Maa Jwala Devi Temple, Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India

The temple of Maa Jwala Devi is located in Jwalamukhi town of Kangra Distt in Himachal Pradesh.It is situated 34 km from Kangra in southern direction and 55 kms from Dharmshala. 

Jwala Devi Temple

The temple is dedicated to Devi Jwalamukhi who is worshiped in the form of flames, burning endlessly. It is believed that the flames have been burning since the time of Mahabharata. There are nine flames representing the nine Swaroopa (forms) of Mata. These are the Ma kali,Annapurna, Chandi, Hinglaj,Vindhyawasini,  Mahaluxmi,  Saraswati,  Ambika and Anji Devi. Inside the temple there is no idol or statue only the flames are worshiped. According to Hindu belief it is among the 52 Shakti Peethas of Sati cults. The tongue of Mata Sati is supposed to have fallen here which is represented as the flames.

                               ( Watch video below and see the different forms of Devi )

About the Temple

Inside the temple the place where the flames are burning is a cave like square pit where these several flames come out from the self created orifices in stones. This is the main place of worship. A magnificent templeis constructed of which the dome and the spire is made out of pure gold donated by Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1815 AD. The main door of the shrine is silver plated. A large brass bell was donated by the king of Nepal. The reason behind the endlessly burning flames has not been yet known in spite of  lot of efforts done  by many people and various institutions. Large number of people from Punjab and other states of the country come here in the days of Navratra.

A colorful fair is organised during Navratra of March-April & September –October.

Management of the temple

The temple has been declared as one of the cultural heritage sites by the Govt.of India .There are 102  paid priests in the temple appointed by the Govt

Legend

A cowherd had a lot of cows. He used to cater the cows in the grass fields. He found that one cow always remained without milking. He wanted to know the reason behind this and followed the cow. He saw a girl come out of the forest and drink the cow’s milk and then disappeared into the forest in a blink of eye.

The cowherd told this story to the king. Although the king was aware of it that this is the place where the tongue of Mata Sati had fallen. The king tried to search that particular place but could not succeed. One day the cowherd reported the king that he had seen a place where a flame is burning. The king went there immediately and had a vision of a flame Goddess and then he immediately constructed a temple over it. He appointed a priest to worship the flame Goddess regularly. It is believed that this incident happened even before Pandavas came here and renovated the temple.

A story Depicting The Goddess’s  Power

There was a devotee Dhyanu Bhagat of Delhi who spread the glory of flame Goddess of Jwala ji. It was the period of Akbar. The king called upon Dhyanu bhagat. Dhyanu described and praised the Goddess. Akbar then chopped off the head of his horse and told him to pray the Goddess to rejoin it. Dhyanu immediately moved to Jwala ji temple and prayed to Devi, day and night but all in vain. He then cut off his head and offered it before the goddess. Seeing such devotion, the Goddess became pleased and appeared before him sitting on her lion. The Devi blessed Dhyanu and rejoined the heads of Dhyanu and his horse and blessed with a boon. As per the boon the coconut offered by the devotees would be accepted by Devi such as they had offered their own head.

Legend about King Akbar

Being angry, the Mughal king Akbar came here with his army and tried to extinguish the flame of Goddess in all possible ways but could not succeed in his attempt. Then after, he accepted the glory and power of the Goddess and offered a golden umbrella (Chattar) to Devi which then turned into an unknown metal. People said it as the sign of non acceptance of the offering by Devi.

Festivals

A large fair is organised during Navratra. Being located on the border of Punjab, a large number of people from Punjab flock to the temple. During this fair, the langar runs throughout the day and night and Management offers a lot of facilities to the devotees.

Guidelines for Darshan

1. Cover your head with a shawl or a handkerchief.

2. Anything made out of leather is prohibited in the temple vicinity.

3. Smoking inside the temple is strictly prohibited.

4. Parikrama of the Deity is performed in clockwise direction.

5. Always bow before the Deities with your left side first not your right side,

6. A proper queue must be maintained at all times.

7. Ignore politely the Brahmin guides.

Facilities offered

*  Free Langar during the lunch and dinner time.

*  Bathrooms and toilets available in the temple vicinity.

*  Parking places (paid) provided by temple trust at moderate rates.

*  Medical facilities provided free of cost

Usually people use Rabri (thickened milk) as offering to the Goddess. Inside the campus there are several small temples-including Gorakh Dibbi temple & Chaturbhuj temple.

Management of the temple

The temple has been declared as one of the cultural heritage sites by the govt. Of India .There are no less than 102 priests in the temple paid by the govt.  itself.

How to reach

By rail

1. The nearest railway station is Pathankot at a distance of 120 km.

2. The nearest meter gauge railway station is Jwala Ji road about 20 km from the shrine.

By air

1. The nearest airport is gaggle, at Dharamshala.

2. Chandigarh airport is located 200 km away. One can reach by taxi or by own car from both airports.

By road

Frequent state transport bus service is available from important cities of Punjab, Haryana, New Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir.

Distances from major cities

Delhi-480 km

Chandigarh-200 km

Pathankot-120 km

Jammu-300 km

WHERE TO STAY

Guest house run by temple trust offers a comfortable stay to devotees.

There are a lot of hotels and guest houses near the temple at moderate rates for a comfortable stay.