3. Kedarnath Temple
Kedarnath Temple
Location in Uttarakhand
Coordinates:30°44′N 79°4′E
Name
Proper name:Kedarnath
Location
Country:India
State:Uttarakhand
Location:Kedarnath
Temple Details
Primary Deity:Kedarnath, 'Lord of Kedar Khand'
(Shiva)
4.
5. Kedarnath Temple
Kedarnath Mandir (Kedarnath Temple) is one of the
holiest Hindu temples dedicated to the god Shiva and is located on the
Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini
river in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand in India. Due to extreme weather
conditions, the temple is open only between the end of April (Akshay
trutya) to Kartik Purnima (the autumn full moon, usually November)
every year. During the winters, the vigrahas (deities) from Kedarnath
temple are brought to Ukhimath and worshipped there for six months.
Lord Shiva is worshipped as Kedarnath, the 'Lord of Kedar
Khand', the historical name of the region.
6. The temple is not directly accessible by
road and has to be reached by a 14
kilometres (8.7 mi) uphill trek
from Gaurikund. Pony and manchan
service is also available. The temple is
believed to have been built
by Pandavas and revived by Adi
Sankaracharya and is one of the
twelve Jyotirlingas, the holiest Hindu
shrines of Shiva. Pandavas were
supposed to have pleased Shiva by doing
penance in Kedarnath.
7. The temple is also one of the four
major sites in India's Chota Char
Dhampilgrimage of Northern
Himalayas.Kedarnath was the worst
affected area during the 2013 flash
floods in North India. The temple
complex and surrounding areas
suffered extensive damage. However,
aerial photos showed that the temple
itself was still standing among the
surrounding debris
8. The temple, located at an height of 3,583 m (11,755 ft), 223 km
from Rishikesh, on the shores of Mandakini river, a tributary
ofGanges, is an impressive stone edifice of unknown date. The structure
is believed to have been constructed about 1200 years ago. According to
Hindu mythology, during the Mahabharatha war, the Pandavas killed
their relatives; in order to absolve themselves of this sin, the Pandavas
undertook a pilgrimage. But Lord Vishweshwara was away in Kailasa
in the Himalayas. On learning this, the Pandavas left Kashi. They
saw Lord Shankara from a distance. But Lord Shankara hid from
them. Then Dharmaraj said: “Oh, Lord, You have hidden yourself
from our sight because we have sinned. But, we will seek You out
somehow. Only after we take your Darshan would our sins be washed
away. This place, where You have hidden Yourself will be known as
Guptkashi and become a famous shrine.”
9. The first hall inside the temple contains
statues of the five Pandava brothers,
Lord Krishna, Nandi, the vehicle
of Shiva and Virabhadra, one of the
guards of Shiva. Statue of Draupadi
and other dieties are also installed in
the main hall. A medium sized rough
stone is worhispped in the Garbagruha
of Kedarnath temple. An unusual
feature of the temple is the head of a
man carved in the triangular stone
fascia of the temple.
10. Such a head is seen carved in
another temple nearby constructed
on the site where the marriage of
Shiva andParvati was held. Adi
Shankara was believed to have
revived this temple, along with
Badrinath and other temples of
Uttarakhand and he is believed to
have attained mahasamadhi at
Kedaranath. Behind the temple is
the samādhi mandir of Adi
Sankara.
11.
12. The Kedarnath valley, along with other parts of the state
of Uttarakhand, was hit with unprecedented flash floods on 16 and
17 June 2013 almost after 80 years.Although temple withstood the
severity of the floods, the temple complex and surrounding area were
destroyed with the flood, resulting death of several thousands of
pilgrims and local people.All the shops and hotels were destroyed and
all roads were broken. Number of people took shelter inside the
temple for hours together , until Indian army airlifted them to safer
places. The Uttarakhand Chief Minister announced that the
Kedarnath shrine would remain closed for a year for clearing the
debris around the shrine.
13. Rock saved Kedarnath
Temple
As the floods waters were carrying stones
and boulders with it, one large rock that
carried upto the temple and settled at the
rear side of the Kedarnath Temple. This
caused an obstruction to the debris and water
which were coming down the mountain side,
diverting the flow to the sides of the temple
and effectively the main force of the flash
flood was taken away from the temple, thus
minimising the damage.
