Sarovar Portico, Somnath

Somanatha Temple is a Hindu temple, located in Prabhas Patan, Veraval, in Gujarat, India. It is one of the most sacred pilgrimage sites, or Tirtha Kshetra for Hindus and is the first among the twelve jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva. The date of construction of the earliest Somnath temple remains uncertain, with estimates varying between the early centuries of the 1st millennium and about the 9th century CE. Various texts, including the Mahabharata and Bhagavata Purana, mention a tirtha at Prabhas Patan on the coastline of Saurashtra, where the later temple would eventually be built, but archaeology has not found traces of an early temple, though there was a settlement there.

Somnath is home to the famous Somnath Temple, which is one of the 12 jyotirlingas - the most sacred abodes of Lord Shiva. The temple has been destroyed and rebuilt several times over the centuries, with the current structure being built in the Chalukya style of architecture in the 1950s. The temple is visited by thousands of pilgrims every year and is a must-visit attraction in Somnath.

Apart from the Somnath Temple, the locality also boasts of several other interesting places to visit. The Triveni Sangam, where the three rivers - Hiran, Kapila and Saraswati - meet, is a popular spot for tourists. You can also visit the Bhalka Tirth, which is believed to be the spot where Lord Krishna was accidentally shot by an arrow and left his mortal body.