Pangna-Karsog Valley – Beautiful and Historic

Pangna-Karsog Valley is a picturesque valley with forested mountain sides sloping down from the ridgelines. Situated in Mandi district, Pangana at a distance of around 22 kilometres, this valley is as beautiful and divine as the Karsog valley. This valley is also home to the historical Pangana Fort famous for its unique architecture and wooden carvings, this seven storied fort is a tourist attraction and is mainly visited for the old world charm that it exudes . Pangna was the first capital of Sen dynesty of Suket State and later shifted to present SunderNagar. The place has at present a hill architecture kila or a temple dedicated to princess of state.

Pangana Fort

Pangana Fort

This an ancient fort surrounded by mountains and the view is nearly panoramic. Pangna fort is a tower-like structure on a fifty feet stone platform overlooking the little village spread on its either side. The seven storeyed tower-like fort-palace has an old-world grandeur. It is just 60 feet high and is built in typical hill architecture in which only wood and stone are used. The woodcarvings are decorative. 

Karsog Valley:

Karsog

Karsog is as old as time, the name itself comes from the words ‘kar’ and ‘shok’ meaning ‘daily mourning’. The myth from the Mahabharata goes that the village was terrorized by a rakshasa who ate a villager every day causing for daily mourning. But during the exile of the Pandavas, Bhima saved the village from the rakshasa by offering himself

Karsog is mainly known for its heritage temples standing with its unqiue architecture .In Karsog you can visit Kamakhya Devi Temple,Shri Mamleshwar Mahadev Temple, Drum of Pandvas, and Shikari Devi Temple

Mahu Nag Temple Karsog – Devoted to Lord Karna

Karsog in the subdivision of Mandi is a small town bordering Shimla. The place can be easily reached from Shimla by road and taking a stop over at Tattapani can calm a long journey.

Karsog with its splendid beauty and spiritual calm looks like the natural home of gods. The crisscrossed steps of apple and peach orchards that surround the entire valley makes the whole landscape look very charismatic. The town is also one of the most picturesque locations of Himachal. Temples like Mahaleshwara Mahadev, Kamaksha Mata, Churag, and Mahunag make an interesting outing to the place but the most visited and talked out attraction around Karog is the village of Chindi, which has tourists across the country and throughout the year. The best time to come here is between April and July as summers here are mostly mild and winters have sunny afternoons with colder nights. People come here to relax and be away from the hustle and bustle of fast paced cities. Chindi not only has peaceful ambience but also is truly a nature lover’s treat.

Mahunag Temple is approximately 25km away from Karsog (located 100km from the state capital of Shimla, Karsog is a splendid bowl-shaped valley, placed amidst apple orchards) in Mandi district in Himachal Pradesh. Placed at an elevation of 1830m above sea level on the Shimla-Mandi Highway, the temple commands a brilliant view of the Karsog Valley on one side and the northern Himalayas on the other.

History

The Mahunag Temple is a medieval styled Pahari Temple, devoted to Lord Karna, (the legendary matchless warrior, son of Kunti and the Sun God) locally known as ‘Mahunag’.

According to legends, whenever the worshippers are in agony and they ask for Lord Karna’s help, He metamorphoses himself into a ‘mahu’ (bee) and hastens to their assistance. The faithful also believe that Lord Karna’s benedictions would help them decide on legal matters and family differences. Offerings to the deity are made in silver. The Mandi district records speak about the temple, which was constructed in 1664 by Raja Shyam Sen, who was a great devout of Lord Karna.

Sundays are considered auspicious for visiting the Mahunag Temple. A yearly fair is held here on Sankranti day. Tourist destinations in the vicinity include Mamaleshwar temple, Kamaksha Temple, Churag, Tattapani, Shikari Devi Temple and Sundernagar. Lodging facility is available within the temple premises, housing a PWD Guest House and a Forest Rest House. Mahunag Temple can be accessed by road from Chindi (18km). Joginder Railway Station is the nearest railhead.

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