Palampur tea gardens
viewpoint · 12.4 km away
temple30 min from Palampur
Baijnath Temple
Baijnath Temple, a shrine to Shiva as Vaidyanatha raised in 1204 AD by the merchants Ahuka and Manyuka, is ASI-protected. 16 km and 30 minutes from Palampur.
What it is
Baijnath Temple is a stone temple to Shiva as Vaidyanatha, the lord of physicians, in the town of Baijnath. Two local merchants, Ahuka and Manyuka, built the present structure in 1204 AD. The Archaeological Survey of India protects it, and it is the one historic monument near Palampur that repays a whole morning.
Photos: Ms Sarah Welch (CC0) · Ms Sarah Welch (CC0) — via Wikimedia Commons, resized.
Getting there
About 30 minutes and 16 km by road from Palampur, on the highway between Kangra and Mandi. It is the second day of the two-day plan. We have not measured the walk from the road to the compound gate, so allow a few minutes.
What to look at
The tower and the mandapa in front of it, then the sculpture on the walls: Ganesha, Harihara, and the wedding of Shiva and Parvati are among the figures. Two long inscriptions in the main hall, in Sharada and Takri scripts, record how the temple was built. Small shrines sit inside the compound around the main one.
The temple came through the 1905 earthquake that devastated the Kangra valley with minor damage, though smaller shrines in the yard and part of the roof were hurt. Ruler Sansar Chand had restored it after taking control of Kangra Fort in 1786.
When to go
March to May or October and November, when the Dhauladhar range is clear behind the wall. The wet months of July and August make the drive slower. See when to visit Palampur.
Around it
The tea gardens are the natural contrast on the way back. The one-day plan covers the tea and Andretta, and things to do in Palampur lists every stop.
Plans that include this
All 1 plans that stop here →Nearby places
Questions people ask
Who built Baijnath Temple, and when?
Two local merchants, Ahuka and Manyuka, built the present temple in 1204 AD. It is a Nagara-style stone temple dedicated to Shiva as Vaidyanatha, the lord of physicians. Inscriptions inside say an earlier Shiva temple stood on the same ground before it.
What is inside Baijnath Temple?
The sanctum holds a Shiva lingam. Two long inscriptions in the main hall, in Sharada and Takri scripts, list the builders and donors. Sculptures of Ganesha, Harihara and Shiva's wedding are carved on the walls, and small shrines stand around the compound.
Why is Dussehra not celebrated at Baijnath?
By local tradition, Ravana carried a shivling toward Lanka and set it down here, at a place then called Kiragrama, and it settled as Ardhanarishwar. Out of respect for his devotion to Shiva, Dussehra has never been celebrated at the temple.