Gujarat shrI siddhanatha mahAdeva

God       : shrI siddhanatha mahAdeva 
Goddess   : 
Tree      : 
thiirtham : 
padhikam  : shrI rAmachandra

Location:

State    : Gujarat
District : Surat
Situation: Located in Saras Village of Olpad Taluka.

History

This temple is ancient and its exact date is not known.

Legend: Reference to this temple is found in the Sanda puraNa

It is said that after slaying raVaNa, when shrI rAmachandra was returning to ayodhyA he was passing through this area near the tApti river. It is here that shrI rAmachandra needed to perform atonement for the sin incurred in slaying rAvaNa.shrI rAmachandra wanted to worship shrIman mahAdeva to be free from sin.

However, no priests were available at that time. Facing this predicament shrI rAmachandra asked aNjaniputra hanumAn to fetch Brahmins from the forests near the tApti river so that He could consecrate the shivalinga. hanumAn then went into the forest and brought a group of brahmins who were studying the kANva shAkha of the shuklayajurveda there. With the help of these Brahmins, shrI rAmachandra installed the Shivalinga there and performed yajnya.

shrI rAmachandra thus obtained mukti from the pApa of slaying rAvaNa. The Lord was called shrI siddhanAtha mahAdeva. The Brahmins who helped shrI rAmachandra attain mukti from pApa were called "mauktika" brahmins. There is also a big tank near the temple.

This information is contribution of darshanbhatt@hotmail.com.