Hindu Temple Of Shree Vajreshwari Mata At Kangra, Himachal Pradesh, India Editorial Image

Known also as ‘Kangra Devi Mandir’, this Hindu Temple is dedicated to the Hindu Goddess Vajreshvari, a form of Durga. The original temple is said to have been built by the Pandavas, at the time of Mahabharatha, after Goddess Durga appeared in their dream and ordered them to build a shrine at Nagarkot village in Kangra, for their safety. The temple, surrounded by a stone wall like a fort, houses a beautiful silver idol of the goddess and is revered as one of the 51 shaktipeethas in the country. The temple was looted and ransacked several times by Muslim invaders. Mahmud of Ghazni first looted this temple in 1009 AD, for the gold stored in its vaults and the several bells made of pure silver. The temple, being one of the wealthiest shrines in North India, has had a long history of plunder, loot and destruction after that, but has always managed to bounce back. In 1360 AD Firoz Shah Tughlaq ransacked the temple but the great Mughal Emperor Akbar extended patronage which again restored the temple to its old glory.In 1905 the temple was destroyed by a powerful earthquake and was subsequently rebuilt by the government.