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"The Himalayas have been revered
as the abode of divinity, since
the dawn of Indian religious
thought. Several venerated
pilgrimage sites dot the foothills
and the peaks of the Himalayas.
The Ganges, revered as a holy
river originates in the glaciers
in the unsurmountable heights of
the mighty Himalayan ranges. Most
noteworthy of the Himalayan
pilgrimage sites are Badrinath and
Kedarnath."
The Abode Of Lord
Vishnu
Cradled in the twin mountain
ranges of Nar and Narayan is the
holiest of the four main
shrines, Badrinath along the
left bank river Alaknanda. With
the splendid Neelkanth mountains
as the backdrop, it is an
important destination on the
scared itinerary of every devour
Hindu. Once the spot was
carpeted with 'badris' or wild
berries and hence was famous as
'Badri Van'.
Badrinath is considered the
holiest of the four important
shrines in Garhwal. The town is
at an altitude of 3,133 m. above
sea level, situated on the left
bank of river Alaknanda and
exactly between the two
mountains Nara and Narayan. The
shrine is dedicated to Vishnu,
the preserver and falls in the
religious itinerary of every
devout Hindu.
The present temple was built
about two centuries ago by
Garhwal Kings. It is a conical
structure, 15 m. tall and has
small cupola of a gilt bull and
spire. There are 15 idols in the
temple complex, each sculpted in
black stone. The principal idol
represents Vishnu in a
meditative posture and is
flanked by Nara-Narayan. Legend
dates it prior to the Vedic age
though it is believed to have
been re-established by Adi
Shankaracharya, an important
Hindu saint in 8th century A.D.
Some of the other images include
Laxmi (Vishnu's consort), Garud
(Vishnu's mount), Shiva &
Parvati and Ganesha.
The temple has been renovated
several times due to damages by
avalanches. It looks fairly
modern now due to the colourful
"Singh Dwara" or the main
entrance gate. It has three
parts- Garbha Griha (the sanctum
sanctorum), Darshan Mandap (for
pujas) and Shobha Mandap (for
devotees to assemble). The
revered shrine is still alive
with myriad legends from
mythology. Its sanctity is
emphasised in the ancient
scriptures as "There are many
sacred spots of pilgrimage in
the heavens, earth and the
nether world, but there has been
none equal to Badri, nor shall
there be".
Mythological
Legend
Legend has it, when the Ganga
was requested to descend to
earth to help suffering
humanity, the earth was unable
to withstand the force of its
descent. Therefore the mighty
Ganaga was split into twelve
holy channels. Alaknanda was one
of them that later became the
abode of Lord Vishnu or
Badrinath.
The temple of Shri Badrinathji
on the banks of the Alaknanda
river, dates back to the vedic
times. Situated at an altitude
of 3,133 mts., the present
temple is believed to have been
built by Adi Guru Shankaracharya-
an 8th century's
philosopher-saint, who also
established a 'math' here. Also
known as 'Vishal Badri',
Badrinath is one of the Panch
Badris.
Panch Badris
or Five Badris
Besides the main temple of
Badrinath there are four other
smaller badri temples. These are
collectively called the panch
badris or five badris. Very few
pilgrims however, visit the
other four Badri temples.
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Yogadhyan Badri (1920 m.)
Closest to the main temple
of Badrinath lies this
tiny, sleepy hamlet which
remains unnoticed by most
pilgrims and is the winter
home for the idol at
Badrinath. Pandukeshwar is
also an important
archaeological site. Some
years ago, four ancient
metal foils engraved with
a description of several
kings in the region were
discovered here. Believed
to be over 1500 years old,
these foils are kept at
Joshimath, 30 km
downstream.
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Bhavishya Badri (2,744 m.)
The bhavishya or future
badri is situated at
Subain near Tapovan, about
17 km east of Joshimath.
According to Hindu belief,
when evil is on the rise
in this world, the two
mountains Nara and Narayan
at Badrinath will close up
on each other and destroy
the route to the present
Badrinath. This would also
mark the end of the
present world and the
beginning of a new one.
Lord Badrinath will then
appear at the Bhavishya
Badri temple and be
worshipped here instead of
at the present one.
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Bridha
Badri or the 'Old Badri'
Bridha Badri or the 'old
Badri' is the third temple
about 7 kms short of
Joshimath, on the main
Rishikesh-Badrinath motor
road at Animath. It is
believed that Badrinath
was worshipped here before
its enshrinement by
Shankaracharya at the main
Badrinath seat. The temple
of Bridha Badri is open
throughout the year.
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Adi
Badri
Adi Badri is the farthest
from the other four badris.
It is approachable from
Karnaprayag by a motorable
road enroute Ranikhet. The
temple complex has 16
small temples with
intricate carvings.
Seven of these temples
belong to the late Gupta
period. Local tradition
assigns these buildings to
Shankaracharya. The main
temple is distinguished by
a pyramid shaped raised
platform, with a black
stone idol of Vishnu.
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Pilgrimage
Attractions in Badrinath
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Badrinath Temple
On the right bank of
Alaknanda lies the sacred
spot perched at an
altitude of 3,133 metres
above the sea level.
Encircled by a beautiful
valley, the 15mtrs. High
temple is dedicated to
Lord Vishnu, it is built
in the form of a cone with
a small cupola of gilt
bull and spire. Built by
Adi Guru Shankaracharya -
the philosopher-saint of
the 8th century, the
temple has been renovated
several times due to
damage by avalanches. Its
colourful 'Singh Dwara' or
the main entrance gate
gives it a new, modern
look.
The temple divided into
three parts - the 'garbha
griba' or sanctum
sanctorum, the 'darshan
mandap' where the rituals
are conducted and the 'sabha
mandap'where devotees
assemble.The complex has
15 idols. Especially
attractive is the one
metre high image of
Badrinath, finely sculpted
in black stone. It
represents Lord Vishnu
seated in meditative pose.
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Tapt
Kund
Devotees take a holy dip
in the natural thermal
springs on the banks of
the river Alaknanda,
before entering the
Badrinath Temple. The
water of the kund is
believed to have medicinal
properties.
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Hemkund
Sahib (43 kms.)
Near the Valley of Flowers
is the holy lake Hemkund-
an important pilgrimage of
the Sikhs and Hindus.
Along its shores is the
sacred Sikh Shrine where
Guru Gobind Singh, the
tenth Guru unified with
God after prolonged
mediation in his previous
birth.
Nearby is the Lakshman
Temple where Lakshman -
the brother of Lord Rama
performed his penance. The
reflection of surrounding
snow-clad peaks in its
placid waters offers a
scenic sight.
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Brahma
Kapal
A flat platform on the
bank of river Alaknanda
where Hindus perform
propitiating rites for
their deceased ancestors.
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Neelkanth
A Pyramidical-shaped snowy
peak towering above
Badrinath, popularly known
as the 'Garhwal Queen'.
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Mana
Village (4 kms.)
Inhabited by Indo-Mangolian
tribe, it is considered to
be the last Indian village
before Tibet on this
route. Nearby are Vyas
Gufa- the rock cave of
saint Ved Vyas, the writer
of Mahabharata; Bhim Pul-
a natural bridge over the
Saraswati river and
Vasundhara Falls- a 122
mts. high waterfall- all
forming and important part
of the pilgrimage to
Badrinath.
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Mata
Murti Temple (3 kms.)
On the right bank of
Alaknanda stands the
temple dedicated to the
mother of Sri Badrinathji.
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Alka
Puri (15 kms.)
The source of Alaknanda
river from the glacier
snouts of Bhagirath-
Kharak and Satopanth
glaciers.
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Satopanth (25 kms.)
A three cornered lake with
a circumference of about 1
km., situated at an
elevation of 4,402 mts.
above sea level. It is
named ater the Hindu
triad- Brahma, Vishnu and
Mahesh, who are believed
to occupy one corner each
of the lake. The trek is
hazardous with dramatic
landscapes. An experienced
guide is advisable.
Govindghat (25 kms.)
The confluence of
Alaknanda and Lakshman
Ganga rivers. It has an
imposing Gurudwara named
after Guru Gobind Singh.
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Joshimath (44 kms.)
The winter home of Shri
Badrinathji is situated on
the slopes above the
confluence of Alaknanda
and Dhauliganga. It is one
of the four 'maths'
established by Adi Guru
Shankaracharya.
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Panch
Prayag
The five important
confluences- Deoprayag,
Nandprayag, Rudraprayag,
Karnaprayag and
Vishuprayag, form the
Panch Prayag.
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Deoprayag
The confluence of
Alaknanda and Bhagirathi
rivers. Ancient stone
scriptures are found here.
Important pilgrim spots
are Shiv Temple and
Raghunath Temple.
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Rudraprayag
The confluence of
Alaknanda and Mandakini
rivers. The temples of
Rudranath and Chamunda
Devi are noteworthy.
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Nandprayag
The confluence of
Alaknanda and Mandakini
rivers. The Gopalji Temple
is worth a visit.
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Karnaprayag
The confluence of
Alaknanda and Pindar
rivers with temples of Uma
and Karna.
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Vishnuprayag
The confluence of
Alaknanda and Dhauliganga
rivers. An ancient temple
of Lord Vishnu stands here
by a pool called Vishnu
Kund.
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Srinagar
The old capital of Garhwal,
it is an important
cultural and educational
centre. Places to visit
include Kamleshwar and
Kilkeshwar temples and the
Shankar Math.
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Accessibility
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Airport
Jolly Grant (317 kms.)
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Railhead
Rishikesh (300 kms.),
Kotdwar (327 kms.)
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Road
Well connected to
Rishikesh, Haridwar,
Dehradun, Kotdwar and
other hill stations of
Garhwal and Kumaon region.
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