Story of Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga

 उज्जयिन्यां महाकालमोङ्कारममलेश्वरम्॥

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga

Mahakaleshwar or simply 'Mahakal' is one of the most powerful forms of Lord Shiva. 'Kala' means time and 'Mahakal' means the controller of time. Lord Shiva is the master of time. Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is situated in the ancient City of Ujjain on the banks of river Narmada. Lord Shiva resides here as the master of time. The shivling at Mahakaleshwar is a swyambhu shivling meaning "self created". The shivling has emerged naturally form the earth. The temple consists of 3 levels. In the basement Lord Mahakal is seated. On the Ground floor Lord Omkareshwar is seated and on the first floor Lord Nagchandreshwar is seated. the doors of Lord Nagchandreshwar open only on the day of 'Nag Panchmi' for the public. The shivling of Lord Mahakal faces south in this temple. Lord Shiva is also known as 'Dakshinamurti' meaning the teacher who faces south. It is believed that Lord Shiva revealed and taught the science of yoga to his 7 disciples who later came to be known as 'Saptrishis', who are credited with spreading this science all over the world. 

The life of the people of the city of Ujjain revolves around their deity Lord Mahakaal. He is considered as the king of the city of Ujjain and the protector of its people. Ujjain is one of the four places where drops of ‘Amrit’ the holy nectar fell when Lord Garuda was protecting it from the asuras. A Kumbha Mela is held here after every 12 years. No VIP or VVIP stays at Ujjain at night because Lord Mahakaal is the king here.

        Another uniqueness of The Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga is that a unique Aarti known as the “Bhasmaarti” is conducted here every-day at Bhramuhuratam i.e. 4:00AM. Lord Mahakal is worshipped with ash made from cow dung,beltas, amaltas etc.

Story of Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga:

Mahakaleshwar Temple Premises

According to the Puranas, the city of Ujjain was called Avantika and was famous for its beauty and its status as a devotional epicenter. It was also one of the primary cities where students went to study holy scriptures. According to legend, there was a ruler of Ujjain called Chandrasena, who was a pious devotee of Lord Shiva and worshiped him all the time. One day, a farmer's boy named Shrikhar was walking on the grounds of the palace and heard the King chant the Lord's name and rushed to the temple to start praying with him. However, the guards removed him by force and sent him to the outskirts of the city near the river Kshipra. 

Do read 'An introduction to Jyotirlinga' to get yourself familiar with the Jyotirlingas and better understand their legends.

Rivals of Ujjain, primarily King Ripudamana and King Singhaditya of the neighboring kingdoms decided to attack the Kingdom and take over its treasures around this time. Hearing this, Shrikhar started to pray and the news spread to a priest named Vridhi. He was shocked to hear this and upon the urgent pleas of his sons, started to pray to Lord Shiva at the river Kshipra. The Kings chose to attack and were successful; with the help of the powerful demon Dushan, who was blessed by Lord Bhramato be invisible, they plundered the city and attacked all the devotees of Lord Shiva.

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga Morning Shringaar

Upon hearing the pleas of His helpless devotees, Lord Shiva  appeared in his Mahakala form and destroyed the enemies of King Chandrasena. Upon the request of his devotees Shrikhar and Vridhi, Lord Shiva agreed to reside in the city and become the chief deity of the Kingdom and take care of it against its enemies and to protect all His devotees. From that day on, Lord Shiva resided in His light form as Mahakala in a Lingam that was formed on its own from the powers of the Lord and His consort, Parvati. The Lord also blessed his devotees and declared that people who worshipped Him in this form would be free from the fear of death and diseases. Also, they would be granted worldly treasures and be under the protection of the Lord himself.

DARSHAN AND AARTI TIMINGS:

4:00AM-  Temple opening hours.

4:00 AM to 6:00 AM- Bhasmarti of Mahakaal

7:30 AM TO 8:15 AM- Navedh Aarti (7 AM to 7:45 AM in summer months)

8:15 AM to 10:00 AM- Darshan

10:00 AM to 10:30 AM – Bhog Aarti

10:30 AM to 5:00 PM – Darshan

5:00 PM to 6:30 PM- Jal Abhishek

6:30 PM to 7:00 PM  – Sandhya Aarti (7 PM to 7:30 PM in summer months)

7:00 PM to 10:30 PM –Darshan

10:30 PM to 11:00 PM- Shayan Aarti

11:00 PM- Closing

Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga Bhavya Shringaar on Mahashivratri

HOW TO REACH:

Reaching by air
Located in Ujjain, the temple is very well-connected with the rest of India. It lies in the state of Madhya Pradesh, and can be reached by domestic flights from anywhere in India. The nearest airport is Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar Airport in Indore which is 58 kms from the temple.

Reaching by train
Ujjain Junction is well-connected with all Indian cities, and both long and short distance trains ply to and from the city’s main railway station.

Reaching by road
Ujjain is connected by roads with major cities; a road trip from Delhi to Ujjain covers 776 km far, while from Mumbai it is 648 km away. Ujjain is only 188 km away from Madhya Pradesh’s capital city Bhopal.
The best time to visit the Mahakaleshwar Temple is during Mahashivratri, which falls between the months of February and March.

You can also watch the live darshan here: http://dic.mp.nic.in/ujjain/mahakal/common_forms/live_darshan.aspx

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