Tulja Bhavani Temple
Encyclopedia
Tulja Bhavani Temple is a Hindu temple
Hindu temple
A Mandir, Devalayam, Devasthanam, or a Hindu temple is a place of worship for followers of Hinduism...

 of Goddess Bhavani. It is located in Tuljapur
Tuljapur
Tuljapur is a city and a municipal council in Osmanabad district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative seat of Tuljapur taluka.The town is home to a famous temple, Tulja Bhavani Temple, dedicated to the Hindu goddess Bhavani...

 in Osmanabad district
Osmanabad district
-Osmanabad district is an administrative district in the state of Maharashtra in India. The district headquarters are located at Osmanabad, erstwhile Dharashiv . Temple of goddess Tuljabhavani at Tulajapur is famous in India...

 of Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...

 is considered as one of the 51 Shakti Pithas. It is situated 45  km from Solapur
Solapur
Solapur is a city in South Western Maharashtra, India governed by municipal corporation.Solapur is one of the four districts that form the region of Western Maharashtra . It is the fourth largest district in Maharashtra in terms of land area and seventh largest in terms of population...

.

History

The temple was built in c. 12th century CE. Another Tulja Bhavani temple was built during 1537-1540 CE in Chittorgarh
Chittorgarh
Chittorgarh is a city and a municipality in Rajasthan state of western India. It lies on the Berach River, a tributary of the Banas, and is the administrative headquarters of Chittorgharh District and a former capital of the Sisodia clans of Rajputs of Mewar...

.

The legend states that the face of Goddess Sathi
Dakshayani
Dākshāyani or Satī is a Hindu Goddess of marital felicity and longevity. She is worshipped particularly by Hindu women to seek the long life of their husbands...

 fell here when Vishnu cut her body with the sudarshana chakra
Sudarshana Chakra
The Sudarshana Chakra is a spinning, disk-like super weapon with 108 serrated edges used by Lord Vishnu. The Sudarshana Chakra is portrayed on the right rear hand of the four hands of Vishnu, who also holds a Shankha in his left rear hand, a Gada in his right fore hand, and a Padma in his left...

 while Shiva carried her burnt body across India in grief. That is why, for darshan the alankar is done such that only the face of Tulja Bhavani is visible.

Chatrapati Shivaji was a devotee of Tulja Bhavani. It is widely believed that goddess had bestowed him with a sword. It is popularly known as Bhavani Talwar and is located now in London museum.

Daily puja rituals

Chaughada (holy drumming ritual at morning): - At 5 AM, the morning before the Puja starts, the large drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...

s in the Drum house (Nagarkhana) of Tuljabhavani temple are drummed loudly. The meaning of this drumming is that, the devotees should prepared and come before the puja. The drums are drummed (Chaughada) three times during the day.

Charantirtha (sacred water ritual of goddess feet and mouth):- The puja performed at 5:30 morning is called Charantirtha. This puja is performed by the hands of Mahant Vakoji Bua. At the time of Charantirtha puja, the representative of Karvir (Kolhapur) princely state is present. The Mahanta washes goddess mouth and feet with hot water, odoriferous oil, Dudhkhir (milk), Pan (food). Devotees sing the Arti (Holy songs). After this Bhaji
Bhaji
Bhaji can mean:* A type of pakora, an Indian version of vegetable fritters . In English-speaking countries such as the UK this is the meaning commonly used* Baji , a type of beaten rice eaten in Nepal...

-Bhakri
Bhakri
Bhakri is a round flat unleavened bread often used in the cuisine of western and central India, especially in the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Malwa, Goa and northern Karnataka . It is coarser than a roti and can be compared to a British biscuit with respect to hardness.Bhakri as...

 the Nevaidya (holy meal) is offered to the goddess. The descendant representative of the devotee Uparkar offers this Nevaidya. Later the Nevaidya of Kheer by the representative of Karvir (Kolhapur) princely state is offered.

Abhishek (holy bath ritual to goddess) Puja (prayer):- At 9 o'clock in the morning the goddess has a bath of Panchamrut and curd. Honey, banana and sugar is rubbed to goddess' mouth. The Gomukh (holy pond of the goddess) water is used for goddess' bath. During this puja some people bathe the holy throne of goddess by curd, mango liquid, shreekhand. After the bath, Mahanevaidya (big holy meal) by the Karvir (Kolhapur) princely state is offered to goddess.

Dhup arti:- at 12 noon, the clergy and devotees praise the goddess by singing holy songs and lighting the dhup and karpur (camphor
Camphor
Camphor is a waxy, white or transparent solid with a strong, aromatic odor. It is a terpenoid with the chemical formula C10H16O. It is found in wood of the camphor laurel , a large evergreen tree found in Asia and also of Dryobalanops aromatica, a giant of the Bornean forests...

).

Abhishek (holy bath ritual to goddess):- at 6 o'clock that evening, the goddess is bathed by Panchamruta and water from Gomukha, and puja is performed. The arrangement of these materials is done by the Karvir (Kolhapur) princely state.

Shejarti (nightly sleep songs ritual) and Prakkshal: - At night the Prakkshal ritual is performed using the holy water from the Gomukha and the Nevaidya of Tup (Indian liquid butter) and Bhat
Bhat
Bhat meaning a priest or scribe in Sanskrit, is a surname common in most parts of Nepal. A predominantly Hindu last name, it is found most commonly in the states of coastal areas of Karnataka, Jammu & Kashmir, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Lalitpur district of Uttar Pradesh, is a...

 (cooked rice) is offered.

During every Aarti ritual musical instruments such as Tal, Dimdi and Zanj are played. Gondhali plays the Sambal instrument as Chaughada (Drums) are drummed.

Tuljabhavani Temple Trust

The day to day affairs of the temple are looked after by the trust which is headed by District Collector. MLA, Nagaradhyaksha, Dy Collector and Tahsildar are other trustees.

Pujaris

The main pujaris in the temple are Bhope, they are in 16 ana system have differant PALI like Parmeshavar, Dinoba, Udaji, Barve and some Patil's. PALI etc

Roadways

Pilgrims coming from Southern parts can reach this place by roadways through Naladurga. Pilgrims from northern and eastern regions can reach Tuljapur through Solapur
Solapur
Solapur is a city in South Western Maharashtra, India governed by municipal corporation.Solapur is one of the four districts that form the region of Western Maharashtra . It is the fourth largest district in Maharashtra in terms of land area and seventh largest in terms of population...

 while those coming from eastern regions can take a highway through Nagpur
Nagpur
Nāgpur is a city and winter capital of the state of Maharashtra, the largest city in central India and third largest city in Maharashtra after Mumbai and Pune...

 or Latur
LaTur
La Tur was a Mexican airline that operated from 1988 until 1992 when it was taken over by TAESA.-Company history:Set up in 1988 to help develop the tourist market, La Tur began operations using McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft. One year later, the Airbus A300-600 was introduced for flights to Europe...

.

State owned and private bus services are available from the neighbouring states, with the journey breaking at places mentioned above. Pilgrims can also travel to this place by their own vehicles.

Railways

Solapur
Solapur
Solapur is a city in South Western Maharashtra, India governed by municipal corporation.Solapur is one of the four districts that form the region of Western Maharashtra . It is the fourth largest district in Maharashtra in terms of land area and seventh largest in terms of population...

 station, located 45 Kms away, is the nearest railway station to Tuljapur. Pilgrims can reach here through road from the station.

Airways

The nearest airports to Tuljapur are Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...

 and Hyderabad. Pilgrims can reach here from these airports through roadways.

External links

  • http://www.tuljabhavanimandir.org
  • http://www.tuljabhavani.in/
  • http://osmanabad.gov.in/html/temple.html
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK