LORD BRAHMA'S TEMPLES IN WORLD AND HEADS OF LORD BRAHMA

Amongst the thousands of Hindu religious places of worship in the world, Only three Temples are dedicated to our Supreme Creator Brahma Ji - Why?

In the Hindu Trinity of Brahma-Vishnu-Shiva, Lord Brahma is the Creator of the Universe and all living beings are said to have evolved from him. Brahma is also believed to have created the Saptarishi, or seven great sages, to help him create the Universe.

When Brahma creates the world, it remains in existence for 1 of his days, which means 2,160,000,000 years in terms of Hindu calendar. The world is said to exist for one Kalpa, or one day in the life of Brahma. Brahma is then believed to go to sleep for one night, which is as long as a Kalpa. When Brahma goes to sleep at the end of his day, the world perishes in fire. When HE awakens, HE again restores the whole creation.

This process (Pralaya) goes on till 100 years of Brahma's life is completed, which is the life span of Brahma. When this period ends, HE himself loses his existence, and HE and all Gods and Sages, and the whole universe get dissolved into their constituent elements. And this whole process of creation and destruction repeats itself ceaselessly, the world getting re-created endlessly...

Inspite of the above immense role, Why only three Temples of Brahma in the World?

Legend has it that Lord Brahma is said to be very liberal with granting boons and is easily pleased when prayed to without any thought as to who is praying and asking him for a boon. HE is rather callous in granting boons to the demons unguardedly.

All the deadly demons, from Hiranyakashipu to Ravana, received their boons from Brahma, which made them singularly notorious in destroying the noble virtues of the world. Then it became necessary for Lord Vishnu to appear in his various reincarnations to kill these demons.

That is why the cult of Brahma's worship declined as HE became unpopular amongst religious devotees who began to deem Brahma as the sole God of worship for the demons. Another reason why Brahma is not widely worshipped is the belief that being the Creator, his work is complete, at least for the time being.

Hence, there are innumerable temples of Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva around the world, while Lord Brahma has only 3 temples, all in India, one at Pushkar Lake in Rajasthan, another in Khokhan - Kullu Valley and the other at Khedabrahma in Gujarat.

And how many Heads does Lord Brahma have ?!

Well, again Legend has it; Brahma originally possessed one Head. From a part of his own body, HE created a woman Shatarupa (a face with 100 beauties). She is also known as Savitri, Brahmi, Saraswati (Goddess of Knowledge), Gayatri (the triple hymn or the Gayatri Mantra), Sandhya. And is the Consort of Lord Brahma.

Brahma fell in love with his own female creation and could not take his eyes off her extraordinary beauty. Shatarupa felt shy and tried to evade his gaze by moving away on all sides. To follow her wherever she moved, Brahma created his 5 heads.

According to the Puranas, Brahma and Vishnu were once arguing over who was superior of the two. They discovered from the Vedas that Shiva was the Supreme Being. Brahma however, spoke disparagingly about Shiva. In anger, Shiva opened his fiery 3rd eye, and burnt off the head, which had spoken, and therefore Brahma was left with 4 heads.
Brahma's 4 heads represent the 4 directions (Poorab, Pashchim, Uttar and Dakshin), 4 Vedas (Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva) and the 4 Varnas (Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras) in Hindu Religion.

According to Shiva Purana, from the incestuous union of Brahma and Shatarupa was born Svayambhuva Manu, the progenitor of Man, and from him in turn all creatures as depicted in Manu-Smriti. According to Manusmriti, the span of a human life is 100 years. Every Hindu man should spend a part of his life in each of the 4 Ashrams to fulfill his obligations: to the sages by studying (Brahmacharya), to his ancestors by raising male progeny (Grihastha), to the Gods by performing penance and sacrifices (Vanaprastha), and for the salvation of his soul by renouncing the world (Sanyasa). This was assuming, of course that he lived his full life span.

Lord Brahma is also the Creator of the Beautiful Ahilya, whom He married off to Sage Gautama. She became a piece of rock, being cursed by her husband, because she was seduced by Indra, The King of Heavenly Spirits. She was brought to her natural form when the rock was touched by Lord Rama's feet, and then Ahilya got reconciled with her husband, Sage Gautama.

Brahma's abode is known as Brahmaloka, which is said to contain all the splendors of earth and of the heavens of the other Gods. His vehicle or Vahana is a white swan or goose, which has magical abilities: it can separate soma and milk from water. Therefore the bird Goose, is also a symbol of sifting good from evil. His Consort Saraswati, is the Goddess of wisdom and science, the Mother of the Vedas, and the Inventor of the Devanagari script.

PUSHKAR BRAHMA TEMPLE
LORD ADI BRAHMA TEMPLE IN KHOKHAN, (KULLU)
LORD KHEDBRAHMA IN GUJARARAT

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AYODHYA HINDU LORD SRI RAM’S BIRTH PLACE

AYODHYA HINDU LORD SRI RAM’S BIRTH PLACE

Ayodhya is an ancient city of India liying on the bank of Ghaghara (Gogra) River, this is situated ion the east of Faizabad district of Uttar Pradesh. It . Ayodhya is considered as one of the seven sacred cities of the Hindus because of its association in Ramayana. The word Ayodhya is Sanskrit means "not to be warred against". Ayodhya is regarded as the birthplace of Rama. Many Hindus believe Rama was born at the place called Ram Janmabhoomi, the site of the demolished Babri Mosque.

Lying on the banks of River Ghagru or River Saryu, Ayodhya is one of the most ancient cities of the Indian subcontinent. The historical significance of this place is extreme. Situated just 10 kilometers from the district headquarters of Faizabad, Ayodhya is a city if temples of several religions. Ayodhya is believed to the birthplace of the seventh incarnation of Lord Vishnu, Lord Rama. In the old books of the Hinduism religion as well the great epic Ramayana, it is said that Manu founded the city of Ayodhya. During the time of Lord Gautama Buddha, Ayodhya was called Ayojjha according to the scripture of Pali language. Under the colonial rule of the British, the city of Ayodhya and the administrative area around it was called Oudh. After Manu, Ayodhya became the capital of the successors of the Surya Monarchy. The lost celebrated king of this dynasty was Lord Rama. In the ancient times Ayodhya was known as `Kosaldesa` and the region has been described as "a city built by Gods and being as prosperous as paradise itself". From the ancient times, the place was noted for `Asvamedha Yajna`. According to the epic and puranic ages, Ayodhya again rose to prominence in the 6th century B.C., during the times of Lord Buddha. According to the Jain traditions the five tirthankaras were born at Ayodhya including the very first one known as Rishabhadeva. The languages prevalent in this city are Hindi, Avadhi and English.

According to the Skand and some other puranas the city of Ayodhya was one of the seven most sacred cities of India. It was also the venue of many events in the Hindu mythology and today it is preeminently a temple town. The most illustrious ruling dynasty of the Ayodhya region was Ikshvakus of the solar clan Suryavansa. In the later decades came the great Raghu after whom the family came to be known as Raghuvamsa. The grandson of Raghu was Raja Dasaratha who was the illustrious father of Lord Rama. The story of the epic Ramayana has been moralized by Valmiki and made immensely popular by the masses through centuries. The cultural assimilation of this city is remarkable. The people of Ayodhya celebrate along procession of festivals throughout the year with much pomp and show. The main festivals of this city are Shravan Jhoola Mela, Ram Navami, Ram Vivah, Ramayan Mela, Rathyatra, Parikrama Mela, Diwali, Dussehra and Holi.

Today, Ayodhya is a small, rustic city with ancient Hindu architecture predominating, and with some Mughal influence. The majority of the people who live here are Hindus and there are a minority of Muslims, Jains and Buddhists.

History of Ayodhya

Ayodhya was the capital of the Hindu kingdom of Kosala which was the court of king Dasaratha who was the 63rd monarch of the Solar line. He was the son of Vivaswan. It is said that it was he who founded the city of Ayodhya. Dasaratha was the father of Rama Chandra, the hero of Ramayana.

According to the Ramayana, Ayodhya was ruled by the House of Ikshvaku, who was the son of Manu. Ayodhya is also the birthplace of the five Jain Tirthankars. The city is also important in the history and heritage of Buddhism. Many Buddhist temples, monuments and centers of learning having been established here during the age of the Mauryan Empire and the Gupta Dynasty.

During the Ghaznavid raids and Ghorid invasions, Ayodhya was the victim of pillage and plunder. When the city was under the clutches of Muslim rulers it lost its strategic and economic importance.

Geography of Ayodhya

Ayodhya is situated on the bank of the river Sarayu in Uttar Pradesh. It is located at 26.8° N 82.2° E. The place has an average elevation of 93 metres. The place was the capital of Kosala,the Hindu kingdom. It is said that the total area of Ayodhya is 250 km square.

Places of interest in Ayodhya

All places of worship in Ayodhya are not only of Hindu religion. The region of Ayodhya has a host of tourist spots, which attracts thousands of tourists every year. The major tourist attractions in this city are the Hanuman Garhi, Ramkot, Kanak Bhawan, Mani Parbat and Sugriv Parbat, Swarg Dwar, Treta ke Thakur, Nageshwarnath temple. The other popular places of interest include Tulsi Chaura, Brahma Kund, Shri Rama Janaki Birla Temple, Gurudwara Brahma Kund Ji, Valmiki Ramayan Bhawan, Ram Katha Museum, Tulsi Smarak Bhawan, Ram Ki Paidi. Reaching the Ayodhya city is very convenient in the present times. This city is well connected with all the major destinations of India. The local transports available here are taxis, tongas, buses, tempos and cycle-rickshaws. The nearest airports to Ayodhya are Amausi Airport, which is 134 kilometers away, and Bumrauli Airport, which is 166 kilometers away. This city is also located on the broad gauge Northern railway Line on the main route of Lucknow and Mughal Sarai. Some of the major road distances to Ayodhya are Lucknow, Gorakhpur, Allahabad, Jhansi, Varanasi, Sravasti and Gonda. Quality accommodation is available in Ayodhya. Several guesthouses and hotels are found in this city and serve the travelers and business people alike.

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