Sapta Puri – Seven Holy Cities in Hinduism - Sapta Moksha Puris In India

Sapta Puri is the name given to the seven sacred cities associated with Hinduism in India. These seven holy cities are also referred as Sapta Moksha Puris and Seven Tirthas. The general belief is that by visiting these cities one escapes from endless cycle of births and deaths and attains ‘moksha.’ Sapta Puri is therefore also referred along with Char Dhams as ‘moksha dayika.’

Sapta Puri Names

The sacred cities in the Sapta Puri are

1. Kashi
2. Kanchipuram
3. Haridwar
4. Ayodhya
5. Ujjain
6. Mathura
7. Dwarka

Sapta Puri Shloka

There is also a Sanskrit shloka referring to the seven great tirthas.

‘Kashi, Kanchi, Maya, Ayodhya, Avantika
Mathura, Dwaravati chaiva saptaita mokshadayika’

Kashi is also known as Varanasi and is located in Uttar Pradesh. 
Kanchipuram is in Tamil Nadu. 
Haridwar is also known as Mayapuri and is in Uttarakhand. 
Ujjain is also known as Avantika and is in Madhya Pradesh. 
Dwarka is also referred as Dwaravati and is in Gujarat. 
Ayodhya and Mathura are in Uttar Pradesh.

• Kashi is associated with Lord Shiva and is the city of lights and is on the banks of Ganga.
• Kanchipuram is the Golden city of Temples. It is believed that Brahma worshipped Vishnu here.
• Haridwar is the gateway to Hari or Lord Vishnu. It is also known as Ganga dwara as the River Ganga enters the plain here.
• Ayodhya is the birth place of Lord Ram
• Ujjain is the place where Lord Shiva killed Demon Tripura.
• Mathura is synonymous with Lord Krishna.
• Dwarka is the city associated with Lord Krishna.

You may also like to read

Char Dham of Vishnu – The Four Most Sacred Places of Associated with Lord Vishnu