Daksheswara Mahadev - Haridwar
Daksheswara Mahadev (Hindi: दक्षेश्वर महादेव मन्दिर) or Daksha Mahadev temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, located in the town of Kankhal, about 4 km from Haridwar in the Haridwar district of Uttarakhand, India. Named after King Daksha Prajapati, the father of Sati or Dakshayani, Lord Shiva 's first wife. Daksha is one of the fourteen Prajapatis, creator deities, presiding over procreation, and protector of life, in Hindu mythology.
The present temple was built by Queen Dhankaur in 1810 AD and rebuilt in 1962, and is a place of pilgrimage for Shaivaite devotees on Maha Shivaratri.
The legend of Daksha
Shivlingam- This is the neck portion of Daksh Prajapati who was decapitated by Maha Rudra Shiva carrying the corpse of his consort Dakshayani (Sati) The mythological story, as mentioned in the Mahabharata and other sacred texts of Hinduism, details the episode when King Daksha Prajapati, the father of Sati, Lord Shiva 's first wife, performed Yagna at this place. Sati felt insulted when her father the king did not invite his son-in-law to the ritual, but she attended nevertheless. She found her husband being spurned by her father and burnt herself in the Yajna Kunda itself. Shiva burned with anger and sent his Gaṇas, the terrible demi-god Vīrabhadra, and Bhadrakali.
On the direction of Shiva, Virabhadra appeared with Shiva's ganas in the midst of Daksha's assembly like a storm wind and waged a fierce war with the gods and mortals present culminating in the beheading of Daksha, who was later given the head of a goat at the behest of Brahma and other gods. Much of the details of the famous Ashvamedha Yagna (Horse Sacrifice) of Daksha are available in the Vayu Purana
Other structures
Standing next to the main temple is the Das Mahavidya temple, dedicated to the Mahavidyas, a venue for devotees of Devi to congregate for special pujas, during the Navratri celebrations. Also within the complex, there is a temple dedicated to Ganga. Next to the temple is the Daksha Ghat on the Ganges and close by is the Nileshwar Mahadev Temple.
