SOMANATH TEMPLE,GUJARAT

Significance

According to the legend, Soma or the Moon God built the temple in gold, Ravana in silver, and Shri Krishna in wood. Soma was cursed by his father-in-law Daksha to wane because Soma loved only one of his wives, all of whom happened to be Daksha's daughters. His other wives complained about this negligent behavior of Soma to their father Daksha, and thus the curse. He then built a Shivlinga at the Prabhas tirth (a Hindu pilgrimage) and prayed to Lord Shiva who removed the curse partially because asked upon by Soma's one wife (the one that he loved more than others). Thus, causing the periodic waning of moon.Pleased by the prayers Soma (Moon god), Lord Shiva decided to rest in that Lingam till eternity, and thus the Jyotirlingam.

Timeline

The first temple of Somnath is said to have existed before the beginning of the common era.

The second temple, built by the Yadava kings of Vallabhi in Gujarat, replaced the first one on the same site around 649 CE.

In 725 CE Junayad, the Arab governor of Sind, sent his armies to destroy the second temple.The Gurjara Pratihara kingNagabhata II constructed the third temple in 815, a large structure of red sandstone.

Somnath temple, 1869

In 1024 CE, the temple was once again destroyed by Mahmud of Ghazni who raided the temple from across the Thar Desert. The temple was rebuilt by the Gujjar ParamaraKing Bhoj of Malwa and the Solanki king Bhimadev I of Anhilwara, Gujrat (present dayPatan) between 1026 and 1042. The wooden structure was replaced by Kumarpal (r.1143-72), who built the temple of stone.

In 1296 CE, the temple was once again destroyed by Sultan Allauddin Khilji's army.According to Taj-ul-Ma'sir of Hasan Nizami, Raja Karan of Gujarat was defeated and forced to flee, "fifty thousand infidels were dispatched to hell by the sword" and "more than twenty thousand slaves, and cattle beyond all calculation fell into the hands of the victors". The temple was rebuilt by Mahipala Deva, the Chudasama king of Saurashtra in 1308 AD and the Linga was installed by his son Khengar sometime between 1326 and 1351 AD.

In 1375 CE, the temple was once again destroyed by Muzaffar Shah I, the Sultan of Gujarat.

In 1451 CE, the temple was once again destroyed by Mahmud Begda, the Sultan of Gujarat.

In 1701 CE, the temple was once again destroyed by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. Aurangzeb built a mosque on the site of the Somnath temple, using some columns from the temple, whose Hindu sculptural motifs remained visible.

Later on a joint effort of Peshwa of Pune, Raja Bhonsle of Nagpur, Chhatrapati Bhonsle of Kolhapur, Queen Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore & Shrimant Patilbuwa Shinde of Gwalior rebuilt the temple in 1783 AD at a site adjacent to the ruined temple which was already converted to a mosque.