Tag: ice lingam manali

Those devotees of lord Shiva who could not visit Amarnath this year can have a ‘darshan’ of ice lingam at Anjani Mahadev temple near Solang in Manali. The ice lingam here has started forming its shape due to the instant freezing of seeping water in extremely cold climate. Hundreds of devotees including tourists have thronged Anjani Mahadev temple to see the miracle of the nature. The night temperature here has dropped below the freezing point. Lingam gets its shape after drops of water from mountain fall on earth and freeze instantly. Ice lingam would continue rising till March and would attain its height upto 25 feet. According to nearby villagers, the lingam was discovered by a saint some 25 years back and has a same importance for them as has the Amarnath lingam. “The mysterious lingam was so close to us but it remained out of our sight for years. Now when it has been discovered, it is the most divine place for us and thousands of tourists who visit this temple,” resident of Burua village, Hira Lal, said. According to him, the saint with the help of villagers has built a small temple here and is the only Shiva temple of nine villages of upper Manali. “We celebrate the unique Shivaratri here after pouring milk and Gangajal over the ice lingam,” he added. Unlike Amarnath where devotees climb for hours, Anjani Mahadev is accessible only after 2km trek from Solang, 13km from Manali. Devotees may see lingam till mid April and then it melts away. Anjani Mahadev has become a popular tourist destination for thousands of tourists. “We got to know only after reaching Manali that Solang has an ice lingam similar to that in Amarnath and could not resist ourselves reaching here. It is amazing, beautiful and divine,”