Neelkanth Temple, Tehla, Rajasthan

Neelkanth Temple, Tehla, Rajasthan

Neelkanth Temple is a Hindu Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva located near Tehla village close to Sariska Tiger Reserve in the Rajgarh Tehsil in Alwar District, in the western Indian state of Rajasthan. The place was called as Rajyapura and Paranagar during ancient times. This temple is protected as monuments of national importance by the central Archaeological Survey of India.

Legends

As per legend, when the Mughal army came here to destroy this temple, millions of bees attacked the Mughal army from nowhere. The Mughal army was forced to flee after being attacked by the bees.

History

The temple was built by Maharajadhiraja Mathanadeva Bargujar, a Pratihara feudatory ruler, as per an inscription dated to 961 CE and a rock edict inside the Sariska Tiger Reserve, which is mentioned by Col. James Tod in his 1829 monumental work “Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan”. This temple is the only temple survived the onslaught of Mughal tyrant Aurangzeb and his Muslim army. The temples in the surrounding areas suffered heavy destruction evident from the presence of numerous ruins.

The Temple

The temple is situated in an isolated hill near the Sariska National Park, and can be reached only by a steep rough hilly track. The Temple is surrounded by ruined walls of the Rajorgarh Fort. The temple follows Trikuta style (three shrined), of which the central shrine (main sanctum) faces west and houses a Shiva Linga in it. Also, it preserved its nagara style shikara. The lateral shrines had lost its shikara completely.

Nataraja can be seen in the lalatabimba of the door frame of the central shrine. The lalatabimbas of the lateral shrines are now too damaged to be identified. All the three shrines are pancharatha on plan and share a common ranga mandapa and preceded by an entrance porch. The ranga mandapa is supported on four central pillars. The ceiling of the rangamandapa is decorated with Padmasila, sculptures of surasundaris and Gandharvas.

The outer temple walls has a pitha and a vedibandha that holds small niches with sculptures in them. The bhadra niches of the sanctum has Narasimha in the north, Harihararka in the east and Tripurantaka in the south. The other external projections are decorated with sculptures of Lord Shiva & Gauri seated on Nandi, Sura Sundaris, Mithuna, Yalis, and Dikpalas.

Connectivity

The Temple is located at about 10 Kms from Tehla, 34 Kms from Bhangarh, 35 Kms from Rajgarh, 35 Kms from Rajgarh Railway Station, 59 Kms from Dausa, 68 Kms from Alwar, 104 Kms from Jaipur and 111 Kms from Jaipur Airport. The Temple is located very near to the Sariska Tiger Reserve.

Location