Bhalka

Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R)

---

Junagadh district map

Bhalka Tirtha Prabhas Patan

Bhalka (भालका) is pilgrimage (Tirtha), located in the Veraval in Saurashtra on the western coast of Gujarat, India.

Variants

• Bhalaka भालक = Bhalakeshvara भालकेश्वर = Bhaleshvara भालेश्वर, कठियावाड़, गुजरात, (AS, p.666)
• Bhalaka भालक (AS, p.666)
• Bhalakeshvara भालकेश्वर (AS, p.666)
• Bhaleshvara भालेश्वर (AS, p.666)
• Bhalka Tirtha (भालका तीर्थ)

Origin

According to tradition, The place where Jara hunter pierced Krishna's foot by Bhalla Bana(भल्लबाण) and Krishna ascended to Heaven is known as Bhalka Tirtha is situated in Prabhas Patan (Verawal). There is a statue of Krishna with Jara hunter.

History

Bhalka is the place where Krishna was hit by an arrow shot by a hunter named Jara, after which he is said to have left the earth for the heavenly abode, an act referred to in the Puranas as Shri Krishn Neejdham Prasthan Leela (Sanskrit: श्री कृष्ण नीजधाम प्रस्थान लीला).

In Mahabharata

According to Mahabharata, the Kurukshetra war resulted in the death of all the hundred sons of Gandhari. On the night before Duryodhana's death, Krishna visited Gandhari to offer his condolences. Gandhari felt that Krishna knowingly did not put an end to the war, and in a fit of rage and sorrow, Gandhari cursed that Krishna, along with everyone else from the Yadu dynasty, would perish after 36 years. Krishna himself knew and wanted this to happen as he felt that the Yadavas had become very haughty and arrogant (adharmi), so he ended Gandhari's speech by saying "tathastu" (so be it).

After 36 years passed, a fight broke out between the Yadavas, at a festival, who killed each other. His elder brother, Balarama, then gave up his body using Yoga. Krishna retired into the forest and started meditating under a tree. The Mahabharata also narrates the story of a hunter who becomes an instrument for Krishna's departure from the world. The hunter Jara, mistook Krishna's partly visible left foot for that of a deer, and shot an arrow, wounding him mortally. After he realised the mistake, While still bleeding, Krishna told Jara, "O Jara, you were Vali in your previous birth, killed by myself as Rama in Tretayuga. Here you had a chance to even it and since all acts in this world are done as desired by me, you need not worry for this". Then Krishna, with his physical body ascended back to his eternal abode, Goloka vrindavan and this event marks departure of Krishna from the earth. The news was conveyed to Hastinapur and Dwaraka by eyewitnesses to this event.

The place of this incident is believed to be Bhalka, near Somnath temple.

According to Puranic sources, Krishna's disappearance marks the end of Dvapara Yuga and the start of Kali Yuga, which is dated to February 17/18, 3102 BCE.

Bhalka Tirtha-Krishna Deha Visargana

Bhalka Tirtha-Krishna Deha Visargana

The adjacent photo of 1957 shows the place where there is a board mentioning "Krishna Deha Visarjana". This is also confirmed by the local people there at that time as per the pilgrim. This pilgrim also remembers the place as Prabhas Patan near Veraval. There is also another board on the tree which as far as the memory of the said pilgrim goes, indicates that the sapling was planted by C. Rajagopalachari (ex Governor-general of India).

भालक = भालकेश्वर = भालेश्वर

भालक = भालकेश्वर = भालेश्वर, कठियावाड़, गुजरात, (p.666): प्रभास पाटन के निकट ही वह स्थान है जहां पीपल वृक्ष के नीचे बैठे हुए भगवान कृष्ण के चरण में जरा नामक व्याध ने धोखे से बाण मारा था जिसके परिणामस्वरुप वे शरीर त्याग कर परमधाम सिधारे थे. आज भी यहाँ उसी पीपल का वंशज, मोक्षपीपल नामक वृक्ष स्थित है.