Bhalka Tirtha (Bhalka Pilgrimage) (Hindi: भालका तीर्थ), located in the Veraval in Saurashtra on the western coast of Gujarat, India, is the place where Krishna was killed by an arrow shot by a hunter named Jara, after which he worshipped Shiva, an act referred to in the Puranas as Shri Krishna Nijdham Prasthan Leela (Sanskrit: श्री कृष्ण नीजधाम प्रस्थान लीला).
According to Mahabharata, the Kurukshetra war resulted in the death of all the hundred sons of Gandhari. On the night before Duryodhana's death, Krishna visited Gandhari to offer his condolences. Gandhari felt that Krishna knowingly did not put an end to the war, and in a fit of rage and sorrow, Gandhari cursed that Krishna, along with everyone else from the Yadu dynasty, would perish after 36 years. Krishna himself knew and wanted this to happen as he felt that the Yadavas had become very haughty and arrogant (adharmi), so he ended Gandhari's speech by saying "tathastu" (so be it).
After 36 years passed, a fight broke out between the Yadavas, at a festival, who killed each other. His elder brother, Balarama, then gave up his body using Yoga. Krishna retired into the forest and started meditating under a tree. The Mahabharata also narrates the story of a hunter who becomes an instrument for Krishna's departure from the world. The hunter Jara, mistook Krishna's partly visible left foot for that of a deer, and shot an arrow, wounding him mortally. After Jara realised the mistake, while still bleeding, Krishna told Jara, "O Jara, you were Vali in your previous birth, killed by myself as Rama in Treta Yuga. Here you had a chance to even it and since all acts in this world are done as desired by me, you need not worry for this". Then Krishna, with his physical body[5] ascended back to his eternal abode, Goloka and this event marks departure of Krishna from the earth. The news was conveyed to Hastinapur and Dwaraka by eyewitnesses to this event. The place of this incident is believed to be Bhalka, near Somnath temple.
According to Puranic sources, Krishna's disappearance marks the end of Dvapara Yuga and the start of Kali Yuga, which is dated to February 17/18, 3102 BCE.
As per the writing in Ramayana, Rama, i.e. Krishna in his earlier Rama Avatar (Avatars) is supposed to have given a boon to a monkey king Vali (Hindu mythology) whom he killed indirectly in hiding and not directly fighting with him in front. The above action of the hunter in Krishna avatar (Avatars) is supposed to be in compliance to the boon of Rama i.e. Krishna in his earlier Avatar. It is believed that Krishna left his footprints. It is a common site of pilgrimage for people who visit Somnath.
This ancient temple was previously ransacked by Mahmud of Ghazni and looted precious jewels along with treasures back to his hometown. This ancient town was razed to the ground several times and it was later reconstructed by the Hindu community.
Bhalka Teerth is situated almost 4 kilometers away from the Somnath temple. Presently the government has planned to develop this temple also into a major tourist attraction.
Somnath/Veraval City/Bhalka is very well connected via road and rail network. Nearest railway station is Veraval and the nearest airports are Diu & Rajkot. Bus services are available from Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot, Dwarka etc.
Bhalka Tirtha, which is sometimes referred to as the ‘Bhalka pilgrimage’, is a famous Hindu place of worship located in a quaint town of Somnath near Veraval along the shores of Arabian Sea. Veraval is one of the preferred tourist destination spots by the local residents as well as foreign tourists across the globe owing to its wide range of accommodation. It is located just a few kilometers away from Somnath. Bhalka Tirth and Somnath Temple are some of the major highlights and must visit tourist destination spots in Somnath. The inner sanctum of this temple houses a blue colored idol of Lord Krishna who is in a meditation posture.
It is believed to be the spot where a hunter named Jara shot Lord Krishna’s foot with an arrow. According to the legend, the hunter misread the foot of Lord Krishna to that of a deer while Lord Krishna was meditating under a pipal tree. However, the poacher was pardoned by Lord Krishna and blessed him. This place is currently owned and operated by the Central Government of India.
Temple Timings
The temple is opened to the public seven days a week daily from 06:00 AM to 06: 00 PM in the evening.
Somnath is well connected to some of the renowned places located in the state of Gujarat such as Junagadh, Bhavnagar, and Porbandar. Many buses ply regularly to these places. You may hire a private bus from any of these places to reach Bhalka Tirtha, Somnath.
The tourists can board a train from any part of the country to Ahmedabad and later catch a special train to Veraval. As soon as you reach Veraval, the tourists may hire either a bus or a cab to get to Somnath.