Omkareshwar

Mandhata island sits in the Narmada where the river divides and rejoins, and its outline is traditionally read as forming the Devanagari character for Om, which is where the name comes from. The Omkareshwar temple on it is one of the twelve jyotirlingas, reached by a footbridge or by boat, with a second temple, Mamleshwar, on the south bank that some hold to share the same status. A parikrama path of about seven kilometres circles the island past ghats, small shrines and the eleventh-century Siddhanath temple. A dam upstream has raised water levels and altered the ghats.

What you actually see

• The island temple - the jyotirlinga shrine on Mandhata.
• The parikrama - a seven-kilometre circuit path around the island.
• Siddhanath temple - an eleventh-century shrine on the island.
• The confluence - the river dividing and rejoining around the island.

When to go

October to March; Shivratri and Kartik Purnima bring large crowds. Monsoon raises the river and can restrict boats and parts of the parikrama. Summer is hot.

Honest expectations

Queues for darshan run long at festivals. Priests and touts on the approach press hard for payments. Dam construction upstream has changed the river level and submerged some older steps.

Nearby

Maheshwar lies west; Indore is northeast.