20 Most Famous Temples In India

India is literally stuffed with sacred temples. The number of holy places in India is very high. However, some temples have been blessed with incredible fame and the devotees have blind faith in deities that reside in these temples. For example, Tirupati is one of the most famous temples in India without any scope of doubt.

Similarly, there are other holy places in India that owe their fame to the potency of their deity. The most famous temples in India have gods that are 'jagruth'. In other words, the deities of these sacred temples are 'alive' or rather 'attentive' to the prayers of their devotees. For example, it is believed that if you make three trips to the Kamakhya temple in Guwhati, your wish will certainly be fulfilled.

Most of the famous temples in India have a long history that dates back several generations. The deities of these temples are often 'swayambhu', meaning they have not been installed, they came out of the ground on their own. For female deities, there are the 51 famous Shakti peethas. Shiva has 12 jyortirlinga temples. And some forms of Vishnu are supposed to be particularly scared.

It is almost impossible to name all the famous temples of India in one single article. But Boldsky has put together a list twenty for your perusal.

Tirupati Temple

The Tirupati temple on the Tirumala hills in Andra Pradesh is dedicated to the Venkateshwara or Balaji avatar of Vishnu. It seems that Balaji incurred a huge load from Kuber to pay for his daughter's wedding. So, offerings of cash are made to deity which makes Tirupati one of the richest temples in India.

Kamakhya Temple

The Kamakya devi temple in Assam is one of the most famous Shakti Peethas. It is believed that devi Sati's genitals fell here. And for 5 days in the year, the goddess bleeds or menstruates. That is the holiest time to visit Kamakhya.

Kashi Vishwanath Temple

The Vishwanath temple in Kashi is one of the jyotirlingas of Shiva. Kashi was supposed to be Lord Shiva's favourite city and thus, it is a-must visit pilgrimage for Shiva's devotees.

Kedarnath Temple

The Kedarnath temple sits atop the great Himalayan mountains. This temple of Shiva is one of the sacred Char Dhams in Hinduism. This is supposed to be one of the places that the Pandavas visited to seek the divine.

Meenakshi Amman Temple

Meenakshi is a sacred form of the Goddess Parvati. The Meenakshi Amman temple in Madurai is dedicated to this goddess. The sculpture of temple is astonishing and it is also one of the richest temples in India.

Puri Jaganath Temple

Puri is the home of Lord Jaganath (form of Vishnu), his elder brother Balaram and sister Subhara (wife of Arjun). Puri is one of the holiest places in India and features in the list of Char Dhams. During the festival of Rath Yatra, the wooden deities are taken for trip to their maternal aunts house and brought back 10 days later.

Vaishno Devi Temple

In the treacherous caves of Jammu resides the Goddess who is called 'Sherawali Mata'. Sitting atop a tiger, Vaishno Devi is a form of Shakti. It is said that only the pure and worthy can make this dangerous trip to caves and get Darshan.

Badrinath Temple

Badrinath is another temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. This high flying temple in the Garhwal range of mountains is also one of the Char Dhams.

Siddhi Vinayak Temple

Bang in the middle of a busy metropolis we have the Siddhi Vinayak temple dedicated to Ganesha in Mumbai. This temple is patronised by many Bollywood celebrities and is known for granting any wish.

Somnath Temple

The Somnath temple in Gujarat is the home of one of the 12 jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva. This temples was raised to the ground several times by different invaders. And it was rebuilt every single time.

Golden Temple

The Golden Temple in Amritsar is actually a Gurudwara. This temple is one of the holiest sights for the Sikhs. The brilliant golden colour of the temple gives it the famous name.

Sai Baba Temple

Sai Baba was a prophet revered both by the Hindus and Muslims. That is why, His temple in Shirdi is one of the unique pilgrimmage that is patronised by both these communities.

Sabarimalai Temple

The Sabarimalai temple is the home of Lord Aiyyapa. It is believed that Aiyyapa was conceived by the union of Shiva and Vishnu in the form of Mohini. Thus, he is technically not born from a woman's womb. He was raised by a step mother who ill-treated him. Thus Lord Aiyyapa remains a bachelors and forbids any menstruating woman from visiting his temple.

Amarnath Cave Temple

In high and rocky caves of Amarnath, a white mass of ice grows every year taking the shape of Shivlinga. This site was discovered by a Muslim shepherd and became famous as a holy place in India.

Rameshwaram Temple

Rameshwaram temple is almost at the edge of India. Here Lord Shiva resides in the form of an ancient jyotirlinga.

Sun Temples

The Sun Temples of Konark are no longer places of worship. However, historically they are very important. The kind of architecture and sculpture seen in these temples is almost exemplary.

Brahma Temple

Lord Brahma was cursed by Shiva that he will never be worshiped and there will be no festival in his name. So a single temple of Brahma remains in the holy city of Pushkar.

Dakshineswar Temple

Dakhineshwar temple is a Shakti Peetha where one of the fingers of Devi Sati fell. Besides, it is also revered as the place were Ramakrishna Paramahamsa lived and had his divine relationship with Goddess Kali.

Trimbakeshwar Temple

The Trimbakeshwar temple in Nashik is mainly dedicated to Lord Shiva. However, the Hindu trinity of Brahma, Vishnu and Maheshwar can be seen here in the temple. This temple is one of the few places where a puja for Kaal Sarpa Dosha can be done.

Ram Temple

The Ram Temple in Ayodhya is not only famous but legendary. It is suppose to be the place where Lord Rama (avatar of Vishnu) was born. However, this temple has been the cause of much blood shed in the recent past as the Babri Masjid also resides within its premises.