Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the newly developed “Mahakal Lok”, the expanded part of Mahakaleshwar temple premises in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain.

The inauguration was done following the rituals and chanting of shlokas and mantras by over hundred Hindu seers.

Attired in traditional ‘dhoti’ and ‘gamcha’ (stole), Prime Minister Modi entered the sanctum sanctorum of the Lord Mahakaleshwar temple, one of the 12 ‘Jyotirlingas’ of Lord Shiv to perform puja before he unveiled the newly developed corridor of the temple.

After the inauguration, PM Modi said that spirituality is contained in every particle and divine energy is being transmitted in every corner of Ujjain.

“Ujjain has led India’s prosperity, knowledge, dignity and literature for thousands of years,” he added.

The Prime Minister also congratulated Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for his dedication in making the proposal for expansion of Mahakaleshwar temple.

PM Modi accompanied by CM Chouhan and Madhya Pradesh Governor Mangubhai C. Patel took a round of the 900 metre corridor, which has been designed with 93 murals of Lord Shiva.

The entire premise has been designed with different avatars of Lord Shiva and walls and poles of the building have been inscripted with shlokas/ mantras defining Shiva.

The grand event is part of the Rs 856 crore Mahakaleshwar Temple corridor development project. The first phase of ‘Mahakal Lok’ has been developed at Rs 316 crore.

The more than 900-metre-long ‘Mahakal Lok’ corridor, built as one of the largest such corridors in the country, spreads around the old Rudrasagar Lake which has also been revived as part of the redevelopment project around the famous Mahakaleshwar temple.

Two majestic gateways — Nandi Dwar and Pinaki Dwar –separated by a short distance, have been erected near the starting point of the corridor, which winds its way to the temple’s entrance and offers an aesthetic view along the way.

A colonnade of 108 ornate pillars made of intricately carved sandstones, gushing fountains and a running panel of more than 50 murals depicting stories from the ‘Shiv Puran’ are among the major highlights of the Mahakal Lok.

It was the first phase of developed and the second phase to be completed by August 2024, according to Madhya Pradesh government.

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