Pancha Lingas of Karnataka 

Pancha Lingas of Karnataka or the Pancalinga Kshetras are the five temples of Lord Shiva in Karnataka connected to Mahabaleshwar Temple in Gokarna. The visit to these five temples completes the visit to Gokarna Kshetra. While Murudeshwara is well known, the other three temples are almost lost in time.

Most of the devotees who visit Gokarna are not even aware that the Murudeshwar Linga is part of Atma Linga at Gokarna. Every devotee who visits Gokarna must visit these Pancha Lingas and fulfill one’s yatra. Lord Shiva along with Mother Parvati and Ganesha had visited all these five lingas and ordained them the status of Pancha Lingas.

At least once in a lifetime one must visit the Pancha Lingas of Karnataka to experience divinity with a perfect blend of the bounty of nature surrounding each temple.

The consecration of Mahabaleshwar Atma Linga – the source of Pancha Lingas of Karnataka 

Once Ravana’s mother Kaikasi was worshiping Lord Shiva with the linga made of sand. When Indra saw this, he became envious and stole away the linga. He did the visarjana of linga into the sea and disappeared. Kaikasi became disappointed by this action of Indra thus Ravana promised her to get the Atma Linga of Lord Shiva himself.

Ravana approached Kailasha and performed severe austerities to please Lord Shiva. Ultimately Lord Shiva was pleased with his penances and awarded him the Atma Linga as desired with a condition that the Atma Linga once kept on the ground will be immovable under any circumstances.

Ravana agreed to this condition of Lord Shiva and started to his abode of Lanka carrying the most sacred Atma Linga or the Prana Linga. The presence of this sacred linga within the city of Lanka would make it invincible for anyone to conquer it. Hence devatas wanted to ensure that the atma linga did not reach Lanka. They devised a plan to stop Ravana.

Narada Muni approached Lord Ganesh and asked him to trick Ravana. While Ravana was flying over Gokarna Kshetra in the sky, there was a sunset and the time to perform sandhya vandana (chant the Gayatri mantra). With linga in his hand, he could not observe this timing. But this could not be avoided. He saw a cowherd boy grazing cows below and asked the boy to hold the linga for him.

The boy accepted the request but with the condition that he would call Ravana thrice, if Ravana did not respond, the boy would keep the linga on the ground and walk away. Ravana agreed. After some time, the boy called Ravana’s name thrice. Ravana answered that he was coming soon but got delayed. In the meantime, the boy kept the linga on the ground which got installed.

With all his might Ravana tried lifting the linga but he could not as per the condition set by Lord Shiva. Despite his pursuance, the linga remained firm while the materials along with it flung into different directions – the casket, the string surrounding the atma linga, the cloth covering it and the lid of the casket. When these materials touched the ground, they manifested into Shivalingas.

Atma Linga 

Murudeshwara Temple – the cloth covering the atmalinga 

The cloth covering the atma linga flung all the way till Murudeshwara and became the linga known as Mridesha Linga. From nowhere in the sea, the Shivalinga appeared and got manifested. This is a beach town and mostly famous for water sports. The town also boasts of the second tallest statue of Lord Shiva rising to 123 feet.

The temple has a massive Raj-gopuram which has not become iconic in the eyes of tourists or devotees visiting Karnataka. The original Shivalinga is below the ground and not visible to the public from outside of Garbha griha. Only the seva kartas can catch a glimpse of this linga.

Mahabaleshwara Temple – the atmalinga itself  

Mahabaleshwara Temple houses the world’s only Atmalinga of Lord Shiva. Only the tip of this atma linga is visible all the time and only once a year, the entire linga is brought out for darshan. This is the main and the sampurna linga which Ravana could not move. It is said that just by darshan of this linga one achieves all the desired results.

Gokarna is the topmost sacred place connected to Lord Shiva in Karnataka. It is revered as one of the seven moksha sthalas of Karnataka and the Dakshina Kashi. Seven moksha sthalas are the places where one must perform shraddha or tarpana to one’s departed ancestors. Gokarna is moderately big temple buzzing with thousands of pilgrims daily.

Sajjeshwar Temple – the casket of the atma linga 

Ravana carried the atma linga in a casket or a box. Sajjeshwar Temple in Karwar District is the place where this casket fell and became the linga. Sajjeshwar is quite near to Karwar around five kilometers from the town. It is the smallest of all the five temples seldom visited by the devotees. It is in a very serene location untouched by the so-called busy life of contemporary society. This is the perfect place to practice meditation and get connected to Lord Shiva.

Dhareshwar Temple – the strings of the casket of atma linga 

Dhareshwar is near Kumta and the place where the strings of the casket of atma linga fell and became the Shivalinga. Some devotees say that these were strings of the atma linga and not the casket. Dhareshwar Temple is very beautiful again seldom visited by the devotees.

Gunvanteshwar Temple – the lid of the casket of the atma linga 

The lid of the casked of the atma linga which was carried by Ravana fell at Gunvanteshwar Temple and became the linga. Gunvanteshwar Temple is near Idagunji the famous temple of Lord Ganesha in the coastal Karnataka region. This temple is surrounded by the lush green western ghats and shall capture away the heart of anyone visiting them.

Ideal to time to visit Pancha Lingas of Karnataka 

The ideal time to visit the Pancha Lingas of Karnataka is not rainy season. Rain is severe in the western ghat belt of Karnataka. The coastal Karnataka region is generally hot during the summer. Peak summers are unbearable hot. You may visit the temples any time between November to January as the weather is very pleasant during this time of the year. Festivals like Shivaratri and Pradosha are very crowded.

How to reach Pancha Lingas of Karnataka? 

The best way to relish darshan at the Pancha Lingas of Karnataka is to travel on the Udupi Yatra of Tirtha Yatra. All the arrangements are well taken care of while you enjoy having darshan of your ishta devata.

If you wish to embark on your own, here are the methods:

By Air – the nearest airport is Mangaluru Airport. From here you may hire a private taxi to cover these temples in line which will take around 2 – 3 days for you.

By Rail – every temple is in a different district. You may have to reach either Udupi Railway Station or Mangaluru Railway Station and then cover the temples either by private taxi or using the State Transport Buses.

By Road – the Pancha Lingas of Karnataka are in different districts in a single line starting from Sajjeshwara in North. From there you may keep using the state transport services to reach the temples and worship or hire a taxi from Karwar to reach these temples.