As per Shiv Mahapuran, once Brahma and Vishnu had an argument in terms of supremacy of creation. To test them, Shiva pierced the three worlds as a huge endless pillar of light, the jyotirlinga. Vishnu and Brahma split their ways to downwards and upwards respectively to find the end of the light in either directions. Brahma lied that he found out the end, while Vishnu conceded his defeat. Shiva appeared as the second pillar of light and cursed Brahma that he would have no place in ceremonies while Vishnu would be worshipped until the end of eternity. The jyotirlinga is the supreme partless reality, out of which Shiva partly appears. The jyothirlinga shrines, thus are places where Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. Originally there were believed to be 64 jyothirlingas while 12 of them are considered to be very auspicious and holy. Each of the twelve jyothirlinga sites take the name of the presiding deity – each considered different manifestation of Shiva. At all these sites, the primary image is lingam representing the beginningless and endless Stambha pillar, symbolizing the infinite nature of Shiva. The twelve jyothirlingas are Somnath in Gujarat, Mallikarjuna at Srisailam in Andhra Pradesh, Mahakaleswar at Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, Omkareshwar in Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh, Kedarnath in Himalayas, in Uttrakhand state, Bhimashankar in Maharashtra, Viswanath at Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Triambakeshwar near Nashik in Maharashtra, Baidyanath Temple, Deogarh in Jharkhand, Nageswar at Dwarka in Gujarat, Rameshwar at Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu and Grishneshwar near Aurangabad, Maharashtra in Maharashtra.
Legends and history
As per Hindu legend, Vindya, the deity controlling the Vindyachal mountain range was worshipping Shiva to propitiate himself from the sins committed. He created a sacred geometrical diagram and a Lingam made of sand and clay. Shiva was pleased with the worship and believed to have appeared in two forms, namely Omkareshwar and Amaleswara. Since the mud mound appeared in the form of Om, the island came to be known as Omkareswar. There is a shrine for Parvati and Ganapati in the temple. The second story relates to Mandhata and his son's penance. King Mandhata of Ikshvaku clan worshipped Lord Shiva here until the Lord manifested himself as a Jyotirlinga. Some scholars also narrate the story about Mandhata's sons-Ambarish and Muchukunda, who had practiced severe penance and austerities here and pleased Lord Shiva. Because of this, the mountain is named Mandhata. The third story from Hindu scriptures says that once upon a time there was a great war between Devas and Danavas, in which Danavas won. This was a major setback for Devas and hence Devas prayed to Lord Shiva. Pleased with their prayer, Lord Shiva emerged in the form of Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga and defeated Danavas. Philosophy of Omkaar - Advait Matt says Omkaar is composed of two words, Om and Akaar. Both are one not two since Advait means "not two". Om beez mantra of Srishti, itself is creator of Srishti. Adi Shankara's Cave – Omkareshwar is said to be the place where Adi Sankara met his guru Govindapada in a cave. This cave can be found even today just below the Shiva temple where an image ofAdi Shankara has been installed.
Location
It is situated in the Khandwa district of Madhya Pradesh state in India. It is about 12 km from Mortakka in Madhya Pradesh. Omkareshwar is formed by the sacred river Narmada. This is one of the most sacred of rivers in India and is now home to one of the world's biggest dam projects. The temple is situated on Mandatha island on the banks of Narmada and river Kaveri. The island is in area and can be approached by boats.
Mamleshwar Temple
Also believed to be a Jyotirlinga by few, the Mamleshwar Temple is the place where Adi Shankara used to worship Lord Shiva when Omkareshwar was inaccessible due to the flooding of River Narmada. The Mamleshwar Temple is home to a unique folklore. Each night the priest of the temple keeps offerings for Lord Shiva and Parvati along with the Chausar Board. And the next day the offerings would have vanished. The mystery pertaining to this is still alluding people.
