Kedarnath Dham

Kedarnath is one of the most sacred pilgrimages of Lord Shiva located in the Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand. Perched at an altitude of 3586 mt, it is one of the four major sites of Chota Char Dham Yatra and also one of the five Panch Kedar. The Kedarnath Temple lies amidst the magnificent snow-capped Garhwal Himalayan ranges and is visited by thousands of tourists every year. The temple was built over a thousand years ago by massive stone slabs over a large rectangular platform. The present temple was built by Adi Shankaracharya. It is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva. In Kedarnath, there are more than 200 shrines dedicated to Lord Shiva.

Kedarnath is a holy Hindu town and the greatest blessed pilgrimages of Lord Shiva which is situated in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand in India. It is one of the Char Dhams situated in the Himalayas and one amongst the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva in India and has its importance since the epic Mahabharata. Kedarnath is the most remote location between all the Char Dhams. It is situated at an altitude of 3583 metre above the sea level on the shore of River Mandakini near the Chorabari glacier. It is the location where the devotees come to search for the blessings of Lord Shiva. The Kedarnath temple lies between the magnificent snow - covered Garhwal Himalayan ranges which are also called the Abode of the Gods. Even the river Ganges takes its origin in this isolated massif, at the holy shrine of Gangotri, and rushes down to the plains in a severe energy. The major attraction of this dham is the main Shiva temple which is located in the centre of picturesque landscape. This temple is devoted to Lord Shiva who is considered the incarnation of all passions - hatred, love, fear, death and mysticism which are indicated via his different forms. Kedarnath not only has a huge importance in the Hindu Religion but it also has few mythologies related to it. Its ancient name is Kedar Khand and there is an interesting story hidden behind its new name. There is a tale of the past that says that once all the Gods worshipped Lord Shiva to save themselves from demons and Lord Shiva appeared, disguised as a bull and this avatar of Lord Shiva is said to be the Kodarum. Lord Shiva destroyed the demons and threw them into the Mandakini river with his horns and hooves. And thus the name Kedarnath is derived from the name Kodarum. In mythology it is said that Nar and Narayan who were the two personifications of Lord Vishnu performed a severe act of austerity in the Badrikashram of Bharat Khand, they adore a Shivalingam which comes out of the Earth magnificently. This in turn impressed Lord Shiva who was then visible before Nar and Narayana and told them to seek for an award. Then Nar and Narayan requested Lord Shiva to permanently settle as a Jyotirlingam at Kedarnath, so that the people who come to adore Lord Shiva won’t be obligated to their suffering in life anymore and thus Kedarnath became the abode of Lord Shiva. The Shiva Lingam of the Kedarnath Temple is a triangle shaped and is different from all the Shiva temples. The Shiva Lingam is arranged in the sanctum sanctorum popularly known as Garbha Griha of the temple. The Kedarnath temple houses statues of Parvati, Lord Krishna, five Pandavas and their wife Draupadi, Veerabhadra and other Gods and Goddesses along with the vehicle Nandi of Lord Shiva. The name of this temple also has a strong meaning like Kedar means powerful which is one more name of Lord Shiva who is the protector and destroyer. There are different stories on the source of the Kedarnath Temple. There are claims that the temple was rejuvenated and formed by the great Hindu seer Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century while others claim that it was formed by the Hindu King Raja Bhoj of Malwa in the 2nd century AD. The Kedarnath Dham is also related to the great Hindu epic Mahabharata and this is where the legend of Panch Kedar comes in which states that when the Pandavas came to find the blessings of Lord Shiva to release themselves from the guilt of killing their cousins. Then Lord Shiva impersonated himself as a humped buffalo and hid himself with other animals at Kashi, then called Guptkashi. The Pandavas ultimately managed to recognize Lord Shiva who was concealed below the ground with his hump in the ground and this surprised Lord Shiva then. But the bull again escaped and later materialised at 5 locations which came to be called Panch Kedar. The saga of Kedar temple states that Goddess Parvati worshipped Kedareshwar to combine with Shiva as Ardhanarishvara. It is also said that the Bhairo Nath Temple which is situated at a minimum distance from Kedarnath Temple is a protector of Kedarnathji Dham. It is a faith that Bhaironath Ji protects the Kedarnath Temple by keeping away from evil while the temple remains shut. Thus the Bhiaronath Temple is visited ceremoniously at the opening and closing of Kedarnath. The Kedarnath temple is about a 1000 years old temple which has been protecting the Himalayas and the people who visit it each year. It is said that in 2013 when the flood landed in Uttarakhand the whole town of Kedarnath was finished, but the temple was not damaged, as a large rock following the temple redirected the enormous flood water coming close to the temple. Kedarnath is one of the most significant pilgrimages of Lord Shiva but there are more than 200 temples devoted to Lord Shiva in the area itself. With all these religious beliefs snow - covered mountains, amazing atmosphere, and scenic landscapes makes Kedarnath trek even more fascinating and hence people visit in huge numbers every year. A visit to Kedarnath Dham is a delightful and superb refreshing experience. It is said when Lord Shiva is shifted from Kedarnath to Ukhimath Dham, the Shiva temple is submerged in snow for almost half a year 6 months. Where legends devote themselves to the feet of Baba Kedar even in the winter season, they worship him and do meditation. According to a sage, it is said that Lord Shiva is seen in different forms such as arms in Tungnath temple, stomach and navel in Madmaheshwar temple, face in Rudranath temple, and head in Kalpeshwar temple with his hair. It is believed that the Pandavas had built temples at all the five places and were freed of their sins. It is also believed that the first portion of the bull fell at Pashupatinath in Nepal. It is said that the Pandavas performed Yagna at Kedarnath before they left for Mahaprasthana. Unexpectedly, the Mahaprasthana started from Mana village near Badrinath. Kedarnath and other four temples are considered as Panch Kedar where Lord Shiva is devoted in all the Dhams. Kedarnath Dham is the only place where a huge number of pilgrims arrive from all regions of India. Kedarnath Dham and temple are encircled by mountains on the three sides. On the one side is Kedarnath, about 22,000 feet high, on the second side is 21,600 feet high cost and the other side is 22,700 feet high Bharatkund. Kedarnath temple is not just three mountains but also the junction of five rivers - Mandakini, Kshiranga, Madhiganga, Saraswati and Swarna Gauri. Some of these rivers did not survive anymore, but Alaknanda’s subordinate Mandakini is still present. For visiting Kedarnath temple, first you have to reach Guptkashi which is located 47 kilometres before the holy temple of Lord Shiva, Kedarnath after that Gaurikund is the ultimate destination that is attainable from major locations of Uttarakhand. Guptkashi is situated in the Northern Himalayan belt within the Mandakini river valley at an elevation of 4,327 feet. Guptkashi is a religiously significant town of Uttarakhand and there are several important ancient temples out of which the major temples are Vishwanath temple and Ardhnarishwar Temple. Guptkashi is majorly popular for its Vishwanath temple which is devoted to Lord Shiva and it is also similar to the one in Varanasi. Guptkashi has the picturesque backdrop of the snow - clad peaks of Chaukhambha. At a distance of 14 kilometres from Kedarnath and 4 kilometres from Sonprayg, Gaurikund is a Hindu pilgrimage region and base camp for trek to Kedarnath mandir. It is situated at an altitude of 6,500 feet above sea level. It is situated on the shores of river Mandakini and is fairly considered to be the entrance to devotion and salvation. Kund directly means a waterbody and Gaurikund has a hot water spring where the devotees generally have a bath before initiating the yatra. The hot spring no longer survives after the floods of 2013 but now there is a large enclosure where devotees can take a bath. Gaurikund is popularly called as Gauri Temple which is devoted to Goddess Parvati. According to a sage, it is said that Parvati meditated at Gaurikund for a long time to achieve Lord Shiva as her husband. Lastly Lord Shiva acknowledged his love for her and married her at Triyuginarayan, which is situated nearby. Gaurikund is also related with the legend of how Ganesha achieved his elephant head. Goddess Parvati had created a resemblance of Ganesha from the soap lather of her body and respired life into it. She located Ganesha at the gateway of her home as her gatekeeper to prevent anyone from entering while she was bathing. Now Lord Shiva happened to come back at this point of time and was stopped by Ganesha. The insulted Lord Shiva cut off the boy’s head. Parvati asserted that the boy be carried back to life and Shiva took the head of a rambling elephant and located it on Ganesha’s body and his wife was restored. Near the Gauri temple there is the Uma Maheshwar temple where Lord Shiva is adored in the form of a rock. You can even take a stop at Rudraprayag and Devprayag. The Rudraprayag is a region which obtained a high spot in Uttarakhand tourism. It is an ancient sacred town located at a distance of 34 kilometres from Srinagar in the Garhwal region. The sacred river presence of Mandakini and Alaknanda sparkles the location's significance because it is the confluence place of the river Mandakini and the river Alaknanda. From here, the river Alaknanda visits Devprayag and meets the river Bhagirathi and builds river Ganges. The popular temple Kedarnath Dham is approximately 86 kilometres away from Rudraprayag. It is one of the five sacred conjunctions in the hills which is known as Panch Prayag. It is believed that it acquired its name from the Sanskrit word Rudra which is one of the components of Hindu Lord Shiva. According to Hindu mythology, to master the riddles of music, sage Narad Muni did a harsh penance to pacify the Lord Shiva, who became apparent in his Rudra avatar to bless Narad Muni. So the Pandava dance, a dance form established on the dance and music of the Kaurava and Pandavas as represented in the epic Mahabharata, is very famous among locals in Rudraprayag. It is believed that after the Kurukshetra war, to regret the death of family, Pandavas visited this place to adore Lord Shiva. Even today, villagers here celebrate Pandav Leela in the remembrance of that visit. This is the town which is popular for revered temples and pure natural beauty and the presence of two distinct routes for Badrinath and Kedarnath. Devprayag is located at an elevation of 830 metres above sea level. Devprayag is the final Prayag or the sacred confluence of the Alaknanda river,from here that the confluence of Alaknanda and Bhagirathi river is called Ganga. The meaning of Devprayag is Godly confluence as Dev means God and Prayag means confluence. It is also said that the town is named after Dev sharma who is a sage and he led a life of penance here and succeeded in having a glance of God. The pretty and heavenly beauty of this town attracts a number of tourists here and it is also said that Lord Rama and King Dushratha did meditation here. If you want to go to the Kedarnath Dham and take full advantage of the journey then the best time to visit Kedarnath is during the summer months of April to June and September to October. You can enjoy the mild temperatures during these months. The temperature generally ranges from 15 to 20 degree celsius during the day but at the nightime the temperatures are significantly lower. You can easily reach there by any mode of transportation either by road, by rail or by air. If you are planning to travel by rail then the nearest railway stations are Haridwar and Rishikesh railway stations which are simply connected to the major cities of India. From the railway station either you can hire a local bus or private taxi to reach Sitapur which is the base camp for the trek. Or if you want to travel by road then there are many private buses, taxis and government taxis that run from Haridwar to Sitapur. The minimum distance from Haridwar to Sitapur is approximately 230 kilometres. If you are planning to travel by air then the nearest airport is Jolly Grant which is situated in Dehradun. From here you can hire any local vehicle to reach Sitapur. Sitapur is located at a minimum distance of 200 kilometres from Dehradun.