Fascinating Facts about Dwarka City

Dwarka is a Hindu Pilgrimage city located in the state of Gujarat in India. Dwarka includes herself in the Char Dham Pilgrimage which is a highly sacred pilgrimage for Hindus and help them attain moksha. The other four cities, part of the Char Dham Pilgrimage include Badrinath, Puri and Rameshwaram. Dwarka is also one of the Sapta Puris. Sapta Puri means the seven holy cities of India, every Hindu must visit. The seven cities in Sapta Puri include Ayudhya, Mathura, Varanasi, Kanchipuram, Ujjain, Haridwar and Dwarka. Dwarka literally means 'gateway to heaven'. This city was build by Lord Krishna. It was considered to be his capital city. Lord Krishna along with the other Yadavas are said to have spent most of his time in Dwarka.

City of Dwarka

The Existence of Dwarka City

According to the Hindu Mythology, the city of Dwarka submerged in the Arabian Sea, not once but six times. The present city of Dwarka is considered to be the seventh such city built in the same area. The Marine Archaeology Unit of the National Institute of Oceanography has been engaged in the offshore excavation and exploration of the legendary Dwarka City since 1983. The boulders on which the city walls were erected, were found in this excavation which proved that the land indeed was reclaimed by the sea. Dwarka finds it's mention in various ancient texts, especially in Mahabharata. In Mahabharata, Dwarka has been mentioned as a well-fortified and prosperous city, which again proved it's existence.

Fascinating Facts About Dwarka City

1. It is believed that worshiping Lord Krishna in Dwarka can help you get rid of your sins and help you attain moksha.

2. Because it is believed that Lord Krishna lived in Dwarka as a Prince, the city of Dwarka worships him in the same mood. The idol of Krishna, also referred as the Dwarkadhish is dressed in extravagance.

3. The Dwarkadhish deity holds conch, club, disc and lotus flower in his four hands and each of these are covered in silver.

4. The compound of the Dwarkadhish Temple include many small shrines, namely Lakshmi Temple, Radhika Temple, Balarama Temple, Pradyumna Temple, Anirrudha Temple, Satyabhama Temple and Purshottama Vishnu Temple.

5. The present Dwarkadhish Temple was built in the sixteenth century.

6. The original temple of Dwarka was said to be built by Vajranabha, the grandson of Lord Krishna.

7. The temple of Dwarkadhish is built using soft limestone. The temple consists of a sanctum, vestibule and a big rectangular hall with porches on three sides.

8. The Dwarkadhish Temple has two entry points, known to be the Swarga Dwar or heaven gateways. There is one exit point for the pilgrims which is known as the Moksha Dwar.

9. The amazing discoveries and explorations by marine archaeologists over the four decades pointed to the fact that the remains of the city found over the years dated back to the Mahabharat Era.

10. Thousands of devotees and pilgrims from all over the world gather at the Dwarka City to celebrate Janmashtami in full swing every year.

Facts About The Holocaust

Derived from the words, 'Holos' which means whole and 'Kaustos' which means burned, The Holocaust is the term used for horrific series of events or to be more specific, as a Mass Murder that happened in Germany between 30th January 1933 to 8th May 1945. The Holocaust is an historical term which initially describes the sacrificial offering burned on an altar, but since 1945 is referred to the mass execution of more than six million European Jews, who were massacred by the German Nazi regime. The Nazi leader Adolf Hitler had always considered Jews to be inferior race. For him, the Jewish community was sort of an alien threat to the pure racist community of Germany. Hence throughout German occupied Poland, various mass killing centers under the pretext of concentration camps were constructed where in the Jews were killed on large numbers. The Holocaust was indeed considered to be the 'Final Solution' of Hitler and was kept hidden from the Allied Powers until the end of the war.

Source - Google

What were Concentration Camps

Concentration camps usually refers to camps that are built to detain prisoners. These camps endow harsh treatments and conditions on the confined people and work against the normal rules and regards for legal norms. During the German Nazi regime, these concentration camps formed the structural part of the control and leadership from the year 1933 to 1945. On these concentration camps which were constructed all over the German occupied Poland, atrocities and torture were imposed on the prisoners. One of the first concentration camp was constructed in Germany soon after Adolf Hitler was appointed as the Chancellor in January 1933.

Source - Google

The first regular concentration camp particularly meant for Political prisoners was Dachau, established by the German Coalition government of National Socialist Workers Party and the Nationalist People's Party. With the beginning of the Second World War, millions of ordinary people were confined in these concentration camps where they were tortured, starved and killed in the name of imprisonment. Life in concentration camps during the Holocaust was torturous and ugly.

What triggered The Holocaust

Germany was defeated in World War I. It faced humiliation by the Versailles Treaty which added to it's woe. The Versailles Treaty had a great impact on Germany as it not only reduced its existing power but also cutback it's armed forces. Germany also had to compensate the Allied Powers. The Worldwide Depression caused due to New York Stock Market Crash in 1929 further added to it's economic volatility. There was major unemployment and monetary unsteadiness.

Versailles Treaty
Source - Google

The leader of the National Socialist German Workers, Adolf Hitler was appointed as the Chancellor of Germany by President Paul Von Hindenburg on 30th January 1933. Adolf Hitler had been hostile and prejudiced when it came to Jews and inferior classes. He considered Jews to be an inferior race and an alien threat to German's pure race. The killings thus began in the names of the 'Final Solution' or The Holocaust. Killing centers in the form of concentration camps were constructed all over the German occupied Poland and thus began the mass murders of the European Jews. More than six million Jews were horribly killed with various attack types such as genocide, ethnic cleansing, gassing and burning alive. Building the concentration camps in Poland held logistic importance. Millions of Jews lived in most part of Poland before the war. This location of concentration camps also made it convenient for the Nazis to remove the German Jews from within Germany proper.

International Holocaust Remembrance Day

27th January is remembered as the International Holocaust Remembrance Day when thousands of people all over the world pay homage to the millions of Jews who perished in the Holocaust.

Facts About The Holocaust

1. Once Adolf Hitler came into power in Germany, the Holocaust began in the year 1933. It ended in the year 1945 only after the Allied powers defeated the Nazis.

2. Adolf Hitler made it a point to hide the Holocaust from the Allied powers and rest of the world.

3. More than six million Jews were killed in the Holocaust

4. Though Jews were the main target for Nazis, yet more than five million non-Jewish people were victim of the Holocaust.

5. These non-Jewish victims who were considered as inferior race included the Roma(gypsies), Blacks and mixed African-Germans

6. Half of the German Jews and more than two third of Austrian Jews fled Germany between 1933 to 1939. They seek refuge in United States, Latin America, Japan occupied Shanghai and elsewhere in Europe.

7. When the Second World War started, the Jewish were made to wear a yellow Star of David with the word 'Jude' written on it so that Nazis would identify them as Jewish.

8. Jewish people were used for performing medical experiments during the Holocaust.

9. In the Auschwitz concentration camp were given tattoos with numbers so the Germans could identify them.

10. Around two-third of Jewish population within Europe was destroyed by Nazis during the World War II.