Jwala ( Pahari: जवाला जी, , ) is a

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

goddess A goddess is a female deity. In some faiths, a sacred female figure holds a central place in religious prayer and worship. For example, Shaktism (one of the three major Hinduism, Hindu sects), holds that the ultimate deity, the source of all re ...

. The physical manifestation of Jwala is typically a set of eternal flames. The Hindu temple Jwala/jawala(flame) or Jwala Mukhi (a person with a face glowing like fire) is mentioned in the Mahabharata and other religious scriptures. There is a natural cave where flames continue to burn due to natural gas deposits found underground seeping out from the rocks and ignited by an unknown source. Several schools of

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

also share the symbolism of a seven-forked sacred flame.

The Legend

According to Hindu legend, in ancient times when demons lorded over the Himalaya mountains and harassed the gods,

Vishnu Vishnu (; , , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism, and the god of preservation ( ...

led the gods to destroy the demons. They focused their strengths and caused huge flames to rise from the ground. From that fire, a young girl was born. She is regarded as Adishakti -- the first '

Shakti Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; 'energy, ability, strength, effort, power, might, capability') in Hinduism, is the "Universal Power" that underlies and sustains all existence. Conceived as feminine in essence, Shakti refer ...

.' Known as Sati, the girl grew up in Prajapati Daksha's house and later became

Shiva Shiva (; , ), also known as Mahadeva (; , , Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐh and Hara, is one of the Hindu deities, principal deities of Hinduism. He is the God in Hinduism, Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions w ...

's consort. When her father insulted Shiva, she could not accept this and killed herself. When Shiva heard of his wife's death he was enraged. While holding Sati's body, he began stalking the three worlds. The other gods trembled before his wrath and appealed to Vishnu for help. Vishnu released a

Sudarshan chakra The Sudarshana Chakra (, ) is a divine discus, attributed to Vishnu in the Hindu scriptures. The Sudarshana Chakra is generally portrayed on the right rear hand of the four hands of Vishnu, who also holds the Panchajanya (conch), the Kaumodaki ...

that struck Sati's body and broke it. At the places where the pieces fell, the fifty-one sacred 'Shaktipeeths' came into being. Centuries ago, a cowherd found out that one of his cows never produced milk. He followed the cow to investigate the cause. He saw a girl coming out of the forest who drank the cow's milk, then disappeared in a flash of light. The cowherd went to the king and told him the story. The king knew the legend recounting that Sati's tongue had fallen in this area. The king tried without success to find that sacred spot. Some years later, the cowherd returned to the king to report that he had seen a flame burning in the mountains. The king found the spot and had a darshan (vision) of the holy flame. He ordered for a temple to be built there by Raja Bhumi Chand and arranged for priests to engage in regular worship. Jawalamukhi has been a pilgrimage centre for many years. According to legend, the Mughal Emperor

Akbar Akbar (Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, – ), popularly known as Akbar the Great, was the third Mughal emperor, who reigned from 1556 to 1605. Akbar succeeded his father, Humayun, under a regent, Bairam Khan, who helped the young emperor expa ...

visited the pilgrimage site and attempted to extinguish the eternal flames using an iron disk and diverting water, but the flames resisted all efforts. Akbar, initially skeptical of the deity's power, presented a golden parasol (chattar) at the shrine, where it transformed into an unknown metal. This incident deepened his belief. The shrine continues to attract thousands of pilgrims seeking spiritual fulfillment throughout the year.

Map of Jwala temples

Jwala Temples

Jwala of Kashmir

Jwalamukhi Temple is a

Kashmiri Hindu Kashmiri Hindus are ethnic Kashmiris who practice Hinduism and are native to the Kashmir Valley of India. With respect to their contributions to Indian philosophy, Kashmiri Hindus developed the tradition of Kashmiri Shaivism. After their exodu ...

mandir (temple) located in Khrew. On 16 July, the Jwalamukhi Fair is hosted annually and is celebrated by both

Hindus Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

and

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

(cf. '' Kashmiriyat'').

Jwala Kangra

The most well-known Jwala shrine is located in the town of Jawalamukhi, in the lower Himalayan area of the

Kangra district Kangra district is the most populous district of Himachal Pradesh, India. Dharamshala is the administrative headquarters of the district. History Kangra is known for having one of the oldest serving Royal Dynasty in the world, the Katoch of ...

, in the state of

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. The shrine is from the larger town of Dharamshala. The temple style is similar to other Jwala shrines with four corners, a small dome on the top and a square central pit of hollowed stone inside where the main flame burns continuously. A fair is held in the environs of the temple annually in July or August, during Navratras. The temple previously had a library of associated ancient Hindu texts, many of which were translated from Sanskrit into Persian at the orders of

Firuz Shah Tughlaq Firuz Shah Tughlaq (1309 – 20 September 1388), also known as Firuz III, was Sultan of Delhi from 1351 until his death in 1388. He succeeded his cousin Muhammad bin Tughlaq following the latter's death at Thatta, Sindh. His father was ...

when the

Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate or the Sultanate of Delhi was a Medieval India, late medieval empire primarily based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for more than three centuries.

overran the Kangra area. According to legend, when Sati's body was divided into 51 parts, her tongue fell in the area of Jawalamukhi, where it continues to be represented by the flames. Along with her tongue, the flames of Sati's yogic power also fell nearby. Some legends state that Sati's clothes also fell there. Near this area, eternal flames continue to burn in a natural cave.

Jwala Devi of Shaktinagar

Jwala Devi Temple is located in Shaktinagar township of

Sonbhadra district Sonbhadra (also known as Sonebhadra) or Sonanchal is the second largest district by area of Uttar Pradesh after Lakhimpur Kheri. The district headquarters is in the town of Robertsganj. Sonbhadra is also known as the "Energy Capital of India" f ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

. It is an ancient Ashtagrih temple of Jwala Devi and one of the 51 Shaktipeethas of India. The temple is believed to be 1000 years old and constructed by Raja Udit Narayan Singh of Gaharwal. This is where the tongue of Parvati is worshipped. The idol of the main deity is located in the Sanctum Sanatorium (central place of the temple). The black stone idol in the temple has been installed with other deities surrounding the main idol. This Jwala Devi Temple is believed to have been blessed with the presence of

due to the falling of the front tongue of Sati while

carried her and wandered through

Āryāvarta Āryāvarta (Sanskrit: आर्यावर्त, ,

Jwala Mai of Muktinath

The flame at the Jwala shrine in the village of

Muktinath Muktinath is an ancient Vishnu temple located in Mustang, Nepal. The temple of Muktinath, known as 'the lord of liberation', is sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists whom they worship as an abode of Hindu deity Vishnu and Buddhist deity Avalokiteśv ...

is located at an altitude of 3,710 meters at the foot of the Thorong La mountain pass in the

Mustang district Mustang District ( ) (from the Standard Tibetan, Tibetan ''möntang'' (), "fertile plain") is one of the eleven districts of Gandaki Province and one of List of districts of Nepal, seventy-seven districts of Nepal which was a Kingdom of Lo-Mant ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

. A small amount of natural gas is present in the Himalayan spring that emerges near the shrine, giving it the appearance of fire burning on the water itself. This shrine is usually called the Jwala Mai (''Jwala Mother'') temple, and is sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists.

Atashgah of Baku

The Baku Atashgah is a temple in Surakhani, a suburb of

Baku Baku (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Azerbaijan, largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and in the Caucasus region. Baku is below sea level, which makes it the List of capital ci ...

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

. Historically, some Hindu pilgrims have referred to it as the ''Baku Jwala''. Given that fire is considered highly sacred in both

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

and

Zoroastrianism Zoroastrianism ( ), also called Mazdayasnā () or Beh-dīn (), is an Iranian religions, Iranian religion centred on the Avesta and the teachings of Zoroaster, Zarathushtra Spitama, who is more commonly referred to by the Greek translation, ...

(as

Agni Agni ( ) is the Deva (Hinduism), Hindu god of fire. As the Guardians of the directions#Aṣṭa-Dikpāla ("Guardians of Eight Directions"), guardian deity of the southeast direction, he is typically found in southeast corners of Hindu temples. ...

and

Atar Atar, Ahtra, Atash, Azar () or ''Dāštāɣni'',, s.v. ''agni-.'' is the Zoroastrian concept of holy fire, sometimes described in abstract terms as "burning and unburning fire" or "visible and invisible fire" (Mirza, 1987:389). It is conside ...

respectively), and the two faiths share similar elements (such as

Yajna In Hinduism, ''Yajna'' or ''Yagna'' (, Help:IPA/Sanskrit, ɐd͡ʒɲə ) also known as Hawan, is a ritual done in front of a sacred fire, often with mantras. Yajna has been a Vedas, Vedic tradition, described in a layer of Vedic literature ...

and

Yasna Yasna (;"Yasna"
''

proto-Indo-Iranian precursor religion, there has been debate on whether the Atashgah was originally a Hindu site or a Zoroastrian one. Many scholars and officials have concluded that this is a Jwala temple due to the presence of several Hindu inscriptions in Sanskrit and Punjabi (as opposed to only one in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

)and encounters with dozens of Hindus at the shrine or the regions between

North India North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...

and Baku, as well as assessments of its Hindu-character by Parsi dasturs.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jwala Ji Shakti temples Hindu temples in Himachal Pradesh Hindu goddesses Jain minor deities Buildings and structures in Kangra district Fire goddesses Folk deities of Rajasthan