Information of Babulnath Temple, Mumbai, Maharashtra

The city of Mumbai has several numbers of temples, mosques, churches and many other religious shrines based in this region. Out of them, the Babulnath temple holds an important position. It is a Hindu temple placed to some extent higher than the sea level at the Girgaum Chowpatty hillock. The deity of Lord Shiva is the main idol to be worshipped here. The worshippers and devotees have to scale some 1000 feet to reach this attractive and religious landmark. Moreover, the temple holds its position as one of the oldest religious temples of Mumbai.

Babulnath Temple Religious Significance

The temple of Babulnath is a place of worship mainly for Lord Shiva. The basic deity of Lord Shiva is placed inside a Babul tree considering him as the Lord of it. The temple is situated at a certain height so worshippers can also use elevators to climb it. The Darshan (witnessing) of Lord Shiva is regarded as the most religious temple of this temple. The festival of Maha Shivaratri is considered as the main festival of this temple. On that day devotees from all over the world pays a visit to this shrine. The temple remains open everyday for its worshippers from 5 am to 10 pm except Monday. On Mondays, the temple remains open from 4.30 am to 11.30 pm.

Babulnath Temple Mythology & History

The prime temple of Babulnath was founded by the then Hindu ruler Raja Bhimdev at around 12th century. He placed the Shivalinga and deities of other lords. Though, the idols remained concealed under the ground for several periods due to major destruction by the foreign invaders. After excavation, only 5 idols were recovered. The deities of Lord Shiva along with Parvati, Ganesha and Hanuman are placed inside the temple. However, due to destruction the fifth idol was completely devastated and immersed in deep waters.

However, the legendary sources depicted another motivating story regarding the establishment of this temple. The story states about the present location of the Malabar hills. The location was previously a grazing land for farm animals at about 300 years ago. Pandurang, a prosperous goldsmith by profession was the owner of that land. He had several cows which went for grazing on that land by his trusted cowherd Babul. A cow named Kapila used to give more amount of milk than the other cows of that herd. One day Pandurang noticed that Kapila didn't gave a particular drop of milk. Amazed with this sight he asked Babul about this incident. However, what he heard was more astonishing for him. Babul described that it was not the first time for the cow. He said Kapila actually poured all her milk on a particular part of land. Later, Pandurang also noticed the same. Already shocked by the fact he brought some men to dig in that particular area of the land. A Swayambhu (a self existing Shivalinga) of black stone was found from there. At present the current religious temple of Babulnath can be witnessed in this land.

Babulnath Temple Architectural Significance

The temple of Babulnath not only attracts people for its religious significance but also for its architecture and inscriptions. The fascinating inscribed arts of the 12th century, beautiful textures of the monument, large crafted structures of various gods are some of the architectural features of this temple. A brilliantly crafted judgment by the Mumbai High Court in 1883 can be witnessed in the inner walls of the temple. It was due to its architectural aspect that some Indian films have also been shot in this temple.