Kālikā Mata Temple (or Kalikamata; ) is a

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In many known cultures, goddesses are often linked with literal or metaphorical pregnancy or imagined feminine roles associated with how women and girls are perceived or expected to behave. This includes themes of s ...

temple complex and pilgrim centre at the summit of

Pavagadh Hill Pavagadh Hill is situated within a plain in Panchmahal district, Gujarat, western India. A volcanic eruption occurred in the region approximately 500 million years ago and the etymology of Pavagadh is associated with this eruption: ''Pav-gadh'' ...

Panchmahal District Panchmahal, also known as Panch Mahals, is a district in the eastern portion of Gujarat State western India. ''Panch-mahal'' means "five tehsils/talukas" (5 sub-divisions), and refers to the five sub-divisions that were transferred by the Maharaj ...

, India, with in the

Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is located in Panchmahal district in Gujarat, India. It is located around the historical city of Champaner, a city which was founded by Vanraj Chavda, the most prominent king ...

. It dates from the 10th or 11th centuries. The temple has three images of goddesses: the central image is of Kalika Mata, flanked by

Kali Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hinduism, Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In t ...

on the right and Bahucharamata on the left. On Chitra sud 8, a fair is held at the temple which is attended by thousands of devotees. The temple is the site of one of the Great holy

Shakti Peethas The Shakti Pitha or the Shakti Peethas ( sa, शक्ति पीठ, , ''seat of Shakti'') are significant shrines and pilgrimage destinations in Shaktism, the goddess-centric denomination in Hinduism. The shrines are dedicated to various fo ...

. One can easily reach the temple by ropeway.

Geography

Kalika Mata Temple is situated in the

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, with a total of 36 entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into districts and smaller administrative divisions. History Pre-indepen ...

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

, near

Halol Halol is a city and a municipality (tehsil) in Panchmahal district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Located in western India, it has an average elevation of 499 metres (1637 feet). Halol is a major manufacturing hub of Western India, ...

, at

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

. The temple complex is part of the

, a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. It is set amidst a dense forest cover on a cliff. The temple can be accessed by a pathway from the road head through the forest over a distance of . The path passes the ruins of Patai Raval's palace ruins. Alternatively, there is a

Pavagadh ropeway Pavagadh ropeway is a ropeway on Pavagadh hill in Pavagadh, Panchmahal district, Gujarat, India. It was opened in 1986. History Pavagadh hill is a major pilgrim site because of presence of the Kalika Mata Temple, a Shakti Peetha, as well as touri ...

access, which was commissioned in 1986.

History

Dating from the 10th-11th centuries, Kalika Mata is the oldest temple in the area.According to

R. K. Trivedi Ram Krishna Trivedi (1 January 1921 – 19 November 2015) was an Indian politician who was Governor of Gujarat from 26 February 1986 to 2 May 1990. Trivedi also served as Chief Election Commissioner of India from 18 June 1982 to 31 Decembe ...

in ''Fairs and Festivals of Gujarat'' (1961), the goddess Kalika Mata was initially worshipped by the local

Bhil Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of the s ...

and

Koli Koli may refer to: Places * Koli, Finland, a hill in Finland * Koli National Park, a national park in Finland * Koli, Iran (disambiguation), several places in Iran * Koli Airfield, a former airfield in the South Pacific Other uses * Koli people ...

People, until she was later invoked and installed by

Vishvamitra Vishvamitra ( sa, विश्वामित्र, ) is one of the most venerated rishis or sages of ancient India. According to Hindu tradition, he is stated to have written most of the Mandala 3 of the Rigveda, including the Gayatri Mant ...

on Pavagadh Hill summit, where she is worshipped as a form of

Durga Durga ( sa, दुर्गा, ) is a major Hindu goddess, worshipped as a principal aspect of the mother goddess Mahadevi. She is associated with protection, strength, motherhood, destruction, and wars. Durga's legend centres around co ...

Chandi Chandi ( sa, चण्डी, ) or Chandika () is a Hindu deity. Chandika is another form of Mahadevi, similar to Durga. Chandika is a powerful form of Mahadevi who manifested to destroy evil. She is also known as ''Kaushiki'', '' Katyayan ...

.There is a legend associated with this temple, Once during the festival of

Navratri Navaratri is an annual Hindu festival observed in the honour of the goddess Durga. It spans over nine nights (and ten days), first in the month of Chaitra (March/April of the Gregorian calendar), and again in the month of Sharada. It is ob ...

, the temple had organised a traditional dance called Garba, where hundreds of devotees got together and danced out of devotion towards the Goddess. Seeing such unconditional devotion, Goddess

Mahakali Mahakali () is the Hindu goddess of time and death in the goddess-centric tradition of Shaktism. Similar to Kali, Mahakali is a fierce goddess associated with universal power, time, life, death, and both rebirth and liberation. She is the cons ...

herself came amidst the devotees disguised as a local woman and danced with them. Meanwhile, the king of that kingdom Patai Jaisinh who was also dancing with the devotees happened to see the woman and was enchanted with her beauty. Filled with lust, the King held her hand and made an inappropriate proposal. The Goddess warned him thrice to leave her hand and apologize, but the king was too overwhelmed with lust to understand anything. Thus the Goddess cursed that his empire would fall. Soon a

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

invader

Mahmud Begada Sultan Mahmud Begada or Mahmud Shah I (), was the most prominent Sultan of the Gujarat Sultanate. Raised to the throne at young age, he successfully captured Pavagadh and Junagadh forts in battles which gave him his name ''Begada''. He establishe ...

invaded the kingdom. Patai Jaisinh lost the battle and was killed by Mahmud Begada. Pavagadh's Kalika Mata is also worshipped by the

Adivasi The Adivasi refers to inhabitants of Indian subcontinent, generally tribal people. The term is a Sanskrit word coined in the 1930s by political activists to give the tribal people an indigenous identity by claiming an indigenous origin. The term ...

. The temple was described in ''Gangadas Pratap Vilasa Natakam'', a 15th-century drama. Named in honor of the Goddess

, the temple is believed to be the Kali Mata's residence, and is one of the

, as the symbolic toe of the goddess

Sati Sati or SATI may refer to: Entertainment * ''Sati'' (film), a 1989 Bengali film by Aparna Sen and starring Shabana Azmi * ''Sati'' (novel), a 1990 novel by Christopher Pike *Sati (singer) (born 1976), Lithuanian singer *Sati, a character in ''Th ...

is said to have fallen here.

Architecture and fittings

The small and plain temple is set amidst fortifications with an open yard in the front, and is open for long hours to cater to the rush of pilgrims. There are two altars in front of the temple for offering sacrifices to the Goddess, but any kind of animal sacrifice is strictly banned since almost two to three centuries now. The Kali

yantra Yantra () (literally "machine, contraption") is a geometrical diagram, mainly from the Tantric traditions of the Indian religions. Yantras are used for the worship of deities in temples or at home; as an aid in meditation; used for the benefits ...

is worshipped at the temple. The complex is divided into two parts, the ground floor containing Hindu shrines, while the temple spire is domed with a Muslim shrine. The chief shrine on the ground floor contains three divine images: in the centre Kalika Mata in the centre (depicted in the form of a head, known as '' mukhwato'' and red in colour), while

is situated to her right and Bahuchara Mata to her left. The restored marble floor dates to about 1859 and was presented by the minister of

Limbdi Limbdi is a taluka in Surendranagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. History The area formed a part of the 9-gun salute state during the British Raj, when it was governed by members of a Jhala dynasty. Limbdi Satyagrah During the Saty ...

Kathiawar Kathiawar () is a peninsula, near the far north of India's west coast, of about bordering the Arabian Sea. It is bounded by the Gulf of Kutch in the northwest and by the Gulf of Khambhat (Gulf of Cambay) in the east. In the northeast, it is ...

. The domed temple spire contains a Muslim shrine and

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...

to Sadan Shah Pir, a

Sufi Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, ...

saint. Following redevelopment of the temple in 2022, the dargah was shifted nearby and the new

shikhara ''Shikhara'' (IAST: '), a Sanskrit word translating literally to "mountain peak", refers to the rising tower in the Hindu temple architecture of North India, and also often used in Jain temples. A ''shikhara'' over the ''garbhagriha'' chamber ...

of the temple was built.

Festivals

The temple is one of the biggest tourist and pilgrimage centers in Gujarat, attracting large numbers of people every year. It is a Chodhri tradition to make a pilgrimage here at least once in a lifetime. Devotees of Kalika Mata visiting the temple "worshipped by beating bell-metal symbols". A fair is held each year at the temple on

Chaitra Chaitra (Hindi: चैत्र) is a month of the Hindu calendar. In the standard Hindu calendar and India's national civil calendar, Chaitra is the first month of the year. It is the last month in the Bengali calendar, where it is called Cho ...

Sud 8. Especially on the full moon of Chaitra, in April, and at Dasara, in October, there are large meetings of Hindus of all classes. . Every year in September and October during Navratri (9 day devotion of all shakti goddess) large number of devotees come together for celebration.

References

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External links