Damodar Kund

About

Damodar Kund, located at the foothills of Girnar hills, near Junagadh in the Indian state of Gujarat, is considered a sacred lake as per Hindu beliefs.

Many Hindus prefer to bathe here and immerse the ashes and the bones left after cremation of dead bodies, here at Damodar Kund due to a belief that the departed souls would get moksha here. It may be mentioned here other such famous places for immersion of ashes and bones (Hindu rite of asthi-visarjana) are in Ganga at Haridwar and Triveni Sangam at Prayag.

The water of the lake has properties of dissolving the bones. The lake is 257 feet (78 m) long and 50 feet (15 m) broad and only 5 feet (1.5 m) deep. It is surrounded by a well built ghat. The steps for going up the Girnar hills start near Damodar Kund.

At the foothills of Ashwatthama Hill in Girnar mountain range base, southerly to Damodara Kund is the Damodar Hari Temple. The idols here are supposed to have been installed by Vajranabha, the grandson of Lord Shri Krishna, the one who also is credited with Dwarkadhish Temple and many other. Historically, these temples are supposed to have been built or renovated by a Suryavanshi ruler named Chandraketpur, who is also accredited to have built the temples of Shiva at Bhavnath, a testament to his tolerance for all belief systems. The place underwent renovation during the regime of King Skand Gupta of Gupta dynasty in the year 462 AD. Lord Damodar here is considered by Vaishnavites as Adhipati of Girnar Kshetra.

Covering an area of 32 acres (13 ha), the temple is constructed using pink sandstone and consists of an inner Nij Mandir and an outer Solaha Mandapa, each topped with a shikhara, supported by an array of around 84 exquisitely carved pillars. The Nij Mandir's shikhara is 65 feet (20 m) tall and the Sabha Mandap's shikhara is 30 feet (9.1 m) tall. The statue of Damodarji is found in the form of Chaturbhuj, each arm holding a conch, discus, mace and lotus, along with Sri Radha Rani. Both the idols are sculpted from black stone and are heavily decorated with gold and silk. There are other sub shrines dedicated to Lord Balarama, Sri Revati and Lord Ganesha. There are several other ancient temples nearby with on and outside temple complex.

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.