TWELEVE (12) JYOTIRLINGAS

A Jyotirlinga or Jyotirlingam, is EXTREMELY SACRED - a devotional representation of the Supreme God Shiva. Jyoti means 'radiance' and lingam the 'Image or Sign' of Shiva; Jyotir Lingam thus means the Radiant Sign of The Almighty Shiva. There are twelve traditional Jyotirlinga shrines in India. ¹

The twelve jyotirlinga are:

1	Somnath	in Gir Somnath, Gujarat
2	Mallikarjuna	in Srisailam, Andhra Pradesh
3	Mahakaleswar	in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh
4	Omkareshwar	in Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh
5	Kedarnath	in Rudraprayag, Uttarakhand
6	Bhimashankar	in Maharashtra
7	Vishwanath	in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
8	Trimbakeshwar	in Nashik, Maharashtra
9	Baidyanath	in Deoghar, Jharkhand
10	Nageshvara	in Dwarka, Gujarat
11	Ramanathaswamy	in Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu
12	Grishneshwar	in Aurangabad, Maharashtra

About the Jyotir Linga it is said ² :-

एतानि ज्योतिर्लिङ्गानि सायं प्रातः पठेन्नरः।	etāni jyotirliṅgāni sāyaṃ prātaḥ paṭhennaraḥ	One who recites these Jyotirlingas every evening and morning
सप्तजन्मकृतं पापं स्मरणेन विनश्यति॥	saptajanmakṛtaṃ pāpaṃ smaraṇena vinaśyati	is relieved of all sins committed in past seven lives.
एतेषां दर्शनादेव पातकं नैव तिष्ठति।	eteṣāṃ darśanādeva pātakaṃ naiva tiṣṭhati	One who visits these, gets all his wishes fulfilled
कर्मक्षयो भवेत्तस्य यस्य तुष्टो महेश्वराः॥:	karmakṣayo bhavettasya yasya tuṣṭo maheśvarāḥ	and one's karma gets eliminated as Maheshwara gets satisfied to the worship.

The names and the locations of 12 Jyotirlingas' are mentioned in the Shiva Purana (Śatarudra Saṁhitā, Ch.42/2-4). These shrines are:-

	Jyotirlinga	Image	State	Location	Description
1	Somnath		Gujarat	Veraval,  Saurashtra	Somnath is traditionally considered the first pilgrimage site: the Dwadash Jyotirlinga pilgrimage begins with the Somnath Temple. The temple, that was destroyed and re-built sixteen times, is held in reverence throughout India and is rich in legend, tradition, and history. It is located at Prabhas Patan (Somnath - Veraval) in Saurashtra region of Gujarat state in western India.
2	Mallikārjuna		Andhra Pradesh	Srisailam	Mallikārjuna, also called  Śrīśaila, is located on a mountain in  Kurnool District in Rayalaseema.   It enshrines  Mallikarjuna in an ancient temple that is architecturally and sculpturally   rich. It is a place where Shakti peetha and Jyotirlingam are together.
3	Mahakaleshwar		Madhya Pradesh	Ujjain	Mahakal, Ujjain (or Avanti) in Madhya Pradesh is home to the Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlinga temple.  The Lingam at Mahakal is believed to be Swayambhu, the only one of the 12 Jyotirlingams to be so. It is also the only one facing south and also the temple to have a Shree Rudra Yantra perched upside down at the ceiling of the Garbhagriha (where the Shiv Lingam sits).
4	Omkareshwar		Madhya Pradesh	Omkareshwar	Omkareshwar is in Madhya Pradesh on an island in the Narmada River and home to a Jyotirlinga shrine and the Mamaleshwar temple.
5	Kedarnath		Uttarakhand	Kedarnath	Kedarnath in Uttarakhand is revered as the northernmost and the closest Jyotirlinga to Lord Shiva's eternal abode of Mount Kailash. Shiva assumed the form of wild boar and dived into the earth at Kedarnath to emerge at Pashupatinath. Pure ghee is applied at Kedarnath lingam as the boar was injured.
6	Bhimashankar		Maharashtra	Bhimashankar	Bhimashankar is very much debated. There is a Bhimashankara temple near Pune (pictured) in Maharashtra, which was referred to as Daakini country, but Kashipur in Uttarakhand was also referred to as Daakini country in ancient days and a Bhimashkar Temple known as Shree Moteshwar Mahadev is present there. The Bhimashankar    temple  near  Guwahati, Assam is the jyotirlinga  according to Sivapuran  According to  Linga Purana,  Bhimasankar temple  in Bhimpur  near  Gunupur  of  Rayagada district in South Orissa is also believed as Bhimasankar Jyotirlinga, which is situated at the western part of the holy Mahendragiri mountains and at the river bank of Mahendratanaya(which is also believed as the Daakini area by many historian), was excavated in the year 1974, having quadrangular Shakti around the Linga and decorated by a Upavita as per the puran.
7	Kashi Vishwanath Temple		Uttar Pradesh	Varanasi	The Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh is home to the Vishwanath Jyotirlinga shrine, which is perhaps the most sacred of Hindu shrines.  It is also one of the Padal Petra Stalam of Vada Naadu mentioned in Thevaaram. The temple is situated in Varanasi, the holiest city for Hindus, where a Hindu is expected to make a pilgrimage at least once in his life, and if possible, also pour the remains of cremated ancestors on the River Ganges. The temple stands on the western bank of the holy river Ganges, and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas. In fact, it is a place where Shakti peeta and Jyotirlingam are together. It is the holiest of all Shiva temples. The main deity is known by the name Vishwanath or Vishweshwara meaning Ruler of the universe. The temple town, is considered the oldest living city in the world, with 3500 years of documented history, is also called Kashi.
8	Trimbakeshwar Shiva Temple		Maharashtra	Trimbakeshwar, near Nashik	The Trimbakeshwar Temple, near Nasik in Maharashtra, is a Jyotirlinga shrine associated with the origin of the Godavari River.
9	Nageshvara Jyotirlinga		Gujarat	Near Jamnagar	Nageshvara Jyotirlinga is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines mentioned in the Shiva Purana and the Dvādaśa Jyotirliṅga Stotram, says one of the jyotirlinga namely Nagesh is situated in Daruka-Vana and most probably the present day Dwarka region. Other claims to the Nagesh Jyotirlinga status come from - Aundha Naganath (Hingoli District of Maharashtra) and Jageshwar (Almora District of Uttarakhand)
10	Baidyanath Temple		Jharkhand	Deoghar	Baidyanath Jyotirlinga temple, also known as Baba vaidyanath dham and vaidyanath dham is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, the most sacred abodes of Shiva. It is located in Deoghar in the Santhal Pargana division of the state of Jharkhand, India. It is a temple complex consisting of the main temple of Baba Vaidyanath, where the Jyotirlinga is installed, and 21 other temples. or Parali in Maharashtra [1] According to Hindu beliefs, the demon king Ravana worshipped Shiva at the current site of the temple to get the boons that he later used to wreak havoc in the world. Ravana offered his ten heads one after another to Shiva as a sacrifice. Pleased with this, Shiva descended to cure Ravana who was injured. As he acted as a doctor, he is referred to as Vaidhya ("doctor"). From this aspect of Shiva, the temple derives its name.
11	Rameshwar		Tamil Nadu	Rameswaram	Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu is home to the vast Ramalingeswarar Jyotirlinga temple and is revered as the southernmost of the twelve Jyotirlinga shrines of India. It enshrines the Rameśvara ("Lord of Rama") pillar.  It is also one of the Padal Petra Stalam of Pandya Naadu mentioned in Thevaaram.
12	Ghrishneshwar		Maharashtra	Ellora	Ghrishneshwar Temple, sometimes referred to as the Dhushmeshwar temple, is one of the 12 Jyotirlinga shrines mentioned in the Shiva Purana

It is said that , he who recites or reads the twelve names early in the morning is freed from all sins and attains all siddhis. Those excellent men will attain all desires.

Those who recite without any desires will attain moksh.One must view the Jyotirlinga atleast once.All his sins will be wiped off.Whether he be a slave, outcast or eunuch, he will be reborn as a Brahmin and become fully liberated.He will become rich and master all vedas.He will be liberated. ³

Ref

1.    Wikipedia    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jyotirlinga

2.    Wikipedia    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jyotirlinga

3.    Shiv Puran , Verse 32-33 , Ch 1, Koti Rudra Samhita