Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday led ‘Shaurya Yatra’, a ceremonial procession organised to honour those who sacrificed their lives defending the Somnath temple in Gujarat’s Gir Somnath district.
Ahead of the yatra, 108 horses of the Gujarat Police Mounted Unit, comprising locally bred Kathiawadi and Marwadi breeds, arrived to participate in the event that forms a part of the ongoing Somnath Swabhiman Parv.
To be held from January 8 to January 11, 2026, the parv marks the 1,000th anniversary of Mahmud of Ghazni's first attack on the Somnath Temple in 1026. Despite being repeatedly attacked and built over centuries, Somnath never ceased to exist in the collective consciousness of the people.
As part of the one-kilometre-long ‘Shaurya Yatra’, the Prime Minister stood in an open vehicle decorated with flowers, and was accompanied by Gujarat Chief Minister, Bhupendra Patel, and Deputy Chief Minister, Harsh Sanghavi. During the procession, the PM also played the conch and acknowledged the greetings of the gathered crowd.
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Sanjay Brahmbhatt of Brahmarshi Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya in Gujarat’s Kheda said that approximately 350 students from the institution participated in the Shaurya Yatra. “We have come from Nadiad in Kheda district. We are from Brahmarshi Sanskrit Mahavidyalaya, and Dahyabhai Shastri is with us, along with all his students. Around 350 students have come here, and all of us have taken part in the Shaurya Yatra. Our children will play the conch (shankh) and damru, and we will lead the procession ahead of the horses,” he said.
The Prime Minister was to next offer prayers at the Somnath temple and take part in a public function marking the Somnath Swabhiman Parv.
“Despite multiple repeated attempts for its destruction over centuries, the Somnath temple stands today as a powerful symbol of resilience, faith and national pride, owing to the collective resolve and efforts to restore it to its ancient glory,” the PIB said in a statement.
On Diwali day, November 12, 1947, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel visited the ruins of Somnath and expressed his resolve to rebuild the temple, viewing its restoration as essential to reviving India’s cultural confidence. The reconstruction, carried out with public participation, culminated in the consecration of the present temple on May 11, 1951, in the presence of then-President Rajendra Prasad.
Revered as the first among the 12 Aadi Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva, the Somnath Temple complex stands majestically along the Arabian Sea, crowned by a 150-foot shikhar, symbolising enduring faith and national resolve.
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