Introduction
There is great significance of mata vaishno devi .She is the manifestation of three goddess as Mahakali, Maha Saraswati and Mahalakshmi. She is precisely mentioned in Varah puran, Markandey Puran, Bhagwat Puran and Mahabharata. This holy Shrine is one of the chief Shaktipeeth in India.
Vaishno Devi Mandir is situated in Trikuta Hills in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir in India which is around 13 km away from Katra ( region of Jammu and Kashmir). The detailed mention of its significance is mentioned below in bullet points .
Maa Vaishno Devi has resided there from time immemorial in the form of three Pindies as Mahalaxmi, Maha Saraswati and Mahakali. Devotees from all over the world come here to take the blessings of Maa Vaishno who fulfil the desires of their devotees. From ancient times, many great kings and Rishi Muni had used to come here to take the blessings of Maa Vaishno.
History of Mata Vaishno Devi
According to Hindu scriptures, there lived a powerful demon named Mahish. He had defeated Indra, Vayu, Agni, varuna, Chandra, Surya, and other devatas and compelled them to leave Indraloka. Getting defeated by demon Mahish , they all started to wander in Mrutyu Lok . Finally With Brahma ,they approached Shiva and Vishnu to get rid of this powerful demon Mahish.
Seeing such plight of all devatas, they became angry and in anger the tej (energy) which started to come out from Brahma , Vishnu and Mahesh and other devatas got summed up and formed the divine Shakti which surprised everyone of them.
From the tej of Lord Shiva , ” Mukha kamal ” formed , from the tej of Lord Vishnu, she got 18 bhuja (arms ) and from Brahma’s tej, she got charan ( divine leg). From Yamraj, she got divine hair and from Prajapati, she received divine teeth.
After getting the form , she got embellished with shastra and shaashtra .
Lord Shiva gave her Trishul, Vishnu gave chakra, Varuna gave her, his Shankha, Vaayu gave Dhanush and Baan, from Indra she received vajra, from Yama got Danda, Brahma gave her kamandal, Twastha gave his Gadda to divine shakti, Himalaya gave her Lion and Samudra embellished her with red coloured divine saree which never get old and also chuda (bangles ) for her hand.
She now became a powerful and unbearable divine Shakti who was then worshipped by all Brahma ,Vishnu ,Mahesh and Devatas to give them relief from the demon Mahishasur.
Gradually Mahashakti’s existence started to shaken the earth. She then appeared before Mahishasur . Her only presence started to give him horrifying thoughts of his life. She first destroyed the most powerful 14 Senapatis of him in just one go and then she entered into a fierce battle with Mahishasur. She finally killed Mahishasur after putting her charan on his throat and piercing his chest with trishul.
The Killing of Mahishasur by the divine Shakti gave a complete relaxation to all Devatas. They all showed their highest gratitude to Mahashakti .
Getting pleased with them, she started to explain herself as
I am celebrated among Devatas with different names. I do both creation and destruction in the form of Adi Shakti. Gauri, Brahmi, Raudri, Vaishno, Varuni, trikala and all others are the forms of mine. I am Omnipresent.
Yatra for Vaishno Devi
Yatra for Vaishno Devi starts from Katra , Jammu Kashmir. Before starting the Yatra, one has to undergo the through Yatra registration which is done by Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. From here, you will get Yatra slip to move forward to the shrine.
On reaching Ban Ganga , one has to go through a Security Check Post . Ban Ganga is the holy place from where Mata Vaishno Devi took out the holy water from the land by piercing it through a Baan .
The journey for Vaishno Devi from Katra is around 13 km which is considered to be one of the longest Yatra by foot . Each one of the devotees has so much reverence for Maa Vaishno Devi that they don’t feel so much tiredness and harassment because the power of Maa Vaishno Devi and chanting of ” Jai Maa Vaishno Devi ” or “ Jai Mata Di “ gives them strength to reach the holy shrine without any hindrance.
Coolies too are available there to help them especially the senior citizens who are unable to walk properly.
Helicopter services too are available from Katra to the holy Shrine of Maa Vaishno Devi .
There are more than 20 trains which run from Jammu Tawi to Maa Vaishno Devi Katra .
You can find a large number of cafeterias which serve snacks ,cold drinks and coffees to the devotees during Yatra.
Inside the Gufa or cave, there are three pindies in the form of Mahakali, Mahalaxmi, and Maha Saraswati of Bhagwati Shri Vaishno which are worshipped. These all three pindies symbolise Mata Vaishno. Since Treta Yuga, Mata Vaishno has been doing doing deep penance and waiting for Lord Vishnu who will take the avatar of Kalki in the kalyuga when she will become the Shakti of Vishnu to destroy the Demons of the planet Earth.
Devotees can collect holy water which comes out from the feet of Mata Vaishno after getting the Darshan of her.
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Significance of Vaishno Devi
- The universe is operated by these three Maha shaktis as Mahakali , Maha Saraswati and Mahalaxmi. In science, it has been named as Proton ,electron and neutron. According to scientists , these three collectively form an atom which is responsible for the creation of each matter in the universe.
- These three Maha shaktis are seen in three forms as Rajas , tamas and satvik.
- Rajas represents Karma , Thomas represents desires and lastly sat represents intelligence or Vivek ( knowledge ).
- Using of these Rajas, tamas and sat, one can either live a super conscious life ( the most upgraded life ) or the most degraded life . It totally depends on each person which kind of life he/she wants to live.
- Mahakali represents desires , Mahalaxmi represents money and Maa Saraswati represents knowledge . And these are the three things on which human life goes on .
Best time to visit Vaishno Devi
This Holi Yatra goes on throughout the year but the best time to visit Mata Vaishno Devi are the months of March to June which fall in summer season . These months are considered the most sacred to start Yatra for Vaishno Devi as in these months , the festival of navratra starts. This festival celebrates the existence of Maha shaktis.
Hotels and Dharamshala have been booked in advance because of the rush the city received.
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