History of Nav Shakti PeethYatra:
Lord Shiva was married to Goddess Sati, daughter of Daksha Prajapathi, the king who abused his own son in law and never invited him for the yagya he conducted. It is usual to offer respects to Lord Shiva, the god of destruction. As Daksha never followed this practice, Sati stood for her husband but was insulted by her father. She ended up jumping into the yagya fire. Angry Shiva carried her body, and the entire world was scared because of the Tandava Nritya. Lord Vishnu, the god of protection had to come into the picture to break the body into 51 pieces, which fell into places that are now called Shakti Peeths. Nav Shakti Peeth Yatra is now believed to offer peace and tranquility which cannot be experienced in the materialized world.
The Nav Shaktis Are The Nine Divines, Which Are Located in:
- Jagannath temple, Puri, Orissa
- Taratarini temple, Kumari Hills, Orissa
- Kamakshya temple, Guwhati, Assam
- Vaishnavo Devi temple, Jammu and Kashmir
- Dakshineshwar Kali, West Bengal
- Shakumbari Devi temple, Sahranpur
- Chamundi Devi temple
- Naina Devi Temple, and the last two are located at Chandigarh.
How to reach Nav Shakti Peeths and Nav Shakti Peeth Yatra Info:
The Shakti PeethYatra begins with the arrival to Delhi international airport. Nainital lies 320 Km away from Delhi, and takes half a day’s journey via road. Start the Nav Shakti PeethYatra pilgrimage with the visit to Nainadevi temple, which is located in Uttarkhand. You need to travel to Sahranpur, which is covered with the travel en route Haridwar, where you can see other sacred temples too. In Haridwar you get see Manasadevi and the Chandidevi temple. Be aware that rope way is the method you travel to these Shakti peeths. Sahranpur has the Shakti peeth of Goddess Shakumbari, who killed demon Mahisha, which is located 80 KM away from Sahranpur. You can travel from Chandigarh to katra to visit the Vaishnavo Devi temple. Vaishnavo Devi temple can be enjoyed via a helicopter ride too. Travel to Kolkatta via air is what awaits next. You can take trains to reach Bhubaneshwar, and from here you can move to Puri. Visit Jagannath temple, a part of the Nav Shakti PeethYatra. You would be going back to Bhubaneshwar, from where a flight to your hometown has to be taken. Nav Shakti PeethYatra packages take care of all the travel, food and lodging needs.
What to expect from Nav Shakti Peeth Yatra?
Women are often revered in India and there are festivals exclusively meant for the Goddesses. For instance, the navratris, the festivals of nine nights celebrating the goddesses takes place twice a year. To visit the entire 51 peeths, you would be travelling across India, from the southernmost parts to the Himalayan peaks. A few Shakti peeths are situated in SriLanka too. However, the most popular and the oft visited are these 9 divine shrines, which offer peace and tranquility to the minds of the pilgrims.
