Dvaravati sila

A dvaravati shila (द्वारवती शिला) is a type of coral stone (shaligrama) obtained from the Gomti river in Dwarka in Gujarat, India. In ancient Sanskrit literature, Dvaraka was called Dvarawati and was listed as one of the seven prehistoric cities in the country. Thus, the Sila or the stone obtained at the mouth of the Gomati river is called the Dvaravati Sila and is used in worship. Dvaraka Silas are coral with chakra (wheel) markings and the chakra-mark is the most distinguishing feature of these stones, and hence they are called ‘chakrankita-sila’. Aniconic representation of God is by a symbol rather than an image. Indian art overwhelmingly prefers the iconic image, but some aniconism does occur in folk worship, in early Hinduism in the form of Vishnu's Saligrama Sila (murthi) (fossil stone), Dvaravati Sila (coral stone), Govardhana Sila (stone from the Govardhan hill), etc. They have solar significance, and their use in worship is very common among all sects of Vaishnavites of Hindu religion. The legendary city of Dvaraka in Hindu history was the dwelling place of Krishna. Dwarka or Dvaraka is derived from 'Dwar', a door, and in ancient times its flourishing port was considered to be the gateway to the main land. As 'Ka' means 'Brahma' meaning gateway to Moksha (salvation). It is also called Dwarkamati and Dwarkavati or Dvaravati. The famous Nageswar Jyotirlinga near Dwaraka is made of a large Dwaraka Sila. The Hindu scriptures prescribe that stones obtained from Dvaraka only for worship even though geologically it may be found in other places too. There are several schools of thought among the learned acharyas of the Vaishnava sect on the worship of this Sila. This Sila is worshipped, along with or independent of Sila (murthi) or Saligrama Sila, in some parts of the country (among Vaishnavites of Saurashtra, Bengal and Maharashtra; the Madhva sect in Karnataka), particularly in the Vaishnava tradition. It is worshipped along with the Sila| Saligrama Sila (stone) since scriptures consider it auspicious to do so.