Harihareshwar Temple - A Visual Treat

A little about Harihareshwar

Harihareshwar is a quaint little town in Raigad,Maharashtra. It is surrounded by 3 hills, namely, Harihareshwar, Pushpadri and Harshinachal. Apart from being a major pilgrimage destination, Harihareshwar is also blessed with beautiful virgin beaches.

Harihareshwar Temple

While i am going to talk extensively about Harihareshwar as a tourist destination, i am going to focus on the Harihareshwar temple in this post and there is so much to show you. Harihareshwar is also called as "Dev Ghar" which literally means , The house of God. It houses the famous Shiva Temple which is attracts piligrims from all across the country.

The temple also has a Kalabhairav temple and it is believed that devotees have to visit this temple before proceeding towards the Shiv ling. Devotees also come here for offering their prayers to the departed souls.

The best part of the temple is the pradarshan which takes you around a hill giving you a picturesque view of the beach and the beautiful rock formations.

The pradarshan i must admit is pretty steep and needs a little bit of energy. So, for those of you who are unaware, Pradarshan is when you circle around the deity, a hindu ritual, common in temples. In case of the Harihareshwar temple, the pradarshan is a bit different because you have to literally go around the entire hill. Not that i was complaining because how else would i have seen such beautiful sights of nature and the sea on my way and to think of it, i almost missed visiting this beautiful place. The trek uphill was a bit of a strain, i must admit and the piercing noon sun did not help either. So i would suggest that you time your visit according to the weather and the temple timings, both of which you will easily find on google.

The hill, the beautiful rock formations and crevices are natures work of art indeed. You just cant help feeling overwhelmed by it all. Just reminds you how we underestimate nature and its ability to carve something beautiful out of nothing or in this case, a piece of rock.

Once, we get down hill and towards the front, we are back to the temple premises. It takes you an hour atleast to do the entire pradarshan, depending on your speed and your interest in stopping for pictures.

Once we come out of the temple. we enter the path towards the exit which has many small shops on the way. You can shop for small trinkets as well. I was keen on trying the local cuisine and i had heard that the misal paav here was very good ,so that was my lunch..true to what i had heard, the misal paav was one of the best ive ever had and do not forget to have some refreshing kokum juice along with it. Kokum is commonly found in Maharashtra and Goa. It has many health benefits and is also said to be cooling refreshment if consumed as a juice, especially during summers. Kokum with Misal Paav turned out to be the best combination on a hot summers day especially after that long tiring temple run!

How to get here

MUMBAI - HARIHARESHWAR (204.6 KMS)

Drive:

If you have your own vehicle and love a long drive, the best way to reach here is to drive .Google says the distance from Mumbai to Harihareshwar is approximately a 5 hour drive. On the plus side, you can enjoy the beautiful landscape on your way here. Alternatively you can travel by bus, There are many luxury buses available in this route.

Train:

I took a train to Mangaon railway station and hired a rickshaw upto my resort in Harihareshwar which was another 2 hour drive by road. Mandovi Express departs from Dadar at 07:25 am and you will reach Mangaon station by 11:00 pm approximately.

Please note, you will find a few rickshaws outside the station, or else you can go to the ST stand close by and hire a car or a rickshaw to Harihareshwar.

Flight - Air Travel

If you are traveliing by air, you can take a flight to Pune and then hire a cab or a bus to Harihareshwar