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Chaubis Khamba Mata

According to old tradition Chaubis Khamba constituted the majestic entrance gate of Mahakala-Vana. Remains of the boundary-wall are also in existence near this gate. Architectural design, of the twenty four ornate columns, belongs to the ninth or tenth century A.D.
Two images of goddesses are installed one each on the either side of the gate. The names incsribed. On the footstools are Mahamaya and Mahalaya. Looking at the graceful forms of these guardian-deities of the grand entrance structure. One can imagine the dimensions of the boundary-wall of the traditionally known Mahakala-vana, which is now covered under thick inhabitation.

Nagarkot Ki Rani

Nagarkot Ki Rani is the guardian deity of the south-west corner of ancient Ujjaiyini. This is a place of some archaeological importance. Many popular tales of Vikramaditya and Bharthihari are associated with this place. The place is associated with the traditions of Natha Cult also.
The tank facing the temple is of Paramar-period. Both the sides of the tank have two small temples. The idol of Kartikeya in one of the temples is assigned to Gupta period. The Temple is situated on the ancient mud Rampart and hence is known as the queen of the city wall i.e. Nagarkot Ki Rani.

Ram Janardan Mandir

Idols of Rama; Lakshmana and Sita in the Rama-temple and that of Janardana-Vishnu in the Janardana-temple belong to the seventeenth century. Both the temples present an attractive look from the point of view of their structural art. These temples were constructed by Mirza Raja Jaisingh in the Seventeenth Century. The boundary wall and the tank were added later in Maratha Period in the eighteenth Century. Beautiful examples of maratha paintings are seen on the wails of both the temples. Besides the attractive scenes from the lives of Rama and Krishna the painting of Bedalya Bua Maharaj and Sant Tukoba etc. are quite imprassive.
Certain old images are seen installed in both the temples as well as near the tank opposite Janardan temple which are very important from the point of view of sculpture also. The image of Govardhandhari Krishna near the tank belongs to eleventh century. The images of Vishnu installed in between the assambly hall and the interior of Rama-temple belongs to the tenth century and the images of Brahma, Vishnu and mahesha belong to the twelth century A.D.

ISKCON Temple

Recently, after a long absence, I was invited to return to spiritual life by His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami, with whom I had developed a firm relationship. He helped my family move from South Africa to ISKCON’s one-year-old Radha-Madana-Mohana Temple in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh. Having given up my hedonistic artistic life, I was filled with trepidation, uncertainty, and fear.

It had been twenty-two years since I became an initiated disciple. In the early eighties I was the first black South African to step back from the apartheid struggle and cross the divide to Krishna consciousness, away from the violent maelstrom of political upheaval endemic to my life. Filled with violent hatred of the apartheid regime, I was fortunate to cross paths with the Hare Krishnas through the gift of a Bhagavad-gita. Mesmerized by the lyrical and spiritual quality of its revelations, I became disgusted with the continual ritual of violence—domestic, social, political, and even academic—that accompanied my existence. I decided to jump ship from my Rastafarian, ganja-smoking lifestyle and join the search for true meaning.

Navgrah

Situated on the Triveni Ghat of the Shipra, the temple is located away from the old site of Ujjaini town. It is dedicated to the nine planets, attracts large crowds on new moon days falling on Saturdays. Its religious importance has increased in recent years though there is no known reference to it in the ancient texts.

Gopal Mandir

This huge temple is situated in the middle of the big market square. It was constructed by Bayajibai Shinde, the queen of Maharajah Daulat Rao Shinde in the 19th century. It is a beautiful example of Maratha architecture. The sanctum sanctorum is inlaid with marble and doors are silver plated. The door in the inner sanctum is said to have been carried to Ghazni from the Somnath temple and from thence by Mahmud Shah Abdali to Lahore. Mahadji Scindia recovered it and now it has been installed in this temple.