Narmada Udgam Temple

Getting there

• By air

  Jabalpur Airport is the nearest airport, about 300 km from Amarkantak.

• By train

  Pendra Road is the nearest railway station, about 40 km from Amarkantak.

• By road

  Amarkantak has regular bus and cab services to Shahdol, Umaria, Jabalpur, Rewa, Bilaspur, Anuppur and Pendra Road.

Why devotees come here

Narmada Udgam is the sacred kund in Amarkantak from which the Narmada river is believed to have emerged. The temple houses a black stone image of the river Narmada with large silver eyes. Holy water flows out of a cow-mouth spout here.

The Narmada Udgam complex in Amarkantak centres on a sacred kund, a water tank, from which the Narmada river is believed to have emerged. Inside, the temple houses a black stone image of the river Narmada with large silver eyes. Amarkantak itself is a pilgrim town in Anuppur district.

Legend says Shankaracharya, searching for the source of the river, declared the stream at this temple to be the main stream of the Narmada. Sources differ on the date. One says the 18th-century Narmada Temple was commissioned by the Bhonsle kings of Nagpur. Another source credits the Kalachuris of Tripuri with building it. Its shrines are white and built around two tanks.

Holy water from the tanks pours out of a spout shaped like a cow's mouth, called the gao mukh. On Narmada Jayanti, the black basalt statue is draped in brocade and worshipped by large crowds. The Kapildhara and Dudhdhara waterfalls lie about 7 km from Amarkantak.

Festivals

• Every year, on Narmada JayantiNarmada Jayanti

  The black basalt statue of the river is draped in brocade and worshipped by large crowds.

• 27 to 29 JanuaryNarmada Mahotsav

  The state tourism department organised it with the Narmada Mandir Udgam Trust. The festival page is an older one, so check the dates for the current year before you travel.

Tips for your visit

• Mai Ki Bagiya is a shaded grove about a kilometre from the temple.
• The Kapildhara and Dudhdhara falls are about 7 km from Amarkantak.

Questions people ask