KEDARNATH
General
Information :
Area: 3
Sq. Km
Altitude: 3581 M
Rainfall: 1475 MM
Climate : Winter - Sept.
to Nov. cold during the day & chilly at night. Dec.
to march snow bound. Summer - May - Aug. Cool during the
day & cold at night. Temp. Max. 17.9C & Min. 5.9
C
Best Season: May - October,
except Monsoon
Clothing : Light Woollens
in summer & Heavy Woollens in winter. 
Language : Hindi, English,
Garhwali.
At Yamunotri & Gangotri, the pilgrims are cleansed body
& soul and with having achieved purity in that sense,
pilgrims to Sri Kedarnath becomes most rewarding. It is
also customary to worship Lord Shiva with water of Ganga,
which pilgrims going from Gangotri as well take some there
to Kedarnath. Kedarnath is the seat of Lord Shiva. It is
one of the twelve "Jyotirlingas" of Lord Shiva.
Lying at an altitude of 3584 m at the head of river Mandakini,
the shrine of Kedarnath is amongst the holiest pilgrimage
for the Hindus. It is no wonder that Adi Guru Shankaracharya
- a great scholar & saint, chose to enshrine Lord Shiva
in this land, where the unholy becomes oly and the holy
becomes holier. It is the place where Lord Shiva absolved
Pandavas from the sin of killing their own cousins Kauravas
in the battle of Kurukshetra. The origin of the revered
temple can be found in the great epic Mahabharat.
At Kedarnath
there are several Kunds (pools, tanks) that are known for
their religious significans - shivkund, Retkund, hanskund,
Udakkund, Rudhirkund are the most important. A little away
from Kedarnath is a temple dedicated to Bhaironathji who
is ceremoniously worshipped at the opening & closing
of Kedarnath. The belief is that Bhairavnathji protects
this land from evil during the time when temple of Kedarnath
is closed.
During
the winters, the shrine is submerged in snow & hence
is closed. Fortunate are those who have good weather, but
twice blessed are those who are at Kedarnath on a moonlit
night- the snow peak gleams like hundred silver pinnacles
atop the glittering mountains.
The
holiest of Shiva's shrines is linked to Gold among base
metals so that every pilgrims finds peace here, and it is
said that devotees who die here become one with Shiva himself.
Beyond the temple is the highway to heaven, called Mahapanth.
According to legend, the place came into being during the
period when the five Pandavas brothers were asked to seek
Shiva's blessings purging them of the sin of killing their
cousins. Lord Shiva unwilling to give darshans to the Pandavas
frled Kashi to live incognito in Guptkashi, where eventually
he was detected by the Pandavas. While fleeing Shiva took
refuge at Kedarnath in the form of a bull and started to
plunge underground when he was spotted by the Pandavas.
He dived into the ground, leaving behind his hump on the
surface. No wonder the natural rock formation that is worshipped
here resembles the hump of a bull. Thus Shiva pleased with
the determination of the Pandavas, exonerated them from
their sin, gave them darshan & bestowed upon them the
opportunity to worship his hump.
The
other four places where Shiva is worshipped take their appearance
from different parts of his body -the naval at Madmaheshwar,
the arms at Tungnath, the face at Rudranath, and the matted
hair at Kalpeshwar. The latter four along with Kedarnath
are known as the Panch Kedars.
SIGHT SEEING & EXCURSION :
Kedarnath Temple: An
imposing sight, standing in the middle of a wide plateau
surrounded by lofty snow covered peaks. The present temple,
built in 8th century A.D. by Adi Shankaracharya, stands
adjacent to the site of an earlier temple built by the Pandavas.
The inner walls of the assembly hall are decorated with
figures of various deities and scenes from mythology. Outside
the temple door a large statue of the Nandi Bull stands
as guard.
Dedicated
to Lord Shiva, the exquisitely architecture Kedarnath temple
is considered to be more than 1000 years old. Built of extremely
large, heavy and evenly cut gray slabs of stones, it evokes
wonder as to how these heavy slabs had been handled in the
earlier days. The temple has a "Garbha Griha"
for worship and a Mandap, apt for assemblies of pilgrims
and visitors. A conical rock formation inside the temple
is worshipped as Lord Shiva in his Sadashiva form.
Shankaracharya
Samadhi : The
Samadhi of Adi Guru Shankaracharya is located just behind
the Kedarnath temple. It is said that after establishing
four sacred Dhams in India, he went into his samadhi at
an early age of 32 years.
Chorabari
(Gandhi Sarovar) : Only
1 km trek away from Kedarnath. Floating-ice on the crystal
clear waters of the lake fascinates the visitors.
Gaurikund
: It is the base for a trek to Kedarnath and serves as a roadhead.
The village has a temple dedicated to Gauri and hot water
springs.
Trijuginarayan
: According
to legend, this was the place where the wedding of Lord
Shiva and Parvati was solemnized. In front of the Shiva
Temple is an eternal flame, which is said to be a witness
to the marriage. It can be reached by a 12 km drive from
Sonprayag.
Ukhimath
: Winter
home of the deity at Kedarnath temple and the seat of the
Rawal of Kedarnath. Connected by bus services to Rudraprayag
and other major centres.
Agastyamuni
: The
temple of sage Agastya is the main attraction here.
Madhmaheshwar
: One
of Panch Kedar, the temple of Madhmaheshwar is located at
an altitude of 3,289 mt above sea-level, on the slope of
a ridge, 25 km north-east of Guptkashi. There is a motorable
road from Guptkashi to Kalimath. The best statue of Har
Gauri in India measuring over a meter high is found in the
Kali temple. The trek from Kalimath to Madhmaheshwar is
distinguished by wild unparalleled scenic beauty and engulfed
by Chaukhamba, Kedarnath and Neelkanth peaks. Gaundar at
the confluence of Madmeshwar Ganga and Markanga Ganga, is
the last settlement before one reaches Madhmaheshwar, the
place where Lord Shiva is worshipped in the form of belly.
Tungnath
: The
arms of Lord Shiva came out as per the Kedarnath myth at
Tungnath. He is worshipped here as one of the Panch Kedar.
Tungnath Temple at an altitude of 3,680 mt, is the highest
Shiva shrine among the Panch Kedar but the easiest to reach
from Chopta, the nearest roadhead.
Accessibility :
Air
: Nearest
Airport, Jollygrant, 239 Kms.
Rail
: Nearest
Railway station, Rishikesh, 221 Kms.
Road
: Kedarnath
is approachable on foot from Gaurikund, which is connected
by road with Rishikesh, Kotdwar, Dehradun, Hardwar and other
important hill stations of Garhwal and Kumaon hills.
Local Transport : Horses, Dandies and Ponies are available
at Gaurikund for going and carrying luggage to Kedarnath.
Accommodation
:
Hotel
Punjab Sindh
Hotel Bikaner House
Himachal House
Sunil Lodge
GMVN TRH
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