AMARKANTAK – DIVINE LAND OF MADHYA PRADESH

Amarkantak  a.k.a Amarkantaka is a pilgrim town In Madhya Pradesh, India.It is Situated in Anuppur district. Amarkantak boasts of very rich natural beauty, with equally rich Cultural heritage, and Traditions and Customs.

Amarkantak is made up of two words, Amara (Immortal) and Kantaka (Obstruction).The poet Kalidas is said to have mentioned it as Amarkuta, later forming the word, ‘Amarkantaka’. Legends say, Even saying the name of Amarkantaka, will wash away the sins of people. Puranic name of Amarkantak was Riksha parvat. It is not only the Narmada which arises from Amarkantak, because the  son River, initially referred to as Jwalawanti of Johila, the Mahanadi and the Amadoh, which is a major early tributary of the Godavari, all rise from within the Amarkantak plateau. Among all the sacred rivers of India, the Narmada occupies a unique place. Legend has it that Lord Shiva blessed Narmada with unique purifying powers. Whereas to purify himself, a devotee requires taking one dip in the Holy Ganga, seven days’ prayers on the banks of Yamuna and three days prayers on the banks of Saraswati, the mere sight of Narmada is enough. A charming folk tale describes the superiority of Narmada over Ganga. Once every year, after she herself is polluted beyond tolerance, Ganga visits Narmada dressed like a dark woman and takes a cleansing purifying dip in its waters! Narmada, which is more than 150 million years older than the Ganges RiverGanga and is considered by many Hindus to be the most sacred for all the rivers of India, Amarkantak itself is sacred to the Hindus and is deemed to be a door-way to ‘Nirwana’.

The history about amarkantak reveals that during the Chendi dynasty hold the region was followed by the Kalchuris in the 10th century. The region in the earlier days was believed to be known as the “Ayodhya“, as mentioned in our vedas, puranas that there was a ashram for the saints of Kapil Muni and Rishi Markand. Stories from the various books suggests that the Pandavas of the Mahabharat epic had spent their years of exile here  region was later in the 15th century was handed over Baghelas and in 1808, the Bhosle of Nagpur ruled out the region. Finally in went in the hands of minister of state Goverment. In the Hindu mythology, Narmada is one of the seven sacred rivers of India. Pilgrims bathe in its holy water to wash away their sins. legend has it that once every year, the mighty Ganga comes to Narmada to take a holy dip into its water at the place of its origin.

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