Mansehra Shiv Temple is one of the oldest Hindu temple in Pakistan that is still in existence. The temple is at least 2000
to 3000 years old.
The temple is situated in
Chitti Gatti, 15 kilometres from
Mansehra
Mansehra is a city in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan and the headquarters of Mansehra District. It is the 71st largest city of Pakistan and 7th largest city in the province.
The name of the city (written in Hindko, Urdu and Gojr ...
in
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (; ps, خېبر پښتونخوا; Urdu, Hindko: خیبر پختونخوا) commonly abbreviated as KP or KPK, is one of the Administrative units of Pakistan, four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, ...
in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
.
The annual
Shivarathri
Maha Shivaratri ( IAST: Mahāśivarātri) is a Hindu festival celebrated annually in honour of the god Shiva. The name also refers to the night when Shiva performs the heavenly dance called Tandava.
In every month of the luni-solar Hindu ...
festival in the temple is visited by people all around Pakistan and from abroad.
History
According to the archaeological research there existed
Hindu temples on the site where now the temple stands and the ancient Shiva Lingam inside the temple is very ancient and is at least 2000 years old. The temple was restored in the 1830s by the Raja of
Jammu
Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi, the city of Jammu, with an area of ...
as an act of devotion. During the 1947–48, the temple was forcibly seized by some people and started occupying illegally. They also sealed up the temple on this site.
From 1948 to 2008, the temple remained sealed and abandoned.
The temple remained inaccessible to the Hindus till 1998. In 1998, Hindus reclaimed the temple. After that, the temple has been partially restored by the Pakistani Hindus.
Gallery
File:Shiva Temple Gandhian Mansehra.jpg, Mansehra Shiva Temple before renovation
File:Mansehra Shiva Temple.jpg, Mansehra Shiva Temple after renovation
See also
*
Churrio Jabal Durga Mata Temple
Churrio Jabal Durga Mata Temple (چوڙيو جبل, pronunciation: choo-ryo ja-bal) is situated on a hill named Churrio, located in Nangarparkar in the Tharparkar District in the Sindh province of Pakistan. This is a historic temple and is visite ...
*
Hinduism in Pakistan
Hinduism is the second largest religious affiliation in Pakistan after Islam. While Hinduism was one of the dominant faiths in the region a few centuries back, today Hindus account for 2.14% of Pakistan's population or 4.4 million people acco ...
*
Shiv temple, Hyderabad
*
Hinduism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
References
{{Reflist
Hindu temples
Temples in Pakistan
Hindu temples in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa