Negheriting Shiva Doul

Perched atop a verdant green hillock in Dergaon within Assam's Golaghat district, Negheriting Shiva Doul is a masterwork of royal Ahom temple architecture. Originally constructed between 1765 and 1769 CE under the patronage of Ahom King Rajeswar Singha, the temple is renowned for its classical Panchayatana layout, where the central towering Shiva temple is harmoniously encircled by four peripheral subsidiary shrines dedicated to Lord Vishnu, Lord Ganesha, Lord Surya, and Goddess Durga. Perched at an altitude of approximately thirty meters, the complex is accessed by climbing a dramatic flight of stone stairs that affords breathtaking panoramic vistas over surrounding manicured tea estates and rolling pastoral landscapes. The central sanctum enshrines a self-manifested stone Banalinga, continually venerated through traditional Vedic rituals. A delightful hallmark of Negheriting is its resident colony of sacred rhesus macaques that live peacefully within the temple groves, playfully greeting visiting pilgrims. Devotees gather here in vast numbers during Maha Shivratri, bathing the five lingams in cow milk, bilva leaves, and sacred river water amidst festive chanting and conch blowing.