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Sri Sharika Devi Chakreshwari Temple In Srinagar

Stairs to Sharika Devi Temple

I was studying Lalita Sahasranama and writing my own notes on it. That is when I came across Srinagar as the city of Rajarajeshwari Lalit Tripurasundari. I wondered if Srinagar in Kashmir is indeed that city. In my list of Cities Named After Devi, I remember mentioning Sharika Devi as the presiding deity of Srinagar.

I had the opportunity to talk about Hari Parbat Parikrama in Srinagar in my podcast. Sharika Devi temple is indeed on top of this Hari Parbat. I then learnt about the naturally formed Sri Chakra that is worshipped here. This is when I had the strong desire to go and visit the temple. Images and videos never satisfy me, I need to feel the energy of the place.

Stairs to Sharika Devi TempleDevi decided to bestow her grace on me, and I was invited by the Jammu and Kashmir Tourism for a conclave in Srinagar. I decided to visit Sharika Devi as soon as I landed in Srinagar. It was late in the evening and I had to cross the whole city full of tourists and traffic jams. But I could not resist her pull and headed straight to the hill.

Visiting Sharika Ji in Srinagar

From the car park, I saw a stairway going up somewhere. An arch in saffron had a mantra of Devi, with more than half the letters fallen apart. I started climbing, almost running and panting. Then I saw the temple structure on my right. I naturally bowed down and started climbing again.

Anuradha Goyal at Sharika DeviAnuradha Goyal at Sharika Devi
At Sharika Devi Temple in Srinagae

At the temple entrance was a CISF post and a hand painting on the wall said – Ma Sharikaye Namah. I entered the temple that looked more like a home, but soon I came out in the open corridor. There was temple on my left and the vast vistas of both the Himalayas and the city of Srinagar on the right. In an instant, I knew this is where the Devi Bhagwati overlooks her city from, while also being in sight with both her father Himalaya as well as her consort Shiva.

Chakreshwari

Another flight of stairs took me to the open temple Angan, where a huge Shila is covered in saffron vermillion. This is the Chakreshwari Sri Sharika Devi. I had to go close to the Shila to see a faint impression of the Sri Chakra. I was instantly lost in the lines and intersections. There is a detailed description of the Sri Chakra on the wall on the left, but that is something I understood intellectually. Here, I was in the field of a natural Sri Yantra, that has been worshipped for centuries at least.

Sharika Shakti PeethaSharika Shakti Peetha
Ma Sharika on Hari Parbat

Temple is just a roof above the Shila. Otherwise, it is pretty much an open…

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