Introduction to Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga:

The purpose of this blog is to provide exhaustive and comprehensive information to the devotees who wish to undertake a pilgrimage to Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga or Mallikarjun Mahadev which is also known as Mallikarjun Mandir or Mallikarjun Shivling. 

Through this blog, readers will get familiar with the story of  Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga, the place, history and spiritual and mythological recognition. 

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga or Mallikarjun Shivling:

Mallika Arjun Jyotirling or Mallikarjun Shivling is one of the famous 12 Jyotirlingas in India. Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga is situated in the State of Andhra Pradesh on the bank of river Krishna. Mallikarjun Shivling is also called as Kailash of South India. Mallikarjun Mandir finds mention in Shiva Purana and Padam Puran. 

The story of Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga or Mallikarjun Shivling: 

As per the story of Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga, once, Shri Ganesha and Shri Kartikeya, the two sons of Lord Shiva had an altercation over who would marry first. 

Upon seeing their both sons indulging in arguments, Lord Shiva and Mother Goddess Bhavani laid a condition that whosoever, of the two, would come first after taking a complete round of earth would be married first. 

Upon this, Lord Kartikeya started running to cover the entire round of Earth. But for Lord Ganesha this task was cumbersome as he had to ride a mouse, which was his vahan. Instead of taking a complete round of the Earth, Lord Ganesha after worshiping his parents, took seven rounds of the place where both his parents were sitting. 

By the time, Lord Kartikeya returned after completing the round of the mother Earth, Lord Ganesha was married to two goddesses viz. Riddhi and Siddhi and they had been blessed with two sons namely Kschem and Labh. 

Knowing this, Lord Kartikeya became angry and went on ‘Kronch’ mountain.  Goddess Parvati went there to please him and Lord Shiva appeared there in the form of Jyotirlinga there. 

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga conveys a strong and meaningul message to one and all:

The act of Lord Ganesha to worship, respect, serve and circumambulate his parents was in accordance with the Shastras which describe as under:-

“Pitroshch poojanam krritva Prakranti cha karoti yah.

Tasysa vai prathvijanyam falam bhavati nishchitam.

In simple words, it means that who does serve and worship his parents, and circumambulates, certainly gets earthly rewards. 

At Mallikarjuna Temple people worship deity with Jasmine flowers: 

As per the legend, at the Malaika Arjun Jyotirling, the Linga is worshiped with jasmine flowers which is called as Mallika in Telugu language and, therefore, the name of the deity is Mallikarjuna at SriSailam. Mallikarjuna Temple Jyotirlinga remains bedecked with Jasmine flowers.  

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga Temple at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh:

Sri Bhramaramba Mallikarjuna Temple Jyotirlinga or the Mahadev Jyotirling is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. 

Mallikarjun Mahadev Jyotirling is located at Srisailam in the State of Andhra Pradesh. Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh is also one of the 18 Shakti Peeths.

At the Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga Temple, Shiva is worshiped as Mallikarjuna and is represented by the lingam. Goddess Parvati is worshiped as Bhramaramba.

Mallikarjuna Temple 

Inscriptional evidence dating back to the period of Satavahana dynasty i.e. of 2nd century have been found. Further additions in the structure are of the times of King Harihara 1 of Vijayanagara kingdom.

Presently, the Mallikarjun Shivling temple is under the administration of the Government of Andhra Pradesh.

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga how to reach by flight:

From Delhi, there is no direct flight to SriSailam Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga temple. The devotees, who can afford a flight, prefer to take a flight to Hyderabad and proceed further by hiring a taxi to SriSailam Mallikarjuna temple. 

Those who can afford air travel, the most convenient way to visit Mallikarjuna mandir from Delhi is to take a flight from Delhi to Hyderabad which is  the Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga near airport (Nearest Airport) and thereafter, the pilgrims can hire a taxi from Hyderabad Airport for visiting SriSailam Mallikarjuna temple.

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga near airport (Nearest) means that it is at a distance of approximately 138 kms from Hyderabad(HYD) Airport.

Mallikarjuna jyotirlinga how to reach by train?:

The nearest Railway station to Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga is Markapur which is around 85 km. 

Another station which is near Mallikarjuna mandir is Vinukonda, 190 km in Kurnool.

Markapur Railway station is well connected to all the major cities like Puri Bangalore, Kolkata, Vasco, Guntur and Hyderabad. 

Ardent devotees of Shivling in India are eager to find Jyotirlinga near me. It is quite an interesting fact that 12 Jyotirlingas are spread over all the four directions and thus, cover the East, West, North and South regions thus, in a way, giving people of different regions, to easily find Jyotirlinga near me.

In addition to the Mallikarjuna mandir, other 11 Jyotirlingas temples are spread in all the regions. 

From the following list of the 11 Jyotirlingas, the devotees can easily find answers to their query -Which Jyotirlinga near me? Or Siva temple near me or get a fair account of Shivling in India or Lord Shiva temple near me or Near me temples or Temples nearby.

The other 11 Jyotirlingas temples in India are:-

• Mahakaleshwar Temple or Mahakaleshwar Mandir or Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga at Ujjain in the State of Madhya Pradesh.
• Shri Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga or Shree Omkareshwar Temple or Shree Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga in the State of Madhya Pradesh.
• Somnath Temple at Veraval Gujarat.
• Kedarnath Temple or Kedarnath Dham in the Himalayas in Uttarakhand.
• Kashi Vishwanath Temple Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh.
• Trimbakeshwar or Trayambakeshwar Temple  at Nasik in the State of Maharashtra
• Bhimashankar in Maharashtra
• Vaidyanath Jyotirlinga or Baidyanath Temple in Deoghar, Jharkhand
• Nageshwar Jyotirlinga Temple in Dwarka, Gujarat
• Rameshwaram Jyotirlinga in Tamil Nadu. It is one of the Tamil Nadu famous temples.
• Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga temple, in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra near Ellora

Jyotirlinga near Shirdi:

If we talk about Jyotirlinga near Shirdi, we find that from Shirdi, one can plan visiting the following Jyotirlingas which are in Maharashtra itself:-

Trimbakeshwar at Nasik; Bhimashankar near Pune & Grishneshwar at Ellora.

Thus, while planning a visit to Shirdi, one can include in his or her itinerary the three Jyotirlinga near Shirdi as well to seek blessings of Lord Shiva.

Tamil Nadu famous temples:

The TamilNadu famous temples in South  India have different architectural styles. The  Tamil Nadu famous temples include the Meenakshi Amman Temple, Madurai. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva. It is also known as Meenakshi – Sundareshwar Temple. 

In the list of Tamil Nadu famous temples, another important temple, having religious significance is Sri Lakshmi Narayanan Golden Temple, Vellore. As the name indicates, the presiding deity is Goddess Laxmi.

Conclusion: 

Mallikarjuna Shivling in India is unique in the sense that the Mallikarjun mandir premises remain filled with the fragrance of Jasmine. The aroma at the Mallikarjun Mahadev Jyotirling is mesmerizing. People often misspell Mallikarjun mandir as Malaika arjun jyotirling. 

Mallikarjuna jyotirlinga in Hindi or in Sanskrit, conveys a meaningful message to one and all to serve and respect or circumambulate his or her parents that will certainly ensure him or her, earthly rewards. 

It is an established fact that the Hindu temples in India, the Hindu culture and traditions are not just a religion to profess but it is a way of life. 

Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga in Hindi or Sanskrit and Telugu teaches and guides the people belonging to Hinduism to constantly remain stuck to the path of righteousness. 

The quality of respecting and tending elders is enshrined in the Hindu way of life. 

The legend of Mallikarjuna temple signifies the spirit of deep family bonds and traditions of respecting parents and ancestors that is inherent in Hindu religion. 

Hindu temples in India offer flexibility and elasticity to its devotees who are at liberty to do pilgrimages at their own convenient date and time. Devotees, in large numbers, visit the temples during festivals.

Subscribe to our Youtube Channel: @acharyaganeshchannel

FAQs:

Q.1. Is Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga a Shaktipeeth as well?

Ans. Yes.

Q.2. Are Jasmine flowers offered to Lord Shiva at Mallikarjun mandir?

Ans. Yes, Jasmine in Telugu language is called Mallika and hence the name Mallikarjuna temple.

Q.3. Which Railway station is near Mallikarjuna Mahadev?

Ans. Markapur Road Railway station is near Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga. APSRTC buses ply between Markapur Road Railway Station and SriSailam.