Chitrakoot Shakti Peeth is among the 51 Shakti Peeth of Ma Sati. It is said that, the Right breast of maa Sati fell here, when lord Vishnu in order to relieve lord Shiva from grief of losing his wife Sati, used his ‘Sudarshan Chakra’ to incise maa Sati Body. Then, at the place of fall of Right breast, this temple was constructed. Chitrakoot Shakti Peeth is situated in Chitrakoot (Ramgiri), in Uttar Pradesh, India. Here the idol of maa Sati is called as ‘Shivani’ and the lord Shiva is worshipped as ‘Chand Bhairav’.
Chitrakoot has itself a lot of religious importance and is located near the foothill of Vindhya ranges. Mandakini River is the prominent water body and Chitrakoot is situated on the bank of this river. Chitrakoot has earned quite high stratum when it comes to the holy place and has more strata as compared to Prayagraj. There is ample amount of temple situated here, and all of them lie just adjacent to the banks of Mandakini River. The art and architecture of the temple is grand and made of stones on which various idols of god and goddesses are engraved. The entrance of the temple is welcomed by several steps and then comes the main hall of the temple. In the sanctum sanctorum of the temple lies the idol of maa sati. Usual people speak Hindi and Bundeli in their day today life.
History of Chitrakoot Shakti Peeth
Chitrakoot has a great importance in terms of History as the lord Rama, with his wife Sita and Brother Laxman used live during their exile period. So due to this, from very earlier times, this place has always been consider sacred or Pavitra. History to this place dates back in the time when it is said that the Right breast of Maa Sati fell to this place. Best information about the origin and the formation of this temple, people can be taken from with local people. Religious books, Purans etc are worth trying to find out the history about the Shakti Peeth.
Festivals in Chitrakoot Temple
- Durga Puja is quite famous and celebrated with great enthusiasm here.
- Makar Sankranti, Sharad Purnima, Deepavali, Somvati Amavasya, Ram Navami are some of the other important festivals being celebrated here.
- Navaratri that falls two times in a year- one in the month of March or April and other in the September or October month depending on the Hindu calendar, is among the major festival here. Navratri are celebrated for over 9 days, with some people not eating any type of food that is derived from the soil for these nine days. Special ceremonies and rituals are carried during these days.
- People (Almost every day) offer their offering to the god in form of fruit, milk, homemade sweets etc.
- Another festival that is celebrated with great enthusiasm is the ‘Shivaratri’ and during this day, people keep fast, pour milk on the Shiv Lingam and offers ‘Bail’ (A type of fruit) to the god idol.
Where to stay
If you are looking for either cheap or expensive type of accommodation, then both are available here. Here we have listed names of some hotels that will help you to short your search for finding accommodations spaces. Rahi Tourist Bungalow, Kamadgiri Bhawan, Tourist Bunglow, Guru Kripa Atithi Griha, Vinod Lodge are some of the cheap, yet good accommodations places. Here the rent of each room may vary from Rs 200 to Rs 600. Also there are several non payable guest houses or dharmsalas that are run by the various nonprofit organizations. Beware of the touts who promises to give hi-fi deals with cheap rates.
Shopping around Chitrakoot temple
- Religious Paraphernalia can be bought from the shops that are located just outside the temple.
- People buy Petha, peda, gazak and rewri, all are sweets and are worth for trying when you are coming to this part of the country.
- Traditional Clothes like salwar suits, sarees etc. can be bought from here, at local market.
- In terms of food, dum bhindi, gobi musallam, sultani dal and pakode are the star attraction and every visitor should try them once.
- Bargaining for the items is really necessary here as shopkeepers tend to ask higher price for the good that you want to purchase. A little knowledge about the prices of the basic things in this country will help travelers a lot.
Other places that can be visited nearby
Following are some of the places that you might want to visit:
- Janki Kund- It is said that maa Sita used to take bath.
- Ramghat Devangana,
- Hanuman Dhara
- Kamad Giri
- Lakshman Pahadi,
- Bharat Milap temple- It is said that, Bharat Met Ram here.
- Sati Ansuya ashram,
- Gupt-Godavari and Bharat Koop
How to reach the Chitrakoot temple
- Direct trains are available to Chitrakoot Railway station and various trains ply directly from Delhi to here.
- Several deluxe bus services are available to Chitrakoot and they are worth trying, if you are not getting reservation in the train.
- Nearest airport is in the Allahabad, and national flights are available till here. For international flights, Delhi is the nearest location. But it is advisable to have taxi or your own mode of transportation when you are coming to Chitrakoot from airport.
- Rickshaw, Auto Rickshaw and Bus are common mode of transportation inside the city.
- Take necessary steps to protect yourself from sunburn etc, because in the summer season, temperature shoots up to 40+ degrees in this part of the country.
So this was all from this article and we hope you liked reading this piece of information.