Govt will attempt to open corridor to Sharda peeth in PoK for devotees

Subject : History

Section: Art and Culture

Concept :

About :

Sharada Peeth is a ruined Hindu temple and ancient centre of learning located in the Neelum Valley of Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.
It is situated in the valley of Mount Harmukh, believed by Kashmiri Pandits to be the abode of Shiva.
Sharada Peeth translates to “the seat of Sharada“, the Kashmiri name for the Hindu goddess Saraswati.
“Sharada” could be also related to the proto-Nostratic terms “sarv”, which means “flow or stream”, and daw (blow, tip or rock), because it was located at the confluence of three streams.
It was probably commissioned by Lalitaditya Muktapida though no definitive evidence exists in favor.
Al-Biruni recorded the place for the first time, as a revered shrine housing a wooden image of Sharda — however, he had never ventured into Kashmir and based his observations on hearsay.
Location:
It is located in the village of Sharda in the valley of Mount Harmukh, along the Neelam River in the Pakistani-administered territory of Azad Kashmir. It lies 16 miles to the northwest of the Line of Control.
As a Centre of Learning: Between the 6th and 12th centuries CE, it was one of the foremost centres of higher learning, hosting scholars such as Kalhana, Adi Shankara, and Vairotsana.
It is also said to be where Paṇini and Hemachandra completed and stored their writings on Sanskrit grammar.

Religious significance:

Sharda is the most revered religious place for Kashmiri Pandits. They believe that Sharada in Kashmir is a tripartite embodiment of the goddess Shakti: Sharada (goddess of learning), Saraswati (goddess of knowledge), and Vagdevi (goddess of speech).
It is one of the 18 Maha Shakti Peethas throughout South Asia that commemorate the location of fallen body parts of the Hindu deity Sati.