Mahur Maharashtra
| Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R) |
Mahur (माहुर) is a town and religious place in Kinwat taluka of Nanded district in Maharashtra, India.[1]
Variants
- Mahur Maharashtra माहुर, जिला नांदेड़, महाराष्ट्र, (AS, p.743)
- Mahurgad (माहुरगढ)
Jat clans
History
Following content is from ....History And Legend In Hyderabad, Department of Information and Public Relations, 1953, p.4-5
Mahur in Kinwat taluq is the most important historical place in the district. One of the most ancient temples in the Deccan is the temple of Renuka Devi at Mahur. Renuka Devi figures in the legend of Parasurama, who is said to have slain his mother at the bidding of his father. The goddess is also known as Ekaviradevi and figures prominently in Hindu mythology. The name Mathapur, from which the word Mahur is derived, refers to this goddess only. The place seems to have been important from very early times. The Dattatraya cult, which received great impetus in the medieval ages through
[p.5]: the Nathpanthi gosains of Matsyendranath and Gorakhnath cults, and through the author of the popular book Gurucharitra, has flourished in Mahur for the last eight centuries. Mahur has been described as one of the places where Dattatraya resides. The Mahanubhava cult, which grew in Maharashtra in the 13th century A.D. as a parallel to the Bhagavata cult, looked upon Mahur as one of its most important centres. Mahur came to be associated with many Mahanubhava saints who have enriched the spiritual and literary life of Maharashtra during and immediately after the period of the Yadava rulers of Devagiri. Even now there is a well-known Mahanubhava monastery at Mahur which draws people of that sect from far and near. The temple is 184 feet square and 54 feet high.
The gosains from the north established themselves in Mahur about five centuries ago. The founder of the Mahur monasteries of gosains, Sidhanath, seems to have flourished in the 14th century. There is a big temple known as Shikhar dedicated to Dattatraya under the management of gosain jagirdars of the place. Documents pertaining to grants, attributed to Aurangzeb and dating from 1696 A.D., are to be seen at Mahur in the custody of the gosains. West of Mahur, at the foot of a hill, are the rock-cut temples of Pandolena of distinct Brahminical style dating from 7th to 9th centuries. Besides the temples of Dattatraya and Shikhar, Mahur has a very ancient fort which has figured prominently in history. It seems to have been originally constructed by the Yadava rulers, but in the disturbed periods following it was held by the local chieftains until it fell to the Bahmani rulers in 1420 A.D. Mahur remained the head quarters of the province of Berar under the Bahmanis, and later on, when the local dynasty of Imad Shahis, established itself in Berar, it became their principal military stronghold. The place passed to the Moghuls along with the province of Berar in 1592 A.D. Local tradition still points to the ruins of a palace where Shah Jahan and his consort took refuge from the forces of Jehangir. These ultimately became a part of the State in 1724. Other features in Mahur are the Idgah, the Dargah of Sonapir and the Mavali tank.
माहुर, नांदेड़
विजयेन्द्र कुमार माथुर[2] ने लेख किया है .... माहुर (AS, p.743): जिला नांदेड़, महाराष्ट्र में यवतमाल के निकट प्रसिद्ध ऐतिहासिक स्थान है. दक्षिण के प्राचीनतम मंदिरों में से एक, रेणुकादेवी का मंदिर यहां स्थित है. रेणुका परशुराम की माता और जमदग्नि की पत्नी थी. जमदग्नि की समाधि माहुर में स्थित है. माहुर में दत्तात्रेय संप्रदाय का केंद्र भी है. इससे मध्यकालीन [p.744]: मत्सयेन्द्रनाथ और गोरखनाथ संप्रदाय के नाग पंथी गोसाइयों और गुरुचरित्र ग्रंथ के लेखक ने काफी प्रोत्साहन दिया था. कहा जाता है कि दत्तात्रेय भगवान का निवास स्थान यहीं है. महाराष्ट्र के महानुभाव संप्रदाय का भी जिसका 13वीं शती में काफी प्रचार हो चुका था, माहुर में केंद्र माना जाता है. देवगिरि के यादव नरेशों के शासनकाल में तथा उसके पश्चात महानुभाव संप्रदाय के महाराष्ट्र संतों तथा कवियों से संबंध होने के कारण माहुर ने प्रसिद्धि पाई थी. आज भी महानुभाव संप्रदाय का मठ यहाँ स्थित है. यह 184 फुट लंबा चौड़ा तथा 54 फुट ऊंचा है. 14वीं सदी में उत्तर भारत के गोसाइयों ने यहां पदार्पण किया और गोस्वामी सिद्धनाथ ने यहाँ पहला गोसाई मठ स्थापित किया. माहुर में शिखर नामक दत्तात्रेय (जमदग्नि के गुरु) का विशाल मंदिर है जिसका प्रबंध गोसाई जागीरदारों के हाथ में है. 1696 ई. के, औरंगजेब द्वारा प्रदत कुछ पट्टे गोसाइयों के पास आज भी सुरक्षित हैं.
माहुर में उपर्युक्त मंदिरों के अतिरिक्त एक प्राचीन दुर्ग भी है. इसे संभवत: यादव नरेशों ने बनवाया था किंतु 1420 ई. में यह बहमनी सुल्तानों के हाथ में पड़ गया. बरार की इमादशाही सल्तनत के स्थापित होने पर माहुर इसका मुख्य सैनिक केंद्र बन गया. 1592 ई. में बरार प्रांत के साथ ही माहुर मुगलराज्य में विलीन हो गया. स्थानीय किंवदंती के अनुसार माहुर में उस महल के खंडार आज भी हैं जहां शहजादा खुर्रम जहांगीर की सेना से बचने के लिए छुप गया था.