Category Archives: Himalayas

Kedarnath

Kedarnath is on the bank of the Mandakini River between Gangotri and Badrinath. As the bird flies, Kedarnath is just 42km from Badrinath thru sky but far apart through road and walk. Over 100,000 pilgrims come here each year. It is believed that Sankaracharya passed away here about 820 AD. Kedareshwar Shiva is the presiding deity. Behind the Kedarnath temple is an impressive mountain range, with the beautiful Kedarnath Mountain (6,970m).

Kedarnath Temple
This Lord Shiva temple at Kedarnath is said to have been built by the Pandavas to atone for their sins procured during the Kurukshetra war. It is believed that this temple was originally constructed by the Pandavas, and the present temple was reconstructed by Sankaracharya in the 8th century. One of the 12 Shiva-Jyotirlingas is in this temple. The temple is dedicated to Lord Sada Shiva and is considered to be one of the major Shiva temples in India. The temple is situated at the end of a lane, which is surrounded by small hotels and restaurants. Along the lane is a barely decorated doorway amidst all the other shacks that shows the place where Sankaracharya once stayed while visiting this temple. They will not let you into the room itself but you can look in through the window. Inside are a few items and prints of Sankaracharya

. Kedarnath Temple

Inside the temple there is an irregular, three-faced linga, representing the hump of Lord Shiva when he took the form of a bull. It is about 3m (9 ft) long, 1m (3 ft) wide, and 1.3m (4 ft) high. Pilgrims are allowed to touch the linga, perform worship, abhishek (bathe), and massage the linga with ghee. There are deities of goddess Parvati and Ganesh in front of the main altar door. Outside the second door are Lord Krishna, the five Pandavas, their wife, Draupadi, and their mother, Kunti. In the temple is a Lakshmi-Narayana Deity, which was installed by Adi Sankaracharya. The temple faces south, which is a unique feature, as most temples face east. This temple is very solidly built.

Time
The temple opens the first week of May and closes either the last week of October- or the first week of November. May/June is the busiest time of the year. Worship is continued in the village of Okhimath in the winter by the priest from the Kedarnath Temple. The waiting time to enter the temple in the afternoon is about 15 minutes, otherwise if you go at 7 am the waiting time may be two hours or more. The main pujas are at 6 am and 6 pm.

Temple Story
After the Battle of Kuruksetra, the Pandavas went to see Lord Shiva in Kasi to atone for killing so many of their kinsmen in battle. When Lord Shiva learned that the Pandavas were coming, he fled and playfully hid from them. The Pandavas discovered Shiva in the Himalayas, in a place called Gupta Kasi (“Hidden Kasi”), where he had disguised himself as a brahmana. Having been found out, Lord Shiva ran away to a valley and disguised himself as a bull, but Bhima recognized him. Bhima stretched his big legs from one end of the valley to the other and caught the bull by its tail. Lord Shiva, still trying to hide, began to bury himself in the ground. But the determination of the Pandavas won him over, and before the bull’s hump had disappeared, he decided to give them his audience.

Lord Shiva instructed the Pandavas to worship the hump of the bull, and this worship is still going on in the temple they established. Other parts of Lord Shiva’s body appeared in other mountains, and the Pandavas also built temples there. They are known as Panch Kedars (five Kedars): (1) Kedarnath—hump, (2) Tuganath—arm, (3) Rudranath—face, (4) Kalpeshwar—hair, and (5) Madhyamaheswar—navel.

Temple Story

Haridwar

Haridwar had many other names like Haradwar,Gangadwar and Svarga dvar. Haradwar indicates that it is the gate from where one can go to Shiva’s places. Haridwar indicates the gate from where one goes to Lord Vishnu’s abode i.e., Badrinath. The name Gangadwar indicates that it is the gate from where one reaches Gomukh or Gangotri. The name Svargadvar indicates that it is the gate where the Pandavas left for Svargaloka and then to Vaikuntha loka.
Haridwar is on the west bank of the Ganges, at the foot of the Himalaya Mountains. This is one of the seven main holy cities in India. Haridwar is about 225km northeast of Delhi.

Significance
It is also called Mayapuri Kshetra in the puranas . It is also called Kapilasthan, because it is said Kapiladeva performed penance here.

This is where Vidura was instructed by Maitreya.

The great sacrifice of Daksha Prajapati took place near here, where Sati burned herself alive.

Nearby at Sapta Sarovara, the Ganges splits into seven streams to please the seven Rishis doing austerities there.

The river is fed icy melting glaciers and snow peaks. A barrage just north of Haridwar splits the Ganges. The water that flows next to the city of Haridwar is actually a fast-moving, big canal. The main natural rivulet of the Ganges, called Neel Dhara, flows about a half-km east of the city.

Kumbha Mela
Haridwar is one of the four places where the kumbha mela is held, during which sadhus from all over India come. This takes every 12 years. The other places where Kumbha–mela takes place are Allahabad (Prayag), Nasik, and Ujjain. It is said that some of the nectar from the kumbha carried by Jayanta (the son of Indra) fell at this place. The main bathing place is Har Ki Pauri

Important places

Hari ki Pauri Ghat (Brahma Kund)
This is located at the exact spot where the Ganges leaves the mountains and reaches the plains and is considered a very holy place.

The name Hari-ki-Pauri means “the feet of Hari (Lord Vishnu).” The footprints of Vishnu are imprinted on the wall underneath the water at this ghat. You need to ask the priest to be able to touch it.

Haridwar

This Ghat is also called Brahma Kund because it is said that Raja Shveta performed austerities here and received blessings from Brahma. Kumbha-mela is held here where the nectar fell. There are temples here dedicated to the goddess Ganga and Haricharan.

Every night at about 6 pm there is an arati to the sacred Ganges.

Before starting their “Char Dham yatra in himalayas,” pilgrims are supposed to come and bathe at this ghat. One hundred thousand people can bathe here at one time. There are chains and rails that enable people to bathe safely, as the Ganges flows very swiftly at this spot.

Auspicious Bathing Dates
Hundreds of thousands of people come to bathe at this ghat on the first day of Vaisakha in April/May, when the Hindu solar year begins. On Ganga-dasera, at the beginning of the rainy season, the Ganges is said to have come down from the heavens. Other important bathing days are on Purnimas (full moon days, especially Kartika Purnima), Ekadasis, Amavasyas (new moon days), Sankrantis (when the sun enters the next zodiac sign), and solar and lunar eclipses.

The ashes of the dead are supposed to be cast into the Ganges at the southern part of the ghat.

Other Ghats
South of Hari-ki-Pauri, there is an interesting area to walk which is lined with bathing ghats.

Kushavarta Ghat,
about half a km south of Hari-ki-Pauri is said to be the place where Dattatreya did penance by standing on one foot for a thousand years. Lord Vishnu is said to have bathed at Vishnu Ghat.

Mansa Devi Temple
This temple is situated on Vilwa Parvat, the hill above the city. Mansa Devi is a form of Shakti Durga. It is said to be the place where the heart and navel of goddess Sati had fallen.

There is a cable car that goes to the top of the hill, which you board close to Ratan Cinema, just off the main road. From the top of the hill you get a bird’s eye view of Haridwar, the Ganga valley, and the Himalayan peaks, Open 8 am to noon and 2 to 5 pm. It takes about a half-hour to walk up the hill.

Haridwar

Other Places in Haridwar

Bhimgoda Kund is said to have been created by Bhima, one of the Pandava brothers from the Mahabharata, by a blow of his knee. It is about half a km upstream from Hari-ki-Pauri Ghat, just off the road on the way to Sapta Rishi Ashram.

Bhimgoda Kund

About half a km further north is Sapta Rishi Ashram. It is about 6km north of Haridwar, on the banks of the Ganges. At this place, the Ganges is said to have divided to avoid displeasing the seven rishis (yogis) meditating there.

Sapta Rishi Ashram

The Pareshwar Mahadev Temple is four km south of Haridwar. The Siva-linga in the temple is said to be made of mercury.  

Nearby Places 

Kankhal
Kankhal is said to have been the capital of Prajapati  Daksha. It is about 4 km south of the Haridwar railway station. To explain the story in brief, Sati's father Daksha, son of Brahma, did not like Sati's husband, Shiva. So when Daksha had his huge Yajna ritual, he did not want Shiva to be there. When Daksha had entered the arena, all sages stood in respect except Brahma and  Shiva, which offended Daksha. So Daksha cursed Shiva to not partake in the rituals. Thereafter, Daksha and Shiva both left the arena

. Kankhal

Afterwards, Daksha did not invite Shiva to the next Yajna ritual, but Sati still wanted to go, even against the advice of Shiva. After arriving, she underwent insults by her father, Dak­sha, toward her because of being married to Shiva. So she self-immolated herself in fire. After Shiva heard about this, he became extremely angry and cre­ated a huge black demon, Virabhadra, and sent alongwith him his followers to fight and destroy Daksha's ritual. This Virabhadra finally cut off Daksha's head and threw it into the fire. When Shiva came and gathered Sati's body, he was grief stricken and carried her body wherever he went. To relieve Shiva's grief, Lord Vishnu cut Sati's body into pieces with His chakra and wherever they dropped became Shakti-piths, or places of power where people go to worship Shakti, or Durga. The Daksha Mahadeva Mandir is said to mark the place where the fire of Daksha's Vedic ritual was located.

The Dakseswara Mahadeva Siva Temple (also called Daksha Prajapati Temple) is said to have been built in commemoration of Lord Siva coming to this place to help Sati.

The little pit in the Daksha Mahadeva Mandir is said to be where Daksha had his original sacrificial fire. Next to this temple on the bank of the Ganges is Daksha Ghat.

Sati Kund on Kankhal Jwalapur Road is said to mark the spot where Sati actually burnt herself.

Haridwar

Ganges Descent From The Spiritual World

In the Vamana Avatar Lila, Lord Vamana breaks open a hole in the covering of the universe. The Viraja which encircle the material world enters in the universe and the sacred Ganges because it touched the Lotus feet of the Lord Vamana.

The reason why King Bhagiratha desired that the Ganga descend to earth was to purify the remains of the 60,000 sons of his great grandfather, King Sagar. During Satya-yuga, King Sagar  performed an ashvamedha yajna (a sacred horse ritual). This made the demigod Indra fearful that King Sagar may become more powerful than he. So Indra stole the horse and left it at the residence of Lord Kapila. King Sagar’s 60,000 sons went to look for the horse and thought Kapiladeva stole it when they found it at his ashrama. Kapiladeva had been in deep meditation and when he was disturbed, he burned the 60,000 sons by the power of his glance. Only Asamanjas survived and went back to tell King Sagar what happened. Then the king’s grandson, Asuman, returned to Kapiladeva and requested him to release the horse, which he did and explained that the king’s sons could be saved if, their remains could be bathed in the waters of the Ganga River. But in order to happen, Ganga Devi would have to descend from heaven to earth.

Ganges Descent From The Spiritual World

So King Bhagiratha pleased Ganga Devi to descend, but she explained that the force of her water descending from the heavenly region would destroy the earth. Therefore, King Bhagiratha pleased Lord Shiva to accept the powerful force of Mother Ganges the river on his head. Thus, the Ganges descended to earth, landing on the head of the powerful Lord Shiva, and then followed King Bhagiratha who cut a deep gorge in the earth with his chariot. This gorge went all the way to the Bay of Bengal at Ganga Sagar, the island where Lord Kapiladeva resided. There, the Ganges purified the remains of the 60,000 sons of King Sagar so they could return to the spiritual world. Now, because of King Bhagiratha, so many other pilgrims can also take advantage of the holy Ganga, and visiting Gangotri is considered a most auspicious event

. Ganges Descent From The Spiritual World

GAUMUKH:

This glacier is the actual source of the Ganges. Gaumukh means “cow’s face,” which the glacier is supposed to look like. However, because of the constant melting of the glacier, the shape is also always changing. It is a 100m (328 ft) high wall of gray snow. It is 30km (18.85 miles) long and two to four km wide. Years ago the glacier is said to have reached all the way down to Gangotri.

The best time to visit is between June to September. Before June and after the second week of October there is too much ice and snow on the path to be able to reach it. There is a rocky path, marked white on one side. It is 19km (some say 23km) northeast of Gangotri. Mount Shivling, 6,543m (21,470 ft), towers above the source of the Ganges. The water of the Bhagirathi gushes out from the glacier with great force and cuts a fantastic gorge out of the mountains. The climb is difficult at places.

Ganges Descent From The Spiritual World

Getting there :

It is 18 kilometers (though some now say 23) east from Gangotri to Gaumukh, the source of the Bhagirathi River. To reach Gaumukh you start climbing the stairway up the hill by the Ganga Devi temple that leads you to the path. As you start out along the path through the trees, it is not too strenuous. It does not go too high or too low. You will first see Kanakgiri Ashrama, which is two kilometers from Gangotri. The first refreshment stop is Bhojgaddi, which is four kilometers out. There are many bhoj trees in the area.

After 8 km you reach Chirbasa, at a height of 3606 meters which is basically a few tea shops and some tents with mattresses for staying overnight. From here the path leads to mountain desert. Just pass Chirbasa, where the cliff faces has deteriorated; there have been quite a number of accidents, so you have to be really careful at this point.

Most people stay the night in Bhojbasa, at a height of 3792 meters above sea level ,where there is no electricity. If you plan, to cross the glacier, you can get a guide here. From Bhojbasa it is a good 5km track to Gaumukh (2 hr). The path is marked by stones, but it is not clear-cut. Usually people take one day to reach Bhojbasa. The next day they go from Bhojbasa to Gaumukh and then return to Bhojbasa the same day. Then the next day they return to Gangotri. Most people spend a day or two in Gangotri in order to get used to the altitude before making this trek. Past Gaumukh is Tapovan

. Ganges Descent From The Spiritual World

Warning
There are many cases where people who did not stay in Gangotri to acclimatize and got very sick. There may also be a problem if you make the trip too quickly.

Practicalities
There is no place to stay in Gaumukh, but you can camp out there if you have proper equipment. There are tea stalls where you can get basic food. Five km from Gaumukh, at Bhojbasa, there is a Tourist Bungalow with four rooms, dorm beds, and two-person tents. It has a basic restaurant and hot water in a bucket for some rupee. There is also the Bhojbasa Ashram of Lal Baba, who provides free food and lodging for pilgrims. This is basically floor space. You should bring a warm sleeping bag, a torch (flashlight), and good shoes or boots.

Tapovan
Tapovan is a natural Sivalinga peak that rises 6,554 metres. It is called Tapovan because sadhus have performed penance there to realize the Absolute Truth. If you want to go there, you should have a guide, a good tent, Food, a warm sleeping bag, and warm winter clothes. To get there without a guide can be dangerous, as there can be huge holes in the glacier totally hidden by snow. But there are some people who have gone there without a guide, with no problem, except the fear of getting lost. Because of the decreased amount of oxygen in the air, one should also take it easy.

Tapovan is 4460 meters in elevation. It is a lovely meadow with natural blooming flowers. The side of the meadow has the stream called the Akash Ganga, which fades into Gaumukh. The famous Mount Sumeru is several more kilometers from Tapovan, which reaches a height of 6660 meters. On the other side of Tapovan are Nandanvan, Rakvan, and Sundarvan which can be seen. One can reach Kalandi through Nandanvan and from Kalandi one can reach Badrinath if taking the path through the mountains. Only well-equipped mountaineers usually go past Tapovan.

Tapovan is four hours past Gaumukh (5km). There is a sadhu who host visitors in his cave at Tapovan, but you should definitely bring your own food.

The Tapovan trek takes four days. Day1 Gangotri to Bhojbasa 14km Day 2 Bhojbasa to Tapovan 10km Day 3 Tapovan to Bhojbasa 10km Day 4 Bhojbasa to Gangotri 14km