Encyclopedia of Hinduism by 2012

Author:2012
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-135-18978-5
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Further reading

Williams, R.B. 2001. An Introduction to Swaminarayan Hinduism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

NĀSIK

Situated on the banks of the sacred river Godāvarī in the north-west of the modern Indian state of Maharashtra, Nāsik has been an important Hindu pilgrimage spot and an ancient centre of trade and commerce. Its place in ancient lore is largely on account of its connection with the Rāmāyaṇa’s sacred geography. Nāsik lies in the heart of the famous Pañcāvatī grove in the Daṇḍaka forest that served as home for an exiled Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa and Sītā. There is also the Rāmeśvara temple and the nearby bathing tank known as Rāmakuṇd to commemorate the place where Rāma performed the last rites for his deceased father Daśaratha. One etymology of the name Nāsik traces it to the Sanskrit word nāsikā (meaning nose), claiming it to be the spot where Lakṣmaṇa disfigured the nose of the demon Rāvaṇa’s sister Śurpanakhā. Another story traces the city back to a time when Lord Brahmā performed penance there while seated in the lotus position (padmāsana); thus another ancient name for the place, Padmāsana. Yet another legend has it that Lord Viṣṇu rid the place of three demons, who were ‘thorns’ (kaṇṭaka), as it were, in the side of the world, and therefore the region now known as Nāsik was once called Trikaṇṭakā. Nāsik’s most significant modern role from a religious point of view rests on its playing host to the triennial Kumbha Melā. Also, some 30 km from Nāsik is the famous hilltop Tryambakeśvara temple, which houses one of Lord Śiva’s twelve jyotirliṅgas and also stands near the spot where the river Godāvarī issues forth. Other temples near the Godāvarī include the Sundaranārāyaṇa and Kampaleśvara temple, where Lord Śiva is said to have come to take a penitential bath to cleanse himself from the sin of decapitating one of Lord Viṣṇu’s heads in anger. Nāsik holds significance for Buddhists and Muslims as well. The Pāṇḍu Caves (sculpted from the third millennium BCE to the seventh century CE) contain numerous murals, sculptures and engravings of Buddha and Bodhisattvas. More recently, Nāsik held special significance for the Mughals, who named the place Gulshanabad. It was during the Peshwa period that the city was renamed Nāsik.

See also: Brahmā; Buddhism, relationship with Hinduism; Haridvāra; Kumbha Melā; Lakṣmaṇa; Prayāga; Rāma; Rāmāyaṇa; Rāvaṇa; Sītā; Śiva; Tīrthayātra (Pilgrimage); Ujjayinī; Viṣṇu

DEVEN M. PATEL

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