Taraknath Temple
তারকেশ্বর মন্দির
Temple of Taraknath with Dudhpukur pond in the foreground, picture taken from Hanuman Ghat
Religion
Affiliation	Hinduism
District	Hooghly
Deity	Shiva
Location
Location	Tarakeswar
State	West Bengal
Country	India
Shown within West Bengal
Geographic coordinates	22°53′10″N 88°01′03″E / 22.886068°N 88.017571°E / 22.886068; 88.017571
Architecture
Type	Hindu temple architecture
Founder	Raja Bharamalla Rao

The Taraknath temple, dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva worshiped as Tarakanatha, is a major pilgrimage spot in the town of Tarakeswar, West Bengal, India. Built in 1729, the temple is an atchala structure of Bengal temple architecture with a 'natmandir' in front. Close by are the shrines of Kali and Lakshmi Narayan. Dudhpukur, a tank to the north of the Shiva temple is believed to fulfil the prayers of those taking a dip in it.^[1]

Baba Taraknath also known as Baba Tarakeshwar or Baba Tarakeshwarnath. He is a violent (Ugra) form of Lord Shiva who drank venom (Vish) during Samudra-manthan. Tarakeshwarnath is the husband of Bhagwati Tara. His shivalinga is also situated in Bengal, a few kilometres away from Tarapith. He grants his devotees a good health and life from which anything can be achieved. It is said that those who are true devotees of Tara and Tarak , Bhagwati Tara breastfeeds that devotee and then the devotee attains moksha or salvation.

Legends

As per local legends, the temple was built by Raja Bharamalla Rao^{[citation needed]} to discover a Linga in the jungles near Tarakeswar. The temple was later built around the swayambhu linga (self-manifested) referred as Baba Taraknath in 1729 AD.^[1][2]

Festivities

Pilgrims visit the temple throughout the year, especially on Mondays. But thousands of pilgrims visit Tarakeswar on the occasions of 'Shivaratri' and 'Gajan', the former taking place in Phalgun (Feb-March) while the latter lasts for five days ending on the last day of Chaitra (mid-April). The month of Sravana (mid-July to mid-August) is auspicious for Shiva when celebrations are held n each Monday.