Pancha Ganga Temple,
Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra
Pancha Ganga Temple is a Hindu
Temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, located
at Mahabaleshwar Town, a famous
Hill Station in Satara District in Maharashtra, India. The Pancha Ganga Temple is
constructed at the confluence of five rivers Krishna, Venna, Savitri, Koyna and
Gayatri. It is believed that five rivers originate from Gaumukhi (cow’s mouth)
carved out of stone inside Pancha Ganga Temple. The
Temple is situated in Old Mahabaleshwar. It is one of the popular Mahabaleshwar tourist places.
Legends
As per legend, Lord Brahma along
with the Vishnu and Shiva decided to perform a Yagna (religious ritual) at this
place. However, while performing the yajna, his wife
Savitri (Saraswathi) could not be present at the designated time to perform the
essential part of the yajna as she was waiting for her companion goddesses Lakshmi,
Parvati
and Indrani.
Annoyed, Brahma requested god Indra (the king of heaven) to find a suitable
girl for him to wed to complete the yajna.
Indra could find only local maiden
Gayatri (a milkmaid) who was sanctified by passing her through the body of a
cow. Lord Vishnu, Lord
Shiva and
the priests certified her purity as she had passed through a cow, it was her
second birth and she was named Gayatri (goddess of milk).
Lord Brahma then married Gayatri and completed the yajna with his new consort
sitting beside him, holding the pot of amrita
(elixir of life) on her head and giving ahuti (offering to the sacrificial
fire).
But when Savitri finally arrived
at the venue she found Gayatri sitting next to Brahma which was her rightful
place. She got enraged and in her fury
transformed Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and Gayatri into rivers. They also
retaliated, turning Savitri into a watercourse as well. Thus, Brahma became the
Venna river, Gayatri and Savitri became the rivers of their own name, Lord
Vishnu became the river Krishna and Lord Shiva got transformed into river
Koyna.
History
The temple was constructed by
Raja Singhandeo, the Yadava ruler of Devagiri in the 13th century CE.
The Temple was renovated in 16th and 17th Century CE by Chanda
Rao More of Jaoli and Maratha Emperor Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The Temple
The Pancha Ganga Temple is
constructed at the confluence of five rivers Krishna, Venna, Savitri, Koyna and
Gayatri. It is believed that five rivers originate from Gaumukhi (cow’s mouth)
carved out of stone inside Pancha Ganga Temple. The temple is constructed
predominantly using black stone and the roof is supported using few stone
pillars constructed around a pool. This pool of water is formed by the water from
Gaumukhi. The temple is dedicated to Lord Krishna and has a beautiful idol of
him.
Connectivity
The Temple is located at about 7
Kms from Mahabaleshwar Bus Stand. Mahabaleshwar is located at about 33 Kms from
Wai, 66 Kms from Satara, 71 Kms from Satara Railway Station, 120 Kms from Pune,
130 Kms from Pune Airport and 231 Kms from Mumbai. Mahabaleshwar is connected
by the National Highway 4. Bus services by state-run MSRTC and
private organizations connect Pune, Miraj,
Mumbai, Sangli and
Satara to Mahabaleshwar.
Location
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