Markanda Mahadev Temple Complex is situated at the banks of the

Wainganga River The Wainganga is a river in India originating in the Mahadeo Hills in Mundara near the village Gopalganj in Seoni, Madhya Pradesh. It is a key tributary of the Godavari. The river flows south in a winding course through the states of Madhya Prade ...

near Chamorshi town in the Gadchiroli District of Maharashtra. This

8th Century The 8th century is the period from 701 ( DCCI) through 800 ( DCCC) in accordance with the Julian Calendar. The coast of North Africa and the Iberian Peninsula quickly came under Islamic Arab domination. The westward expansion of the Umayyad E ...

Temple A temple (from the Latin ) is a building reserved for spiritual rituals and activities such as prayer and sacrifice. Religions which erect temples include Christianity (whose temples are typically called churches), Hinduism (whose temples ...

Complex is called Mini Khajuraho. The nearest village is Marakand Deo.

The Legend

This temple complex is dedicated to

Lord Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

. However, the Markanda name is derived from the Markandeya rishi of

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land a ...

who was an ardent devotee of Shiva. He went into penance for years on the banks of Markanda river and finally tried to offer his head to Shiva when Shiva appeared and stopped him. He blessed him with a temple in his name.

The Temple

This temple complex is spread over 40 acres of land and many temples are in a dilapidated condition. The construction is attributed to the Rashtrakuta dynasty which there from the 8th to the 12th century. There are many intricate idols (

murtis In the Hindu tradition, a ''murti'' ( sa, मूर्ति, mūrti, ) is a devotional image such as a statue, or "idol" (a common and non-pejorative term in Indian English), of a deity or saint. In Hindu temples, it is a symbolic icon. Thu ...

) on the outer walls of this temple complex.

Transport

Markanda Mahadev can be reached while going from

Chandrapur Chandrapur (earlier known as ''Chanda'', the official name until 1964) is a city and a municipal corporation in Chandrapur district, Maharashtra state, India. It is the district headquarters of Chandrapur district. Chandrapur is a fort cit ...

to Chamorshi, after the town Mul, before Chamorshi. Chandrapur to Markanda Mahadev is 67km.

Nagpur Nagpur (pronunciation: aːɡpuːɾ is the third largest city and the winter capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the 13th largest city in India by population and according to an Oxford's Economics report, Nagpur is projected to ...

to Markanda Mahadev temple complex is about 190km. Bussing is available at Chandrapur. The nearest railway station is Chandrapur, which is well connected to Nagpur,

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

and

Visakhapatnam , image_alt = , image_caption = From top, left to right: Visakhapatnam aerial view, Vizag seaport, Simhachalam Temple, Aerial view of Rushikonda Beach, Beach road, Novotel Visakhapatnam, INS Kursura submarine museu ...

. Near this temple a barrage is under construction named Chichdoh Barrage. It is near Sawali, Chandrapur.

References

Shiva temples in Maharashtra {{India-Hindu-temple-stub