K.D. Maini
Swami Budha Amarnath Temple is situated in between the main belt of Pir Panchal range at Rajpura Mandi which is 25 kilometers on the north east of Poonch city. This sacred place is located on the confluence of two gushing streams namely Nallah Gagri and Pulsta Nadi. This place is surrounded by snow bound lofty peaks, thick belt of fir forests (in the eastern side), lush green pastures and crystal clear streams and nallahs. The climate of this attractive and charming spot is very pleasant and cool. At present Swami Budha Amarnath temple is connected with motorable road and it is 244 kilometers from Jammu.
The original temple has been constructed with one big stone. There are four doors in the temple on the northern, southern, eastern and western sides which indicates that the doors of this shrine are open for all the four varnas. There is a natural Shivlinga of white stone (Chakmak) inside the temple. Number of ancient idols collected from nearby villages are also installed in the premises of the temple where there were four holy springs near the temple in the past. At present the water of three springs has been diverted to fourth one which is on the southern side of the temple. The water of these springts is considered holy from religious point of view. The pilgrims first take bath in this spring and then enter the temple for prayers.
This holy place has great religious importance. It is said that at this very place Lord Shiva had started narrating the Amar Katha to Parvati Ji which ended at Swami Amarnath located near Pahalgam Kashmir. This temple is considered older than the Swami Amarnath Ji of Kashmir. This is why the shrine is known as Swami Budha Amarnath. It is believed that one must visit this sacred place before performing the yatra of Amarnath Kashmir.
A number of legends are famous in and around Poonch city regarding the eruption of this ancient temple. As per one legend, Mahatma Pulsat (the grandfather of King Ravana of Sri Lanka) meditated at this very place for a pretty long time. He was a devotee of Lord Shiva. There are a number of references in Neel Mat Puran about Pulsat Rishi. As per these references, Pulsat was also an artist and sculptor. He erected a number of images of God. One of the references in Neel Mat Puran is as under:-
‘By seeing the Goddess erected by Pulsat, one is free from all his sins and gets highest knowledge’
The legend goes that Pulsat meditated with such devotion at Rajpura Mandi that Lord Shiva had given him Darshan at this very place. In the memory of Darshana of Lord Shiva, Rishi Pulsat constructed the temple of Shiva and erected a lingum there. Since the Pulsats was a great Rishi, a sculptor he was very popular among the habitants of this area. Therefore, after his death the people converted this small temple into a shrine. Later on this shrine took the name of Swami Budha Amarnath. Even now a number of idols of ancient time are available in this area. It is possible that these idols may have been erected by Pulsat Rishi.
There is a historical background of this area also. Swami Budha Amarnath temple is hardly one kilometer north of Mandi which remained the place of great importance for traders of Kashmir and rest of India upto 1452 AD. From this very place the high mountains of Panchal range starts and it was not possible for the Punjabi traders to cross over these mountains along with their loaded horses and camels. On the other hand, Kashmiri traders were not in a position to accommodate themselves in the hot climatic conditions of Punjab. Therefore, the traders of both sides at this very spot for exchange of their goods for centuries together. It is said that these stalls were erected near the temple of Swami Budha Amarnath and they were residing in the Sarai constructed there. By this way, the temple of Swami Budha Amarnath also remained the centre of worship for centuries. But in one cloud burst the temple came under heavy land slide and so it disappeared from the surface.
Again a legend goes that after the passage of centuries a hermit (sadhu) was a great devotee of Lord Shiva and was worshipping in a cave in the Himalayan range. By realizing his devotion, Lord Shiva once came in his dream and told him that his prayer has been completed and accepted by him. Now he must come out from the cave, then Lord Shiva directed the devotee to go to the present Rajpura Mandi and asked him to explore his temple which was embedded in the earth. Next morning the Sadhu started traveling towards Rajpura, after sometime he reached there and started excavating and the top of the old temple came out from the earth. When Raja of Poonch came to know about the eruption of the temple at Rajpura he sent his soldiers for further excavation. By this way, the ancient temple along with four holy springs were excavated from the earth. Then the Raja also visited along with Darbaries and public and this place again became the centre of worship.
During the reign of Dogra Raja Moti Singh, (1850 to 1918 AD), this temple was renovated. In summer season, the Rajas of Poonch principality used to shift to Rajpura for some time and therefore, there remained great hustle bustle around the temple during the stay of Raja in this area. Raja and Rani were paying frequent visits to this holy shrine. In this very period, the yatra of Charri Mubarak was started. In the past the sacred mace (Charri Mubarak) was being carried from Dashnami Akhara Tetrinote presently in Pak occupation and also from Shivalaya Khakhanaban. But when the Dashnami Akhara was renovated by Dogra Rajas and it became a seat of Rajguru, then it was decided to start the procession of Charri Mubarakh from Dashnami Akhara Poonch where Raja of Poonch participated in the Yatra of Charri Mubarakh.
Since then the procession is taking place from Akhara and this yatra of Charri Mubarak is similar to the yatra of Swami Amarnath of Kashmir. In 1947, this area was captured by Pakistani forces, they tried to destroy this temple but they could not destroy it upto the last. Later on in 1948, this area was recaptured by the contingents of Dogra regiment of Indian forces under the command of Lt. Col. Mulak Singh. The temple was again renovated both by the Army and local people.
Two days before the Mela, a religious congregationg held at Dashnami Akhara Poonch for Havan and Pooja of Charri Mubarakh. In this congregation people from all walks of life come and pay tributes to the sacred made after bhajan, kirtan and pravachans (speech) of the Mahant of the Akhara, the procession of Charri Mubarakh starts from Akhara in between the chanting of bhajans and religious slogans. A guard of honour from Police contingents is paid to Charri Mubarak at the gate of the Akhara. The Swami Ji is being carried in a Palki by the devotees, along with the sacred mace. Thousands of devotees and hundreds of Sadhus accompany the procession which leads towards Swami Budha Amarnath on foot. The main halt is at Chandak, (the name of the Chandaka Devi) where lunch is served to the yartis. While on the way from Poonch to Mandi, a numbers of stalls remain erected for welcoming the Charri Mubarakh and yatries. At Chandak, light drinks at all times are served by a prominent Muslims of Chandak to yatries. The procession reaches Rajpura on the same day in the afternoon where it is received by the local people, sadhus and workers of the Trust after guard of honour by the BSF contingents at the gate of Swami Budha Amarnath, the Charri Mubarakh is taken to the main shrine in between the traditional rituals followed by the Aarti of Lord Shiva.
This year, the Yatra is to conducted from 19th of August to 27th August in which the pilgrims from all over the country are expected to participate. However the Charri Mubarak Yatra shall start from Dashnami Akhara Poonch on 27th August under the leadership of Maha Mandleshwar Swami Vishavatama Anand ji Maharaj. It is expected that Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh shall see off the Yatra from Dashnami Akhara Poonch which shall reach at Swami Budha Amarnath Shrine on the same day after 25 Kms walk on foot.
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