Situated in the lap of Nar-Narayan Parvat, with the towering Neelkanth peak
(6,597mts.) in the background, the River Alakananda flows beside. Badrinath is
one of the most revered Hindu shrines of India. This hill resort is a famous
pilgrimage for the Hindus as the temple of the God Vishnu is situated here. It
is believed that to revive the lost prestige of Hinduism and to unite the
country in one bond, Adi Guru Sri Shankaracharya built four pilgrimage centres
in four corners of India. Among them were Badrikashram in the north, Rameshwaram
in the south, Dwarkapuri in the west and Jagannath Puri in the east. Badrinath
situated at an elevation of 3,133 mts. is considered to be amongst the most
pious.
The famous temple of Hindus, Badrinath was built by the Garhwal kings about 2
centuries ago. It dates back to the time when Sri Shankaracharya who has found
the math in the 8th century A.D. The temple is 15 metes in height and has a dome
of a gilt bull and spire. On the right bank of Alaknanda lies the sacred spot.
Encircled by a beautiful valley, the 15 mts. high temple is dedicated to Lord
Vishnu. It is built in the form of a cone with a small cup of a ilt bull and
spire.
The temple is divided into three parts the ?garbha griha’ or sanctum
sanctorum, the ?darshan mandap’ where the rituals are conducted and the ’sabha
mandap’ Where devotees assemble. Within the temple complex there are 15 idols
sculptured in black stone. Lord Vishnu in a meditative posture flanked by Nar
and Narayan is th eprinciple idol while other images of Goddess Laxmi, Garud
(Vishnu’s mount), Lord Shiva, Parvati and Ganesha are also there. Specially
attractive is the one metre high image of Sri Badrinathji, finely sculpted in
black stone. It represents lord Vishnu seated in a meditative pose.
On the banks of river Alaknanda on a flat platform called the Brahma Kapal
you can catch Hindus propitiating sacred rites for their deceased ancestors.
About 1.5 kms away at Sheshnetra you can see a boulder looking like a snake
known as the Sheshnag’s eye, the legendary snake. Charanpaduka, about 3 kms away
from the Badrinath is a beautiful meadow with foot prints of Lord Vishnu on the
boulder. Besides the snowy peak towering over Badrinath is the spectacular
Neelkanth Mountain, popularly called the ?Garhwal Queen’.
Badri refers to a berry that was said to grow abundantly in the area, and
nath refers to Vishnu. Badri is the Sanskrit name for the Indian Jujube tree,
which has an edible berry. Some scriptural references also refer to Jujube trees
being abundant in , Kotdwar and other hill
stations of Garhwal and Kumaon region. Situated 297 kms from the holy town of
Rishikesh and about 600 kms from Delhi
Places to stay:
Chardham Camp
Hotel Narayan Palace
Park Inn
Hotel Devlok
(GMVN
Travellers Lodge (GMVN)
About the author
HI, My name is Mayank and I have worked for Tourism Department of India for 10 years. Now I provide travellers information on various places on my website.
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