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Sightseeing Highlights:
The MahakaleshwarTemple, draws the most tourists and pilgrims to this city. The jyotirlingam is south-facing and thus known as Dakshinmukhi. Other famous temples are Harsidhhi Durga temple, Chintaman Ganesh temple, and the shani temple of Triveni.
The Gadhkalika temple was believed to be frequented by the poet Kalidas and was last renovated by the Scindhias, while the Kaal Bhairav temple is an important centre of tantric worship.
A big crowd-puller is the recently built ISKCON temple, while Prashanti Dham, the Sai Baba ashram is another popular holy site.
Among the ancient monuments is the KaliyadehPalace that has a beautiful dome built in the style of Persian architecture. Durgadas Ki Chhatri is another exquisite monument built on the funeral site of the famous Rajput warrior Durgadas.
The Bhartrihari Gufa is an ancient cave, where the brother of Vikramaditya, who was a great philosopher, lived and meditated.
Tourism info:
Ujjain Tourist Office
Railway Station
Ujjain
Tel: (0734) 2561544
Ujjain is a city located in the heart of Central India and has immense significance for ancient Indian astronomy and religion. It was considered the prime meridian of longitude by Indian astronomers, and has been the site of many observatories over the centuries. Ujjain also has the sacred temple of Mahakaleshwar, which enshrines one of the 12 holy jyotirlingas, and is the venue of the Kumbha Mela every twelve years held on the banks of the River Shipra.
In ancient times the city was called Ujjaini, the capital of the kingdom of Avantika, and finds mention in the Mahabharata. It was also the capital of the great Mauryan king Vikramaditya, and later flourished under the Sungas and Satavahanas. It was a major astronomical and mathematical centre, and great minds who lived here were Varahamihira, Brahmagupta, and Bhaskaracharya. Its temples and monuments suffered widespread destruction in the hands of the Delhi Sultans, beginning its downslide. However, it rose to importance again under the rule of Akbar. In recent times, Ujjain came to be ruled by the Scindias, and was made part of Madhya Pradesh along with the Madhya Bharat region in 1956. Now-a-days its main income is from agriculture, and religious tourism.
Simhastha MahaKumbh - Simhastha is the great bathing festival of Ujjain. It is celebrated in a cycle of 12 years when Sun and Jupiter enters the sign of Aries and Leo respectively.
What to See in Ujjain - Ujjain, stands glamorously among many other Indian sacred and holy cities. The early history of Ujjain is lost in the midst of antiquity.
Official Websites
Government of Madhya Pradesh - Madhya Pradesh Government portal covering diverse topics including health, tourism, culture, climate, Tenders and e-Governance.
Madhya Pradesh Tourism - Madhya Pradesh Tourism Government portal -Official website of Dept. of Tourism, covers Madhya Pradesh Entry formalities, Places of Interest in Madhya Pradesh, List of Tourist Guides in Madhya Pradesh and Transportation in Madhya Pradesh.
Other Useful Links
Weather - Weather forecast for Ujjain with a fast, easy to use interface. Includes weather maps, graphics and radar images.
Holy City - Ujjain - Since ages Ujjain has been a centre of religo-cultural activities of not only the nation but also of the whole world.
