Whenever tourism is talked about, the name of Jammu and Kashmir is taken which is also called heaven on earth. The beautiful valleys and natural scenes here are so captivating that they attract tourists. Tourists come here not only from different parts of India but also from abroad. But do you know that Jammu and Kashmir is also known for religious places? These temples hold a rich history and are built by the finest craftsmen in stunning locations and exude a spiritual aura. Today in this episode, we are going to tell you about those religious places of Jammu and Kashmir that attract devotees. Let us know about them...

Ranbireshwar Temple
Ranbireshwar Temple is a very famous temple in Jammu. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva and is located opposite the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Secretariat, on Shalamar Road. There are twelve Shiva Lingams of crystal in this temple. Built by the then king, Raja Ranbir Singh, who was a great devotee of Lord Shiva, installed a seven and a half feet high crystal lingam in the temple. Another prominent feature of the temple is that its three walls are made of gold. Two walls are decorated with paintings of Ganesha and Kartikeya. There are several Shiva Lingas in the temple along with the Nandi bull. It is believed among the local people that all your wishes are fulfilled if you whisper into the ears of a bull. Reflecting art and architecture dating back to 1883, it offers stunning views of isolated forested hills.

Martand
The temple of Lord Shiva, situated on the way to Anantnag and Pahalgam, is situated at a distance of about 3 kilometers from Mattan. There is a temple dedicated to the Sun God in Martand. Most of this temple is in ruins. How huge and prosperous this temple must have been in its glory days can be estimated by looking at its ruins. Even today 84 cells of this temple can be seen.

Vaishno Mata Temple
The holy temple of Mata Vaishno Devi is situated at an altitude of 1560 meters above sea level in the hills of Chitrakoot. This religious place is known for being a 13-kilometer trekking destination. This cave temple is considered one of the 108 Shaktipeeths. This holy Hindu temple comes under the list of major pilgrimage sites not only in Jammu and Kashmir but all over India as well as the whole world. Pilgrims come here in lakhs every year.

Raghunath Temple
Raghunath Temple in Jammu is a very important temple dedicated to 'Ram', the eighth incarnation of Vishnu, who is considered the patron deity of the Dogra community. The area near the Raghunath temple has a group of small temples of gods and goddesses related to the epic Ramayana. The Raghunath temple complex is the largest in North India. The construction of this temple took approximately 25 years from 1835 AD to 1860 AD to complete. The main architects behind the beauty of this temple were Maharaja Gulab Singh and his son Maharaja Ranbir Singh. This temple is situated at Fatehu Chaugan, the center of Jammu city.

Avantipur
Avantipur located in Jammu and Kashmir is a historical and mythological place. Here, ruins and remains of temples built in the 9th century remain. Here are temples dedicated to Lord Shiva, Avantisvara, and Avantiswami temples. Regarding the history of these temples, it is said that their construction work was done by Avantivarman, son of the first Utpal king Sukhvarman.

Amarnath
Amarnath cave is known as the pilgrimage site of Lord Shiva. This cave is known for the Shivling naturally made of ice. It is believed that this Amarnath cave is the oldest and holiest pilgrimage site of Kashmir. This is a cave associated with a mystery. The number of devotees here is very high every year.

Maa Jwala Devi Temple
Apart from Himachal, Bhagwati Jwala Devi Temple is also located in Kashmir. This temple of the mythological period is situated in Khryu of Pulwama in South Kashmir. This temple is dedicated to the revered goddess of Kashmiri Pandits. But about three years ago, under mysterious circumstances, a fire broke out in this temple, and due to this this temple suffered a lot of damage.

Mahamaya Temple
Mahamaya Temple is a major religious place of Jammu as well as a tourist place in Jammu. Like other temples, there is no idol of any deity installed in this temple, rather this temple is built in memory of the sacrifice of a freedom fighter of the Dogra community. The design of this temple and the view from here attracts tourists.

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