BADARINATH DHAM

Location: Right Bank River Alaknanda

Dedicated To: Lord Vishnu

Altitude: 3133 Mt.

Built In: 8th Century AD

Badarinath Dham is considered as one of the most sacred centres of pilgrimage situated in the lofty Himalayan heights in the Garhwal hill tracks (Uttarakhand). Situated at the height of 3133 m (10248 feet) above sea level. The route to Badarinath is one of the most fascinating one due to the lofty hilly terrain, curves and cliffs amidst the most scenically beautiful place on the earth.

Throughout the route to Badarinath there are numerous pilgrimage sites at Deo Prayag, Rudraprayag, Karnaprayag, Nandaprayag and Vishnuprayag; as well as Pandukeswar where king Pandu observed Tapasya with his queen Madri and where his sons Pandavas, stayed during their pilgrimage to heaven, and the site where Bhima and Hanuman (sons of Vayu) met.

At Badarinath Lord MahaVishnu is believed to have done his penance. Seeing the Lord doing his penance in the open, Goddess Mahalaxmi is believed to have assumed the form of Badari tree to provide him shelter to face the onslaught of the adverse weather conditions, therefore the name Badari Narayan. It is believed that Lord Vishnu revealed to Narad rishi that Nar & Naryans forms were his own. It is also believed that Narad rishi, who also did his penance here, is even now worshipping the supreme God with Ashtakshara mantras.

The image of Badarinarayan here is fashioned out of Saligramam. Badarinarayan is seen under the Badari tree, flanked by Kuber and Garuda, Narad, Narayan and Nar. Mahalakshmi has a sanctum outside in the parikrama. There is also a shrine to Adi Sankara at Badarinath.

Behind the temple of Lord Badarinarayan is the Lakshmi Narsimh mandir, with shrines to Desikacharya and Ramanujachary.At Badarinath one can witness one of the greatest wonders of Nature in the Hot water springs of Taptkund on the banks of ice chilled river Alaknanda. The temperature of the water in the Kund is 55 degree centigrade whereas the normal temperature in this region for most part of the year remains at 9-10 degree centigrade to sub-zero levels. Before visiting the temple the pilgrims take a holy bath in the Taptkund.

The Temple's present structure was built by the Kings of Garhwal. The Temple has three sections - Garbhagriha (Sanctum), the Darshan Mandap, and Sabha Mandap. The Garbhagriha (Sanctum) houses Lord Badari Narayan, Kuber (God of wealth), Narad rishi, Udhava, Nar & Narayan.

Lord Badari Narayan (also called as Badari Vishal) is armed with Shankh (Conch) and Chakra in two arms in a lifted posture and two arms rested on the lap in Yogamudra.The principal image is of black stone and it represents Vishnu seated in meditative pose. The temple also houses Garuda (Vehicle of Lord Narayan). Also here are the idols of Adi Shankar, Swami Desikan and Shri Ramanujam. Guru-Shisya parampara is supposed to have its roots here.

Best Time to visit:- The ideal time or peak season to go for a Char Dham Yatra is from May to October, except monsoons. This is because; all the four sacred sites are perched in Garhwal Himalayas, which is prone to heavy snowfall. As a result, all the passage leading to the shrines are blocked. Moreover, during the monsoon season, there is undue threat of having landslides, which can further disrupt the journey.

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GETTING THERE

Air : Nearest airport is Jolly Grant, 317 kms.
Rail : Nearest railhead is at Rishikesh, 300 kms.
Road : Well connected to Rishikesh, Haridwar, Dehradun and Delhi.

Best Time To Visit In Kedarnath Dham

Best Time To Visit In Kedarnath
If you are looking the best time to visit in kedarnath or rest of 3 dham(char dham yatra).according to weater September to october is the best time to visit in kedarnath or other dham in uttarakhand.. in September month, all 30 days are very clear to visit in kedarnath.

Benefit to visit in September at Kedarnath - in september month, there is no cloud reflecting. whole day the weather is so cool and clear. cheap rooms are available in September due to down season.even the hiring rate of horse, mule and Pithus (palki) is also down.weather in vasuki tal and gandhi sarovar is also clear in September month. you can also see different types of all beautiful flowers in kedarnath valley and one of them is brahma kamal, a famous flower which is also state flower of uttarakhand. traffic jams is boggling for all pilgrim in uttarakhand for char dham yatra but in september month you can reach without traffic jams. it is time when the few people ride up to kedarnath everyday. and no one is so far from other in the trek of kedarnath.so September is the best time to visit in kedarnath.

KEDARNATH DHAM

KEDARNATH DHAM

Kedarnath temple is one of the sacred pilgrimage centre in Northern India, located on the bank of Mandakini river at an altitude of 3584 meters above sea level. The historical name of this region is "Kedar Khand". Kedarnath temple is a part of Char Dhams and Panch Kedar in Uttarakhand and one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva in India.

Kedarnath is flanked by breathtaking snow-capped peaks, making it the most remote site among all four Char Dham sites. But each year the followers of Lord Shiva visit this holy temple. The scenic beauty of Kedarnath town attracts lots of tourists from all over the world. You will find it quite crowded during the summer season (May and June). In the month of April to August thousands of devotees come to visit the Kedarnath Temple. During Winter season , Kedarnath is closed for six month due to Heavy snowfall and Extreme Cold weather

History and Importance of Kedarnath Temple

Renowned temple Kedarnath is dedicated to incarnations of Lord Shiva. Kedarnath is named after King Kedar who ruled in the Satya Yuga. It is believed that Kedarnath Dham is the place where Lord Shiva absolved Pandavas from the sin of killing their own cousins Kauravas in the battle of Kurukshetra war. There is an interesting Story behind the Town and its temple. According to the Puranas, the Pandava brothers did a major penance in Kedarnath to please Lord Shiva.

Earlier the temple was built by Pandavas and Present temple was built by Adi Shankaracharya. Just Behind the temple you will seen samadhi of Adi Shankaracharya.

Places To See In Kedarnath Temple

Gaurikund: Gaurikund is the commencement point of the trek of 14kms to the sacred shrine of Kedarnath. The place is named after Goddess Parvati, wife of Lord Shiva and a temple Gauri is also situated here. It is believed that Lord Shiva accepted to marry Parvati at this place and married her in Trijuginarayan. The place offers vivid greenery with Vasuki Ganga flowing from below. Gaurikund is situated 66kms from Rudraprayag. Dmage has been done to Gaurikund by the floods but the place and the temple is still intact.

Vasuki Tal: Vasuki Tal can be reached by a 7km moderate trek from Kedarnath. The lake is located at an altitude of 4,150mts above sea level surrounded by Himalayan peaks casting their shadows on the crystal clear water of Vasuki Tal.

Shankaracharya Samadhi: Adi Shankaracharya was a great scholar and a saint who established four sacred dhams in India and after that he went to his Samadhi at an early age of 32.

Sarangpur Hanumanji Temple Schedule

• Mangla Aarti ( Morning )5:30
• Bal Bhog ( Darshan Closed ) ( Morning )6:30 TO 7:30
• Shangar Aarti ( Only on Saturdays and Tuesdays ( Morning )7:00
• Rajbhog – Thal ( Darshan Closed ) ( Morning )10:30 to 11:00
• Darshan Closed ( Noon )12:00 to 3:15
• Sandhya ( Evening ) Aarti ( Evening )On Sunset Evening Timings
• Thal ( Darshan Closed )Till 30 minutes to post evening Aarti
• Shayan ( Darshan Closed ) ( Night )9:00 TO ( Morning ) 5:30

Introduction of Sarangpur Hanumanji Temple



This Hanumanji temple is considered most holy and sacred. It is among the more prominent ones

in the Swaminarayan Sampraday. The image of Hanuman was installed by Sadguru Gopalanand

Swami on Ashwini vadi pancham -savant 1905 (as per Hindu calandar). The image of this temple

is said to be so powerful that a mere look atit by people affected by evil spirits,drives the evil

spirits out of the people affected. Sarangpur is easilyreached by bus or car, as it is only

82 km from Bhavnagar.There can be a long wait at the temple gatesometimes,mainly on Saturdays.

The temple is really big and spacious, and the statue of Lord Hanumanis really impressive. Make

sure to collect the holy water from the well. There are counters where you can pay

your donations against a receipt for the same. You will also be given a plasticbag containing prasad

invisitors at the form of sukhdis, a Gujarati sweet. Thetemple was renovated recently. Food isserved

free to all visitors at the temple’s dining room. This dining room is run by the temple’s trust as well

as the Swaminarayana templelocated in the same complex. Around 5,000 people take prasad in

the form of lunch daily.This figure will be at least double on Saturdays. Booklets of Hanuman

Chalisa are available in all formsand sizes at very nominal rates. There is a dharmshala

located near the gate of the temple, where thepeople can stay overnight if they wish. The temple

hours are 6 am to 12 noon, 3 pm to 9 pm every day.Buses are available from all the main cities

of Gujarat.