We all have heard about the famous Kedarnath temple, even one of us had witnessed the tragedy that happens in this sacred place a few years ago, when the entire Kedarnath witnessed a major flood and thousands of people lost their homes, lives, and families and what not. Even people living there still do not forget about that scary tragedy. Kedarnath is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of the lord shiva and is situated at an altitude of, 3580 m in the lap of the Himalayas. Kedarnath is a famous Hindu temple, which is considered the Hindu holy pilgrimage, chota char Dham.
Kedarnath derives from 2 words, Kedar, which is a Sanskrit word that means, field, and Natha means Lord. Overall, Kedarnath means the field of the Lord.
The Kedarnath Dham, where the devotees come from far across the country to seek the lord Shiva’s blessings and offer their prayers. The temple was built by Adi Shankaracharya in the 8th century A.D. near the Mandakini River which is mesmerizing and surrounded by the snow-capped mountains, the rhododendron forests, and an amazing environment that makes Kedarnath Dham Yatra a beautiful live memorable place to stay. This is the temple that stood for more than 1000 years, and it is said that the temple was under the snow for almost 400 years during the time period of the little ice age between 1300-1900 AD.
Mainly, people come to Kedarnath to see peace, and the devotees experience immense peace of mind while going on a journey to Kedarnath. Even though the temple survived the worst flash floods in 2013, since then the temple is more famous and has a unique place in the eyes of devotees. This pilgrimage is one of the most prominent pilgrimages for Hindus in the country.
There is a story that legends say that, after the great victory of Mahabharata, Pandavas who killed their brothers Kaurava had the guilt of killing their blood relatives or brothers, so they sought Lord Shiva to absolve themselves of their sins. Shiva didn’t want to release them from their deeds so easily, and they disguised themselves as a bull to roam in Garhwal Himalayas. On being discovered by Pandavas, Shiva dived into the ground and Bhima tried to catch him and could only get hold of the hump.
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While the other body parts of Shiva in the form of a bull came up at different places. The hump of the bull was found in Kedarnath, the navel found at Madhya-Maheshwar, two forelegs appeared at Tunganath, the face in Rudra Nath, and hair came up at Kalpeshwar. All these together, five sacred places are called Panch Kedar. It is said that the originally Pandavas built the temple of Kedarnath; the present temple was established by Adi Shankaracharya, who restored and revived the glory of this sacred place.
Well, currently the temple is closed, meanwhile, the temple is closed every year after the celebrations of Diwali due to harsh weather conditions.
The Opening Date: April 25, 2023
Closing Date: November 14, 2023
How to reach the temple?
By Air- The nearest airport is the Jolly Grant airport on Rishikesh-Dehradun Road, one can hire a taxi to Gauri Kund or to Haridwar/Rishikesh.
BY TRAIN- Regular trains from Delhi to Haridwar and Dehradun are available throughout the year.
BY BUS- Gaurikund is connected by motorable roads, and buses and taxis from important destinations like Rishikesh, Dehradun, Uttarkashi, Pauri, Tehri, and Chamoli are easily accessible.
