Hingol mud volcanoes#Chandragup
{{Short description|Naturally occurring mud volcanoes in South-Western Pakistan}}
{{Use Pakistani English|date=October 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{{Infobox Mandir
| name = Baba Chandrakup
{{nq|چندرگپ बाबा चंड्रकुप}}
| image = File:Chandragup mud volcano.jpg
| alt =
| caption = Baba Chandrakup
{{nq|बाबा चंड्रकुप}}
| map_type = Pakistan
| map_caption = Location within Pakistan's Balochistan province.
| map_size = 250
| coordinates = {{coord|25|26|43|N|65|51|56|E|type:mountain_region:PK|display=inline,title}}
| country = Pakistan {{flagicon|Pakistan}}
| state = Balochistan
| district = Lasbela District
| locale = Hinglaj
| elevation_m =100
| deity = Baba Chandrakup (Lord Shiva)
| festivals = Four Day Theerth Yatra in April(Hinglaj Yatra)
| architecture =
| inscriptions =
| established =
| creator =
| website = {{URL|http://www.hinglajmata.com/}}
}}
The Hingol mud volcanoes (Hindi: बाबा चंड्रकुप, {{Langx |bal| ھنگول ئےِ خاک شان}}; {{Langx|sd| बाबा चंदरकुप}}; {{Langx|ur|{{nq|ہنگول مٹی کے آتش فشاں}}}}) are located in Lasbela District, Balochistan, Pakistan at a distance of around 100 km from Uthal, which is the headquarter of District Lasbela. The mud volcanoes are located in Hingol National Park which is the largest national park in Pakistan.{{cite web |title=Pakistan's Most Wild and Beautiful Places |date=5 April 2018 |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/destinations/asia/pakistan/beautiful-natural-wonders/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180406025431/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/destinations/asia/pakistan/beautiful-natural-wonders/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 6, 2018 |publisher=National Geographic |access-date=22 August 2018}} It contains about ten clusters of mud volcanoes, the most important of which are Chandragup and Khandewari volcanoes.{{cite web |title=Hingol Cultural Landscape |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/6109/ |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}}
These are not located on the main road about a kilometer off the Makran Coastal Highway leading from Lasbela to Gwadar; the locals may provide guidance to the exact location. A landmark is a SSGC installation. The site is a complex of three major mud volcanoes and a number of smaller ones.
The three mud volcanoes of the location are named as Chandragup1, Chandragup2 and Chandragup3.{{cite book|title=Tsunamis and Earthquakes in Coastal Environments: Significance and Restoration|first1=V.|last1=Santiago-Fandino|first2=H.|last2=Tanaka|first3=M.|last3=Spiske|date=14 April 2016|publisher=Springer|isbn=9783319285283}} One of which is a 300-foot-high mud volcano. It is a sacred annual pilgrimage site for Hindus, along with the close by Hinglaj Mata mandir.{{cite news |last1=Xafar |first1=Ali |title=Mata Hinglaj Yatra: To Hingol, a pilgrimage to reincarnation |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/1088366/mata-hinglaj-yatra-to-hingol-a-pilgrimage-to-reincarnation/ |work=Express Tribune |date=20 April 2016}}{{cite news |last1=Mulki |first1=Muhammad Adil |title=Footprints in the mud |url=https://tribune.com.pk/story/509497/footprints-in-the-mud/ |work=Express Tribune |date=24 February 2013}} Also known as Chandrakup, the volcano is considered holy by Hindus and is an important stop for pilgrims on their way to the Hinglaj Mata temple.[http://pakistaniat.com/2007/03/02/mud-volcanoes-volcano-balochistan-baluchistan-hingol-offroad-makran-pasni-hinglaj/ Mud Volcanoes of Balochistan] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120915060357/http://pakistaniat.com/2007/03/02/mud-volcanoes-volcano-balochistan-baluchistan-hingol-offroad-makran-pasni-hinglaj/ |date=2012-09-15 }}, Owais Mughal, 2 March 2007, All Things Pakistan, Accessed: 25 September 2012, ... Very close to Chandargup is an ancient Hindu temple called ‘Hinglaj temple’ or ‘Nani Temple’. There are many pronunciations of the word Chandragup in practise. Due to close proximity a Hindu temple to these volcanoes, it is very likely that the word Chandargup is actually derived from the word ‘Chandargupt’. Another word which locally mentions this group of volcanoes is ‘Chandra coop’ which means Volcanoes of the Moon ... The Hindus worship these mud volcanoes as the habitation of a deity Babhaknath ... Devotees throw coconuts into the craters to make wishes and thank the gods for answering their prayers.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/2019/01/muslim-majority-country-hindu-goddess-lives-pakistan-pictures/#/18_hindu_pilgrimage_mmi8851_180405_2272.jpg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110220434/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/2019/01/muslim-majority-country-hindu-goddess-lives-pakistan-pictures/#/18_hindu_pilgrimage_mmi8851_180405_2272.jpg|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 10, 2019|title = Hindu Pilgrimage in Pakistan| website=National Geographic Society |date = 10 January 2019}}
Chandragup
Chandragup is an active mud volcano located in Hingol National Park in Balochistan, Pakistan.[https://books.google.com/books?id=hXKKr5O2C1wC Muddy Coasts of the World: Processes, Deposits, and Function], pp. 149, Gulf Professional Publishing, 2002, {{ISBN|9780444510198}}, ... The Las Bela Coastal Plain in Baluchistan is also renowned for the occurrence of mud volcanoes (Snead 1964). The largest one of these, the Chandragup, forms an almost perfect cone 58 m high ... Also known as Chandrakup, the volcano is considered holy by Hindus and is an important stop for pilgrims on their way to the shrine of Shri Hinglaj Mata temple.
The Chandragup mud volcano is worshipped as an embodiment
of the Hindu god Shiva, and called Baba Chandragup.{{Cite web |date=2024-04-25 |title=Sacred Significance Of Chandragup Mud Volcano In Pakistan For Hindus |url=https://www.timesnownews.com/spiritual/sacred-significance-of-chandragup-mud-volcano-in-pakistan-for-hindus-article-109592592 |access-date=2024-11-02 |website=Times Now |language=en}} Pilgrims to the volcano believe that the Shri Hinglaj Mata temple may only be entered only after paying homage to Baba Chandrakup. Traditionally, the pilgrim stays awake all night, fasting and meditating on the sins they will confess at the rim the following day. They bake roti made out of ingredients contributed by all the yātrīs.{{Clarify|reason=|date=September 2020}} On the next day they ascend the slope of Chandrakup, and the roṭi is served as an offering to Baba Chandrakup. Nowadays, coconuts, betel nut and dal are also offered. At the volcano's peak, the pilgrims must introduce themselves with their full name and place of origin and then call out their sins in front of the group. According to the bubbling of the mud and the reaction of the wind, the chaṛīdār is able to tell if the pilgrim's sins are forgiven.{{Cite book |last=Schaflechner |first=Jürgen |url=http://40.114.28.106/PDF/5322-pdf-VNV/p2/9780190850531.PDF |title=Hinglaj Devi: Identity, Change, and Solidification at a Hindu Temple in Pakistan |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2018 |isbn=9780190850524 |pages=200 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191112060500/http://40.114.28.106/PDF/5322-pdf-VNV/p2/9780190850531.PDF |archive-date=12 November 2019}}
Devotees throw coconuts into the craters to make wishes and thank the gods for answering their prayers.{{Cite web|url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/2019/01/muslim-majority-country-hindu-goddess-lives-pakistan-pictures/#/18_hindu_pilgrimage_mmi8851_180405_2272.jpg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110220434/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/2019/01/muslim-majority-country-hindu-goddess-lives-pakistan-pictures/#/18_hindu_pilgrimage_mmi8851_180405_2272.jpg|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 10, 2019|title = Hindu Pilgrimage in Pakistan| website=National Geographic Society |date = 10 January 2019}}
Gallery
File:Chandragup_I_Mud_Volcano.jpg|The view of Chandragup I mud volcano
Image:HangolMudvolcano.JPG|Mud Volcano 1
Image:HangolMudvolcano2.JPG|Mud Volcano 2
Image:HangolMudvolcano3.JPG|Mud Volcano 3
See also
{{Protected areas of Pakistan}}