Let’s continue our journey to explore the unexplored temples of Mumbai in gozo’s way!
Temple Of Mahalakshmi
Location: – Bhulabhai Desai Road, Mahalakshmi, Mumbai(just one km away from mahalakshmi station, Mumbai)
Timings:-This temple is open on all days of the week starting from 6 am to 10 pm at night.
This temple is one of the most visited site in Mumbai, which is situated on Bhulabhai Desai Road in Mahalaxmi area. Boasting of a unique architecture, it is dedicated to the goddess of Hindu, Mahalakshmi-The one who watches over Mumbai. This temple was constructed in 1831 by Hindu merchant Dhakji Dadaji.
This unique structure is a heritage site and a popular tourist attraction. This temple shares its history with the construction of Hornby Vellard,which was a project to unite all islands in Mumbai. The chief engineer dreamt of a Hindu goddess Lakshmi’s temple in Worli creek. Apparently a local search recovered the statue and the temple was successfully completed.
The picturesque temple offers idols of tri devi which namely consist of Mahakali, Mahalakshmi, and Mahasaraswati. The idols are embellished by jewelry ranging from gold nose rings to pearl necklaces.
At the entrance of the temple you will find stone carved deepmala. The mandap also called as sabha mandap contains a statue facing the main deity.One of the string features of this temple is that its swayambhu.
You can find the idols of Vitthal, Ganesh and rukmini in the vicinity. The temple is adorned on navaratri days where in people from all across India arrive to pay a visit.
Walkeshwar Temple
Location: – Banganga Cross Lane, Teen Batti, Malabar Hill, Mumbai.
Timings:-This temple is open on all days of the week starting from 6 am to 8 pm at night.
This ancient pilgrimage site is also known as Baan Ganga Temple.
This temple is dedicated to lord Shiva who is one of the divine trinity in the Hindu mythology. It is situated in highest point of the city and is close to baan ganga tank.
Walkeshwar temple is known for its ancient and distinct architecture that makes people from all over India to come visit it. This temple was built by ‘Silharas’; the rulers of the islands of Mumbai and Thane, dates back to about 1050 years back on Malabar hill. The word Walkeshwar is derived from the ancient word Valuka (meaning sand) and Ishwar (meaning god).
According to old legend, the Hindu god ram paused at this very spot when he was on his way from Ayodhya to Lanka in pursuit of Ravana- The Demon King. On his way to Lanka lord Ram was advised to worship Shiva lingam. Hence after stopping at this very place he constructed the original lingam of sand after getting tired of waiting for Hanuman to bring one.
Both the temple and the fresh water tank were built in 1127 AD by Lakshman Prabhu who was a courtier of Silhara dynasty of kings.
Later on, this temple was destroyed by Portuguese during their control over Mumbai in around 16th century. In 1715 this temple was rebuilt due to the generous businessman of Mumbai and philanthropist Rama Kamath, surprisingly was a Gaud Saraswat Brahmin. Hence much of the property of temple goes to Gaud Saraswat Brahmin Temple Trust.
Recently many new temples came up near Walkeshwar. This temple is busy every month, especially on the days of amavasya(new moon).
Many other annual events like Hindustan Classical Music Fest is hosted by this temple.