12 Dwadasa Jothirlinga Kritis
The Jyotirlinga shrines are places where Lord Shiva appeared as a fiery column of light. Originally, there were believed to be 64 Jyotirlingas, while 12 of them are considered to be auspicious and holy. Like the 108 Divya Desams of Lord Vishnu, there are 12 Dwadasha Kshetras of Lord Shiva.
The shrines and 12 Kritis by Dr. Rukmini Ramani are:
- Somnath of Gujarat – Deity: Somnathar – Ragam Pantuvarali – Talam Kantachapu
- Sri Mallikarjuna of Sri Sailam – Deity: Sri Mallikarjuna – Ragam Nattaikurinji – Talam Adi
- Sri Mahabaleshwar of Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh – Deity: Sri Mahakaleshwar – Ragam Kambhoji – Talam Adi
- Sri Omkareshwarar of Madhya Pradesh – Deity: Omkareshwarar – Ragam Kanada – Talam Misra chapu
- Sri Vaidyanathan of Jharkhand – Deity: Sri Vaidyanathan – Ragam Shankarabharanam – Talam Kanda chapu
- Sri Bhima Sankar of Maharashtra – Deity: Bhima Sankar – Ragam Saveri – Talam Misra chapu
- Sri Rameshwaram of Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu – Deity: Sri Ramanathan – Ragam Karaharapriya – Talam Misra Chapu
- Sri Naganathan of Maharashtra – Deity: Naganathan – Ragam Kalyani – Talam Misra chapu
- Sri Vishweswara of Uttar Pradesh – Deity: Sri Vishveswara – Ragam Varali – Talam Misra chapu
- Sri Triambakeshwara, Maharashtra – Deity: Triambakeshwara – Ragam Shanmuga Priya – Talam Misra Adi (tisra nadai)
- Sri Kedarnath of Uttarakhand – Deity: Sri Kedarnath – Ragam Bilahari – Tala Adi
- Sri Grishneshwarar of Maharashtra – Deity: Sri Grishneshwarar – Ragam Thodi – Talam Adi
The Dwadasa Jyotirlinga Kritis mention the names of deities, names of consorts, names of Kshetra, and the significance of places of worship. The Kritis highlight salvation from births and surrender to the Lord. The seventh kriti is similar to Bhaja Govindam written by Adi Shankara. There are cross-references to sages such as Siladhar, Gowthama Maharishi, and Agalya; they educate the readers to inculcate good attributes and attitudes. There are references to Chandra and Indra from whom people should learn ethics.