Chota char dham

chota char dham...

1. Chota Char Dham There are four abodes in Himalayas collectively referred as “CHOTA CHAR DHAM”, which includes four holy shrines of Hindus Badrinath , Kedarnath , Gangotri & Yamunotri . All of these temples are situated within the Garwhal region of Uttarakhand . Among 4 sacred sites Kedarnath is dedicated to Lord Shiva while Badrinath is dedicated to lord Vishnu. On the other hand Yamunotri and Gangotri are dedicated to Goddess Ganga and Yamuna rivers respectively. DELHI - HARIDWAR - BARKOT - YAMUNOTRI - UTTARKASHI - GANGOTRI - GUPTKASHI - KEDARNATH - BADRINATH - RISHIKESH - DELHI .

2. Chardham Route Map

3. Yamunotri First stop over for Char Dham Yatra . Origin of the River Yamuna . Situated 3293m above sea level The temple at Yamunotri is dedicated to Goddess Yamuna. The temple at Yamunotri was built by Tehri Naresh Sudarshan Shah in 1839 . In the late 19th century, it was rebuilt by Maharani Gularia of Jaipur .

4. Major Attractions at Yamunotri The main temple built by the Maharani of Jaipur is the center of attraction at Yamunotri . Divyasheel ' is the stone placed before the temple and it is a ritual to worship it before entering the sanctum Surya Kund , a hot water spring- where the temperature reaches 88 degrees. Saptrishi Kund or the origin of the Yamuna, there is a 12km trek The Hanuman Kund is about a kilometre away

5. How to reach? By air- nearest airport to Yamunotri is Dehradun , located 190km away. By Railways- nearest railhead is at Rishikesh , 202 km away from Yamunotri . By Road-There are taxies and buses available . Further the trek to the temple is about 14kms from Hanuman Chatti and 6 kms from Janki Chatti .

6. Images of Yamunotri temple

7. Gangotri The Gangotri Temple is situated on the right banks of the Bhagirathi river.  This temple is dedicated to the goddess Ganga . This temple is situated at a height of 3140 meters The original temple was constructed by the Gorkha General Amar Singh Thapa in the early 18th century and later rebuilt by the Maharaja of Jaipur . 

8. Major Attractions Bhagirath Shila - where Raja Bhagirath used to worship Shiva is situated near the temple . Shivlinga -There is a natural rock Shivling which is submerged in the river and an amazing place to visit.  Gaumukh -The Gaumukh (Cow's Mouth) is the snout of the Gangotri Glacier and the source of the Bhagirathi river. The Gangotri glacier is situated at a height of 4255 meters and 18 kms away.

9. How to reach Gangotri ? By Air: The nearest airport is in Dehradun , situated about 226 kms from Gangotri . By Rail: The nearest railway station is located in Rishikesh , about 249 kms . By Road: Gangotri is well connected by road to Rishikesh , Dehra Dun, Haridwar and Delhi.

10. Gaumukh Glacier

11. Images at Gangotri

12. Kedarnath Kedarnath in Uttarakhand is one of the most prominent sacred pilgrimages, particularly for the Hindus. Kedarnath is located in the Himalayas, about 3,583 m above  sea level The temple was built by Pandavas and revived by  Adi Sankaracharya in 8 th Century. One of the 12 jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva

13. Major Attractions Gaurikund :-  At a distance of 5kms from Sonprayag and at an altitude of 1982 meters., one can take bath in the hot water pond here and visit the Gauri Temple. This is the place where Goddess Parvathi meditated to attain Lord Shiva . Triyugnarayan - where wedding of lord shiva and parvati was solemnised .

14. How to reach? By Air :  The nearest convenient Air port is Delhi and Dehradun By Rail :  The nearest convenient railway station are Dehradun and Haridwar . These are well connected with Delhi, Mumbai, Calcutta and rest of India through Rail netwaork . By Road :   Kedarnath is connected by road with Badrinath (242 KM), Dehradun (268 KM), Delhi (450 KM), Haridwar (250 KM), Kotdwar (256 KM), and Rishikesh (226 KM). Route :   Rishikesh to Kedarnath vai Rudraprayag :- Rishikesh -> Rudraprayaga -> Agastamuni -> Kund -> Gupta kashi -> Phata -> Soneprayag -> Gauri Kund . Gouri Kund to Kedarnath is 14 KM.

15. Images at Kedarnath 1880 2012

16. Kedarnath 2014

17. Images Gaurikund T riyugnarayan

18. Badrinath Badrinath temple  is one of the famous shrines of Chardham Yatra dedicated to Lord Vishnu Badrinath has an average elevation of 3,100  metres   The major attraction of Badrinath Dham is the one meter tall statue of Vishnu in the form of Lord Badrinarayan . The temple's was built by the Kings of Garhwal about two centuries ago . The temple has three sections - Garbhagriha (Sanctum), The Darshan Mandap , and Sabha Mandap . The Garbhagriha (Sanctum) houses Lord Badri Narayan , Kuber (God of wealth), Narad Rishi , Uthavar , Nar & Narayan .

19. Major attractions The pilgrimage centre boasts of t wo natural hot water springs - Tapt Kund and Surya Kund . The sulphurous waters have a temperature of 55C . A bath in these springs is believed to purify the body and soul and is done before visiting the temple.

20. How to reach? Air The nearest airport is in   Dehradun  317 km (197 mi) away by road. Railway The nearest railway stations are at  Rishikesh (at 297 km) . However , Rishikesh is a small railway station not connected by fast trains. Haridwar  railway junction, 24 km farther from Rishikesh , has train connections to most of the major cities in India and is, therefore, the railhead for Badrinath . Road Rishikesh is the major starting point for road journey to Badrinath . Regular buses operate from Rishikesh bus station to Badrinath and

21. Images at Badrinath