Last Updated on January 10, 2025 by Swami Satyananda Saraswati
Travelogue: Sundar Kanda at Tryambakeshwar
Swamiji and the group made a second visit to Tryambakeshwar, the Jyotir Lingam situated just outside of the city of Nashik. This is one of the twelve Jyotir Lingams where Shiva bestowed his eternal light.
Related: Learn More about the Jyotir Lingams
As customary for this temple, there was a long queue of devotees in line to get the darshan of Lord Shiva.
We were so grateful that one of our family members was kind enough to set up a special escort so that we could enter the temple quickly. The escort cleverly took us through the exit door, bypassing the long line.
Once inside the main temple, we were graced with the darshan of Lord Tryambakeshwar.
At this temple, the main shrine is filled with a great roar of noise as many priests chant loudly and the people in the queue talk to each other. The combination of the chanting and the talking creates a continuous hum of sound echoing through the temple.
Despite all of the people and the noise, our efficient escort cleared a very nice spot for us to sit down and chant. He even asked some of the brahman priests to move to the side, which gave us room and protected us.
Swamiji set up his computer to broadcast, and, to our delight, we were able to get a signal inside the temple.
Once we got situated, with great intensity, our beloved Swamiji led the group through the recitation of the Sundar Kanda, which we chanted with pranayam, with two verses to the breath.
The group chanted together with a unified voice, the sound of which rose above the background noise of the temple.
Swamiji’s bhava became contagious!
The group’s chanting inspired both the temple priests and devotees, as several made the efforts to chant along with us.
Swamiji, in his unique way, would emphasize certain verses that were filled with wisdom.
By the end of the recitation, those fortunate devotees who joined us were so excited and absorbed in the bhava that they requested us to keep chanting! To honor their request, we sang the Hanuman Chalisa and the Barang Ban, found in the Hanuman Puja book.
The people who had been sitting nearby came and gave their pranams to Swamiji, and one man offered flowers to the entire group!
The devotees who had chanted along with us expressed what an amazing power and vibration they felt! For them, it was a unique, uplifting experience. Upon reflection, we knew this recitation was a divine satsangha at its best!
Jai Swamiji!
After we finished the chanting, Swamiji graced the online veiwers with a glimpse of the temple from his broadcasting electronics.
Then, we exited the temple and circumambulated the beautiful temple grounds of Tryambakeshwar.
This amazing, ancient temple was built stone on top of stone, with no mortar.
The carvings in the stone are so intricate that it would be difficult for any modern artisan to recreate. Indeed, the temple construction and design would be very difficult to replicate.
We all had a great delight walking around that ancient temple, and seeing the dedication and concentration with which it must have been constructed.