164 feet by 62¹⁄₂. The temples are approached from the lake by flights of stone steps and surrounded by a strong wall. Vagheli Mahakunvar; the wife of Rao Deshalji I, Rao of Kutch State; displeased with the priests of Dwarka, after taking counsel with her Brahmans, determined to raise Narayansar to be a place of rival sanctity.

Accordingly, in 1734, she first built the temples of Lakshminarayan and Trikamray in the same style as the Dwarka temples, assigning them the revenues of certain villages and the proceeds of certain taxes, and then those of Adinarayan, Govardhannath, Dwarkanath, and Lakshmiji.

Koteshwar Temple

Koteshwar is a small village and the location of an ancient Shiva temple. It located near the mouth of Kori Creek, in the west of Kutch district of Gujarat, India.

In past, the temple was almost entirely cut off from the mainland by tidal creeks but now is connected by road.Koteshwar Shiva is said to be the Bhairava of Hinglaj Mata residing at Hinglaj. The virtuous devotees are therefore recommended to visit Koteshwar after they have visited Hinglaj Mata.

The earliest mention of the place can be found in writings of Chinese traveler Hiuen-Tsiang. Hiuen-Tsiang mentioned it as “Kie-tsi-shi-fa-lo situated on the western border of the country

Close to the river Indus and to the great ocean” of Kutch. According to Hieu-en-Tsiang, Koteshwar port was five miles in boundary near the mouth of the river Indus. There were 80 monasteries with about 5000 monks in them chiefly from the school of Sammityas. In the middle of the completion were thirteen temples of which Mahesh Mandir was full of good monument and where ash-smeared heretics lived.

Except some temples, Koteshwar shows few signs of its former greatness.

The story of Koteshwar begins with Ravana, who won it as a boon from Lord Shiva for an outstanding display of piety, this Shiva linga of great spiritual power. But which Ravana, in his arrogant haste, accidentally dropped and it fell to earth at Koteshwar. To punish Ravana for his carelessness, the linga turned into a thousand identical ones, some versions of the story say ten thousand, some a million.

Unable to distinguish the original, Ravana grabbed one and departed,

leaving the original one here, around which Koteshwar Temple was built. The temple is also known as Kotilingeshwar Temple.Another version of story says,

when Lord Shiva was delighted with the worship and forfeit of Ravana, he gave him a Ling-full of religious power.

Lest Ravana should become endless as a result of this advantage, all the Gods united together and conspired to gain the Ling from Ravana through dishonesty and installed it as Kotilengeshwar.

Places of interest

Koteshwar Mahadev Temple

The temples, on a sandstone mound about a mile to the north-west of the village,

rising boldy from the sea that washes their western face, are enclosed by a fortified wall, the gate approached by three flights of steps.

A writing on the left side of the gate shows that the present fort and temples were built in 1820 (Samvat 1877) by two Seths, Sundarji and Jetha Shivji, Brahma-Kshatris by caste.

The courtyard is surrounded by a battlemented wall armed formerly with three small guns. In the middle, on a platform 4¹⁄₂ feet high 63¹⁄₂ long and 49 broad, is a handsomely built stone temple of Mahadev.

The porch has three domes with, under the central dome, a large and beautiful brass bull presented by Rao Deshalji I of Kutch State; in the right dome a large statue of Hanuman and in tho left dome one of Ganpati.

Inside tho porch is the hall, mandap, 19 feet 9 inches long and 24 feet 8 inches wide,

with a large central and two side domes. On a marble tablet, let into the centre of the hall floor,

The names of Kshatri Jetha and Sundarji Shivji are humbly cut that the feet of the worshippers may tread on them.

At the inner end of the hall and between it and the shrine are,

on either side, figures of Ganpati and Hanuman. In the screen wall of the shrine are two inscriptions referring to the rebuilding of the temple in 1820. The frame of the door is of carved stone. The door itself, 2¹⁄₂ feet wide and 12³⁄₄ high, is plated with carved silver. The shrine, paved with black marble, is 11¹⁄₂ feet square.

Back wall is an image of Parvati, and in tho west wall are two images of Ganpati and Revaji. In the centre of a basin, jaladhari, rather far back in the shrine,

is a four feet high ling of the kind called self-born, svayambhu. In the point of the ling are some iron nails driven into it, according to the local story, by Alauddin Khalji in 13th century.

On the site of this modern temple there stood an older building,

one of whose stones is said to have borne an inscription to the effect that it was built by the Kers of Golay. This stone has disappeared, but among the Kers,

who are now a Muslim clan, the story that their forefathers built the temple still remains. At the time of rebuilding the temple in 1820,

the foundation of the east wall was kept and it was enlarged on the west. The change so altered the position of the ling that it was no longer under the central lotus. This was said to be ominous to the ruler, and in 1863 (Samvat 1920) Rao Pragmalji I of Cutch State, when he visited the temple,

ordered a silver canopy to be placed over the ling. By the Rao’s death the work was stayed before the plans were finished. In ancient times the temple priest was a devotee of the ear-slitting or Kanphati sect. But for sixteen successions the office has been in the hands of Shaiv Atits. In the past, the yearly revenue from lands granted by the Rao and others,

one of whom is said to have been a Muslim, is about £791 (30,000 Kutch koris).

The temples have been rehabilitated and renovated over many centuries by various rulers of Kutch,

renovation done by local Kutchi artisans.From this point, the glow of light from Karachi, Pakistan can be seen in a clear night. It is an excellent sunset point

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