Amarkantak

Amarkantak (NLK Amarakaṇṭaka) is a pilgrim town and a Nagar Panchayat in Anuppur, Madhya Pradesh, India. The Amarkantak region is a unique natural heritage area and is the meeting point of the Vindhya and the Satpura Ranges, with the Maikal Hills being the fulcrum. This is where the Narmada River, the Son River and Johilla River (tributary of Son) originate. 15th-century Indian mystic and poet Kabir is said to have meditated on Kabir Chabutra, located in the town of Amarkantak, and is also called the platform of Kabir. Amarakantaka is a combination of two Sanskrit words, amara (immortal) and kantaka (obstruction or thorn). The poet Kalidas has mentioned it as Amarakuta, which later became Amarakantaka. Amarkantak is located in the state of Madhya Pradesh in India at . It has an average elevation of . Roads running through Rewa, Shahdol, Anuppur, Jabalpur, Katni, Bilaspur and Gaurella connect it. The nearest railway stations are Pendra road and Anuppur. The nearest airport is Bilaspur Airport (120 km). Per the 2011 India census, Amarkantak has a population of 8,416 of which 4,514 are males and 3,902 are females. The female sex ratio is 864 against a state average of 931. Moreover, the child sex ratio in Amarkantak is around 931 compared to Madhya Pradesh's state average of 918. Literacy rate of Amarkantak city is 80.20%, higher than the state average of 69.32%. Male literacy is around 88.06% and the female literacy rate is 71.02%. 95.51% of the population follow Hinduism. Amarkantak is known as the king of pilgrimages, or Tirthraj, because the town has many temples and holy places. It is narrated in the Hindu scriptures like the Puranas that Amarkantak is the place where celestial beings, sages and others obtained spiritual powers. Ancient temples of Kalachuri period: The ancient temples of Kalachuri period (famously known as Trimukhi Temple) are in the south of Narmada Kund, just behind it. These were built by Kalachuri Maharaja Karnadeva (1041–1073 AD.