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Three peaked hill

Taranga hills
Taranga hills

Taranga Hill is a combination of Nature and stunning figurine, style of beautiful Jain temple surrounded by many small hills. The shrine is bounded by a total of the three-peaked hill. You can climb all three hills and it takes nearly around an hour per hill.
If you are probing for crags, Small trails for Trekking, Old architecture and religion place than this is the perfect one. Rich with cultures and societies of various kinds, India is dotted with temples, mosques, churches and other places of religious significance all over the country. Every year, certain main pilgrimage centres, like Rishikesh, Tirupati Ayodhya, Kedarnath, etc., are crowded with devotees, especially during the festive season. While we all know the places mentioned above, Taranga in Gujarat might be unheard of Taranga hills, located in the Mehsana district of Gujarat, is a Jain pilgrimage site. It is located nearly 130 km from Ahmedabad.
The 3-peaked Taranga hills are huddled on the banks of river Saraswati. A pilgrimage to these hills is measured to be among the most blessed ones. While walking up the hills, you will come across many Jain temples and a few Buddhist temples on the way. Also known as Taranga Jain Temple, this was erected in the 12th century and is one of the most well-preserved Jain temples of Gujarat. King Kumarapala of Chalukya dynasty shadowed Jainism under the guidance of Acharya Hemchandra, after which he built this temple in the 12th century, which is one of the oldest Jain temples. Right in the middle of this beautiful temple, sits the idol of the second Jain Thirthankar, Shri Ajitnath, which is ornamented with valuable stones. The entrails of the temple are red while the temple is made of white sandstone and bricks. The style of the temple reflects the wonderful artistry of the Chalukyan dynasty.

Taranga Hills
Taranga Hills

The temple has seven ceilings, idols of King Kumarapala and Goddess Padmavati on the front. The top season to visit this attractive temple is during the full moons of April and November months. It is a wonder in itself as to how they fetched stones to shape these many shrines on the hill. It is supposed that thousands of Digambaras achieved moksha on this hill. There are 14 Digambara temples on the hill that is devoted to different Tirthankaras.

It can be seen through the presence of relics that Buddhists existed between the 4th to the 8th century. Towards the north of the hill, there are shrines devoted to local deities Taran Mata and Dharan Mata. A stream flows alongside these shrines, and on the right side of the stream, and altered Buddhist stupa is present.
Tarange hill is a fantastic visit for those who love to explore the past, culture, religion along with some climb upside, trek, etc.
This post is written as a part of #blogchatterAtoz challenge. For my other post on #charismatic Gujarat please visit www.explorenbite.com

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