What you see is Kushavarta. Before going to the temple you are supposed to take a dip in this kund in order to purify yourself. Shreemant Rao Sahib Parnekar has built up the banks with stone pavement and verandahs on all sides. Water is clean. There are a
Another view of Kushavarta. In the center of the picture you can see a small light where is a small temple from where the river Godavari flows.
An overview of the Tryambakeshwar mandir. Photography within the complex is not allowed, I clicked this snap in a hurry. What you see is a front view of the temple. It is east facing although today entrance is from the south.
The original temple of Lord Tryambakeshwar was renovated by the Peshwas. Shrimant Nanasahib Peshwa started its renovation on Margashirsha Krishnastami, Shaka 1677 year 26/12/1755. 768 laborers worked on the temple for a continuous period of 31 years. The
Main shikhara of the temple, note the trishul on top.
In the western sanctum, surrounded by marble flooring there is a sacred linga. This linga of divine origin is swambhu, is believed to the abode of the Trimurthi ie Lord Brahma, Vishnu & Mahesh. That is what you see.
A postcard of Tryambakeshwar jyotirling. The three yellow spots that you see represent Brahma, Vishnu & Mahesh.
A view of temple entrance. Mountain that you see in the background is Brahmagiri that we climbed up the next morning. When viewed from a distance we never knew how we would trek up such a steep mountain.
A closer view of Brahmagiri hill.
Clicked this picture of Tryambakeshwar town from Brahmagiri. In the center you see a pond, just behind that is the holy mandir, not visible since it is made in black stone.
An important part of the trip is climbing Brahmagiri mountain and going to the point where river Godavari starts. Brahmagiri is considered a huge form of Lord Shiva & hence climbing the mountain was considered a sin. However in 1908 Seth Lalchand Bhambhani of Karachi & Seth Ganeshas built 500 steps of stone at a cost of Rs 40,000/ then. The mountain is 1800 feet high; its height from sea level is 4248 feet. What you see is the starting point of the steps.
What you see is a Hanumanji ka icon. Now begins the tough part of the trek. Steps are very steep; you can see mountain was cut to make the steps.
This picture shows steps with rocks on both sides.
Local women who ran a small tea stall. Being the first to reach we woke them up and asked for limbo pani.
The small structure that you see on the right of the picture is the temple.
A few minutes away is Godavari Ugam, the point from where Godavri comes. Icon is of Sage Gautama. Next to him is a headless cow. It is so because the sage killed a cow for which he had to do penance.
What you see is the entrance to theplace ie about 7kms before Tryambakeshwar. It is a must see, keep 2-3 hours. Tells you about the history of coins right from ancient times.
We Mumbaikars always like to buy cheap. While walking around the temple town wifey found tomatoes selling at Rs 2 per kg as against Rs 12 per kg in Mumbai. We bought vegetables as if there was no tomorrow. Since grapes are grown in & around Nasik do remember to buy them too, prices were about 33% of Mumbai rates. And so ended a great trip to Tryambakeshwar.