AMARKANTAK

 

 A blooming city located on the lofty peaks of Maikal mountain ranges in the Anuppur district, Amarkantak, a city with  beautiful ambience is popular as a place of religious interest. The city gained utmost importance as a devout centre due to the existence of the holy River Narmada here. The land is also made pious by the waters of the Johilla and Sone Rivers.

 

 There are many legendary stories related to River Narmada and about 12 temples are built dedicated to the pious river. The prominent being the one constructed by the Bhonsales of Nagpur which is built at the place where River Narmada is believed to have originated. The king of the Baghel dynasty called Maharaja Gulab Singh built the parapet wall around the temple. Machendranath and the Patleshwar temples were built by Kalchuris. The place is declared as a protected site by the Archeological Survey of India.

 The captivating remains and temples in Amarkantak speak about the greatness of the brave kingdoms and their brilliance in art and engineering. A trip to Amarkantak will yield the visitor a huge number of articals of artistic excellence that clearly focuses on the architectural development of that particular period. 

 This sprawling city apart from ancient temples is also endowed with majestic hills, appealing climate, calm ambience, serene surroundings and incredible sceneries of nature with lush and verdant landscapes. The dense jungle encompassing the city is noted to have huge collection of the precious medicinal plants. Brahmi, gulbakawali, safedmusli, kalimusli, tejraj, bhojraj, patalkumhna, kali haldi, devraj, hatahjodi, jatashankari, ashta gandha are some of the famous medicinal plants grown here. The city blessed with a salubrious climate is a picnicker’s delight and can be visited throughout the year. 

 

 Amarkantak’s serene and calm topography is certainly a solace to those who are coming from a busy city life. It is a treat for both spiritualists and naturists.

                                                 PLACES TO VISIT

Narmada Mandir (Group of Temples) : Narmadeshwar temple built at the place where the River Narmada is believed to be originated is the prime shrine. Narmada Mandir encloses about 20 smaller temples. 

Mai Ki Bagiya : This is a beautiful flower garden which is about 1 km from the main temple. History says that The Narmada Devi used to pluck flowers from this garden.

Bhrigumandal : This place about 3kms from Amarkantak is a place where the sage Brigu Maharshi meditated. The path to this place is very dangerous. Parasvinayak and Chandi caves can be seen on the way to Bhrigumandal.   

Jwaleshwar Mahadev : This temple is located deep in the forest and is believed to be the origin point of River Johilla. A spectacular sunset point is located close to the temple.

KapilDhara and Dhuddhara : Are the breath-taking waterfalls of this region.

Shambhudhara & Durgadhara : Are the other heavenly waterfalls nestled deep inside the forests. Zealot trekkers can catch a spectacular view of these meandering beauties by walking down a few miles in the forest.   

GaneshTemple, Baigarh : This Ganesh temple located in the natural setting is surrounded by breath-taking landscapes. There are numerous water springs here. 

By Rail : Pendra 65 kms away from Amarkantak is the nearest railway station. Annapur about 1 km is also a prominent railway station. 

By Road : Amarkantak is well connected by road from Shahdol, Rewa and Jabalpur.

By Air : Lalpur about 90 kms from Amarkantak is the nearest air base.