Tirtha Atlas

The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.

3031 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Early medieval · Hindu · India

Wangath Temple Complex, Naranag

Wangath, near Naranag, Ganderbal district, Jammu and Kashmir · 34.3528°, 74.9761°

Shiva, as Jyeshthesa and BhuteshwaraKarkotaKashmiri grey granite, with pyramidal roofs and domed ceilings
Sacred since
220 BCE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
8th c. (Lalitaditya Muktapida, Karkota); origin traced to c. 220 BCE
Karkota

History & significance

A ruined group of Shaiva temples in grey granite beside the spring at Naranag in Ganderbal district, expanded in the 8th century under the Karkota ruler Lalitaditya Muktapida. Now centrally protected by the Archaeological Survey of India, the site is the starting point of the annual Gangbal yatra to Gangabal lake.

Sthala katha — the traditional account

What follows is the temple’s own traditional account, transmitted through liturgy and local memory. It is recorded here as tradition, not as attested history.

Kalhana's Rajatarangini credits King Jaluka, son of Ashoka, with raising the Bhuteshvara and Jyestarudra shrines here around 220 BCE.

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Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-28 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Karkota