Famous Temples of India

One of 12 Jyotirlingas. Origin of Godavari river. Unique three-faced linga (Brahma, Vishnu, Mahesh).

Jyotirlinga nestled in the Sahyadri mountain range. Origin of Bhima river. In dense forest.

One of the 12th and last Jyotirlingas. Near Ellora Caves. Beautiful red stone temple.

Known as Nageshwar Jyotirlinga. Hemadpanthi architecture style. Extremely ancient temple.

Vaidyanath Jyotirlinga. Famous for health and disease cure. Hemadpanthi style.

First of the Ashtavinayak. Peacock-shaped Ganpati temple. Ashtavinayak yatra starts from here.

On banks of Bhima river. Vishnu worshipped this Ganpati to attain Siddhi. Self-manifested idol.

Named after devotee Ballal. Only Ganpati known by a devotee's name.

Varad = one who grants boons. Eternal lamp (Nandadeep) burns continuously in the temple.

Ganpati who removes worries. At Mula-Mutha river confluence. Peshwa-era temple.

Only Ashtavinayak situated in Buddhist caves. 307 steps to climb.

Ganpati who removes obstacles. Temple with beautiful golden pinnacle.

Last of the Ashtavinayak. Mahaganapati — ten-armed idol. Underground sanctum.

One of the 3.5 Shakti Peethas (full peeth). Ancient Mahalakshmi temple. Famous for Kiranotsav.

One of the 3.5 Shakti Peethas. Kuldevata of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. Bhavani sword.

Half of the 3.5 Shakti Peethas. Mother Renuka of Lord Dattatreya. Temple on hilltop.

On a mountain with seven peaks. Grand 18-armed idol. 472 steps. Half Shakti Peeth.

Main center of Warkari sect. Famous Vitthal-Rukmini temple. On banks of Chandrabhaga river.

Holy place of Dattatreya's incarnation (Shripad Shrivallabh/Nrusimha Saraswati). Gurucharitra.

Birthplace of Shri Narasimha Saraswati. Sacred place from Gurucharitra.

Sai Baba's Samadhi temple. 'Shraddha and Saburi' message. Millions visit daily.

Mumbai's most famous Ganpati temple. Famous for wish fulfillment. Special crowd on Tuesdays.

The goddess who gave Mumbai its name. Mumbai's village deity. Extremely ancient temple.

Famous temple of Khandoba (Malhari Martand). On hilltop. Turmeric offering — 'Bhandara'.

Dehu — birthplace of Sant Tukaram. Alandi — samadhi of Sant Dnyaneshwar. Warkari pilgrimage.

Self-manifested place of Lord Shani. No doors on houses in village — Shani Dev's protection.

First of 12 Jyotirlingas. On the Arabian Sea coast. Rebuilt 17 times after invasions. Revived by Sardar Patel after independence.

Second Jyotirlinga. In Nallamala forest, Krishna river gorge. Only site that is both Jyotirlinga and Shakti Peetha. 'Kailash of the South'.

The only south-facing (Dakshinamukhi) Jyotirlinga. 4 AM Bhasma Aarti with ash applied to linga. Ujjain is one of 7 moksha cities. Shipra river.

Jyotirlinga on an Om-shaped island on the Narmada river. Two temples — Omkareshwar (island) and Amaleshwar (mainland). Adi Shankaracharya studied here.

Highest of 12 Jyotirlingas at 3,583m altitude. Open only May-November. Pandavas connection. Mandakini river. Part of Char Dham Yatra.

Most sacred of 12 Jyotirlingas. Shiva's city Kashi, on the banks of the Ganga. Death here grants moksha. 84 Ganga ghats.

Southernmost Jyotirlinga. One of the Char Dhams. Shivalinga installed by Lord Rama before the Lanka war. 22 sacred wells (theerthams).

Datta Kshetra on Krishna riverbank. Dattatreya believed to reside in the Audumbar tree. Peaceful spiritual place connected to Gurucharitra.

Birthplace of Dattatreya, son of Atri-Anasuya. Trimukhi Datta idol. Adjacent to Renuka Devi temple. Ancient mythological site.

Place where Nrusimha Saraswati took Sannyasa Diksha. Connected to Gurucharitra. Ancient Datta temple in Vidarbha region.

Shripad Shrivallabh's tapasthaan on an island in Krishna river. Accessible only by boat. Extremely powerful spiritual place connected to Gurucharitra.

Birthplace of Shripad Shrivallabh, first avatar of Dattatreya. Ancient temple connected to Gurucharitra. Main Datta pilgrimage in Andhra Pradesh.

Gujarat's sacred mountain. Dattatreya's tapasthaan. Approximately 10,000 steps lead to Datta peak. Combined Hindu-Jain pilgrimage site.

Datta Kshetra at Krishna-Panchganga confluence. Associated with Nrusimha Saraswati. Center for Gurucharitra parayana.

Samadhi of Swami Samarth, revered as Datta avatar. 'Swami will take care' philosophy. Place of faith for millions of devotees across Maharashtra.

Kadali Van (banana forest) residence of Shri Nrusimha Saraswati. On the banks of Krishna river. Mentioned in Gurucharitra.

Ancient Shri Kadsiddheshwar temple. Connected to Datta Sampradaya. Linked to Nrusimha Saraswati's journey in Gurucharitra.

Historic Datta temple that survived the Portuguese era. Unique example of Goan architecture. Peaceful surroundings.

Highest peak of Aravalli range (1721 m). Ancient Dattatreya temple. Panoramic views of Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Major Datta math associated with Shri Vasudevanand Saraswati (Tembe Swami). Connected to the Garudeshwar tradition.

Ancient Datta temple near Belgaum. Peaceful hilltop pilgrimage site. Maharashtra-Karnataka border region.

Datta Kshetra near Mallikarjuna Jyotirlinga. In the Nallamala hills. Combined Shiva-Datta pilgrimage.

Historic Datta Akhada in the city of Mahakala. Center of Nath-Datta tradition. Near Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga.

One of the Char Dham. On the banks of Alaknanda river at 3,133m in the Himalayas. Established by Adi Shankaracharya. Open May to November.

One of the Char Dham. On the Bay of Bengal. Wooden idols of Jagannath-Balabhadra-Subhadra. Magnificent 12th century temple.

One of Char Dham and Sapta Puri. Krishna's kingdom. Confluence of Gomti river and Arabian Sea. Bet Dwarka island. Nageshwar Jyotirlinga nearby.

Richest temple in the world. On Tirumala hills. Annual income over $1 billion. 50,000-1,00,000 daily visitors.

12 km trek from Katra. Cave temple. Three pindis — Maha Kali, Maha Lakshmi, Maha Saraswati. 5,200 ft altitude. 7-8 million annual visitors.

Natural ice Shivalinga at 3,888m. Yatra in July-August. Pahalgam and Baltal routes. Shiva revealed the secret of immortality to Parvati here.

Krishna Janmabhoomi. Banke Bihari temple. Prem Mandir. ISKCON. Yamuna river. World-famous Holi celebrations. Govardhan circumambulation.

One of the most powerful Shakti Peethas. Nilachal hill, Guwahati. No idol — yoni-shaped stone. Ambubachi Mela (June). Premier centre of tantric worship.

Masterpiece of Dravidian architecture featuring 14 gopurams, Hall of 1000 Pillars, Golden Lotus Tank, and musical pillars — the spiritual heart of Madurai.

Temple of Mysore's guardian deity on Chamundi Hills — 1000 steps to climb, giant Nandi statue, and panoramic view of Mysore Palace.

World's richest temple — Vishnu reclining on cosmic serpent Anantha, vaults worth trillions, Kerala-Dravidian architecture. Hindus only entry — strict dress code.

UNESCO World Heritage Site — 13th century Sun Temple shaped as a giant chariot with 24 carved wheels, 7 horses, and erotic sculptures. Known as the 'Black Pagoda'.

Modern Hindu temple built in 2005. Guinness World Record — world's largest comprehensive Hindu temple. 141 ft tall, 234 carved pillars. Boat ride, water show, exhibitions. NO photography inside.

Supreme holy site of Sikhism. Gold-plated temple. Amrit Sarovar (sacred pool). Langar serves 100,000+ people free food daily. Open to people of ALL religions.

One of the most followed temples in North India. 'Hare ka sahara, Khatu wale Shyam hamara.' Story of Barbarik from Mahabharata — blessed by Lord Krishna himself.

India's uniquely bearded Hanuman — svayambhu (self-manifested) idol with beard and mustache. Appeared from earth in 1754 CE. Millions of devotees from Rajasthan and Gujarat. Chaitra/Ashwin Purnima fairs.

Great 19th-century Ram Bhakt saint. Spread the message of the 13-syllable 'Shri Ram Jay Ram Jay Jay Ram' namajapa. Samadhi Mandir at Gondavale Budruk. Sadguru revered for removing devotees' difficulties.